After Katrina, New Orleans Cops Were Told They Could Shoot Looters

[defendandprotect]

After Katrina, New Orleans Cops Were Told They Could Shoot Looters

By Sabrina Shankman and Tom Jennings of Frontline, Brendan McCarthy and Laura Maggi of The New Orleans Times-Picayune and A.C. Thompson of ProPublica
August 24, 2010 7:00 pm EDT

EXCERPT -- Please review the entire article!!

Nagin, she recalled, directed Riley to "stop search and rescue and bring our force back to controlling the streets."

"The mayor said, ‘Let's stop the looting, let's stop the lawlessness and let's put our police officers on the streets so that our citizens are protected,'" Forman said.

Nagin had one more message for the deputy superintendent, in Forman's recollection: "Let's stop this crap now."

"We will do that," responded Riley, according to Forman.

That same day, Nagin learned that a police officer, Kevin Thomas, had been shot in the head. Forman said "it made the Mayor furious.''

"And that's when he said we need to declare martial law.''

Soon after, Nagin gave a radio interview in which he said he had called for martial law, adding to the confusion about the rules of engagement. Nagin declined to be interviewed.


http://www.propublica.org/nola/story/nopd-order-to-shoot-looters-hurricane-katrina


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In the passage I selected, I didn't by any means mean to blame Nagin for this --

there's a lot of info in the article and I haven't read it entirely -- nor is this

intended as an alibi for him --

However, just wanted to point out that obviously saving lives wasn't the mission --


We can see the pressures of the rumors of rape and violence at the sports dome would

have an effect on the Mayor -- they were false, evidently PLANTED rumors???

And, one officer seriously wounded.

[Poboy]

1. NOPD Officer Recounts Order To Shoot Looters

NOPD Officer Recounts Order To Shoot Looters
Capt.: Directive Came From Then-Deputy Supt. Riley

NEW ORLEANS — WDSU .com

A high-ranking member of the New Orleans Police Department told the WDSU I-Team on Tuesday that he and other officers were given directives for officers to shoot looters during the chaotic days following the landfall of Hurricane Katrina.

Capt. Harry Mendoza, who currently heads the department's training academy, said the order came from then-Deputy Supt. Warren Riley, who would later be promoted to the department's top position.

At a meeting at Harrah's Casino, which was closed following the storm, Mendoza said Riley told several high-ranking officers that he was initiating a protocol to "shoot looters in the city of New Orleans."

According to Mendoza, Riley said "that we were going to take the streets back and we were to start shooting looters that day. When questioned about that specific order, (Riley's) response was 'if you can sleep with it, I'm ordering it done.'"

Mendoza said he did not pass that directive on to men under his command.

"I was shocked to think in the chaos that existed and the circumstances that existed -- both in the city and for police -- that these orders were going to be issued," he said.

FULL-
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38840048/ns/local_news-new_orleans_la/

[defendandprotect]

2. With all that goes on constantly, Katrina certainly doesn't get the

attention it should --

from police work -- to politicians -- to those made refugees and moved to other states!!

Often the recovery news looks lots better -- but not sure at all???

[defendandprotect]

3. k

[me b zola]

4. It was obvious when the levies failed that the mission was not to save lives

...the mission was to save property of the uber wealthy and run average citizens out of their own city.