This sort of news doesn’t usually make it out to the general public; it stays in the crowd to which it pertains, people just don’t tend to hear about it unless they’re actively searching. If you’re an unconnected party, especially if you’re an academic, please spread the word.
On August 20th, a 90-strong SWAT team raided an electronic music event – a rave – that was legitimately taking place an hour’s drive from Salt Lake City in Utah. They brutally beat people, pointed guns at their foreheads, drew Tasers. They proudly announced having confiscated many drugs, their largest drug “bust” being the stash of stuff that contracted security had confiscated from partygoers. There was at least one helicopter. There were dogs, and at least one person is claimed to have been attacked by a police dog.
Drug Policy Alliance article: According to the Salt Lake Tribune, Utah County detectives wanted to “get their point across that such activity was not welcome in their area”… Since when are police officially sanctioned to do anything but uphold the law?
Another article by the Daily Herald in Provo:
Recently released documents show Utah County Sheriff Jim Tracy made plans to break up an August party in Spanish Fork Canyon days before he had officers raid the event.
The pages of documents, including police reports and memos from officers involved to co-workers and the sheriff’s office, indicated Tracy knew about the party as early as Aug. 18, two days before it happened, and contacted other law enforcement agencies for assistance in shutting down the event.
Several days after the raid, the Daily Herald sent a request to Utah County under the state Government Records Access Management Act for any documents relating to tactical planning received or sent by the Utah County Sheriff’s Office. Chris Yannelli, an attorney in the Utah County Attorney’s Office, told the newspaper at the time the documents didn’t exist.
But those documents do exist…
Utah County Departmental News release about the rave bust: “A 17 year old female from West Jordan, found by officers, had overdosed on ecstasy. She was treated and released to her parents.”
Another report stated that the young woman was “close to overdosing on Ecstasy”, whatever that means. Which Ecstasy? MDMA? GHB, sometimes referred to as “liquid ecstasy” and with markedly different effects? an unknown substance? Let’s assume MDMA, the most common. What are the symptoms of “overdosing” – hell, what are the effects considered to be within normal range for people taking a drug? What are the negative effects? Was she hospitalized? (No.) Her pulse was said to have been 176; hell, if she was on “Ecstasy” and saw SWAT all around her, I can see how she’d have an elevated heart rate. That last link above reports palpitations nowhere near as high as the report stated. We’re talking a difference of 85-100 beats per minute.
Salon has a great article on this, here. It’s free if you watch a short ad. They do present both sides of the story.
The ACLU got involved in a suit against the sherriff: a federal judge asked to prevent future raids on electronic music events. The ruling was in the sherriff’s favor.
Finally, here’s a two-minute video (.mov viewable with Quicktime, 15.76MB) shot by an attendee (I’ve put it on my own site just in case it ever gets taken off elsewhere). The police claim there was no brutality.
police brutality – I a Mother of 3 walking my children down a side walk after a terrible fight between my husband and I probably the worst fight ever in 9 years of marriage the cops pulled up to me baby in a troller and 4 yr old and 7 yr old to address me of the fight my husband and I had and told them I was fine and everything was ok – the cop insisted I leave the children with the other officer which seemed very hot and bothered I would not let go of the stroller so he told the female office to handcuff me. I tightened my fist around the srtooler and he pried my fist from the stroller and kneed me in the chest and then the stomack as my children were screaming and wailing.
After the my shirt was hanging off of me and my jacket and shirt button were ripped off and can not breath. my pants at the knee was ripped I was put into the cop car with my children histericle. My chest is in pain when I breath and my lower back is in pain. my left hand is bruised and right hand has abbrasions on it. my legs are bruiesed as well as my heart for children and left me in the car for over an hour.
My husband was given a ticket to appear in court for domestic violience. Does this make sence to you……????
Let me guess, Provo City? These Maggotts don’t know the other side of life, The put all of us at risk by driving double the speed limit, I’ve been nearly killed 4 times on a bicycle by these “God with a gun assholes” but, what’s the law if you’re it?