Breaking - Houston Police Department responding to report of several officers shot

[Sanguine]

Law enforcement experts say that’s indicative of a unit without sufficient oversight, where repeated complaints and lawsuits don’t lead to any apparent internal review.

[GrouchoTex]

Earlier I posted that I doubted that the informant existed.
Yesterday, the news came out that they could not find the informant who purchased heroin there.
They are saying now that the buy never happened.
Yet, why were this people targeted?
Who on the no knock warrant team was after them?
(No knock warrants.....)
Or, were they merely pawns, just serving the warrant that some higher up sent them to do, a higher up that had an issue with these people?
Perhaps, was it all just a huge mistake, mistaken identity, and the cops didn't know these people from Adam?

[Bigun]

Earlier I posted that I doubted that the informant existed.
Yesterday, the news came out that they could not find the informant who purchased heroin there.
They are saying now that the buy never happened.
Yet, why were this people targeted?
Who on the no knock warrant team was after them?
(No knock warrants.....)
Or, were they merely pawns, just serving the warrant that some higher up sent them to do, a higher up that had an issue with these people?
Perhaps, was it all just a huge mistake, mistaken identity, and the cops didn't know these people from Adam?

If I were a close relative of either of the people the cops took out in this I would be hiring a really good civil lawyer about right now.

[GrouchoTex]

When the story first came out, on the day it happened, I thought,"My God, what are these crazy people doing, shooting at cops?"
A few days later, when they released the identities of the victims, that's when I started to get the feeling that something wasn't quite right, but I still thought there was a possibility the couple may have been guilty.
Now, no way, it is nothing but a mess.

[GtHawk]

If I were a close relative of either of the people the cops took out in this I would be hiring a really good civil lawyer about right now.

Just think how big this would have been blown up in the media if the victims of this police incompetence were of color, there would be accusations of a police execution, racism at the least. But since the victims were just two White people..........no biggy.

[Bigun]

Just think how big this would have been blown up in the media if the victims of this police incompetence were of color, there would be accusations of a police execution, racism at the least. But since the victims were just two White people..........no biggy.

You would be hearing about it 24/7 nation wide!

[240B]

A video of interest:

http://youtu.be/9XmflR0MWXc

A bit choppy at first, but listen to the difference in addresses and keep watching.

7815 HARDY Street v. 7815 HARDING Street

(the following is from TOS):
"The average house with typical 60 year old couple car in the drive way was 7815 Harding street. The known drug house with security cameras, bars on windows was 7815 Hardy street."

I think this is the most likely reason for the whole thing. They simply went to the wrong house.
Which emphasizes what I have always said, 'Why was no one watching the house?' They should have known how many people were home and what was going on there before any raid of this type. And the overkill(no pun) of it is suspicious. It smells like these officers were jumping at the chance to be in the 'armed raid' for career reasons. They wanted it in their file. That's why so many officers were involved. They thought it was going to be nothing, just a quick and easy raid.

You would think with that many officers some of them would be watching the backdoor. Nope. You would think they would have all the officers 'in place' before the raid started. Nope. You would think they would have an idea of how many suspects were in the home and have a general idea of the activity level. Nope.

They just did a Rambo and burst in shooting. "Shoot um all and let God sort it out", doesn't work very well in this type of situation. Now the Cops are facing criminal charges, mostly from just the utter incompetence and negligence of the raid. Some of them may go to jail, but the people they killed over a blow of coke and a blunt, are dead forever.

[IsailedawayfromFR]

All of this goes right to the top as to responsibility.

The police leadership failed in monitoring its cops and the process used to deploy.

As a minimum, Acevedo should be fired.

[Bigun]

All of this goes right to the top as to responsibility.

The police leadership failed in monitoring its cops and the process used to deploy.

As a minimum, Acevedo should be fired.

ABSOLUTELY!! But it will never happen with the current "leadership" of Houston in place! They LOVE their political activist/police chief.

[Wingnut]

ABSOLUTELY!! But it will never happen with the current "leadership" of Houston in place! They LOVE their political activist/police chief.

I hear Israel from Coward County is available.  He'd fit right in with Harris Co.

[Elderberry]

Cops lied, people died. Here’s how HPD can restore Houston’s trust [Editorial]

Houston Chronicle 2/16/2019

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/editorials/article/Cops-lied-people-died-Here-s-how-HPD-can-13622823.php?

You lie, you die.

That’s been Art Acevedo’s mantra ever since he became Houston’s police chief over two years ago. It’s a warning to his 5,200 sworn law enforcement officers that dishonesty and dirty policing will not be tolerated.

But last month’s disastrous drug raid that claimed the lives of a husband and wife of 21 years reminds us that when cops violate sacred trust, more than their careers are at stake.

In this case, cops lied, and people died.

Dennis Tuttle, a 59-year-old Navy veteran, and Rhogena Nicholas, 58, were shot dead, along with their dog, by Houston Police Department officers in a chaotic, violent no-knock raid that never should have happened.

Soon after the raid, which left five officers injured when the couple fired back, some Pecan Park residents claimed the deceased couple were longtime residents who didn’t deal drugs.

Police secured the no-knock warrant based on a confidential informant’s drug buy. But investigators are unable to locate the informant who claimed a “large quantity” of drugs packaged for sale inside the house. Officers found little more than a half-ounce of marijuana and 1.5 grams of cocaine.

More at link.

[EdJames]

I'm still trying to get a handle on this.

