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DOJ Finds Pattern Of "Racial Discrimination" And Unconstitutional Use Of Force By Chicago Police

via by Tyler Durden on Fri, 13 Jan 2017 17:55:00 GMT

With one week left in office, Obama's Department of Justice has released a report effectively labeling the Chicago police department as nothing more than a bunch of racist, hate-mongering bullies who routinely resort to the use of "deadly force" in violation of the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution.

Justice Department Finds a Pattern of Civil Rights Violations by the Chicago Police Department ? https://t.co/600C0xV3yX

— Justice Department (@TheJusticeDept) January 13, 2017

 

And while our characterization is probably somewhat more colorful than Attorney General Leretta Lynch would like, that Chicago Police are "racist" and "brutal" will nonetheless undoubtedly be the key takeaways from the press release and supporting documents posted earlier to the DOJ website. 

The DOJ release begins by asserting that the Chicago Police Department routinely "engages in a pattern or practice of using force, including deadly force, in violation of the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution"...

The Justice Department announced today that it has found reasonable cause to believe that the Chicago Police Department (CPD) engages in a pattern or practice of using force, including deadly force, in violation of the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution.  The department found that CPD officers’ practices unnecessarily endanger themselves and result in unnecessary and avoidable uses of force.  The pattern or practice results from systemic deficiencies in training and accountability, including the failure to train officers in de-escalation and the failure to conduct meaningful investigations of uses of force.

 

The city of Chicago and the Justice Department have signed an agreement in principle to work together, with community input, to create a federal court-enforceable consent decree addressing the deficiencies found during the investigation.

 

“One of my highest priorities as Attorney General has been to ensure that every American enjoys police protection that is lawful, responsive, and transparent,” said Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch.  “Sadly, our thorough investigation into the Chicago Police Department found that far too many residents of this proud city have not received that kind of policing.  The resulting deficit in trust and accountability is not just bad for residents – it’s also bad for dedicated police officers trying to do their jobs safely and effectively.  With this announcement, we are laying the groundwork for the difficult but necessary work of building a stronger, safer, and more united Chicago for all who call it home.”

...then subsequently finds that their excessive use of force is applied in a "racially discriminatory" manner with the "pattern of unreasonable force falling heaviest on predominantly black and Latino neighborhoods."

In addition, the department also identified serious concerns about the prevalence of racially discriminatory conduct by some CPD officers and the degree to which that conduct is tolerated and in some respects caused by deficiencies in CPD’s systems of training, supervision and accountability.  The department’s findings further note that the impact of CPD’s pattern or practice of unreasonable force falls heaviest on predominantly black and Latino neighborhoods, such that restoring police-community trust will require remedies addressing both discriminatory conduct and the disproportionality of illegal and unconstitutional patterns of force on minority communities.

Yes, and we're sure the higher prevalence of the use of "excessive force" in "predominantly black and Latino neighborhoods" has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that the overwhelming majority of Chicago's 812 murders in 2016 occurred in those same "black and Latino neighborhoods."

Source:  heyjackass.com

 

Of course, this entire exercise was undertaken by the Obama administration after a single incident involving the fatal shooting of a Chicago teen by a police officer in 2014. Per RT:

The DOJ launched the probe into the 12,000-officer force — one of the largest law enforcement agencies in the country – after a police video showing the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald was released. The footage, which shows a white police officer firing 16 shots at a black teenager, caused public outcry and protests, and led to calls for an investigation.

 

The video contradicted the accounts given by Officer Jason Van Dyke, who was involved in shooting, and other police officers on the scene, who stated that McDonald had had a small knife with its blade folded, and thus posed a threat to the officer’s life. Van Dyke was charged with first-degree murder on the same day the video came to light.

As we've pointed out before, efforts like this by the Attorney General of the United States to delegitimize Chicago's Police force will ultimate only serve to exacerbate the the surge in violence there.  As we pointed out back in August, many, including Thomas Abt, senior research fellow with the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, attribute Chicago's historic rise in homicides in 2016 to criminals increasingly viewing the CPD as "illegitimate" and police officers' reluctance to enforce the law out of fear of being the next cop to be publicly ridiculed by the mainstream media and put on trial for their efforts.

It is unclear what is driving the problem, but my own hunch – and it is still just a hunch at this point – involves a criminological phenomenon called legal cynicism. Multiple studies have demonstrated that, controlling for other factors, when communities view the police and criminal justice system as illegitimate, they become more violent. When people believe the system is unwilling or unable to help them, they are more likely to take the law into their own hands, creating the cycles of violent retribution that were chronicled so vividly last year in Jill Leovy’s Ghettoside.

In fact, just a couple of months ago we wrote about a case in which a female police officer was brutally beaten by a violent criminal but refused to pull her gun because she "didn't want her family or the department to have to go through the scrutiny the next day on national news."

