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Bad information leads police to wrong house; bullets fly
Minneapolis Star Tribune ^ | December 16, 2007 | Patrick Kennedy

Posted on 12/17/2007 8:37:42 AM PST by Ken H

Police blamed bad information for sending a SWAT team into a north Minneapolis house early Sunday morning in a raid that ended with shots exchanged between police -- who were struck by bullets -- and the resident, who said he was just defending his family.

The homeowner, who does not speak English, told his brother that he thought the police were the "bad guys" after they broke through the back door of the house, where he lives with his wife and six children. He fired and hit two police officers, who were not injured thanks to their bullet-proof vests and helmets, police said in a statement.

The Police Department's SWAT team was trying to search the two-story house at 12:46 a.m. in the 1300 block of Logan Avenue N., as part of an investigation by the Violent Offender Task Force. But police said that they learned later that bad information led them to that house.

"It was found out that this particular address was not part of that long-term investigation," police spokesman Sgt. Jesse Garcia III told KSTP-TV on Sunday. He told KMSP-TV that it was a "bad situation."

-snip-

Vang and his children, who range in age from 3 to 15, were shaken, Dao Vang said. "All these gunshots in the house. They don't know what's going on. Flying bullets in the house and they just cried," he said.

Garcia told KMSP that police grabbed the family's children and shielded them during the incident.

Garcia did not return repeated calls from the Star Tribune on Sunday. Questions about the shooting on Sunday night were referred to Lt. Amelia Huffman, head of the homicide unit, who also did not return calls.

(Excerpt) Read more at startribune.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: badcopnodonut; banglist; donttasemebro; donutwatch; swat
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To: Gritty
What's wrong with presenting a warrant peaceably instead of breaking in one second after screaming "WARRANT, POLICE!" at 2:00 in the morning and smashing in with a gang of ninja-clad armed men?

On the SWAT television shows, the non fiction ones, the police often shout "Police Search Warrant" at the same time, or very shortly after, the door is smashed in. That's not a "reasonable" search in the sense of the Constitution, warrant or no warrant. Many times they either have no warrant, or more frequently don't have it with them to "serve", should someone manage to actually answer the door in that fraction of a second, or happen to notice them approaching and "preemptively" open the door.

101 posted on 12/17/2007 2:06:53 PM PST by El Gato ("The Second Amendment is the RESET button of the United States Constitution." -- Doug McKay)
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To: razorback-bert; Larry Lucido; Travis McGee; sit-rep; hiredhand

Well at least Lubbock shoots one of their own when this happens.......:o)

All cow crap aside ........ONE (1) wrong house raid is TOO DAMN MANY !

Were this to happen to a US embassy it would be an act of war. Not permissible, not allowed and 100% preventable ......wrong house BS is just that.


102 posted on 12/17/2007 2:23:23 PM PST by Squantos (Be polite. Be professional. But, have a plan to kill everyone you meet. ©)
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To: Ken H

This is going to continue until qualified immunity goes away. Police who screw up must be made to pay personally.


103 posted on 12/17/2007 2:29:28 PM PST by VRing (Happiness is a perfect sling bruise.)
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To: ZULU
Garcia told KMSP that police grabbed the family’s children and shielded them during the incident.”

Wow. That's hilarious. Good thing that the cops were there to shield the children from THEIR bullets at the wrong house.

The sargeant stuck continued on with his idiotic commments by saying it could have been much worse, the cops could have really been hurt, and that he could see why the family would be "upset". Upset?!! Hah. Quite an understatement.

104 posted on 12/17/2007 2:33:59 PM PST by Lijahsbubbe
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To: William Tell
Charlespg said: "...question the war on drugs"...

I'm curious; how long have you had this opinion?

Since they started requiring more documentation to buy a box of Sudafed than to VOTE!

105 posted on 12/17/2007 2:37:40 PM PST by papertyger (changing words quickly metastasizes into changing facts -- Ann Coulter)
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To: Kenny Bunk

Don’t forget the NOAA’s SWAT team.......:o)

Yep they got one too !


106 posted on 12/17/2007 2:47:06 PM PST by Squantos (Be polite. Be professional. But, have a plan to kill everyone you meet. ©)
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To: VRing
This is going to continue until qualified immunity goes away. Police who screw up must be made to pay personally.

I disagree. Police are always going to be following orders from higher up, therefore someone not directly involved is going to have reason to blame subordinates that can not refuse orders without sacrificing their careers.

This is going to continue as long as the procedure exists.

107 posted on 12/17/2007 2:52:21 PM PST by papertyger (changing words quickly metastasizes into changing facts -- Ann Coulter)
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To: Squantos
Don’t forget the NOAA’s SWAT team.......

