My white neighbor thought I was breaking into my own apartment. Nineteen cops showed up.

[Saviolo]

From the Washington Post, columnist Fay Wells tells a story:

The place I call home no longer feels safe.

On Sept. 6, I locked myself out of my apartment in Santa Monica, Calif. I was in a rush to get to my weekly soccer game, so I decided to go enjoy the game and deal with the lock afterward.

A few hours and a visit from a locksmith later, I was inside my apartment and slipping off my shoes when I heard a man’s voice and what sounded like a small dog whimpering outside, near my front window. I imagined a loiterer and opened the door to move him along. I was surprised to see a large dog halfway up the staircase to my door. I stepped back inside, closed the door and locked it.

I heard barking. I approached my front window and loudly asked what was going on. Peering through my blinds, I saw a gun. A man stood at the bottom of the stairs, pointing it at me. I stepped back and heard: “Come outside with your hands up.” I thought: This man has a gun and will kill me if I don’t come outside. At the same time, I thought: I’ve heard this line from policemen in movies. Although he didn’t identify himself, perhaps he’s an officer.

I left my apartment in my socks, shorts and a light jacket, my hands in the air. “What’s going on?” I asked again. Two police officers had guns trained on me. They shouted: “Who’s in there with you? How many of you are there?”

After the officers and dog exited my “cleared” apartment, I was allowed back inside to speak with some of them. They asked me why I hadn’t come outside shouting, “I live here.” I told them it didn’t make sense to walk out of my own apartment proclaiming my residence when I didn’t even know what was going on. I also reminded them that they had guns pointed at me. Shouting at anyone with a gun doesn’t seem like a wise decision.

I had so many questions. Why hadn’t they announced themselves? Why had they pointed guns at me? Why had they refused to answer when I asked repeatedly what was going on? Was it protocol to send more than a dozen cops to a suspected burglary? Why hadn’t anyone asked for my ID or accepted it, especially after I’d offered it? If I hadn’t heard the dog, would I have opened the door to a gun in my face? “Maybe,” they answered.

Read the whole article here: https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/11/18/my-white-neighbor-thought-i-was-breaking-into-my-own-apartment-nineteen-cops-showed-up/

And please, for the love of all that is good in this world, do -not- read the comments. I accidentally skimmed a few, and now I hate everything.

[lpbk2713]

1. I hope her heart rate and BP are back to normal.

I doubt if mine would be.

Fuggen idiots have an excuse for every occasion.


_____________________________________________________________________


Edit: Just noticed OP was written in third person. Corrected subject line appropriately.

[Cheese Sandwich]

16. She'll never be the same again. It's almost like PTSD or something.

Abuse makes people sick.

[onecaliberal]

2. Geezuz. I'm sorry this happened to him. WTH!

[Saviolo]

3. Her, in fact!

From the article:

I had no idea what was happening, but I saw how it would end: I would be dead in the stairwell outside my apartment, because something about me — a 5-foot-7, 125-pound black woman — frightened this man with a gun. I sat down, trying to look even less threatening, trying to de-escalate. I again asked what was going on. I confirmed there were no pets or people inside.

[onecaliberal]

4. Wow, I think it's crazy the white woman didn't even rcognize her own neighbor.

[Rose Siding]

7. The neighbor was a man

Educated, white man

He stuttered about never having seen me, before snippily asking if I knew my next-door neighbor. After confirming that I did and questioning him further, he angrily responded, “I’m an attorney, so you can go f— yourself,” and walked away.

[SoCalMusicLover]

27. Sounds Racially Motivated To Me

The neighbor probably doesn't want a black person living next to him. Perhaps he was hoping the cops would shoot first, ask questions later. A Win Win for the neighbor.

[Mariana]

73. Most likely.

There are white people who will call police on a black person and say the black person is "acting suspiciously" just so they can enjoy watching the black person being hassled (or worse) by the cops.

[Demeter]

55. Then I hope she sues him for defamation of character and endangering her life

That would be justice.