And while this report from the Obama administration is not terribly surprising, it does beg the question of what other surprises he has in store for us in his last week in the White House.

Facebook Stock Upgraded: 3 Things You Need to Know

via Motley Fool Headlines by on Fri, 13 Jan 2017 17:48:33 GMT

Up 33% over the past year already, Raymond James thinks shares of the social titan could fly even higher.

Here We Go Again: Syria's Assad Named As Suspect In Chemical Weapons Attack

via by Tyler Durden on Fri, 13 Jan 2017 17:37:24 GMT

Back in 2013, the catalyst used by the US to intervene in the Syrian conflict which started in the aftermath of the Arab Spring (which according to some was inspired by CIA intervention), was a YouTube clip allegedly showing a sarin gas attack by Assad troops on his own people in the town of Ghouta, which reportedly led to hundreds of casualties. Subsequently, the video was shown to have been a hoax, but by then it was too late as the US was actively involved in the proxy war, which in the summer of 2013 nearly escalated to a naval conflict between the US and Russia. The war has since continued, although it may be finally tapering now that the Obama administration is on its way out.

However, in a surprising twist perhaps meant to perpetuate the conflict, Reuters today reported that international investigators for the first time suspect President Bashar al-Assad and his brother "are responsible for the use of chemical weapons in the Syrian conflict."

The details:

A joint inquiry for the United Nations and global watchdog the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) had previously identified only military units and did not name any commanders or officials.

 

Now a list has been produced of individuals whom the investigators have linked to a series of chlorine bomb attacks in 2014-15 - including Assad, his younger brother Maher and other high-ranking figures - indicating the decision to use toxic weapons came from the very top, according to a source familiar with the inquiry.

As one would expect, Syrian government official said accusations that government forces had used chemical weapons had "no basis in truth". The government has repeatedly denied using such weapons during the civil war, which is almost six years old, saying all the attacks highlighted by the inquiry were the work of rebels or the Islamic State militant group.

The list, which has been seen by Reuters but has not been made public, was based on a combination of evidence compiled by the U.N.-OPCW team in Syria and information from Western and regional intelligence agencies, according to the source, who declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the issue.

In other words, yet another "confidential" report with unsubstantiated findings, very much like what the US intelligence agencies used to blame Russia for "hacking the US elections", is about to be emerge in the public arena, and once again it will serve to stir up public anger at Assad who is now well on his way to winning the Syrian conflict, following the recent takeover of Aleppo.

Who is behind the allegation?

The U.N.-OPCW inquiry - known as the Joint Investigative Mechanism - is led by a panel of three independent experts, supported by a team of technical and administrative staff. It is mandated by the U.N. Security Council to identify individuals and organizations responsible for chemical attacks in Syria.

 

Virginia Gamba, the head of the Joint Investigative Mechanism, denied any list of individual suspects had yet been compiled by the inquiry. "There are no ... identification of individuals being considered at this time," she told Reuters by email.

While the narrative has not yet been formalized, the charge, once it emerges, will be serious as use of chemical weapons is banned under international law and could constitute a war crime, and while the inquiry has no judicial powers, any naming of suspects could lead to their prosecution. Syria is not a member of the International Criminal Court, but alleged war crimes could be referred to the court by the Security Council - although splits among global powers over the war make this a distant prospect at present.

As Reuters adds, the list could form the basis for the inquiry team's investigations this year, according to the source. It is unclear whether the United Nations or OPCW will publish the list separately.

Who is named?

 

The list identifies 15 people "to be scrutinized in relation to use of CW (chemical weapons) by Syrian Arab Republic Armed Forces in 2014 and 2015". It does not specify what role they are suspected of playing, but lists their titles.

 

It is split into three sections. The first, titled "Inner Circle President" lists six people including Assad, his brother who commands the elite 4th Armoured Division, the defense minister and the head of military intelligence.

 

The second section names the air force chief as well as four commanders of air force divisions. They include the heads of the 22nd Air Force Division and the 63rd Helicopter Brigade, units that the inquiry has previously said dropped chlorine bombs.

 

The third part of the list - "Other relevant Senior Mil Personnel" - names two colonels and two major-generals.

Effectively the list is nothing more than the Russia hacking intel report, however applied to Assad and chemical weapons, a familiar, recycled trope. Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, an independent specialist in biological and chemical weapons who monitors Syria, told Reuters the list reflected the military chain of command. "The decisions would be made at the highest levels initially and then delegated down. Hence the first use would need to be authorized by Assad," said de Bretton-Gordon, a former commander of British and NATO chemical and biological defense divisions who frequently visits Syria for professional consultancy work.

