From The New York Times:
Mayor Frank Melton of Jackson, Miss., was indicted Wednesday on federal civil rights charges related to the unannounced demolition of a duplex that he said was a crack house.
In August 2006, Mr. Melton and his two police bodyguards, Michael Recio and Marcus Wright, ordered the occupants out of the house at gunpoint and directed a group of youths to attack the house with sledgehammers, the indictment said. The mayor, who ran for office on an anti-crime platform, himself broke out the windows with a large stick, the indictment said.
The federal indictment charges the defendants with conspiracy to deprive the duplex owner, Jennifer Sutton, and her tenant, Evans Welch, who is mentally ill, of their right to be free from unlawful search and seizure, as well as charges of official misconduct and the use of firearms in the commission of a violent crime.
Mr. Melton is known for unorthodox tactics like wearing a badge, searching cars and raiding nightclubs. He has claimed to have been a sworn law enforcement official but has never offered proof.
While this guy deserves an award for originality, it helps to be right. You know, like being right that the house that you are attacking with sledgehammers is actually a crack house, or being on the right side of the law. Just because you carry that badge you bought from the Dollar Store does not mean you are a police officer.
Bondo adds:
When I think of signs of legitimate governmental activity, the ordering about of a “group of youths” comes to mind.
