Comments on: Did the LAPD Try To Get a Coroner to Change the Facts? http://witnessla.com/lapd/2009/admin/the-lapd-tries-to-get-a-coroner-to-change-the-facts/ street news, views and stories of justice and injustice Fri, 12 Mar 2010 14:48:32 -0800 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Janet http://witnessla.com/lapd/2009/admin/the-lapd-tries-to-get-a-coroner-to-change-the-facts/comment-page-1/#comment-92764 Janet Thu, 08 Jan 2009 22:09:16 +0000 http://witnessla.com/lapd/2009/admin/the-lapd-tries-to-get-a-coroner-to-change-the-facts/#comment-92764 Thanks Celeste for being honest. It doesn't surprise a hell of a lot of people the LA Slimes would put out yet another hit piece on LAPD. They are desperate to sell papers these days and everyone is saying they have gone down the toliet of journalism and the only credible one left is David Zachniser. Contrary to what LA Latino states that the population thinks we have a repressive force they should know that the majority of people BOTH LATINO, BLACK AND all races overwhelmingly supported LAPD officers on various websites all over the internet. They are intelligent enough to know it was a horrible mistake because of a drug, paranoid father and questioned why would a mother allow her child to be with a drunk & druggie. ...This strikes me—from what he has presented here, and from what I observed in the course of my own research—as unproven and unfair. (Celeste) You are right Celeste very bias piece of garbagge from Joel. Thanks Celeste for being honest. It doesn’t surprise a hell of a lot of people the LA Slimes would put out yet another hit piece on LAPD. They are desperate to sell papers these days and everyone is saying they have gone down the toliet of journalism and the only credible one left is David Zachniser. Contrary to what LA Latino states that the population thinks we have a repressive force they should know that the majority of people BOTH LATINO, BLACK AND all races overwhelmingly supported LAPD officers on various websites all over the internet. They are intelligent enough to know it was a horrible mistake because of a drug, paranoid father and questioned why would a mother allow her child to be with a drunk & druggie.

…This strikes me—from what he has presented here, and from what I observed in the course of my own research—as unproven and unfair. (Celeste)

You are right Celeste very bias piece of garbagge from Joel.

]]> By: Cato http://witnessla.com/lapd/2009/admin/the-lapd-tries-to-get-a-coroner-to-change-the-facts/comment-page-1/#comment-91568 Cato Wed, 07 Jan 2009 20:55:55 +0000 http://witnessla.com/lapd/2009/admin/the-lapd-tries-to-get-a-coroner-to-change-the-facts/#comment-91568 >>The Times will say “well, gee, nobody from SWAT will ever talk to us.” And they will not understand that this is why! Well, if nobody from SWAT ever talks to a reporter on or off the record, their point of view isn't going to be in the stories is it? BTW, is there any truth to the rumor that the autopsy indicated the kind of severe head trauma to Suzie Pena that would only be caused by a high-velocity round, such as a .222 rifle? >>The Times will say “well, gee, nobody from SWAT will ever talk to us.” And they will not understand that this is why!

Well, if nobody from SWAT ever talks to a reporter on or off the record, their point of view isn’t going to be in the stories is it?

BTW, is there any truth to the rumor that the autopsy indicated the kind of severe head trauma to Suzie Pena that would only be caused by a high-velocity round, such as a .222 rifle?

]]> By: Celeste Fremon http://witnessla.com/lapd/2009/admin/the-lapd-tries-to-get-a-coroner-to-change-the-facts/comment-page-1/#comment-91521 Celeste Fremon Wed, 07 Jan 2009 19:42:17 +0000 http://witnessla.com/lapd/2009/admin/the-lapd-tries-to-get-a-coroner-to-change-the-facts/#comment-91521 RCJP and Evan, thanks for your thoughts. Just to clarify, actually, although I spoke with many officers at the time I did the Suzie Pena stories, I did not speak to any members of the SWAT team as, for understandable legal reasons, they were prevented from speaking to the press at that time. (Plus I was given to believe they were quite traumatized by the entire thing, as one could certainly understand and respect.) However, I spoke to many non-SWAT officers present at the incident, at various levels of the food chain---both way off the record and on---and I also spoke to multiple people---both on the department and off---who spoke to the SWAT officers involved. Again, in the immediate aftermath, there was no suggestion from anyone at the LAPD that the bullet that killed Suzie Pena was fired by her father. Perhaps some people said something different privately and that POV took on greater life as the weeks and months past. I have no way of knowing, as my reporting took place right after the standoff and during the first week or two that followed. But it was fairly extensive. However, RCJP, in Joel Rubin’s defense, his was not an article about what SWAT did or didn’t do, but what people involved with the forensics side of things and the post incident investigation did or didn’t do. RCJP and Evan, thanks for your thoughts.

