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Tuesday, June 4, 2019

Atlanta, you are dead on here.

I've had some actions with federal law enforcement, and...let's just say they were enlightening. Not being disrespectful at all, but after these interactions my, for lack of a better term, "idol worship" of the feds ended. Federal law enforcement agencies (e.g. FBI, ATF) are like any other law enforcement agency, with a larger budget and a different focus. And, like local/state cops, they have their strengths and weaknesses. Of their personnel, I'd say 2-5% of them walk on water, they swim on land, they are that good. And 2-5% should not be outside of the house without adult supervision. And the remaining 90% +/- are varying degrees of strengths and weaknesses, trying to do the job as best they can.

I found this interesting, because it was "da feds," and Barrack Hussein Obama mmm mmm mmm, and his hand picked AGs, Eric Holder and Loretta Lynch, who demanded local cops have Body Worn Cameras (BWCs). And for the most part, they have been a positive for cops on the street. But for some reason, some federal agencies do not want their actions on video for all to see.

Atlanta Pulls All Officers From Federal Task Force After Shooting

Atlanta, GA – The mayor of Atlanta and that city’s police chief pulled all their police officers off of the federal task forces on which they were serving after a request to have the officers wear bodycams was declined.

The impetus for the decision was a shooting that occurred during a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) task force service of a warrant in January, WXIA reported.

Jimmy Atchison, 21, was fatally shot by Atlanta Police Officer Sung Kim during that raid.

Atchison was wanted on an armed robbery charge and was hiding in a closet at his apartment complex when he was killed, WGCL reported.

Afterward, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Bottoms and Police Chief Erika Shields insisted that, in the future, all Atlanta police officers wear bodycams during all operations, WXIA reported.

But federal agencies informed Atlanta officials that officers on task forces would not be allowed to wear bodycams.

“The Mayor and the Chief have insisted that Atlanta Police officers on that task force – as well as the Drug Enforcement Administration’s High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area and the U.S. Marshal’s Southeast Regional Task Force – wear body-worn cameras when on duty,” the Atlanta Police Department said in a statement to WGCL. “When it was made clear that APD officers would not be allowed to wear body-worn cameras while serving on these task forces, the decision was made to pull them from those duties...”

...The federal agencies who have lost Atlanta officers from their task forces have expressed regret and said they will still support the police department.

“The United States Marshals Southeast Regional Fugitive Task Force has had a long and successful partnership with the Atlanta Police Department. Our collaborative effort has resulted in several hundred fugitives wanted by the APD for violent felonies being located and arrested every year,” the U.S. Marshals told WGCL in a statement.

“We are sad to see this partnership come to an end, but are always willing to assist the APD if asked in the future. Our task force’s mission is to locate and arrest those charged with committing violent felony crimes. This is an important mission that we will continue to perform for the citizens of Atlanta, the Metropolitan area, and the rest of the state of Georgia,” the statement said.

Atchison’s family has looked to the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office for answers on what happened the night the 21 year old was killed, but haven’t gotten much information from that avenue because the FBI was handling the death investigation, not the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

That means the district attorney’s office does not have access to the weapons and physical evidence involved in the incident, WGCL reported.

“It’s also important to point out, even though the local police departments require their officers to wear and use body cameras, for some reason, federal law enforcement are not required to do the same,” the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office said in a statement. “We understand that the local law enforcement officers involved in the incident erroneously believed they were not required to wear the cameras. The lack of body camera footage creates a substantial gap in the normal investigative process...”

Last year the Houston Police Department had an issue with the FBI that, to say the least, left a bad taste in the mouth of many local cops. The FBI was called in by the Conroe TX Police Department for assistance with a kidnapping. They found the house where the kidnapping victim was, went to breech, and during the forced entering, the breaching tool dropped inside the house. The agent used his AR-15 to continue to force the door open. The agent did not know the kidnapping victim was up, his hands tied up with duct tape. This man grabbed at the rifle, and the agent, believing their was someone trying to take his weapon, fired. The man later died at a hospital.

Speaking with some officers from HPD that I know, the FBI at first said they would handle the investigation. Then a few hours later wanted HPD to handle it. After they had removed the body, the weapon, etc from the scene. Kinda makes the investigation a bit difficult.

Again, technology is a good thing, and we should use it. But I don't care for hypocrisy at any level. Federal law enforcement, get off your ass and get with the times, embrace BWCs and other methods to make your actions more open to the public. Or do you just not like having your actions Monday morning quarterbacked by SJW and other race bating poverty pimps. BTY, you got a lot more money for them to sue for than the locals.


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