Syria joined the international Chemical Weapons Convention under a U.S.-Russian deal that followed the Ghouta fiasco. The Syrian government, which denied its forces were behind the Ghouta attack, also agreed to hand over its declared stockpile of 1,300 tonnes of toxic weaponry and dismantle its chemical weapons program under international supervision.

The United Nations and OPCW have been investigating whether Damascus is adhering to its commitments under the agreement, which averted the threat of U.S.-led military intervention.

Back then, the Syrian government, which denied its forces were behind the Ghouta attack, agreed to hand over its declared stockpile of 1,300 tonnes of toxic weaponry and dismantle its chemical weapons program under international supervision.

The October report identified Syria's 22nd Air Force Division and 63rd Helicopter Brigade as having dropped chlorine bombs and said people "with effective control in the military units ... must be held accountable".

And, as Reuters concludes, the source familiar with the inquiry said the October report had clearly established the institutions responsible and that the next step was to go after the individuals, a list which includes the president of Syria.

It remains to be seen what, if any, interest Trump will have to launch action against Assad and Syria once the allegation is made public. In the past Assad has said he will end US support for Syrian rebels, the natural opponent of the Assad regime, while in November, Assad called Trump a "natural ally" in the fight against terrorism. In a interview Assad said that while allowing that what he called “opposing forces within the administration” could cast doubt on whether Mr. Trump “can deliver on his promises,” Assad said that “if he fights the terrorists, it is clear that we will be a natural ally, together with the Russians, Iranians and many other countries who want to defeat the terrorists.”

Finally, at the same time as the Reuters report hit, Russia's foreign ministry, cited by Interfax, said that terrorists in Syria, Iraq are using chemical weapons.

Razor-and-Blade Model: What Is It? What Companies Have One?

via Motley Fool Headlines by on Fri, 13 Jan 2017 17:21:00 GMT

A razor-and-blade model can be lucrative. Here are some companies that employ this pricing strategy.

Banks Are Dumping - JPMorgan Goes Red

via by Tyler Durden on Fri, 13 Jan 2017 17:20:46 GMT

Well that's not supposed to happen...

 

Sanchez Energy Corp. Soars After Unveiling a Strategic Partnership

via Motley Fool Headlines by on Fri, 13 Jan 2017 17:06:00 GMT

The shale driller signed a partnership agreement with a leading private equity company to acquire Eagle Ford shale assets from Anadarko Petroleum.

Why Exact Sciences' Stock Could Go Much Higher

via Motley Fool Headlines by on Fri, 13 Jan 2017 17:02:00 GMT

Exact Sciences CEO discusses the company's huge opportunities at the J. P. Morgan Healthcare Conference.

3 Reasons Altria Group Inc. Stock Could Fall

via Motley Fool Headlines by on Fri, 13 Jan 2017 16:43:00 GMT

Despite a strong 2016, Altria stock isn't invulnerable. Find out what could send shares lower.

"They'll Regret It" - Trader Warns Unquestioned "Trumpflation" Dogma Will Be Tested

via by Tyler Durden on Fri, 13 Jan 2017 16:34:35 GMT

The vast majority of market participants are showing a surprising lack of flexibility and adaptability when it comes to the Trumpflation trade. As Bloomberg's Mark Cudmore warns, they may regret it.

The dollar can still correct a chunk more without 2017 being a write off. The rush to rapidly buy the smallest dip, without proper consideration for the risks, is fraught with danger.

In the last 24 hours, I’ve been overwhelmed by the number of analyst notes recommending that the correction in the Trump victory-related themes – stronger dollar and higher yields as the most prominent ones -- has already gone too far and provides a great “opportunity” to add to positions.

They may be correct, but the incredible conviction and seeming inability to add some nuance to the view is worrying. It’s verging on religious fervor, and shows a level of defensiveness that normally only comes from someone on the back-foot.

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index remains more than 5% above where it closed on election day. It can still fall another 2%, and remain comfortably in a medium-term uptrend.

Similarly, U.S. 10-year Treasury yields remain more than 50 basis points higher and can drop another 20 basis points without destroying a 2017 theme of rising rates.

The point is that there is room for a larger correction now without derailing full-year Trumpflation trades. But it seems the market doesn’t want to countenance such a concept.

This single-mindedness is surprising given that there’s been little this week to boost the fundamental argument for a stronger dollar accompanied by higher rates. Trump’s press conference didn’t outline an expedited stimulus plan. In fact it’s arguable that it implied a massive fiscal jolt may be less probable.

The closes this week will be important technically. It’ll be an easier 2017 for traders if the consensus is correct in January. But to me, a simple risk-reward analysis suggests that the rest of this month should be spent more focused on the downside risks.

The Best Uranium Stock of 2016

via Motley Fool Headlines by on Fri, 13 Jan 2017 16:13:00 GMT

When it comes to investing in uranium, there was really only one best option in 2016 and it’s the best for 2017, too.

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