For man wrongly arrested, $4,500 damages a pittance

[OriginalShroom]

This is absolutely wrong. This man is owed millions IMHO. He should be awarded an amount equal to at least $60k, in after tax money, a year until his 100th birthday from the day the warrant was changed from Black to White.

Judge rules in the Annapolis false arrest case - baltimoresun.com

Having recently interviewed the British statistician David Hand about probability principles, I suppose I should be willing to accept the following: Two men named James Elmer Bailey, both born on Oct. 15, 1962, resided in the Annapolis area at the time a woman accused one of them of punching her in the face.

Hard as that might be to comprehend, probability theorists like Hand say that such a thing is far more likely than most of us believe. Among their many remarkable findings: Only 23 people need assemble in a room before it becomes more than 50 percent probable that two of them have the same birth date.

Given that, I guess Judge John P. McKenna's findings in the "Wait-What?" case — a false-arrest complaint against three Annapolis police officers in Anne Arundel County District Court — don't seem so far-fetched

As reported in my last column, this case goes back to March 2007, when a woman told an Annapolis police corporal that she had been punched in the face by a man whose sexual advances she resisted.

According to court documents, the woman described the man as black, with brown eyes and black hair. She gave his name as James Elmer Bailey and provided his address and even his birth date.

A warrant was issued for Bailey's arrest. While searching databases, a police dispatcher found a James Elmer Bailey residing in the Annapolis area. But he was white.

That's why I call this a "Wait-What?" case: It's a strange one; you have to stop now and then to make sure you're catching all the facts.

"At the times relevant to this case," McKenna found, "two individuals resided in the Annapolis area, each with the name James Elmer Bailey and each with the reported birth date of October 15, 1962; however, one such individual was white, and the other was black. Further, the physical description of a height of 5'5" and weight of 145 lbs. pertained to the black James Elmer Bailey, while the height of 6'3" and weight of 195 lbs. described the white James Elmer Bailey."
Wait. There's more.

The police corporal changed the description of Bailey on the arrest warrant, turning a short, black suspect into a tall, white one.

According to McKenna's findings, the corporal said he did this on the advice of an assistant state's attorney and a District Court commissioner. But, alas, the corporal could not recall the names of either person; we don't know who gave him such bad advice.

Three years went by before anyone acted on the warrant — another odd fact about this case. In the summer of 2010, two Annapolis police officers picked up the warrant and went looking for James Elmer Bailey. They found him in Edgewater, outside Annapolis.

But the Bailey they found was not the one described by the victim. It was the other one — a white man with gray hair and blue eyes, 6-foot-3 and 195 pounds.

That Bailey told the officers they had the wrong man. Nevertheless, they handcuffed him and took him to the Annapolis Police Department.

There, the officers quickly realized that the original warrant had been altered; the man they had in custody was the wrong Bailey.

So they let him go. They didn't even fingerprint him.

But Bailey was unhappy; he was embarrassed by the scene at his house and, more importantly, he later found his connection to the 2007 assault showing up on background checks when he applied for jobs. The criminal charges also appeared on his credit reports and his name was on a list of outstanding warrants published at least three times in a local newspaper. (Through a family connection, Bailey finally found a job last year as a maintenance man.)

Meanwhile, no man fitting the original description was ever arrested or identified by police.

So, in 2011, Tall Bailey sued the corporal and two officers for making a false arrest and violating his civil rights. McKenna presided over the trial in February 2013.

The judge took another 13 months to issue his 30-page ruling.

On Monday, he ordered the city of Annapolis to pay $4,500 damages for the police corporal's violation of Bailey's rights through the altering of the suspect description. The judge said a court commissioner should have made "a new finding of fact that there was probable cause to believe that the white James Elmer Bailey committed [the] assault," and there was no record of that.

Claims against the officers who took Bailey into custody were dismissed.

The corporal was promoted to sergeant last spring.

I contacted the Annapolis police chief's office about this. I was referred to an assistant city attorney. The attorney said he had not read McKenna's opinion and had no comment.

Bailey, meanwhile, is not pleased. He says the mix-up has had a greater impact on his life than the judge recognized. The damages are "not much, considering what I've been through. And I'm pushing a broom and the fella who caused this got a promotion."

