Police informant denies buying drugs at elderly woman's home

[proud2BlibKansan]

ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- An informant cited in a search warrant as having purchased narcotics at an elderly Atlanta woman's house denies buying drugs there, authorities say.

Undercover officers raiding the 88-year-old woman's house shot her to death last week after she fired on them while they broke down her door in a high-crime neighborhood.

Federal prosecutors will investigate the case, Atlanta Police Chief Richard Pennington announced Monday.

Pennington said the eight-member narcotics squad that took part in the raid has been placed on paid leave while investigators look into the informant's story and the circumstances surrounding the Nov. 21 death of Kathryn Johnston. The informant also told investigators from the Atlanta police internal affairs bureau that he was told to lie about the matter, the chief said.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/11/28/atlanta.shooting/index.html

[ms liberty]

1. K&R n/t

[Zodiak]

2. Problem with this case I see:

The cops came in on a "no knock" warrant, with disasterous results.

Thi practice has got to stop.

And now the informant never said what the cops sais he/she said...what a surprise.

And I thought the woman was 92....now she is 88? Weird.

[Richard Steele]

5. Well, now we have to question whether they even had any warrant at all.

Since the informant claims they made up his "tip" AFTER the shooting.

And, re her age: Her family reported her as 92, official records
showed her as 88. Discrepancy remains unexplained. Lots of
possible reasons, but it's all just guesswork at this point.

[ThomCat]

3. I hope there is hell to pay over this.

No-knock warrants should be illegal. x(

[MamaBear]

4. K&R

Cops in America are out of control. Total discipline breakdown.

[proud2BlibKansan]

6. That is very true

[Mugu]

7. There are too many LEOs who feel that they should be able to enter any

building or vehicle that they wish at any time to pursue the WOD. Then there are people who strongly believe in the whole “my home is my castle” thing. When the two of them come face to face, there's a good chance that something bad is going to happen.

Remember that an 88YO woman tagged three of their highly trained officers before being neutralized. If instead of an 88YO woman these officers had encountered a 30YO guy with the will to fight, armed with a battle rifle chambered in a man-sized cartridge. The outcome could have been considerably more ugly, and to accomplish what? Bust some guy for selling quarters of reefer?

In a dark house, with flashlights shining in peoples faces in the dead of night, and everybody yelling, uniforms can be unseen and verbal commands can be unheard. There has to be better way to apprehend suspects than early morning invasions by LEOs into somebodies' “castle.”

On a little lighter note, I remember seeing a video of LEOs battering down the front door of a home and then all these armed guys rushing inside. A few moments later you see all the same guys come running back out. The armed suspect had opened a gas valve inside the house. OK who wants to shoot first? If the cops shoot the perp, the whole place explodes, if the perp shoots them, the whole place explodes. It didn't take long for the cops to unanimously agree that they had someplace else that they needed to be.


Regards,

Mugu

[mainer]

8. I read the cops claimed to have found pot in her house

Two bags of it. Hmmm.... I wonder which cop planted it?

[XboxWarrior]

9. Well me thinks.....

It's pretty cool she got off some shots on them! (I feel bad that she died)

I am no fan of the WOD, and in fact, my house plants are nice!

I would like to see our nation concentrate on issues

other than people growing, and selling indoor plants.

Am I Crazy?

perhaps.......

[hamletsophelia]

10. god 88 years old/?/

why is an 88 year old involved with that what has her life been like, what let her to that??/ I wonder