[IP] Cops scheme to frame journalist who criticized photo radar program [priv]
Begin forwarded message:
From: Declan McCullagh <declan@xxxxxxxx>
Date: September 21, 2005 11:01:30 AM EDT
To: politech@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [Politech] Cops scheme to frame journalist who criticized
photo radar program [priv]
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Photo radar corruption scandal
Date: Wed, 21 Sep 2005 09:53:38 -0500
From: Richard Diamond <me@xxxxxxxxxxx>
To: declan@xxxxxxxx
Edmonton police deliberately used a restricted database to gather
information on a journalist who wrote anti-camera columns. With the
information, cops tried to set up a sting to arrest him for drunk
driving. Except some pesky journalists happened to have police
scanners and blew the lid off of the operation. (And this is just one
of three photo radar scandals in the city!)
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/06/662.asp
Testimony Heard Regarding Edmonton Police Attempt to Arrest Journalist
9/21/05
New details emerged Tuesday in a Royal Canadian Mounted Police
inquiry into an Edmonton Police Service attempt to arrest a newspaper
columnist over articles that criticized the police. On November 18,
2004, several officers were involved in a stake-out of the Overtime
Bar in a failed attempt to arrest Edmonton Sun writer Kerry Diotte
and police oversight commission chairman Martin Ignasiak.
Yesterday's disciplinary hearing focused on the head of the traffic
section, Sergeant Bill Newton, who is charged with abusing his
authority. According to testimony heard yesterday, Newton had been
angered by an April 4, 2004 column in which Diotte criticized the
city's photo radar program. The column became a hot topic of
discussion throughout the police force.
Diotte cited statistics that showed speed cameras raised a lot of
money for police but led to an increase, not a decrease, in
accidents. "In 2001 alone, city police issued 194,500 speeding
tickets," Diotte wrote. "Photo radar and red-light cameras raise
about $14 million annually for police. Yet last year fatal collisions
jumped to 32 from 20 in 2002."
"You know, I know and the police know that driver error is the main
reason crashes occur," Diotte continued. "All the photo radar in the
world is not going to correct that core problem."
Two days later, Newton ordered Sergeant Randy Schreiner to access
confidential police databases to gather information on Diotte. The
database produced a descriptions and details of Diotte's automobile
and home. Diotte has no history of drunk-driving.
Using the database information, Newton ordered officers to be on the
lookout for Diotte's BMW convertible during a "Target All Drunk
Drivers" operation meeting on November 18. Sergeant Glen Hayden then
informed Newton that he had seen Diotte at the Overtime Bar on two
occasions. Around 6pm that evening, Hayden went to the Overtime, saw
Diotte's BMW and called in undercover surveillance from two officers
who were part of a squad designed to target a list of 100 "aggressive
drivers."
The undercover officers identified Diotte and Ignasiak inside the bar
as "Target One" and "Target Two" according to witnesses. Around
8:45pm an "informant" at the bar called officer Darren Smith, who
placed a lookout bulletin on Diotte.
Diotte, whom witnesses say was not drunk, took a cab home. Hayden
drove to Diotte's home to verify whether he was there or not.
An Edmonton Police disciplinary hearing has dropped charges against
Hayden. "It was true that we found that vehicle in a bar lot and the
potential for serious harm or death was there," Hayden testified,
maintaining that he did nothing wrong.
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