That single act of changing the description from Black to White has ruined this man's life. $4.5k is not sufficient to make him whole. $3,300,000 should be the minimum he should get.

 

[Katzndogz]

There should be a greater penalty for making a white man responsible for a crime committed by a black man.

 

[Wake]

I'd like to understand what some of the liberals of USMB have to say on this issue.

 

[TheOldSchool]

I'd like to understand what some of the liberals of USMB have to say on this issue.

Wtf do you mean what is there to say about this?

 

[Wake]

I'd like to understand what some of the liberals of USMB have to say on this issue.

Wtf do you mean what is there to say about this?

Your individual behavior does make me wonder what some liberals of USMB think about this, assuming you're more liberal-minded. TOS, what do you think about the topic in the OP? I don't think you've shared your thoughts on it yet. Basically. judging from the comments by some of the conservative-leaning members in this thread, I'd like to understand what some liberal-leaning members think about it, too.

 

[rightwinger]

I'd like to understand what some of the liberals of USMB have to say on this issue.

Ummmm....sucks

What do you think?

 

[Wake]

I'd like to understand what some of the liberals of USMB have to say on this issue.

Ummmm....sucks

What do you think?

I think it's despicable and that, black or white, punishment should be meted out equally.

This may be an over-used question, but what do you think the reaction would be by some liberals if the man falsely accused and life ruined was actually black? I guess I'm just trying to understand how the average members of both political sides think and behave. On the flip side, I also wonder how conservatives would behave if the man falsely accused and life ruined was black, too. Would the outrage be the same, or lessened? Mind's in a curious mood right now, and wants to pick at this nut a bit..

 

[TheOldSchool]

I'd like to understand what some of the liberals of USMB have to say on this issue.

Wtf do you mean what is there to say about this?

Your individual behavior does make me wonder what some liberals of USMB think about this, assuming you're more liberal-minded. TOS, what do you think about the topic in the OP? I don't think you've shared your thoughts on it yet. Basically. judging from the comments by some of the conservative-leaning members in this thread, I'd like to understand what some liberal-leaning members think about it, too.

The cop should be canned and the Judge should've granted the guy far more money. Maybe not $3 million but in the six figures or so. If I were him I'd try to keep pressing the issue because of how much he was screwed. The Judge better have had some damn good reasons.

And what Katz said is profoundly stupid.

 

[rightwinger]

I'd like to understand what some of the liberals of USMB have to say on this issue.

Ummmm....sucks

What do you think?

I think it's despicable and that, black or white, punishment should be meted out equally.

This may be an over-used question, but what do you think the reaction would be by some liberals if the man falsely accused and life ruined was actually black? I guess I'm just trying to understand how the average members of both political sides think and behave. On the flip side, I also wonder how conservatives would behave if the man falsely accused and life ruined was black, too. Would the outrage be the same, or lessened? Mind's in a curious mood right now, and wants to pick at this nut a bit..

Ummmmm.......It would still suck

 

[Wake]

Wtf do you mean what is there to say about this?

Your individual behavior does make me wonder what some liberals of USMB think about this, assuming you're more liberal-minded. TOS, what do you think about the topic in the OP? I don't think you've shared your thoughts on it yet. Basically. judging from the comments by some of the conservative-leaning members in this thread, I'd like to understand what some liberal-leaning members think about it, too.

The cop should be canned and the Judge should've granted the guy far more money. Maybe not $3 million but in the six figures or so. If I were him I'd try to keep pressing the issue because of how much he was screwed. The Judge better have had some damn good reasons.

And what Katz said is profoundly stupid.

I agree wholeheartedly. Katz's post runs counter to my belief that punishment should be colorblind... as well as justice and everything else.

But more to the topic... just IMAGINE the stigma. Every job and interview I've went to they do a criminal background check. This is going to haunt the guy for years, and there's not much that can be done about it besides rehashing to them how he was unfairly treated. Which, inadvertently, casts him in a negative light already when it comes to being considered for employment. Yikes!