*GET ON THE GROUND AND SHOW ME YOUR GALOSHES!*

108 posted on 12/17/2007 2:54:53 PM PST by papertyger (changing words quickly metastasizes into changing facts -- Ann Coulter)
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To: El Gato
Yeah, I knew I probably had some of the details wrong as I was working from memory, and just too danged lazy to go back and dig them up. But despite my minor errors of recollection, I believe this is still one of the worst "SWAT team" fiascos perpetrated against citizens of this country.

But local police departments seem addicted to this "Rambo" stuff.

109 posted on 12/17/2007 2:59:23 PM PST by Wonder Warthog (The Hog of Steel-NRA)
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To: Travis McGee

If GM or McDonald’s or Walmart made this many mistakes they’d be sued back to the ice age !

Unacceptable record and risks for current SWAT SOP & ROE at all levels of goobermint.

The SWAT teams are in most cases as bad as the criminals they seek to swoop up.

But we know this already.......


110 posted on 12/17/2007 3:01:04 PM PST by Squantos (Be polite. Be professional. But, have a plan to kill everyone you meet. ©)
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To: papertyger

LOL......The ones I encountered were after a bunch of scuba divers off Florida’s coast on a protected reef where snorkeling was allowed yet scuba would disrupt the habitat of the protected clown fish.

This warranted a M16 / M4 carbine enema on the scene by the NOAA SWAT !

Galoshes ......:o)


111 posted on 12/17/2007 3:05:02 PM PST by Squantos (Be polite. Be professional. But, have a plan to kill everyone you meet. ©)
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To: Squantos

My homies on the Tasty-Freeze SWAT team competed against those guys at the annual invitational. About the only good thing they had to say about NOAA is at least they weren’t a bunch of p*ssies like the Victoria Secret team.


112 posted on 12/17/2007 3:16:05 PM PST by papertyger (changing words quickly metastasizes into changing facts -- Ann Coulter)
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To: papertyger; Lurker; Larry Lucido; Travis McGee; Horatio Gates; glock rocks; hiredhand

ROTFLMAO !!

.......that is a keeper !


113 posted on 12/17/2007 3:28:30 PM PST by Squantos (Be polite. Be professional. But, have a plan to kill everyone you meet. ©)
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To: papertyger
About the only good thing they had to say about NOAA is at least they weren't a bunch of p*ssies like the Victoria Secret team.

I've seen the VS SWAT. It's scandalous how much "chin" their facemasks reveal.

114 posted on 12/17/2007 4:29:54 PM PST by Ken H
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To: El Gato
Close, they, the BATF, had already arrested him for that. The federal marshals were "surveiling" his property and family because he failed to show up in court.

You forgot to mention that the shotgun charge was a setup, the barrel was less than 1/8" to short and also when he received his notification to appear in court it had the wrong date on it. The reason he was arrested in the first place was to force him to be a spy for the government against other people in Randy's area. He refused and they then proceded to stick it to him. The kid did shoot at the agents but evidently he didn't know what was going on. Also, you left out the part about the FBI killing Randy's wife because, apparently, they couldn't see anyone else to shoot at. She was holding her baby at the time.

Randy did get 3 million dollars for this screw up by the Clintons chief gestapo agent, Janet Reno, and the judge who tried the case wanted to bring action against the agents responsible but was stopped by the Clintons. All in all a gross violation of constitutional rights and well documented.

115 posted on 12/17/2007 4:51:35 PM PST by calex59
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To: Squantos
Ceramic plates in kevlar on the LEOs who performed the raid? Not that we're into shooting HRTs carrying out no-knock warrants, but everybody here in the house has a centerfire, hi-cap for "home defense". Everything standing next to a bed is either .308 or .223.

...mainly because badguys come in groups. :-)
116 posted on 12/17/2007 5:03:11 PM PST by hiredhand (My kitty disappeared. NOT the rifle!)
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To: calex59
Randy did get 3 million dollars for this screw up by the Clintons chief gestapo agent, Janet Reno,

Happened in August 1992. That aside, I agree with all your points. This problem cuts across parties and administrations.

117 posted on 12/17/2007 5:23:46 PM PST by Ken H
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To: hiredhand

Bad guys yell police as well as do the police......bad deal for ALL involved with SWATS current policies.


118 posted on 12/17/2007 5:38:15 PM PST by Squantos (Be polite. Be professional. But, have a plan to kill everyone you meet. ©)
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To: Squantos
We've actually had a couple of "drills" here involving having to get out of bed...in the dark...and knowing which areas to cover and which way to go if things go wrong. Everybody has fired in close quarters and KNOWS what to expect!

Yes. It IS a bad deal for HRTs and SWAT teams... but unfortunately, the trend is that baddies show up from three to half dozen at a time.

Did you get my message earlier about Sweetie and the Sheriff's Dept. today? :-)
119 posted on 12/17/2007 5:45:53 PM PST by hiredhand (My kitty disappeared. NOT the rifle!)
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To: Ken H

And the stupidity continues....


120 posted on 12/17/2007 5:47:42 PM PST by StnCldTruth (A gun in your hand is better than a cop on the phone !!!!!)
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