Armed police broke into Chelsea Manning’s home after suicidal tweets
RT,
5
June, 2018
Armed
police broke into Chelsea Manning’s home after the former US Army
private and whistleblower-turned-activist posted a photo on Twitter
alluding to suicide.
Manning
shared the details of the May 27 incident with The Intercept, along
with security video from her Bethesda, Maryland, apartment. The
footage shows three officers entering her home with their guns drawn,
while a fourth points a taser. Police gained access after one of the
officers opened the front door.
“This
is what a police state looks like,” Manning told The Intercept.
“Guns drawn during a ‘wellness’ check.”
Manning
was out of the country when police responded to concerns from
friends, prompted by two tweets that have since been deleted,
implying that she was considering suicide. The procedure is known in
the US as “wellness” or “welfare” check.
“This is what a police state looks like,” Chelsea Manning said. “Guns drawn during a ‘wellness’ check.” interc.pt/2JgbR8E
“If Chelsea had been home when these cops arrived with guns drawn, she would be dead,” Janus Cassandra, a close friend who was on the phone with Manning that night, said.
“There
is absolutely no excuse for sending armed police to the home of
someone who is having a suicidal episode,” said Cassandra. “As
we’ve seen countless times, cops know that no matter what happens,
they will be shielded from any accountability whatsoever.”
Janus Cassandra
This is so disturbing on so many levels, and not just because I was on the phone with @xychelsea while it was happening
Y’ALL: Police are violent. Police use force. If someone is having a suicidal episode, call a friend or neighbor
DONT. CALL. THE. COPS. theintercept.com/2018/06/05/che…
Y’ALL: Police are violent. Police use force. If someone is having a suicidal episode, call a friend or neighbor
DONT. CALL. THE. COPS. theintercept.com/2018/06/05/che…
Montgomery County Police confirmed that the check took place after a number of calls from “concerned parties.” Captain Paul Starks said officers looked up Manning’s address and used a master key to get into the building. When they realized she was not there, he said they tried to locate her by using her phone.
Starks
said that the decision to draw weapons “depends on the officer”
who “makes the decision based on circumstances that are affecting
that officer in that specific situation.”
“Do
you know what was going on in that apartment that night? No. Not
until you open the door and go in… We respond to hundreds of
thousands of calls each year. Many of them are not what is phoned
in,” he said.
Mental
health experts have raised concerns about the appropriateness of
police performing welfare checks on vulnerable people. According to
the American Civil Liberties Union, police have shot and killed at
least 64 people who were suicidal or had other mental health issues
so far this year.
As a society, we should expect a mental health response when somebody calls 911 with suicide concerns -- not armed officers with pistols drawn. See this @micahflee @alicesperi story on frightening "wellness check" of @xychelsea. interc.pt/2JgbR8E
Manning alarmed supporters when she posted tweets suggesting suicidal intentions. One tweet contained a photo that appeared to show her standing on the ledge of a building, captioned with the words “im sorry.” The tweets were quickly deleted and she was confirmed safe.
The
former US Army private, who provided WikiLeaks with a trove of US
government documents in 2010, had her 35-year sentence commuted by
former President Barack Obama in December 2016. Earlier this year,
she announced her bid to challenge the powerful incumbent Senator Ben
Cardin (D-Maryland) in the November midterms.
Manning
was sentenced in 2013 for leaking materials that exposed abuses
committed by the US military in Afghanistan and Iraq. A day after the
sentencing, Manning came out as a transgender woman. While in prison,
Manning was repeatedly held in solitary confinement and attempted
suicide at least twice. She was released from military prison at Fort
Leavenworth in Kansas in May 2017.
Last
week, a military court upheld her conviction, which she had appealed
on First Amendment grounds. Manning’s defense team have indicated
they will now bring her appeal to the Court of Appeals for the Armed
Forces, and all the way up to the Supreme Court if necessary.
Police have a master key?
ReplyDeleteThat is my first time i visit here. I found so many entertaining stuff in your blog, especially its discussion. From the a lot of comments on your articles, I suppose I'm not alone having all the leisure here! Continue the wonderful work.Drone Cases Online
ReplyDelete