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RICHMOND, Va. -- The lawyer for one of the men who Richmond's police chief said plotted a mass shooting on the Fourth of July at Dogwood Dell is now saying the police search of his client's home violated his Fourth Amendment rights.

In the motion, Julio Alvarado Dubon requests that the judge redact any evidence that was found.

It states that officers knocked on Dubon's door after the alleged tip on July 1 and asked if they could come in to talk. Dubon allowed them in and then an officer said that they were going to look around to make sure no one else was there.

Dubon protested, saying they needed a warrant but officers reiterated that they were just making sure no one else was in the home.

It was then the officers said they discovered firearms in Dubon's bedroom.

Dubon has been charged with one count of possession of a firearm by someone in the country unlawfully and has pled not guilty.

The motion said that there were no circumstances that justified officers searching the home without a warrant. Neither Dubon nor his alleged co-conspirator, Rolman Balcarcel-Bavagas, have been charged with anything related to the alleged plot.

This is a developing story, so anyone with more information can email newstips@wtvr.com to send a tip.

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Motion says search of suspect in alleged Richmond mass shooting plot violated 4th Amendment - CBS 6 News Richmond WTVR

The judge ruled police conducted an unlawful frisk and vehicle search, prolonging the traffic stop and violating the then 18-year-old's rights.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. A federal judge has determined that a Louisville Metro Police (LMPD) officer violated a teenager's rights during a viral traffic stop in 2018.

In his ruling on Thursday, Judge Greg Stivers says former LMPD officer Kevin Crawford violated Tae-Ahn Lea's fourth amendment right against unreasonable search and seizure.

Lea was 18 years old when he was pulled over by officers for an improper wide turn in his mom's car on Aug. 9, 2018.

According to court documents, Crawford repeatedly asked if Lea had any weapons or drugs on him, which Lea denied.

There was a baseball bat between the passenger seat and console, which an officer asked about and Lea said was a small souvenir Louisville Slugger.

"It wasn't even thinking about it, or anything like that. Just a souvenir that [his mother] got," he said.

Crawford then opened the car's door and told Lea to exit the vehicle.

The LMPD officer then frisked and handcuffed Lea while his vehicle was searched by K-9 and officers. Nothing illegal was found inside the car and he was issued a citation for the improper turn.

"You could tell in the video, I was in shock, because I knew nothing was in there at all," he said. "I knew I did nothing wrong."

Officers claim Lea was acting nervous, something he says shouldn't have been concerning for them.

"I couldn't believe they honestly said that. I mean, I was nervous," Lea said. "You know, you get pulled over in broad daylight. Only day off work, I had been working hard, fresh out of high school."

The lawsuit, filed in 2019, argues Crawford unlawfully conducted a pat-down search of Lea, prolonging the traffic stop beyond its initial purpose, which Stivers agreed violated his fourth amendment rights.

Stivers ruled that there was no reasonable suspicion of criminal activity that justified detaining Lea beyond the traffic infraction investigation.

As part of the ruling, the judge dismissed the lawsuit against other officers named in the suit.

While Crawford no longer works at LMPD, he was hired by Jeffersonville Police in 2019.

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Judge rules former LMPD officer violated teen's constitutional rights during 2018 traffic stop - WHAS11.com

(The Center Square) Members of Illinois' law enforcement community are united against a new law taking effect Jan. 1 that eliminates cash bail under most circumstances.

At a town hall meeting this week, the Illinois Freedom Caucus focused on what the SAFE-T Act does, what it means for Illinois communities, and what citizens can do to repeal it.

Several Republican Illinois lawmakers, law enforcement officers and states' attorneys from across the state as well as county judges participated.

Macon County State's Attorney Scott Rueter said that under the SAFE T Act, many criminals, including violent offenders, would not be put people in jail while they await trial.

"One of the main things in the law is that you can only be detained for offenses in which if you are convicted, you have to go to prison," Rueter said. "Things like first-time arson and first-time burglary are not detainable offenses under the act."

Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed the bill into law last year. It will abolish cash bail on Jan. 1, making Illinois the first state in the country to do so. The bill also includes a provision that will allow most people charged with crimes, including some violent felonies, to be released without posting bail.

For violent offenders, prosecutors will have to submit a request for detention and persuade a judge that the offender poses a threat to public safety. The state also is required to provide each suspect a hearing within 48 hours to determine if the suspect should be released.

State Rep. and IFC member Blaine Wilhour said the act would result in officials having to make quick decisions on what to do with alleged criminals.

"This is going to lead to people having to make snap judgments on these matters and make snap judgments on whether somebody, in legal terms, is a threat to their community." Wilhour said.

Pritzker's team did not return a request for comment.

Under the law, many non-violent offenders cannot even be taken into custody, law enforcement officials argue.

Effingham Country Sheriff Paul Kuhns said the consequences for law enforcement making the wrong decision could impact how their jobs are done.