[Joe Chi Minh]

64. Absolutely.

[DVRacer]

76. Drunk man

He was drunk when you listen to the audio of the incident

[onecaliberal]

77. Wow. But the cops only sought out the black woman. Just pathetic.

[IDemo]

5. I've found that it's not a good idea to bother with the comments on any MSM site

The RW malevolence and lunacy permeate pretty much every story. I'm not sure what the media feels is gained by supporting such idiocy.

[Saviolo]

8. It's so disheartening

Big cheering section for police overreach and overreaction. She should feel happy that her neighbours cared enough to look out for a potential burglary? Fine, but 19 cops for one burglar? Talk about overreaction.

No effort to assess the situation, no effort to de-escalate, no effort to actually help, just there to go in guns blazing and bash some heads.

[tosh]

19. Seriously.

I'm impatient for them all to be "raptured" away!

[Admiral Loinpresser]

66. "MSM" is a misnomer.

There is only a CCM, "Corporate Controlled Media." The remainder is a few truth tellers like Thom Hartmann.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

6. Henry Gates. nt

[DetlefK]

9. Well, they neither beat him bloody nor killed him. Come on! That must count for some something!

[kath]

11. Her. Did you see the first line of the OP, where it says "columnist Fay Wells"?

[blackspade]

10. This is what a police state is.

Cops do what they want to whoever they want with no consequences.
And what is up with her idiot neighbor? Asshole.

[oberliner]

12. If she was male, it could have turned out even worse

I would imagine that would've made it much more likely that the cops might have shot her.

[dembotoz]

13. lack of identification is an issue if you live in a stand your ground state

so if it sounds like a home invasion and you protect yourself you will get a hail of bullets.
personally think stand your ground is stupid but it could be deadly stupid here

[marmar]

14. The comments section is usually taken over by racists and assorted semi-fascists....

..... people of obviously stunted intellectual capacities and too much free time.

[Baitball Blogger]

15. They always blame you for not reading their minds.

His mistake was thinking that his perspective as a homeowner mattered.

[Cheese Sandwich]

17. At this point there are just way too many cops sitting around waiting for emergencies

We went way too far in the direction of more and more cops, and now they have nothing better to do than this.

[MisterP]

37. yes, especially in already-safe areas and schools (where the types rejected from

being beat cops end up all too often)

this peaks in HOA areas with a non-cop busybody in a golf cart making sure everyone's lawn is identical every day

[LittleGirl]

18. Good grief this is awful

and I read the comments. WP is full of racist assholes along with many other MSM web sites.

[heaven05]

20. I am not surprised

at her so-called 'neighbor' in this day and age in this mean and viciously racist society/culture. Not surprised at all and very glad the woman called on is not dead given all the unarmed black women and girls that have been executed by the 'protect and serve' corps. I can imagine what the comments were that's why I won't let myself be stressed out by the ignorance and stupidity probably present in a lot of these good, christian american's comments.

[Xithras]

21. Never open your front door to a cop with his gun drawn

If cops are outside of your home with guns drawn, it's because they already believe you are a threat, and they are already primed to shoot you. You are one misinterpreted body movement away from death.

If there are cops outside your house with guns, and you don't know why they're there, walk over to your phone and call 911. At the very minimum, the 911 call center will inform the officers outside that you're communicative and can help to get everyone on the same page. It's a scenario that most 911 call center operators are actually trained for, and they theoretically should help to defuse the situation.

If the cops outside your home believe you're a burglar, the simple act of calling 911 lets them know that you're probably NOT a criminal. They're still going to do their pushy cop thing and search the home, but they're far less likely to shoot you dead as they do it.

[truedelphi]

52. These days the cops have a battering ram type device and would probably

use it to "open" your door for you.

Or else a concussion bomb which is only supposed to "open" the door, but can also blow out the windows and start a fire.

So it is probably like six of one, half a dozen of the other.

