New Orleans Police Department

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New Orleans Police Chief: 'Rats Are Eating Our Marijuana'

Department to relocate from rodent-infested building lacking air conditioning, elevators

(Newser) - New Orleans' police chief pleaded for a new building to serve as police headquarters on Monday, summing up her case in just two sentences. "The rats are eating our marijuana. They're all high," Anne Kirkpatrick testified during a meeting of the city's criminal justice committee, eliciting...

Report: NOLA Cops Blew Off 1K Sex Crimes

Inspector general finds 5 detectives ignored vast swath of cases

(Newser) - In the latest blow to New Orleans' scandal-weary police department, a city inspector general's report claims five detectives failed to do substantial investigation of more than 1,000 cases of sex crimes and child abuse—with one detective cited for stating that simple rape should not be considered a...

New Orleans, Feds Unveil Sweeping Police Reforms

Justice Department will watch NOLA for four years

(Newser) - The Justice Department and the city of New Orleans yesterday unveiled an $11 million, 492-point plan to clean up the city's notorious police department, in what Eric Holder called the most sweeping such reform the federal government had ever been involved with. For the next four years, the NOPD...

New Orleans Cops Get Decades in Jail for Shootings

Five sentences in Katrina violence range from six years to 65

(Newser) - Five former New Orleans police officers were sentenced today to prison terms ranging from six to 65 years for their roles in deadly shootings of unarmed residents on a bridge after Hurricane Katrina. Kenneth Bowen, Robert Gisevius, Anthony Villavaso, and Robert Faulcon were convicted of firearms charges. Retired Sgt. Arthur...

New Orleans Cops Convicted in Bridge Shootings

Post-Katrina incident left two civilians dead

(Newser) - All five New Orleans police officers accused of involvement in post-Katrina shootings on a city bridge have been found guilty. Although the jury did not find that their actions constituted murder, it ruled that the cops violated the victims' civil rights, reports the New Orleans Times-Picayune . They all face long...

Two Cops Get Long Sentences in Katrina Killing

David Warren gets 25 years, Gregory McRae 17 in death of Henry Glover

(Newser) - Calling the crimes inexcusable and barbaric, a judge sentenced two former New Orleans police officers to prison today for their roles in the shooting death of an unarmed man whose body was later set on fire in the chaotic aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The judge gave David Warren 25 years...

New Orleans Cops Abusive: Report

Justice Department slams cops for use of force, racial bias

(Newser) - The Justice Department has released a scathing report lambasting the New Orleans Police Department for repeatedly using deadly force without justification, making unconstitutional arrests, and engaging in racial profiling, among other misdeeds. "Even the most serious uses of force, such as officer-involved shootings and in-custody deaths, are investigated inadequately...

3 Cops Found Guilty in Post-Katrina Killing

'Hurricane Katrina didn’t turn petty theft into a capital offense'

(Newser) - Three New Orleans police officers have been found guilty in the death of a man who was shot and had his body burned in the days after Hurricane Katrina. David Warren was found guilty on manslaughter in the death of Henry Glover and two other officers were found guilty on...

Ex-Cop Confesses to Massive Cover-Up in Katrina Shootings

Michael Lohman cops to conspiracy over shooting of 6

(Newser) - A former New Orleans police supervisor has confessed to helping cover up for officers who shot six unarmed people, killing two, in the chaotic aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Michael Lohman pleaded guilty to conspiring to obstruct justice yesterday and admitted helping craft fake police reports, plotting to plant a gun...

Cops: Dad Killed Baby Son to Dodge Child Support

Child's body found stuffed in a bag

(Newser) - A young father has been charged with murdering his toddler son to avoid paying child support., reports the New Orleans Times-Picayune. The dad, 22, confessed to killing his son, stuffing the child's body in a bag and dumping it in a playground. He originally claimed the child was abducted. The...

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