Police Comandeer Private Homes to Spy on Neighbors

 Police State

Family arrested for refusing to let police use their home

to spy on their neighbors

LAS VEGAS (CN) - Henderson police arrested a family for refusing to let officers use their homes as lookouts for a domestic violence investigation of their neighbors, the family claims in court.

Anthony Mitchell and his parents Michael and Linda Mitchell sued the City of Henderson, its Police Chief Jutta Chambers, Officers Garret Poiner, Ronald Feola, Ramona Walls, Angela Walker, and Christopher Worley, and City of North Las Vegas and its Police Chief Joseph Chronister, in Federal Court.

Wyatt Earp
In the olden days of the Republic the
police were not militarized.  Yet somehow
laws were enforced and the world went on.

Henderson, pop. 257,000, is a suburb of Las Vegas.

The Mitchell family's claim includes Third Amendment violations, a rare claim in the United States.

The Third Amendment prohibits quartering soldiers in citizens' homes in times of peace without the consent of the owner reports Infowars News.

The incident took place in July 2011 and gives a new appreciation to the third item on the Bill of Rights, which is supposed to prohibit the government from forcing people to house soldiers.

In full, the Third Amendment states:

"No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law."

The complaint alleges plaintiff Anthony Mitchell, a resident of the southwestern Las Vegas suburb of Henderson, was contacted by Henderson Officer Christopher Worley and told his home was needed for police to gain a “’tactical advantage’ against the occupant of the neighboring house.”

 

According to Courthouse News, the complaint states, “Anthony Mitchell told the officer that he did not want to become involved and that he did not want police to enter his residence. Although Worley continued to insist that plaintiff should leave his residence, plaintiff clearly explained that he did not intend to leave his home or to allow police to occupy his home.” 

 

Police were not content taking “No” for an answer. The complaint goes on to detail the subsequent raid that followed after Mitchell refused to allow officers entry:

“The officers banged forcefully on the door and loudly commanded Anthony Mitchell to open the door to his residence.

“Surprised and perturbed, plaintiff Anthony Mitchell immediately called his mother (plaintiff Linda Mitchell) on the phone, exclaiming to her that the police were beating on his front door.

“Seconds later, officers, including Officer Rockwell, smashed open plaintiff Anthony Mitchell’s front door with a metal ram as plaintiff stood in his living room.

“As plaintiff Anthony Mitchell stood in shock, the officers aimed their weapons at Anthony Mitchell and shouted obscenities at him and ordered him to lie down on the floor.

“Fearing for his life, plaintiff Anthony Mitchell dropped his phone and prostrated himself onto the floor of his living room, covering his face and hands.”Addressing plaintiff as ‘asshole’, officers, including Officer Snyder, shouted conflicting orders at Anthony Mitchell, commanding him to both shut off his phone, which was on the floor in front of his head, and simultaneously commanding him to ‘crawl’ toward the officers.

“Confused and terrified, plaintiff Anthony Mitchell remained curled on the floor of his living room, with his hands over his face, and made no movement.

When Mitchell failed to immediately comply with the officer’s conflicting orders, he was shot at close range with at least three “PepperBall” rounds, non-lethal air rifle rounds similar to paintballs which are typically accurate at distances of up to 60 feet.

As an added bonus, officers also “gratuitously” shot Mitchell’s dog Sam causing her to howl “in fear and pain” and flee the residence into a nearby fenced-in alcove where she remained “without access to water, food, or shelter from the sun for much of the day, while temperatures outside soared to over 100 degrees Fahrenheit,” even though, as mentioned in the complaint, the dog cowered in fear in a corner of the room and posed no threat.

The family is suing for violations of the Third, Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments in addition to seeking punitive damages for assault and battery, conspiracy, defamation, abuse of process, malicious prosecution, negligence and emotional distress.

Anthony and his parents live in separate houses, close to one another on the same street. He claims that police treated his parents the same way.