America.....home of the brave.....land of the free. Many freedoms guaranteed. One is freedom from abuses of police power.
A year ago, I wrote a column titled Abuse of Power. It had to do with a 3 year old boy who had recently been toilet trained. He had to go. He pulled his pants down in his grandmother's driveway and peed.
The boy and his mother lived with the grandmother who owned the home.
A police officer observed the event. He issued the mother a ticket for her son's peeing in public. The fine was $2,500.
The national media picked up the event and the next day the community's Chief of Police showed up at the grandmother's home and withdrew the charge.
The story a clear example of abuse of police power.
Now comes David Eckert's story. Abusive, stupid, gross, dehumanizing. The title of this article represents a small portion of the dilemma Eckert found himself in. The abuse described in the title occurred not one time, but twice. And included other even worse abuses.
You may find it difficult to believe what I am about to share with you. Not in the United States, you will say. Yes, it did happen in the United States.
The place is Deming, New Mexico. The date January 2, 2013.
Eckert was leaving a Walmart parking lot. He rolled through the stop sign for vehicles leaving the parking lot. A police detective saw the incident. He went over to a police car and told the officer. He also told the officer he thought the driver was a methane user.
The uniformed police officer in the car pulled Eckert over. Asked for his driver's license, registration, and proof of insurance. So far the stop was normal. However, instead of asking for these items through the window while Eckert was seated in the car, the police officer first had him get out.
The police officer described the standing Eckert as having an erect posture, kept his legs together, and clenched his buttocks.
The police officer decided Eckert was carrying drugs in his ass.
He called for Leo. Leo is a police dog purportedly trained to sniff out drugs. Leo was brought to the scene. It is claimed in the Police Department paperwork that Leo reacted when he smelled the driver's seat. No drugs were discovered in the car.
Eckert was arrested. Allegedly for carrying drugs in his anus.
There was no video of any portion of the event. Additionally, Leo's reliability is in question. He had made three errors in previous arrests where no drugs were actually found. He had not been re-certified as required by law.
A prosecutor obtained a search warrant from a Judge. The warrant permitted a search of Eckert "...to include but not limited to his anal cavity."
The police took Eckert to a local hospital to have his "anus" searched for drugs. The doctor at the hospital refused to do it. He thought the police were crazy and the procedure unethical.
Deming is small town America. One hospital apparently. Eckert was taken by the police to a hospital in an adjoining community. The doctors in this community apparently saw nothing wrong and proceeded to initiate the search.
Thus far the only person who has shown sense is the doctor in the first hospital who said in effect get out of here.
Now begins the abuse scenario.
Eckert's stomach was first x-rayed. No drugs discovered. A doctor then digitally examined Eckert's anus. The polite way of saying he stuck his finger up Eckert's ass. No drugs discovered again. He then performed a second digital exam. No drugs again.
The police were directing the event.
The next procedure decided upon was that Eckert be given an enema. This was done in the presence of hospital staff and the police. The doctor and police watched Eckert defecate. His stool was examined. No drugs.
The police were not satisfied. Eckert was given two more enemas. Defecation again in front of the doctor and police. Each time no drugs were found.
Eckert's stomach was again x-rayed. No drugs.
It gets worse.
At this point Eckert was given a colonoscopy. Many of us have had one to check for cancer and other bowel problems. Per the procedure, Eckert was sedated, a tube and camera went up his rectum, into his colon and large intestine. No drugs seen or discovered.
All of the above procedures which took place in the second hospital are substantiated by the hospital records. The anal probing in the hospital took in excess of twelve hours.
Besides the abuse involved, there are two technical items that come into play. First, a search warrant must be executed in the county it is granted. This one was not. The second hospital was in an adjoining county. The second is that the search warrant set forth that it expired at 10 pm. The colonoscopy was performed at 1 am.
Abuse can take many forms. The doctor in the second hospital who did the probing, etc. sent Eckert a bill for $6,000.
A person does not have to be a Supreme Court Judge or have any legal background to know something was wrong here.
Eckert has filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking damages. He sued the Police Department, the police officer, the prosecutor, the second hospital, and the doctors and staff at the second hospital who participated.
He has an excellent lawsuit. It has the propensity for a big dollar award. This type conduct will not and should not be tolerated in the United States. The United States is not a banana republic. The activity here smells of actions which occur in totalitarian countries.
Police abuses do occur. I sense with increasing frequency. The reason why is that the American people have permitted their legislators and courts to eat away at basic rights over the years. Especially since 9/11. Police feel empowered to do what they want. They expect the courts to back them up, which they generally do. Search warrants are a problem. They are signed by Judges who do not pay as much attention to the contents of a supporting affidavit as they should or did in the past.
Eckert's case and other similar abuses represent an erosion of basic American liberties. People must recognize that abuses are happening. And, where possible, express their disagreement and disgust with such conduct.
Otherwise what happened to Eckert could happen to you. Do not think it could not.
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