Thread: Homeless Man Dies After Being Brutally Beaten by Five Fuller

Originally Posted by SicNTiredInSoCal

I live in a beach town with tons of homeless people and I can tell you they are someone to be avoided. They have a "fixed stare" that goes right thru you and major major anger issues. They can be prone to violence and drunkeness. While I do feel bad for them, I also see most of them as a nuisance.

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Desperation drives human beings into actions they would never even consider under normal conditions.

We are going into more desperate economic times not seen in this country since the Civil War, and not seen in the world since WWII.

Household incomes averaging $850,000 ARE BARELY MAKING IT by. People are stretched into BUYING FOOD AND GAS with credit cards. The affluent may soon join the ranks of the street people. When that happens, we'll go into martial law and government food rationing.
http://www.watchtime.com/2011/08/survey ... s-economy/

I know it sounds unbelievable, but it wont be the first time in modern history.


We'll see police brutality turn into military brutality. Recent surveys have indicated that when polled, incredibly over a third of US Marines said they would fire upon US civilians.

And what about tazers? They are supposed to be used as a last resort to immobilize violent and dangerous criminals for safe apprehension. Why wasn't a tazer used on this man instead of taking his life through overwhelming brute force?

A glimpse of what Americans are facing ..

BROKEN AMERICAN DREAMS - The Tent City of New Jersey
http://www.alipac.us/ftopic-245878-0-da ... rasc-.html

BTTT

Update: Outrage Grows After Police Allegedly Beat Mentally-Ill Homeless Man to Death (Graphic Image)

Posted on August 22, 2011 at 9:30pm
by Billy Hallowell
Comments (130)

4 videos at the link; several non transferrable

FULLERTON, Calif. (The Blaze/AP) — Until last month, the most pressing issues in this quiet Southern California suburb were whether to build homes on rolling hills north of the city, how best to preserve a historic movie theater and a downtown bar scene that got a little too popular for its own good. But, all that changed back in July when Kelly Thomas, a mentally-ill homeless man died following a brutal brawl with local police. http://www.theblaze.com/stories/police- ... hic-image/

Now, the historic city that’s home to five colleges and a vibrant nightlife is the target of international outrage. Last month, The Blaze first covered this story, complete with video of the incident in which 37-year-old Kelly Thomas, who suffered from schizophrenia, can be heard crying out for his father over the zapping sound of a stun gun. http://www.theblaze.com/stories/police- ... hic-image/ Watch the video, below:

Video: Police Beating of Kelly Thomas in Fullerton, CA http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ljYNgLn ... r_embedded

The incident last month has ensnared Fullerton in an ever-widening array of state and federal investigations, resignations and rowdy protests – and things promise to get worse for the city before they get better. The acting police chief last week ordered an internal investigation into an unrelated, but volatile confrontation last year after reviewing cell phone footage that appears to contradict sworn testimony given by police officers in court.

Public outcry over the new video prompted the department to acknowledge that officers may have arrested the wrong man. That man, Veth Mam, on Friday filed a federal complaint alleging officers used excessive force and falsified their police reports after arresting him. Mam, 35, was acquitted by a jury earlier this month on charges of assault, battery and resisting arrest, in part because of cell phone video depicting his own arrest.


A before and after shot of the Kelly Thomas beating

The two incidents have put Fullerton, an unassuming Orange County city best known as the home of a prominent California State University campus, on the map from Germany to Korea – and unhappy residents and business owners are hunkering down. The city, founded in 1887 in the midst of citrus groves, prides itself on its roster of refurbished turn-of-the-century brick buildings, a bustling summer farmer’s market and a hopping nightlife in the redeveloped downtown with a jazz scene that has been known to attract the likes of actor Joe Pesci.

Most families who move to the city put down permanent roots and enjoy the small-town feel in a county better known for its sprawling suburban developments and web of freeways.

“It’s a very friendly place, it’s kind of low-key and because this has happened now that’s all that anybody knows about us,â€

USA: Fullerton City Council Public Hearing on the Beating

http://www.wat.tv/video/usa-fullerton-c ... 1wod_.html

Update: Outrage Grows After Police Allegedly Beat Mentally-Ill Homeless Man to Death (Graphic Image)

Posted on August 22, 2011 at 9:30pm
by Billy Hallowell
Comments (130)

4 videos at the link; several non transferrable

FULLERTON, Calif. (The Blaze/AP) Until last month, the most pressing issues in this quiet Southern California suburb were whether to build homes on rolling hills north of the city, how best to preserve a historic movie theater and a downtown bar scene that got a little too popular for its own good. But, all that changed back in July when Kelly Thomas, a mentally-ill homeless man died following a brutal brawl with local police. http://www.theblaze.com/stories/police- ... hic-image/

