Abolish the Use of Paramilitary Weapons on Innocent Victims During Drug Raids

Abolish the Use of Paramilitary Weapons on Innocent Victims During Drug Raids

Target: Speaker of the House of Representatives, John Boehner

Goal: End the use of paramilitary weapons on innocent people by special weapons and tactics units during drug raids

Excerpt: The use of paramilitary weapons on innocent bystanders during raids of people's homes for drugs has recently escalated. Urge Congress to abolish such practices by ending incentives for local police forces and by stopping SWAT raids when police have only a search warrant for drugs.

Slate and other news sources report that in a recent drug-raid-gone-bad, members of a Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team nightmarishly interrupted the slumber of a family with a flashbang grenade, which landed in the crib of a sleeping baby. The SWAT team was conducting a raid for drugs ostensibly belonging to the nephew of the couple sleeping inside. Note that this nephew did not actually reside at the home.

After hours of being neglected the privilege of holding and caring for her wounded son, the baby's mother was finally able to take him to the hospital, where the child was taken to the intensive burn unit and placed in a medically induced coma.

In another case in January 2008, the ACLU reports that SWAT members raided a young woman's home due to suspecting her boyfriend (who was not home) of possessing drugs. Ms. Tarika Wilson was holding her 14-month-old son when she opened the door, which is when the fire opened and she was mortally wounded.

These stories are perhaps some of the most gruesome and stomach-churning examples of what a police force with too much power can bring about, but they are not isolated incidents. Studies conducted by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) estimate that up to 80% of SWAT raids in the United States are conducted to serve search warrants, typically for drugs. What's more, the ACLU reports that, mirroring the "War on Drugs" itself, such searches disproportionately affect minorities and individuals of low socio-economic status.

Join Americans who are disgusted by this brutalization of innocent citizens. Urge Congress members to create laws to ban SWAT teams from entering civilians' homes on search warrants for minor drug offenses with weapons that were created for battlefields.

PETITION LETTER:

Dear Mr. Boehner,

The use of paramilitary force against civilians sounds like a sad story we might read in the newspaper about people in a poor, developing country. But the truth is, it's a story that is playing out on American ground, right now. SWAT teams have the power to conduct raids at night in citizens' homes to serve search warrants, often for minor drug offenses. Many times, the individuals who are being served no longer reside at the residence, or there are innocent people present, often children and the elderly.

Too often, local police force officials are presented with incentives, in the form of weapons, vehicles, and other equipment, in exchange for more arrests--often for minor drug offenses.  In a recent report entitled, "The Excessive Militarization of American Policing," the ACLUe describes the mindset of SWAT officers as having been militarized and encouraged to "…adopt a 'warrior' mentality and think of the people they are supposed to serve as enemies."

I urge you to use your power to put an end to this militarization of U.S. police force members and to the brutalization of citizens. Stop incentivizing local police forces with weapons, vehicles, and other equipment that leads to the brutalization of American citizens; and stop equating the putative presence of drugs with the possible threat of violence from innocent people.

Sincerely,

[Your Name Here]

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