Friday, July 12, 2002

"The sad part about this is that the light is being directed on him," she said. "Instead, it should be directed on the young man who was mistreated in the video."
Pat Crooks, Mitchell Crooks Mother

Mitchell Crooks was arrested Thursday on outstanding warrants and admitted to a hospital early Friday for treatment of injuries. Crooks is, of course, the man who videotaped the beating-filled arrest of 16-year-old Donovan Jackson in Inglewood, California.

Anyone who has had to deal with a District Attorney's office and the police at the same time will know that both organizations are out to A: help each other to do as little work as possible and B: cover each others' asses.

The police are claiming that the slamming of Jackson on the trunk of the police car and the subsequent punching was justified because Jackson grabbed officer Jeremy Morse's groin and wouldn't let go. Mitchell's video doesn't show that, but does show another officer appearing to block any further punches by Morse, indicating to me that one officer's idea of a justified assault didn't meet the other's.


Mitchell Crooks being arrested Thursday evening outside the CNN offices. He could be heard screaming "help" as he was driven away.

Does anyone else think it's odd that a Ford Explorer with blacked out windows was sent to pick up Crooks instead of, say, a POLICE CAR. Crooks is no angel, but this entire situation stinks.

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