[SpookyDem]

59. Flash Bangs are not used to open doors, They make noise and blinding light

[Xithras]

72. No they wouldn't

If a suspect is inside a building, they'll surround it and call for backup. Unless the patrol cops believe that someone's life is immediately at risk, forced entries are ALWAYS left to SWAT. It's unlikely that the patrol cops would immediately request a SWAT team over a potential burglar refusing to answer a door, but even if they did, but your call to 911 is going to go through long before SWAT gets to your house.

[tblue37]

22. I know of a boy she needs to meet--a boy named SUE. nt

[Helen Borg]

23. You needed to videotape everything...

But I would sue them anyway.

[tblue37]

24. Notice that the cops didn't bother to announce that they were police before making demanding that

she come out of her apartment. The seldom do identify themselves any more, it seems, even when they are in plain clothes, so a citizen can't necessarily tell whether the aggressive jerk he/she is dealing with is a cop or a mugger or murderer.

[Keep-Left]

25. souds like a good neighbor though

if my neighbor saw something odd I would want them to call the police. Wouldn't you? But hey lets make this a race thing "My White neighbor" come on. And the police are doing their jobs. If they get a call from a neighbor shouldn't they show up?

sounds to me like everything went as it should

[mythology]

29. The cops were heavy-handed if the story happened as written

It doesn't take that many cops to respond to one call. Also why didn't they identify themselves and respond with guns out? A reported home robbery doesn't require a siege.

I can't speak to whether the neighbor had racist assumptions or was legitmately concerned. But I wouldn't discount the possibility.

[Saviolo]

30. Hard disagree

I think that 19 cops for a reported single burglar is a massive overreaction.

Also, the police should identify themselves at the door and try to de-escalate any situation before drawing guns and removing a resident from his or her dwelling. Seems unlikely that a burglar would try to provide ID to the police when caught in someone else's apartment.

The neighbour looking out? Maybe, but why not head over and ask what's going on? There was a locksmith involved, so someone with credentials and tools, and a resident with ID. I'd be glad to have a neighbour looking out for me, but this situation reads like a massive over-reaction from beginning to end.

[Gormy Cuss]

33. Hey, guess what? It was a race thing.

The neighbor reported a Hispanic male entering the place. The resident is an African-American female. Do the math.

It didn’t matter that I told the cops I’d lived there for seven months, told them about the locksmith, offered to show a receipt for his services and my ID. ... It also didn’t matter that I didn’t match the description of the person they were looking for — my neighbor described me as Hispanic when he called 911. What mattered was that I was a woman of color trying to get into her apartment — in an almost entirely white apartment complex in a mostly white city — and a white man who lived in another building called the cops because he’d never seen me before.

[CreekDog]

47. The threat of civil litigation would probably make him think twice

Who knows how realistic even a threat of litigation would be.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

40. sounds like a racist POS neighbour who you support. your time with DU is limited (i hope)

[CreekDog]

46. Or as a clever (he thinks) but obvious way to support police overreaction

See my reply to him. Even defended shooting by a border patrol agent.

[gollygee]

41. No.

A good neighbor would recognize his/her neighbor and not call the cops on them. A bad neighbor would think "they all look the same" and not recognize her and assume anyone of that complexion must be doing something wrong and would call the cops.

[CreekDog]

43. Are you siding with the neighbor or siding with the police?

It's a fair question given:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=1244843

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1017&pid=286596

[roody]

57. Is this a joke?

[Cadfael]

60. How can this "good neighbor" make the claim they misinterpreted this as a burglary?

Do the burglars in Santa Monica usually gain access by hiring a locksmith?

[Depaysement]

61. R u fuckin' State Farm?

Look at what happened to this woman! In what should be a colorblind world, all your "hero" neighbor could see was his own dark soul.

[sinkingfeeling]

67. And what was 'odd' about the woman entering her own apartment with the aid of a

locksmith? One would be a better neighbor if one took the time to know who lived next door.