I see:

Police secured the no-knock warrant based on a confidential informant’s drug buy. But investigators are unable to locate the informant who claimed a “large quantity” of drugs packaged for sale inside the house.

and also:

Suspicions of foul play were all but confirmed late Friday when Acevedo announced that an internal investigation had found that the search warrant used to justify the raid was falsified.

and:

What’s more, undercover officer Steven Bryant, who Goines had claimed witnessed the drug buy and identified the product as heroin, later told investigators he retrieved two bags of heroin from Goines’ car and had not seen them purchased by any informant.

So the bottom line is that there was no CI buying anything here, the lie to obtain the search warrant was that there was a CI involved?

(I'm asking because I've seen other commentary saying that "a CI lied...")

Do I have this straight now?

[Hoodat]

Houston Police Department responding  .  .  .

Wait, I haven't gotten past this part yet.  I can literally take days for Houston police to show up after a 911 call.

[Bigun]

I'm still trying to get a handle on this.

I see:

and also:

and:

So the bottom line is that there was no CI buying anything here, the lie to obtain the search warrant was that there was a CI involved?

(I'm asking because I've seen other commentary saying that "a CI lied...")

Do I have this straight now?

@EdJames

From what I have been able to gather from local news reports,  if there ever was a CI involved he has now disappeared and no one can find any official record of the alleged input.

[Bigun]

Update!!! Big town hall meeting in Houston last night

Many calling for Acevedo's head.

https://www.click2houston.com/news/acevedo-at-town-hall-no-knock-warrants-to-cease-he-wont-step-down

@EdJames

[Sanguine]

Photo of the two victims:

[GrouchoTex]

Town hall meeting with the chief yesterday.
The people were pissed.
Chief says no more no-knock warrants unless it is an extreme circumstance, and he's reviewed it.
Who, if anyone, reviewed this last one?

[EdJames]

Town hall meeting with the chief yesterday.
The people were pissed.
Chief says no more no-knock warrants unless it is an extreme circumstance, and he's reviewed it.
Who, if anyone, reviewed this last one?

I suspect that no one reviewed it.  Goines prepared the application and the judge issued the warrant, no other oversight.

Since the legitimate need for a no-knock is extremely rare, the Chief should be responsible for reviewing and approving the necessity for any of them.

[Smokin Joe]

What he said doesn't matter.
Dead people tell no tales, unless you have really good CSIs and an honest Coroner.

He has a bunch of loose cannons covering their asses right now.

You have police busting down a door in plain clothes going in shooting over a warrant issued over a drug buy that did not exist by a CI that did not exist.

If they aren't selling or sitting on quantity, why would these people even suspect the police would come knocking? Home users are about as low profile as it gets in the drug world, an end point in the supply chain, and if they aren't having problems, causing a ruckus, misbehaving in general, they shouldn't even be on the radar. Neighbors have all seemed to be on good terms, so it isn't even an anonymous tip (and none has been mentioned) so that rules out 'swatting'.

Apparently, innocence was never presumed, and perjury used to obtain the warrant.
Why the false pretenses? Where is the motive to break down these people's door?
What is the history between them and the people on the raid?
Is this a bad address or is there something else going on?

Take the badges away from the people breaking down the door, and we would all be lauding the couple for defending their home. Completely unprepared, elderly couple wounds 4 of 5 attackers in home invasion, two seriously, before succumbing to their own wounds. Sad outcome, but an impressive defense.

We've seen how police 'secure the scene' before allowing or calling in EMS, and reaching for a phone might be all the justification needed to put another round into the condemned for 'reaching for a weapon'.

This smelled funny to start with, but after a couple of weeks, it reeks.

[Elderberry]

Harris County DA to review 1,400 cases that embattled narcotics officer Gerald Goines worked on

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/article/Harris-County-DA-to-review-1-400-cases-that-13631373.php

The Harris County District Attorney's Office announced Wednesday it has launched a review of more than 1,400 criminal cases that narcotics officer Gerald Goines worked on during his 34-year career at the Houston Police Department. The review includes 27 cases that are currently pending in court.

[Sanguine]

Harris County DA to review 1,400 cases that embattled narcotics officer Gerald Goines worked on

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/article/Harris-County-DA-to-review-1-400-cases-that-13631373.php

What a freakin' mess.

[Wingnut]

Goines Going Gone.

[Smokin Joe]

Goines Going Gone.

Sure looks that way.

(Well played, sir. Well played)

[Wingnut]

Sure looks that way.

(Well played, sir. Well played)

Thank you my man!

[Elderberry]

FBI opens civil rights investigation into botched Houston drug bust, police chief says

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Houston-chief-mayor-and-DA-set-to-speak-on-13630749.php

The FBI has launched an independent civil rights investigation into the conduct of officers involved  in the botched no-knock drug raid that left two people dead and five officers wounded, Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo said Wednesday at a City Hall press conference.

The probe is the latest aftershock after last month's deadly drug raid, which left two people dead, thrown the Houston Police Department into turmoil, and sent city and county leaders scrambling to contain a burgeoning scandal.

At the news conference, Acevedo said HPD's criminal investigation into the deaths of Dennis Tuttle and Rhogena Nicholas last month would continue, even as he outlined new policies that he said would avoid future fatalities.

"We as a police department have uncovered some malfeasance, we've taken it seriously, and we're not just looking at what's front of us, not just what's at the end of our nose," Acevedo said. "We have cast a wide net to make sure we identify any problems, most importantly procedures and methods so we can avoids things like this in the future."

More at link above.