Now, the historic city that’s home to five colleges and a vibrant nightlife is the target of international outrage. Last month, The Blaze first covered this story, complete with video of the incident in which 37-year-old Kelly Thomas, who suffered from schizophrenia, can be heard crying out for his father over the zapping sound of a stun gun. http://www.theblaze.com/stories/police- ... hic-image/ Watch the video, below:

Video: Police Beating of Kelly Thomas in Fullerton, CA http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ljYNgLn ... r_embedded

The incident last month has ensnared Fullerton in an ever-widening array of state and federal investigations, resignations and rowdy protests – and things promise to get worse for the city before they get better. The acting police chief last week ordered an internal investigation into an unrelated, but volatile confrontation last year after reviewing cell phone footage that appears to contradict sworn testimony given by police officers in court.

Public outcry over the new video prompted the department to acknowledge that officers may have arrested the wrong man. That man, Veth Mam, on Friday filed a federal complaint alleging officers used excessive force and falsified their police reports after arresting him. Mam, 35, was acquitted by a jury earlier this month on charges of assault, battery and resisting arrest, in part because of cell phone video depicting his own arrest.


A before and after shot of the Kelly Thomas beating

The two incidents have put Fullerton, an unassuming Orange County city best known as the home of a prominent California State University campus, on the map from Germany to Korea and unhappy residents and business owners are hunkering down. The city, founded in 1887 in the midst of citrus groves, prides itself on its roster of refurbished turn-of-the-century brick buildings, a bustling summer farmers market and a hopping nightlife in the redeveloped downtown with a jazz scene that has been known to attract the likes of actor Joe Pesci.

Most families who move to the city put down permanent roots and enjoy the small-town feel in a county better known for its sprawling suburban developments and web of freeways.

“It’s a very friendly place, it’s kind of low-key and because this has happened now that’s all that anybody knows about us,” said Michael Ritto, president of the Fullerton Downtown Business Association. “People are all upset, people are marching. I go to work and every day, all day, there’s TV cameras and crews everywhere.”

Video at the page link

The city’s biggest quality-of-life issue, an overly active bar scene, has been somewhat tamed in the past several years but is still an issue for police. Mam’s arrest last year happened as bars were letting out around 2 a.m.
“They’re telling people, `Don’t go to Fullerton.’ Nobody here did anything wrong. Why should the retailers suffer?” said Ritto, speaking of the protesters who have packed public forums and marched outside the police station every Saturday for a month.
For Fullerton, things began spiraling out of control on July 5, when Thomas got into a violent fight with police officers who were responding to reports that someone had been burglarizing cars at a downtown transit station. Thomas, who suffered severe head and neck injuries, was taken off life support on July 10.
The incident was captured from a distance by a bystander with a cell phone camera and surveillance video from a bus captured upset witnesses telling the bus driver that officers had beaten and repeatedly used a stun gun on Thomas as he cried out for help.
The district attorney‘s office is investigating the death and the FBI has launched a criminal probe to determine whether Thomas’ civil rights were violated. The City Council also last week voted to hire an independent consultant to untangle the events leading to Thomas’ death. Below, see angry citizens — and Thomas’ father — decry the officers’ actions at a Fullerton city council meeting:

Video at the page link


The district attorney has additional video of the incident from city surveillance cameras but authorities have not released it – or the officers’ names – citing the ongoing investigation.
The incident has gained such notoriety that even the infamous hacker group “Anonymous” has threatened to take action. Earlier this month, Gawker wrote:

In launching “Operation Fullerton,” Anonymous sent a letter to the Fullerton Police Department—also posted at Pastebin—criticizing the local city government for having a “broken moral compass,” and making the following demands:

1) We demand the prosecution of Officers Jay Cicinelli, Kenton Hampton, Manny Ramos, Joe Wolfe, James Blatney, and anyone else involved in the gruesome beating, torture, and murder of Kelly Thomas.
2) We demand the immediate resignation of the Chief of Police in Fullerton, California.
3) We demand that the City of Fullerton immediately pay a lump sum settlement of no less than 5 million dollars to the legal survivors of Kelly Thomas.