[hughee99]

68. As you can see from the responses so far,

The lesson is, If you're the neighbor, keep your mouth shut. Whatever your intentions are, whatever happens is "on you". If the police overreact, it's your fault for calling them in the first place and if you are white and your neighbor is not, you will definitely be called a racist by some people. If the neighbor had kept their mouth shut whether it was her, a locksmith or a burglar, no one would be calling them a racist right now.

[CreekDog]

82. The lesson is that "Keep-left" was banned shortly after that post

[Mariana]

74. Sure, locksmiths never ascertain

that the person who hires them actually owns the property to be unlocked. It's perfectly reasonable when one sees a locksmith open a locked door to assume the locksmith is helping a burglar break into a house.

[Humanist_Activist]

26. What the fuck is up with the nutty police response, for a suspected burglarly, maybe a couple of...

cops should show up to check on the place, not fucking 19. Do they have too much free time in Santa Monica?

Its also completely unacceptable that they had guns drawn, didn't identify themselves, etc. Completely fucked up.

[lpbk2713]

32. This "emergency" call must have emptied out the donut shop real quick.

That law enforcement stuff can be a real PITA some times.

[smirkymonkey]

42. That reaction was insane. What the hell do they do when there is

a REAL crime? I would hate to see what a shitshow that would turn in to.

[kestrel91316]

78. When there's REAL crime they are nowhere to be found. Trust me.

I've lived in LA for over 30 years and even as a white female medical professional my experience with LAPD has been overwhelmingly underwhelming. If not outright negative. They range from uncaring, incompetent fools to complete assholes with a Master's degree in rudeness.

[NCjack]

31. Meet your neighbors -- the life you save may be your neighbors, or your own.

I have an African American, a Hispanic family, and 5 white family neighbors, all on a short, rural street. We watch out for each other. Your experience would not have happened here. Instead, someone would have recognized you and offered you assistance.

[bvar22]

34. His story doesn't hold water.

No American watches Soccer every week.

[Saviolo]

36. Her story.

[VWolf]

63. You're absolutely right

I watch soccer every day

[KamaAina]

35. Henry Louis Gates all over again.

[Enthusiast]

38. I won't read the comments. No way.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

39. i read that earlier and it sickened me

[Blue_Tires]

44. At least she didn't get "accidentally" shot

I'm totally serious...

[potone]

45. What a terrifying experience that must have been.

And how easily that could have gone wrong and led to another senseless death. We need to demilitarize our police, pronto!

[kwassa]

48. I've spent a lot of time in Santa Monica.

Santa Monica is a small city west of Los Angeles that is on the actual coast. It is where Interstate 10 ends and merges into the Pacific Coast Highway headed out towards Malibu. It has traditionally been a very liberal town, sometimes referred to as the People's Republic of Santa Monica. The city had rent control that could be passed on from tenant to tenant. Jane Fonda and Tom Hayden lived there.

There has been a black community there forever, too, though, out about 20th Street, near Santa Monica College. It is a fairly diverse city, within the extremely diverse region. The cost of real estate there has soared over the past 40 years, especially north of Wilshire. A tiny tear-down starts over a million.

And probably, the police force doesn't have enough to do, unlike nearby Los Angeles. When I lived in West LA, just over the border, the joke was that you had to tell the police that there was a man on your lawn with a gun to get any response at all. When our house was burglarized, it took the police 4 hours to show up, and we lived three blocks from a police station.

I'm curious as to where the author lived. I fully believe her about her attorney asshole neighbor; there are lots of attorney assholes in LA. I used to deal with them when I briefly worked for an insurance company there.

Whitey Bulger lived there in hiding for years. OJ Simpson and Nicole Brown Simpson partied there. It has been fairly easy to see celebrities on the Third Street Promenade on weekend nights, one of hot places in the city.

Many famous rock bands had their early concerts at the Santa Monica Civic Center. There were great free concerts on the Pier. But I digress .....