"I know something my officers worry about is if you take someone into custody unlawfully, then you're dealing with a Fourth Amendment violation," Kuhns said. "That's scary. That is not something we want to be involved in."

State Rep. Adam Neimerg told The Center Square that the majority of Illinois residents oppose the measure.

"When you look at the radical left and what they have done to the state of Illinois, a majority of Illinoisans are against it and we are seeing that with the SAFE T Act," Neimerg said.

The law goes into effect on Jan 1. 2023.

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Illinois law enforcement community overwhelmingly opposed to cashless bail - The Center Square

On Thursday, Aug. 25, President Joe Biden likened Republicans to fascists. Not all Republicans, he said, but primarily those unredeemably evil MAGA types that make up most of the party. Being primarily MAGA myself, I determined to examine the proposition: Am I a Fascist? Are my fellow MAGAs?

First, what is fascism? There seem to be several mostly confusing definitions, but common characteristic include:

Fascism is centered on the state with everything people, business, teachers, doctors, parents, children, etc. being expected to subordinate all other interests to the needs and interests of the state. There is no such thing as individual inalienable rights. One of the tenets of the MAGA movement is protection of individual rights by adherence to the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. So MAGA cannot be considered fascist by this basic definition. Indeed, it is entirely anti-fascist.

Meanwhile, the Biden administration spends much time attacking rights as in gun control in violation of the Second Amendment; setting up truth panels, colluding with mainstream media and social media to control news, and attacking churches in violation of the First Amendment; authorizing illegal searches and seizures in violation of the Fourth Amendment; and issuing numerous presidential fiats as if he were king in violation of basic constitutional authority. It seems the Biden administration has a decidedly fascist tint. Fascism Score: Democrats 1, MAGA 0.

Economically, fascism allows for private ownership of property and business, but only insofar as business and property owners obey the dictates of the state. Thus, for example, in a fascist state business owners and individuals can be punished, restrained or shut down if they dont get a government-approved shot, or dont wear a government-approved mask, or have more than a government-approved number of guests in their home or church or protest a non-government-approved grievance. For years MAGA adherents have been standing against such government intrusions while Biden and his Democrat cronies have been imposing them. Fascism Score: Democrats 2, MAGA 0.

Fascism inevitably leads to economic malaise and failures. To cover such problems, the state must find a scapegoat to direct attention in another direction. For Nazi Germany in the 1930s the scapegoat was Jews. We are all familiar with the resulting tragedy of 6-plus-million lives lost. On Sept. 1, Biden, in a predictably fascist manner, came out to announce the scapegoat for his administration. In a speech reminiscent of those given by Adolph Hitler on a blood-hued stage of which Satan worshipers might be proud, Biden told us who we must blame and who we must hate. We should, he implied, turn our attention away from things like skyrocketing food and fuel prices, from a disaster in Afghanistan, from war in Ukraine for which he is arguably responsible, from shortages, from recession, from homosexual sex practices being taught in grade school along with Critical Race Theory and other subjects strongly disapproved by most parents, from Department of Justice and FBI attacks on parents as well as political enemies, from hordes of illegal aliens surging across our southern border, from 100,000 drug overdose deaths last year in our country, from 87,000 new armed IRS agents ready to harass us, and from crime running rampant in our cities. No, says Joe Biden, instead we should turn our attention to the real cause of the worlds difficulties, MAGA suppporters. They are an existential threat to democracy. They must occupy our attention. Fascism Score: Democrats 3, MAGA 0.

It should be obvious that Bidens pathetic, disingenuous, reprehensible attempt to smear MAGA with a fascist brush is an attempt to mask his own failures as elections approach. Voters should not be fooled. If things like runaway inflation and the many other ills caused directly by his administration are to their liking, they should vote for Democrats to continue the disaster. If not, they should vote Republican.

John Weaver

Valencia

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John Weaver | The Pot Calling the Kettle a Fascist - Santa Clarita Valley Signal

A small West Virginia police department, already under scrutiny for ratcheting up the number of traffic tickets issued, is now facing a federal civil rights lawsuit accusing it of not properly training officers to follow the law. The lawsuit also alleges Milton police officer Keith Higginbotham falsely arrested Caleb Dial and violated his rights by imprisoning him without probable cause in August of 2021.

The lawsuit was filed after Police Accountability Report published a story depicting Dials arrest. The story featured Ring doorbell camera footage that contradicted Higginbothams sworn statement that Dial had been yelling and pushing and was uncooperative during the arrest, which occurred outside Dials familys home. Higginbotham had responded to the residence after Dial called police following a dispute with his father.

The doorbell camera depicts Dial calmly complying with Higginbotham as the officer places him in handcuffs. However, Higginbotham wrote in his statement of probable cause that Dial became very agitated and kept on raising his voice at me. I asked him several times to calm down and then decided to detain him for officer safety.