Police Chief Michael Sellers went on medical leave last week after repeated calls for his resignation and a recall effort is underway against a councilman, the mayor pro tem and Mayor Richard Jones, a retired surgeon who angered many when he said he had seen injuries worse than those suffered by Thomas during the Vietnam War.
On Friday, attorney Garo Mardirossian, who is representing Thomas’ family, announced he had also filed a federal civil rights lawsuit on Mam’s behalf. He alleges that one of the officers involved in Mam’s case was also involved in the fight with Thomas.
Sgt. Andrew Goodrich, a police spokesman, declined to comment on specific allegations in the lawsuit or to confirm the officer was involved in either case.
Mam, 35, was accused of jumping on an officer’s back and choking him outside of a bar he and his friends had just left. His criminal attorney, David Borsari, said Mam was actually recording the arrest of his friend on his cell phone when the officer in question knocked the device out of his hand, and wrestled him to the ground where he was arrested.
Another bystander picked up Mam‘s phone and captured Mam’s arrest – footage that proves he never attacked an officer, said Borsari.
The cell phone video was used as evidence by both the prosecution and defense during trial and Mam was acquitted on all counts.
“Once they know that they’ve been caught, they fall back on, `It’s a mistake,’” Borsari said. “I believe it was a calculated attempt to file a false report to mislead a jury.”
Goodrich, the police spokesman, said allegations that the officers in the Mam case perjured themselves were false because they believed when they testified that they had arrested the right person.
“I’ve said it many times, this is a good department that focuses on community service,” Goodrich said. “There’s a lot of attention focused on us because of the Kelly Thomas incident and we understand that and we respect that.”
Prosecutor Rebecca Reed, who handled Mam’s case, said her office received the tape more than a month before trial but no one reviewed it until she watched it on the first day of the misdemeanor trial in June. She relied on officers’ accounts in building her case, she said.
“I thought it was reasonable that Veth Mam had been involved in this altercation before filming,” she said. “The video did not show the whole story.”

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/upda...graphic-image/

District Attorney finds 'no evidence' that homeless man beaten to death by police had been intentionally killed

By Daniel Miller
UPDATED: 03:18 EST, 9 August 2011

A District Attorney claims he's seen no evidence that police had intentionally tried to kill a homeless man who died after being beaten to a bloody pulp by six officers.

Schizophrenic Kelly Thomas, 37, died after resisting arrest in the college town of Fullerton in Orange County.

Video of the incident shows police officers beating and tasering Mr Thomas repeatedly as he lies on the floor crying out for his father.

Scroll down for video




Dead: Mentally ill homeless man Kelly Thomas, 37, was beaten and tasered to death by police for allegedly 'resisting arrest'

Shocking: This picture shows the extent of the injuries Thomas received after being beaten up by six police officers

Eye witnesses said he was unable to offer any resistance as he was beaten beyond recognition by the officers who were responding to reports of a break-in.

But Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas said he'd seen no evidence to suggest Thomas had been intentionally killed.

He told the Los Angeles Times: 'As far as intentional killing — whether an officer intended to kill him ... I have not seen any evidence of that in this case.'

Rackauckas is trying to establish whether excessive force was used during the incident on July 5 this year.

The coroner's office is waiting for results of toxicology tests before they can determine the cause of death.

Thomas was left in a critical condition having suffered severe head and neck injuries in the attack.

He was taken off life support and died five days after the incident.



Video: Thomas' body can be made out surrounded by officers on the ground as a woman screams at them to stop as they taser him for the fifth time


Father: Ron Thomas has been passing out flyers seeking answers near the scene where the run-in with police left his son brain-damaged

His death has sparked outrage in the suburb southeast of Los Angeles.

According to reports Thomas - who suffered from schizophrenia - caught the attention of the police after someone reported a burglar was breaking into cars parked near a Fullerton bus station.

When officers approached him in the depot parking lot and tried to arrest him, he resisted.

Eye witnesses Mark Turgeon, said: 'They kept beating him and tasering him. I could hear zapping, and he wasn't even moving.
'He had one arm in front of him like this, he wasn't resisting. And they kept telling him, "He's resisting, quit resisting", and he wasn't resisting.'

Members of the Fullerton community described Thomas as a passive, peaceful person.

He had a previous conviction for assault with a deadly weapon 16 years ago which had been attributed to the onset of his mental illness.

Since his death, his family and members of the community have held protests outside the police department headquarters, looking for answers.

His father Ron Thomas, a former sheriff's deputy, claims he rejected a compensation offer of almost $1million, and plans to sue the city of Fullerton.

He said: 'His death was gang-involved, the way I see it. A gang of rogue officers who brutally beat my son to death.'



http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...ly-killed.html

Everytime I see this it just makes my blood boil. It will be interesting to see how this all pans out. Thoughts and prayers to his heartbroken family.
Poor guy....

Makes my blood boil too, my stomach clench and my head pound.

