Five Birmingham, Alabama, Police Officers Terminated for Brutal Beating of Anthony Warren, which was Caught on Video-tape

Birmingham police beating video

Police brutality is in the news again. Five police officers from Birmingham, Ala., have been fired for a January 2008 beating of Anthony Warren, an already-unconscious suspect, with fists, feet and a billy club, a battering caught on videotape until a police officer turned off the patrol car camera, city and police officials said today. I can only give you the gruesome details are they are being related by Alabama.com.

Authorities believe the video, taken after a high-speed chase by several area law enforcement agencies ended when the fleeing suspect's van flipped, has been seen by numerous Birmingham officers and up to a half dozen supervisors over the past year. But top city and police officials weren't made aware of the taped beating until they were contacted by the district attorney's office two months ago.

In fact, investigators say, the suspect, Anthony Warren, didn't even know he'd been beaten until the tape surfaced at his trial in March. Warren was ejected from the vehicle and knocked unconscious, and thought all of his injuries were sustained in the wreck.

Police Chief A.C. Roper called the video "shameful." Mayor Larry Langford said it was "disgusting." Roper said the video shamed the police department and the citizens served by the department, saying it was especially troubling because these were seasoned, veteran officers.

Roper hasn't identified the officers. Four of them worked in the department's Vice and Narcotics Unit; the fifth was a North Precinct patrolman. The officers have the right to appeal to the Jefferson County Personnel Board.

"We've terminated over 50 years of combined service due to 10 seconds of injustice," Roper said in an interview with The Birmingham News. "We have five officers who lost their jobs and may face criminal charges, and a suspect who suffered unnecessarily."

Roper said there will be additional disciplinary action against supervisors who failed to report the incident to higher-ups. He has demanded the Internal Affairs Division track down every supervisor who saw the videotape, including those who have since retired. He said the department is reviewing its reporting mechanisms and policies. Roper said the district attorney's office brought in the Alabama Bureau of Investigation to probe possible criminal charges against the officers involved in the incident. The officers were notified of their termination about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. "It's a sad day for the department and our 1,100 employees, but we will work through it," Roper said. Source: Al.com

I know that there are many honorable and decent police officers putting their lives on the line each daily, but there is a certain element in every precinct across this country that needs to be eradicated. All too often the victim is blamed and nothing comes out of the various cases, but thank God for fact that this incident was caught on tape and there was no wiggle room for these five scumbags.