To see the video, click here.

Furthermore, Higginbotham wrote, Dial became very irate and pushed me with his shoulder and tried to pull away from me. I asked him to calm down, quit yelling, and get into the cruiser. He got very aggressive once again and was trying to pull away. I asked one more time and then assisted him into my cruiser.

Again, doorbell camera footage appears to contradict the officers sworn statement. At the beginning of the interaction, the camera audio reveals that Dial calls Higginbotham sir, and when asked to turn around to be cuffed, Dial does so without conflict. The footage then shows Dial calmly walking towards the cruiser and Higginbotham putting him in the back seat without incident.

Prosecutors dropped charges of disorderly conduct and resisting arrest after Dials lawyer submitted the Ring camera footage as evidence. The disparity between the officers statements and the video evidence is at the heart of the lawsuit.

But the lawsuit also goes beyond the individual actions of Higginbotham, and alleges the towns lack of proper training, and poor supervision, of officers precipitated Dials arrest.

Lawyers for Dial say Higginbotham violated Dials right to due process and protection from false imprisonment. The lawsuit cites roughly 10 actionable counts and seeks unspecified punitive and compensatory damages.

But the lawsuit also goes beyond the individual actions of Higginbotham, and alleges the towns lack of proper training, and poor supervision, of officers precipitated Dials arrest.

The lawsuit accuses the city of training officers on searches and seizures that, on their face, violate the Fourth Amendment. The suit also claims the city should have known its lack of adequate training would result in false arrests.

The aforementioned defendants [the city of MIlton] implemented otherwise facially valid customs and policies in a manner such that constitutional violations were likely to be and were visited upon those inhabiting, visiting, or otherwise within the jurisdictional limits of Milton, West Virginia, including Mr. Dial.

The latter claim is consistent with the complaints shared with PAR by residents of Milton and the surrounding area. Motorists say they have been pulled over multiple times by police who stand watch on a nearby highway and at stop signs throughout the city. They also claim that Milton officers aggressively enforce traffic laws with the intent to increase the citys ability to assess finesan allegation backed up in part by the citys own financial records, which show roughly a tripling of fines and court fees since 2012.

In 2012, Milton collected roughly $234,000 in court fees and fines; its police department budget at the time was $484,000. Over the next decade, the fees and fines nearly tripled, reaching $600,000 in 2020, according to the official city budget report. Meanwhile, police spending nearly doubled to $1.1 million in 2019.

Lawyers representing Milton did not respond to the lawsuit by addressing the discrepancy between the video and Higginbothams charges directly, but by instead arguing that the veteran officer was not working in his official capacity for the city when the arrest occurred. They also stipulated that Higginbotham was entitled to qualified immunity from the suit, a legal precedent that holds public officials harmless for violating constitutional rights that are not established at the time of the incident. The legal precedent allows officers to avoid liability if they were unaware of the right in question at the time of the alleged violation.

An email requesting comment from the law firm representing the city was not returned.

Milton residents say they are all too familiar with the towns emphasis on aggressive policing.

Lynda Jenkins says she has been pulled over three times within the past year for a variety of reasons, including an incident in the nearby town of Barboursville where Higginbotham detained her over an outstanding warrant for passing a bad check. Jenkins told the officer she had already paid the debts and the warrant had been rescinded by the court. She suspects that aggressive tactics are the result of the city trying to bolster revenue through fines.

Jenkins told PAR: I couldnt understand why a Milton police officer would follow me all the way to Barboursville. I pulled over and it was officer Higginbotham. This is the third time he has pulled me over this year, and it has cost me hundreds in court costs and fines. I lost my car to the impound lot because I cant afford to get it out of the impound.

But her encounter also led to an arrest and to police posting her picture on the departments Facebook page, which has embarrassed her family, she told PAR.

The department has been criticized for posting pictures of arrestees on Facebook, subjecting them to ridicule and scorn prior to adjudication of their case. Jenkins said a post of her arrest has been shared dozens of times and received multiple negative comments.

The use of Facebook to publicize arrests was the subject of extensive reporting by Kyle Vass. Vass article focused on the suicide of Milton resident Jacob Napier shortly after he was arrested and his picture was posted on Facebook by the department.

Dials lawyers told PAR they hoped the suit would prompt the department to improve both training and supervision of police officers.

We look forward to helping Mr. Dial have his day in court, Bradley Dunkle, one of two attorneys representing Dial, said. Obviously, Mr. Dials life has been greatly impacted by these events. Thankfully Mr. Dials doorbell camera, unlike Officer Higginbothams report, accurately shows the August 27, 2021, events.

If the public has any additional evidence and information relating to this case, well gladly speak with them, he added.

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Lawsuit accuses West Virginia police department of training officers to use unconstitutional tactics - The Real News Network