Just to clarify, actually, although I spoke with many officers at the time I did the Suzie Pena stories, I did not speak to any members of the SWAT team as, for understandable legal reasons, they were prevented from speaking to the press at that time. (Plus I was given to believe they were quite traumatized by the entire thing, as one could certainly understand and respect.) However, I spoke to many non-SWAT officers present at the incident, at various levels of the food chain—both way off the record and on—and I also spoke to multiple people—both on the department and off—who spoke to the SWAT officers involved.

Again, in the immediate aftermath, there was no suggestion from anyone at the LAPD that the bullet that killed Suzie Pena was fired by her father. Perhaps some people said something different privately and that POV took on greater life as the weeks and months past. I have no way of knowing, as my reporting took place right after the standoff and during the first week or two that followed. But it was fairly extensive.

However, RCJP, in Joel Rubin’s defense, his was not an article about what SWAT did or didn’t do, but what people involved with the forensics side of things and the post incident investigation did or didn’t do.

]]> By: LA Latino http://witnessla.com/lapd/2009/admin/the-lapd-tries-to-get-a-coroner-to-change-the-facts/comment-page-1/#comment-91511 LA Latino Wed, 07 Jan 2009 19:20:55 +0000 http://witnessla.com/lapd/2009/admin/the-lapd-tries-to-get-a-coroner-to-change-the-facts/#comment-91511 RCJP, you talk to the culprits and they denied guilt? Well, that's a shocker! Kudos to the LA Times for confirming what the polulation is increasingly aware of: Our Police Force are a repressive force. RCJP, you talk to the culprits and they denied guilt? Well, that’s a shocker!

Kudos to the LA Times for confirming what the polulation is increasingly aware of: Our Police Force are a repressive force.

]]> By: RCJP http://witnessla.com/lapd/2009/admin/the-lapd-tries-to-get-a-coroner-to-change-the-facts/comment-page-1/#comment-91509 RCJP Wed, 07 Jan 2009 19:18:33 +0000 http://witnessla.com/lapd/2009/admin/the-lapd-tries-to-get-a-coroner-to-change-the-facts/#comment-91509 " I talked to multiple officers and members of LAPD command staff, and no one expressed any doubt that the bullet that had killed Suzie Pena came from an LAPD gun" I have talked to officers with first and knowledge of the incident who specifically have doubts. ” I talked to multiple officers and members of LAPD command staff, and no one expressed any doubt that the bullet that had killed Suzie Pena came from an LAPD gun”

I have talked to officers with first and knowledge of the incident who specifically have doubts.

]]> By: Evan http://witnessla.com/lapd/2009/admin/the-lapd-tries-to-get-a-coroner-to-change-the-facts/comment-page-1/#comment-91498 Evan Wed, 07 Jan 2009 18:59:04 +0000 http://witnessla.com/lapd/2009/admin/the-lapd-tries-to-get-a-coroner-to-change-the-facts/#comment-91498 RCJP, before you slam Celeste, maybe you should read her links--she quotes SWAT officers in her articles. Meaning, SHE TALKED TO THEM. RCJP, before you slam Celeste, maybe you should read her links–she quotes SWAT officers in her articles. Meaning, SHE TALKED TO THEM.

]]> By: RCJP http://witnessla.com/lapd/2009/admin/the-lapd-tries-to-get-a-coroner-to-change-the-facts/comment-page-1/#comment-91459 RCJP Wed, 07 Jan 2009 18:00:08 +0000 http://witnessla.com/lapd/2009/admin/the-lapd-tries-to-get-a-coroner-to-change-the-facts/#comment-91459 Unlike you or Joel Rubin, I have spoken to SWAT officers who were directly involved in the attempted rescue of Suzie Pena. If you talk to them, (if they trust you) they will give you some very specific reasons why they are confident they did not kill Suzie. In fact, they blame Bratton for the ruling, and feel he forced a smear on them in order to break their institution and standards -- which is exactly what he did with the schlock BOI report. As for you claim that this report was "well researched." Are you F'ing serious? Not a single LAPD officer quoted, even anonymously. No independent pathologist's review of the findings? A gimme quote fromt he ACLU bashing the LAPD (WOW! SURPRISE! SHOCK!)? I like Joel Rubin, but this article was half baked and missing some ingredients. The Times will say "well, gee, nobody from SWAT will ever talk to us." And they will not understand that this is why! Unlike you or Joel Rubin, I have spoken to SWAT officers who were directly involved in the attempted rescue of Suzie Pena. If you talk to them, (if they trust you) they will give you some very specific reasons why they are confident they did not kill Suzie. In fact, they blame Bratton for the ruling, and feel he forced a smear on them in order to break their institution and standards — which is exactly what he did with the schlock BOI report.

As for you claim that this report was “well researched.” Are you F’ing serious? Not a single LAPD officer quoted, even anonymously. No independent pathologist’s review of the findings? A gimme quote fromt he ACLU bashing the LAPD (WOW! SURPRISE! SHOCK!)?

I like Joel Rubin, but this article was half baked and missing some ingredients. The Times will say “well, gee, nobody from SWAT will ever talk to us.” And they will not understand that this is why!

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