 

[TheOldSchool]

Your individual behavior does make me wonder what some liberals of USMB think about this, assuming you're more liberal-minded. TOS, what do you think about the topic in the OP? I don't think you've shared your thoughts on it yet. Basically. judging from the comments by some of the conservative-leaning members in this thread, I'd like to understand what some liberal-leaning members think about it, too.

The cop should be canned and the Judge should've granted the guy far more money. Maybe not $3 million but in the six figures or so. If I were him I'd try to keep pressing the issue because of how much he was screwed. The Judge better have had some damn good reasons.

And what Katz said is profoundly stupid.

I agree wholeheartedly. Katz's post runs counter to my belief that punishment should be colorblind... as well as justice and everything else.

But more to the topic... just IMAGINE the stigma. Every job and interview I've went to they do a criminal background check. This is going to haunt the guy for years, and there's not much that can be done about it besides rehashing to them how he was unfairly treated. Which, inadvertently, casts him in a negative light already whedn it comes to being considered for employment. Yikes!

There has to be something he can do. He has documents proving that he won in court.

 

[Jarlaxle]

The cop should be canned and the Judge should've granted the guy far more money. Maybe not $3 million but in the six figures or so. If I were him I'd try to keep pressing the issue because of how much he was screwed. The Judge better have had some damn good reasons.

And what Katz said is profoundly stupid.

I agree wholeheartedly. Katz's post runs counter to my belief that punishment should be colorblind... as well as justice and everything else.

But more to the topic... just IMAGINE the stigma. Every job and interview I've went to they do a criminal background check. This is going to haunt the guy for years, and there's not much that can be done about it besides rehashing to them how he was unfairly treated. Which, inadvertently, casts him in a negative light already whedn it comes to being considered for employment. Yikes!

There has to be something he can do. He has documents proving that he won in court.

Change his name, maybe?

Or hunt down the cop responsible & vivisect the fucker.

 

[Noomi]

I'd like to understand what some of the liberals of USMB have to say on this issue.

The man was arrested and released when the error was discovered. He wasn't locked in prison for half his life. He does not deserve more than a million dollars for a few hours of inconvenience.

 

[Jarlaxle]

You didn't read the article, did you. (That's not a question.)

 

[Noomi]

The entire article was posted. It was read. Terrible that his name appeared on background checks when he applied for jobs, but its not worth more than a million. He managed to find a job, after all.

 

[Politico]

Sad it happened but it wasn't like he spent 30 years in jail like that guy that was just released. That is worth some money.

 

[Jarlaxle]

The entire article was posted. It was read. Terrible that his name appeared on background checks when he applied for jobs, but its not worth more than a million. He managed to find a job, after all.

Yes...a RELATIVE hired him to push a broom. His life is basically over now, SOLELY because of a corrupt and/or incompetent cop. He should collect MILLIONS.

 

[Wake]

The entire article was posted. It was read. Terrible that his name appeared on background checks when he applied for jobs, but its not worth more than a million. He managed to find a job, after all.

Yes...a RELATIVE hired him to push a broom. His life is basically over now, SOLELY because of a corrupt and/or incompetent cop. He should collect MILLIONS.

We don't agree on much, but we certainly agree on this. He should sue for much more, because his life has been severely damaged because of those corrupt actions. How is he going to be able to raise a family with that job? That's just... That's not right.

 

[Mudflap]

Hand got a raw deal and should be richly compensated. The warrant that the two arresting officers had evidently fit the man they had, but they immediately released him after discovering the warrant was flawed. That goes against the Department and the Corporal, not the two arresting officers.

 

[Delta4Embassy]

This is absolutely wrong. This man is owed millions IMHO. He should be awarded an amount equal to at least $60k, in after tax money, a year until his 100th birthday from the day the warrant was changed from Black to White.

Judge rules in the Annapolis false arrest case - baltimoresun.com

Having recently interviewed the British statistician David Hand about probability principles, I suppose I should be willing to accept the following: Two men named James Elmer Bailey, both born on Oct. 15, 1962, resided in the Annapolis area at the time a woman accused one of them of punching her in the face.

Hard as that might be to comprehend, probability theorists like Hand say that such a thing is far more likely than most of us believe. Among their many remarkable findings: Only 23 people need assemble in a room before it becomes more than 50 percent probable that two of them have the same birth date.

