An embattled City Court judge was escorted Monday from judicial chambers in handcuffs. Rochester court deputies and city police officers executed a bench warrant issued for Judge Leticia Astacio’s arrest last week after she missed a Tuesday court appearance related to an August drunken-driving conviction. Astacio, a Rochester City Court judge, smiled and said hello … Read more
The Las Vegas police officer who stunned Tashii Brown seven times with a Taser and held him in an unauthorized chokehold for more than a minute before his death last month is now facing criminal charges, Sheriff Joseph Lombardo announced Monday. At an afternoon news briefing, Lombardo said officer Kenneth Lopera, 31, is facing felony … Read more
A Toronto family has demanded a public apology after two police officers were caught on dashcam footage mocking a woman with Down syndrome during a traffic stop, describing her as disfigured and something less than a whole person. “I feel hurt; it really hurt my feelings. I was disgusted by what they said about me,” … Read more
A class of motorists claims a police unit operated by an Illinois county state’s attorney’s office, independent from the county’s regular police force, had no authority to make traffic stops or drug arrests. In 2011, former LaSalle County State’s Attorney Brian Towne formed a police force separate from the county’s police force called the State’s … Read more
One man has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the village of Maywood in relation to an incident that happened last summer. The village’s administrative hearing department, enforcement department, community development department, the Maywood police chief and two police officers (a commander and a sergeant), and a former administrative hearing officer are specifically listed … Read more
A female former Los Angeles police officer has been identified as the bearded suspect in a Northern California bank robbery. Police say Jennifer McClary disguised herself as a man by drawing a beard on her face before handing a teller a note and demanding money at a bank in Danville, California, CBS Los Angeles reports. … Read more
Russia’s Investigative Committee has launched a pre-investigation check into the actions of police officers after a video of a crying boy being forcefully led away and shoved into a police car in central Moscow gained the attention of the online community and human rights advocates. The boy, who is reportedly nine or ten years old, … Read more
A mother and her mother-in-law forced at gunpoint out of their vehicle and handcuffed outside the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force were paid $40,000 to settle a federal civil lawsuit, according to a court document recently obtained by this news organization. The “Stipulation for Compromise Settlement and Release” document states Alice and Wendy … Read more
A California couple cannot sue the police officers that busted down their door without a warrant and shot them to pieces, the Supreme Court has ruled. The decision, handed down on Tuesday, overturned a 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that allowed Angel and Jennifer Mendez to recover damages in the amount of $4.1 million … Read more
Three Las Vegas police officers must stand trial for arresting a woman dressed as a “sexy cop” and seeking tips from tourists, the Ninth Circuit ruled Wednesday. The panel reversed and remanded summary judgment for the three police officers who arrested plaintiff Michele Santopietro, who claims Las Vegas Metropolitan police Officers Clayborn Howell, Kristine Crawford … Read more
A Boynton Beach police officer has been placed on paid administrative leave after his arrest on a charge of domestic battery this week. Vinicius Melo, 34, was booked into the Palm Beach County Jail on Wednesday, records show. He was released Thursday on his own recognizance. “This is an active administrative investigation and we are … Read more
School police departments in Georgia hire police officers who were fired from previous jobs or who “resigned under the cloud of an investigation” at twice the rate of other local police departments, an investigation by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Channel 2 Action News found. According to the report: “Roughly 12 percent of the 656 officers … Read more