[w0nderer]

49. i rented a room in a house owned by a guy on probation

the first thing i did (with his permission) was put a lock on my door (we were 4 'families' in this huge house, single mexican, me, 2 americans and owner+gf)

should also be mentioned owner had pitbull/mastiff mix dogs (female+male +10 large puppies)

had the dogs indoor on my day off, and was relaxing when the door started hammering like crazy
as i opened it i got cops with 3 guns in my face telling me to 'calm the dogs'...i basically told em..not my dogs, they tolerate me but i can't control them

front yard 15 more cops

he had been 5 minutes ....5 minutes!!! late for his parole/probation officer

they said they'd search my room (notice above..locked) i just said 'warrant'

they went 'don't need one' (and that's when i called ACLU, who recommended a lawyer)

they also kept telling me they'd remove my immigration status

this is the 'men in blue' who are so...honorable!

[Spitfire of ATJ]

50. I wonder if the cops have a map of where the black people live.

[IronLionZion]

51. I'm fairly certain some of my neighbors thought I was the help

before they got to know me. It's good to get to know your neighbors. That's probably the only way to get over most prejudice. There are large swaths of America that don't have much diversity and some people just don't know any better.

[Liberal_in_LA]

53. her interaction with the neighbor

I introduced myself to the reporting neighbor and asked if he was aware of the gravity of his actions — the ocean of armed officers, my life in danger. He stuttered about never having seen me, before snippily asking if I knew my next-door neighbor. After confirming that I did and questioning him further, he angrily responded, “I’m an attorney, so you can go f— yourself,” and walked away.

[Warren DeMontague]

54. I'm reminded of the 1993 movie "Amos & Andrew" with Samuel L. Jackson.

Successful AA writer buys a house on a martha's vineyard type island, neighbors see him going in, SWAT team hijinks ensue.

The more shit changes.

[Hydra]

56. The power balance between them and us is slipping further and further out of whack

The fact that they are running around terrified for their lives is both insane and extremely dangerous.

[monicaangela]

58. I can remember a time in this country

when communities welcomed their new neighbors, there were people that would actually come out of their homes while you were moving in, or that would have the realtor introduce them to you so that you would have someone that could help familiarize you with the neighborhood and the rest of the neighbors in the immediate vicinity. Long gone are those days in most parts of this country and it IMHO is a sad thing. We are now taught to fear our neighbor, especially if that neighbor happens to be of a different race, culture, or economic background. How sad the people of America have become, a nation of cowards hiding behind armed police officers who appear to be just waiting to jump into action and take a life without batting an eyelash.

Yes, this does remind me of the Henry Gates Jr., case that caused such problems in this country that the President had to get involved. Remember the "Beer" summit? This country when it comes to things of this nature is circling the drain, and it's so sad to see this happen.

Btw: A reminder:


CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — Colleagues of Henry Louis Gates Jr., Harvard’s most prominent scholar of African-American history, are accusing the police here of racism after he was arrested at his home last week by an officer investigating a report of a robbery in progress.

Professor Gates, who has taught at Harvard for nearly two decades, arrived home on Thursday from a trip to China to find his front door jammed, said Charles J. Ogletree, a law professor at Harvard who is representing him.

He forced the door open with the help of his cab driver, Professor Ogletree said, and had been inside for a few minutes when Sgt. James Crowley of the Cambridge Police Department appeared at his door and asked him to step outside.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/21/us/21gates.html?_r=0

[REP]

62. Maybe I am a special snowflake after all

I've been noticing a new neighbor jogging in my neighborhood. I haven't had a chance to talk to her yet, but I wave at her every time I see her. Yes, her skin is a different color than mine but not once have I thought I should call the cops.

I usually think I'm an okay if somewhat reclusive neighbor. Apparently, I'm awesome.

[merrily]

65. Two words: Professor Gates.

Three words: Officer JIM CROWley.

[AZ Progressive]

69. Anyone who bashes this woman is a racist, period. They don't want to sympathize, because

they are racist and want to protect their racism.

Well, FUCK YOU ALL WHO STAND BY YOUR RACISM. It's one thing to be uncomfortable with people of other races, its another to defend violence against them.

