Amazon is Sharing Ring Doorbell Info with Law Enforcement

Ring doorbells have video cameras on them that allow people to view and record things happening in front of their homes. They are online, so people can be notified and watch when someone approaches their door, even when they are not at home, thanks to mobile devices. They are becoming more and more popular, and since they are owned by Amazon, they can even be linked up with Amazon’s Echo smart home systems.

However, and this may come as a surprise to people considering them, Amazon has partnered with hundreds of law enforcement agencies to share the surveillance data. That means that law enforcement may literally have a live feed from your house, or other homes in your neighborhood. The technology has benefits and concerns. This video surveillance net could help law enforcement catch more crooks, and has become a frequently used tool for that effect. However, the privacy concerns abound, that the government can be watching with multiple eyes around your neighborhood. Some 67 Florida agencies have already signed on to the program, so it looks like it’s not going away any time soon.

Police Manipulate Photo to Implicate Man they Suspect in a String of Robberies

Portland police had a suspect in a string of bank robberies in 2017 but they had a problem, he didn’t match the description of any of the tellers who had been robbed. The suspect, Tyrone Allen, has multiple, distinctive facial tattoos, and none of the victims observed any tattoos on the robber. Instead of trying to generate a new suspect that matched the description, the cops decided to double down on Mr. Allen. In order to make him look like the suspect in the robberies (some of which were capture on surveillance video), a technician digitally removed the tattoos from a picture of Mr. Allen. These manipulated photos were then placed in a photo-lineup and a couple of the victims identified Mr. Allen. He is no facing multiple robbery charges. Here’s a side-by-side comparision:

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This tactic is extremely troubling, as it increases the potentiality for mis-identification. For that reason, Allen’s attorneys have asked the court not to permit the identifications to be presented to a jury. Courts have often held that identification procedures, if they are unduly suggestive, are not permissible. I’ve never seen this extremely concerning procedure, but it certainly appears to raise concerns that there is a high risk of an erroneous identification. It’s troubling that a man who was not identified by witnesses was only identified after his image was airbrushed.

Trial is Underway for Michael Drejka, in the Parking Spot Shooting Case

Trial started today in the manslaughter case against Michael Drejka, who shot a man in Clearwater in a dispute over a handicapped parking spot. The entire incident was caught on dramatic surveillance video, which will be played for the jury. Inescapable is the fact that Drejka is white and the victim, Markeis McGlockton, a father of four, is a black man. Further complicating the case, the Defendant got in a dispute with another black man over the same handicapped spot a few weeks earlier and shouted a racial slur at him. The judge has ruled, due to the similarity of the incidents, that the prosecution will get to tell the jury about the prior incident, but not the racial slur he allegedly used.

Drejka is arguing that he was justified in his use of force under the stand your ground law. the stand your ground law provides there is no duty to retreat, but it still requires there be a reasonable fear of death or great bodily harm before deadly force is justified. Based on the video, Drejka has a challenging defense. Jury selection in the case will continue tomorrow.

Woman who had a Gator in her Yoga Pants Sentenced

Ariel Marchan-Le Quire

A few weeks ago, we brought you the story of a Fort Myers woman who tried to hide an illegally taken alligator by stuffing it down her yoga pants. She also had several dozen turtles stuffed in a Ninja Turtles backpack. This week in Charlotte County Court, she entered a plea and was sentenced to 2 years of probation for several wildlife violations. She will also have to complete 200 community service hours and make a $500 donation to FWC’s Wildlife Alert fund. The money may be a challenge, as records indicate she is homeless. She missed her first court date and spent a little time in jail, probably because she couldn’t afford to bond out. Still, it’s important for wildlife protections to follow regulations on fishing or collecting wildlife.

Let this also serve as a reminder, as always, the ‘not my pants’ defense is not a strong claim.

The alligator, after pants-removal

Earlier coverage.

College QB charged with Drugs for the Bird Poo on his Hood

This poor kid literally got arrested for some shit on his car…

screen capture of body cam of the car hood

Shai Werts, who is the starting QB for Georgia Southern University, and has a game scheduled against LSU in a few weeks, was pulled over for speeding in South Carolina, near his home. Officers noticed a white substance on his hood, and thought it was cocaine. Why somebody would drive down the highway with their cocaine on the hood is beyond me, but officers tested it with a presumptive field test which gave them a positive result for the presence of cocaine. Presumptive field tests are not reliable and, for that reason, are not admissible in court. Fortunately, the poo was sent to a lab which has confirmed that it is not drugs, and charges against Wert have been dropped.

Werts was suspended from the team, though he passed a drug test and has since been reinstated. You can watch the in-car video on News Maven here around the 15-minute point. Bonus on the car video, the cops start interrogating Werts in custody without informing his Miranda rights, which they don’t read until near the end of this clip. Even if he had made an admission, it would have been inadmissible thanks to poop-cops’ eagerness to confront him. Body cam clip on WTOC here.

Lady has Drugs in Her, Ahem… Private Area – Claims they Aren’t Hers!

Ashley Roland

After police arrested Ashley Roland, she was searched by a corrections officer at the jail. That officer found a clear plastic bag with a gram of meth allegedly stashed in her vagina, along with more than $6000! Roland denied the drugs were hers! West Monroe, LA police arrested her and charged her anyway. Those charges were added to the pending theft charges that landed her in jail in the first place. A man said she had been at his apartment, but when he was taking a shower, she swiped his cash and left. Police indicate that Roland admitted to stealing the money… the drugs are a different story. It doesn’t say if the vagina money was equal to the stolen money, which would add to her difficult claim that the items in her did not belong to her. I’ve heard of the ole ‘not my pants’ defense… I guess this will be dubbed the ‘not my hoo-ha’ defense.

Addendum: Here’s a ‘not my butt’ defense rom a few months ago: https://twitter.com/crimcourts/status/1116388247507222531