Given that, I guess Judge John P. McKenna's findings in the "Wait-What?" case — a false-arrest complaint against three Annapolis police officers in Anne Arundel County District Court — don't seem so far-fetched

As reported in my last column, this case goes back to March 2007, when a woman told an Annapolis police corporal that she had been punched in the face by a man whose sexual advances she resisted.

According to court documents, the woman described the man as black, with brown eyes and black hair. She gave his name as James Elmer Bailey and provided his address and even his birth date.

A warrant was issued for Bailey's arrest. While searching databases, a police dispatcher found a James Elmer Bailey residing in the Annapolis area. But he was white.

That's why I call this a "Wait-What?" case: It's a strange one; you have to stop now and then to make sure you're catching all the facts.

"At the times relevant to this case," McKenna found, "two individuals resided in the Annapolis area, each with the name James Elmer Bailey and each with the reported birth date of October 15, 1962; however, one such individual was white, and the other was black. Further, the physical description of a height of 5'5" and weight of 145 lbs. pertained to the black James Elmer Bailey, while the height of 6'3" and weight of 195 lbs. described the white James Elmer Bailey."
Wait. There's more.

The police corporal changed the description of Bailey on the arrest warrant, turning a short, black suspect into a tall, white one.

According to McKenna's findings, the corporal said he did this on the advice of an assistant state's attorney and a District Court commissioner. But, alas, the corporal could not recall the names of either person; we don't know who gave him such bad advice.

Three years went by before anyone acted on the warrant — another odd fact about this case. In the summer of 2010, two Annapolis police officers picked up the warrant and went looking for James Elmer Bailey. They found him in Edgewater, outside Annapolis.

But the Bailey they found was not the one described by the victim. It was the other one — a white man with gray hair and blue eyes, 6-foot-3 and 195 pounds.

That Bailey told the officers they had the wrong man. Nevertheless, they handcuffed him and took him to the Annapolis Police Department.

There, the officers quickly realized that the original warrant had been altered; the man they had in custody was the wrong Bailey.

So they let him go. They didn't even fingerprint him.

But Bailey was unhappy; he was embarrassed by the scene at his house and, more importantly, he later found his connection to the 2007 assault showing up on background checks when he applied for jobs. The criminal charges also appeared on his credit reports and his name was on a list of outstanding warrants published at least three times in a local newspaper. (Through a family connection, Bailey finally found a job last year as a maintenance man.)

Meanwhile, no man fitting the original description was ever arrested or identified by police.

So, in 2011, Tall Bailey sued the corporal and two officers for making a false arrest and violating his civil rights. McKenna presided over the trial in February 2013.

The judge took another 13 months to issue his 30-page ruling.

On Monday, he ordered the city of Annapolis to pay $4,500 damages for the police corporal's violation of Bailey's rights through the altering of the suspect description. The judge said a court commissioner should have made "a new finding of fact that there was probable cause to believe that the white James Elmer Bailey committed [the] assault," and there was no record of that.

Claims against the officers who took Bailey into custody were dismissed.

The corporal was promoted to sergeant last spring.

I contacted the Annapolis police chief's office about this. I was referred to an assistant city attorney. The attorney said he had not read McKenna's opinion and had no comment.

Bailey, meanwhile, is not pleased. He says the mix-up has had a greater impact on his life than the judge recognized. The damages are "not much, considering what I've been through. And I'm pushing a broom and the fella who caused this got a promotion."

That single act of changing the description from Black to White has ruined this man's life. $4.5k is not sufficient to make him whole. $3,300,000 should be the minimum he should get.

Corporal shoulda been fired for falsifying a legal document. But the settlement seems reasonable given the guy was only in custody for a few hours at most. Not much different than being a person of interest and going down to the station to be interviewed and cleared. $4500 for a few hours seems fair. Not like he was raped while in custody or anything.

I've been detained and questioned. I don't get a bug up my butt about it though. They're doing their job and it's quickest and easiest to go along with things. If you're innocent of everything making a federal case out of it, or becomming indignant or aggressive is only going to increase suspicion and possibly invove actual charges you're really guilty of like resisting arrest and such. Stay cool and know that the more cooperative and good humored about it you are, the quicker it'll come to an end.