[DawgHouse]

70. The Santa Monica PD Chief has posted a message on their website addressing Ms. Wells' article.

It includes an audio of the post investigation. I haven't listened to it but just putting it out there in case anyone wants to hear what the chief had to say.

[Geronimoe]

71. How many of you are there?

Well me, my imaginary 12 dwarfs, and 20 exact clones of me.

[DVRacer]

75. Worth listening to the exchange

I see where she is coming from and the whole after conversation is total CYA. The caller was drunk or at least appeared to be.
[link:https://soundcloud.com/latimes/santa-monica-police-recording-of-encounter-with-fay-wells|

[proverbialwisdom]

79. UPDATE: The Chief's Perspective

http://santamonicapd.org/Content.aspx?id=54286

The Chief's Perspective

For the past 34 years, I have been a public servant, a police officer. For over eight years, I have been a police chief in two quite different communities in Los Angeles County; today, I am the Police Chief for the City of Santa Monica's Police Department.

On September 6, 2015, our officers were dispatched to a 9-1-1 call reporting an in-progress residential burglary, a serious felony crime. In the call, which came in at 11:16 p.m., it was reported that three subjects, two women and a man, were breaking into an apartment; the subjects were described as "a Latino male wearing a dark hat and dark shirt and two girls, possibly Hispanic, wearing dark clothing." Because of factors such as the time of night, the number of possible suspects, and the nature of the call, multiple officers responded directly to the location and to the general area. Although fewer officers were actually dispatched to the call, because of what the neighbor reported to the 9-1-1 operator, two supervisors and fifteen police officers responded. Based on the information provided by the 9-1-1 caller, in smaller communities, like Santa Monica, a response of this type is not uncommon.

<>

As a Black woman born and raised in South-Central Los Angeles, I empathize with Ms. Fay Wells and how this experience has made her feel. On the other hand, as an experienced law enforcement executive, I understand the Police Department's response and the need for that response. This seeming dichotomy may be difficult for some to accept, particularly given the national dialogue. From my perspective, the 9-1-1 caller was not wrong for reporting what he believed was an in-progress residential burglary. Put yourself in his place. Ms. Wells is not wrong to feel as she does. Put yourself in her shoes. And, the Santa Monica Police Department's response was not wrong. Put yourself in the officers' shoes. I have chosen to share the post-incident audio recording so you can listen and draw your own conclusions...

This incident is reminiscent of those Rorschach-style images where it depends on your perspective whether you see a blob of ink, the image of an old woman, or you see the beautiful woman's profile. Some will see this circumstance as an indictment of law enforcement while others will see it as further proof of the breakdown in police-community relations. For me, I don't see this incident as either of those things. Instead, this incident presents a clear and present opportunity for all facets of our community and this Police Department to continue to work together, to engage in on-going conversations about the realities and myths of the protective function inherent in policing, and to emphasize the importance of community, particularly in terms of knowing one's neighbors. I hope we can all be more thoughtful before we rush to condemn the actions of a group of police officers who were doing their best to keep our community safe. I welcome the opportunity to engage our community in these all- important conversations.

Jacqueline A. Seabrooks, Chief of Police
Santa Monica Police Department

[Saviolo]

84. I would like to hear...

The word "de-escalation" used by a police officer anywhere.

[951-Riverside]

80. I saw a group of young black men breaking into an Apartment years ago but I didnt call

First of all I didnt know if it was their place or not plus even if it wasnt their place I didnt want them to get killed by the police so I didnt call also the lady who lived there left her window open. Turned out it wasnt their place but it wasnt my problem, if she had had anything of real value she would have gotten them insured or locked them away.

I really wish people would stop snitching to the cops everything they saw something they find was out of the ordinary.

#StopSnitching

[ProudToBeBlueInRhody]

81. And what if the woman was inside?

Oh, I forgot....not your problem....

You really are a piece of work.

[951-Riverside]

83. Still not going to call UNLESS I hear someone yelling for help

Again, I didn't know if it was their place and I don't want to live with the guilt of calling the cops and having them gunned down for nothing.