May God comfort his loved ones

September 6, 2011 @ 1:55AM

Fullerton Police Accused Of Confiscating Yet Another Camera After Homeless Beating

By Carlos Miller

2 Video's at the Page link:

Another citizen is claiming that Fullerton police confiscated her camera in the wake of the Kelly Thomas beating death.

This makes at least three cameras seized from citizens whose content has yet to see the light of day.

And that’s not counting the city-owned surveillance camera that prosecutors refuse to release on the basis that it could taint witness testimony – never mind the fact that they’re already interviewed all the witnesses.

However, Kelly Thomas’ dad, the retired Orange County Sheriff’s deputy, has filed a claim that he intends to file a lawsuit, which would give him legal access to the video considering it is “evidence.”

And he’s been one of the main proponents of seeing that video released.

Meanwhile, Friends of Fullerton continue to provide the newest info on this case, including the two videos included with this story.

The top video is an interview with a witness to the incident that claimed a police officer intimidated into handing over the film from her camera.

The second video is an interview with another witness who said that police had sat Thomas on a curb for about 20 minutes and when they moved in to arrest him, he jumped up and tried to run away.

The officers quickly pounced on him and began beating him.

http://www.pixiq.com/article/fullert...another-camera

Kelly Thomas Death: Officer Manuel Ramos Charged With Murder

1 charged with murder

1 charged with manslaughter

Several Video's at the link:

First Posted: 9/21/11 02:21 PM ET
Updated: 9/21/11 09:12 PM ET
By AMY TAXIN and GREG RISLING, Associated Press.

Associated Press Writers Gillian Flaccus in Orange County and Thomas Watkins in Los Angeles contributed to this report.

SANTA ANA, Calif. -- Two police officers were charged Wednesday in the death of a mentally ill homeless man in Southern California who was beaten and repeatedly shocked with a stun gun during his arrest, authorities said.

Officer Manuel Ramos was charged with one count each of second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter in the death of 37-year-old Kelly Thomas after a violent confrontation on July 5 with officers, Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas said at a news conference.

Police Cpl. Jay Cicinelli was charged with one count each of involuntary manslaughter and excessive force, he said.

Rackauckas said a review of the evidence showed Thomas was acting "in self-defense, in pain and in a state of panic."

"His numerous pleas of `I'm sorry,' `I can't breathe,' `Help Dad' (were) all to no avail. Screams, loud screams, didn't help," the prosecutor said.


The prosecutor said police officers have a right to use reasonable force in the performance of a lawful duty but citizens have a right to self-defense, even against the police.

Lorie Fridell, an associate professor of criminology at the University of South Florida, said it is highly unusual for a police officer to be charged with murder.

"It is quite appropriate in such cases to hold officers to account," Fridell said. "Often, however prosecutors will give officers the benefit of the doubt."

Ron Thomas, Kelly Thomas' father, said he was pleased with the charges but still suffers every day as a result of his son's death.

"That's exactly what I hoped for," Ron Thomas said of the charges.. "It makes me feel fantastic that this is happening, it's the justice we need."

Bill Hadden, an attorney representing Cincinelli, didn't immediately return a call for comment. A call to a home number for Ramos rang unanswered.

Arraignment was scheduled later Wednesday.

Six officers were placed on paid administrative leave after the incident that occurred while police were investigating reported vehicle break-ins at a transit hub.

Thomas suffered severe head and neck injuries and was taken off life support five days later.

Thomas suffered from schizophrenia and lived on the streets even though he received support from family and friends.

Police said Thomas ran when officers tried to search his bag. A struggle followed when they tried to arrest him for investigation of possession of stolen goods.

Video from a bystander's cell phone taken from a distance showed parts of the bloody encounter in which Thomas can be heard screaming for his father.

Surveillance video aboard a bus showed agitated passengers telling the driver that officers beat and repeatedly used a stun gun during the arrest.

After the incident, the police chief went on medical leave and the embattled City Council hired a law enforcement expert to investigate Police Department practices.

Incensed community members held demonstrations and started an effort to recall the mayor and two councilmembers over the incident.

Ron Thomas, the father of the dead man, filed a claim seeking damages from the city.

He has previously released his son's medical records showing Thomas suffered broken bones in his face, choked on his own blood and was repeatedly shocked with two stun guns.

News reports show Cincinelli left the Los Angeles Police Department after losing an eye in 1996 while working as a probationary officer.

Cincinelli, who was 25 at the time, was shot during an on-duty gunfight during a traffic stop less than three weeks after graduating from the Police Academy, according to news accounts.

Video:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/2 ... k2%7C97750