L.A. County law enforcers accused of withholding key evidence

[bemildred]

Los Angeles County prosecutors and sheriff's officials have for years concealed complaints about law enforcement misconduct and other important evidence from defendants in criminal cases, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday by civil rights attorneys and legal scholars.

At a news conference announcing the suit, a lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California blasted the Sheriff's Department and district attorney's office for following policies he said played "fast and loose with evidence of innocence of those prosecuted."

The lawsuit cited several cases in which authorities allegedly failed to disclose information about misconduct complaints filed by inmates against deputies who were to be witnesses in criminal cases. Attorneys behind the lawsuit claimed that similar evidence might have been kept hidden in far more cases — possibly thousands — over the last decade.

"In Los Angeles County, we have a system of injustice for all criminal defendants," Mark Rosenbaum, chief counsel for the local ACLU, told reporters.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-conceal-evidence-20120711,0,5701676.story

[frylock]

1. just a few more bad apples covering for the other bad apples..

nothing to support any theories of systemic abuse. nope.

[bemildred]

2. Yeah, like it was unusual.

Like they don't brag about it in the lunchroom.

[bemildred]

3. Heres a guy that knows the score with our "justice system:

Kim Dotcom, Megaupload Founder, Offers To Extradite Himself

Kim Dotcom, the founder of Megaupload, now says he's ready to fly himself to the United States to face charges and forgo what could be a lengthy extradition process.

As you might expect, Dotcom made the offer of self-extradition on Twitter, saying:

"Hey DOJ, we will go to the US. No need for extradition. We want bail, funds unfrozen for lawyers & living expenses."

Dotcom — that's his legal name — was in New Zealand in January when the FBI shut down his file-sharing site, accused him of helping millions of people access pirated content and froze millions of dollars of his money worldwide. Since then and from New Zealand, Dotcom has been fighting both a legal war and a public relations war against the U.S. government and he's become a kind of patron saint of those in favor of a free Internet.

In an interview with The Guardian, Dotcom said he was in a "fighting mood."

The paper reports:

"The charges against him, he said, were part of a 'foul game' on the part of the US government, and that funds permitting,'I am going to war.' ...

"He told the Guardian that the offer was genuine but he was not holding his breath. 'Considering the way the US government has conducted their case and the way I was treated, I never expect to get a fair trial in the United States,' he said.

"'We are not expecting to hear back regarding the offer and I remain committed to fighting extradition in New Zealand.'"

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2012/07/11/156613665/kim-dotcom-megaupload-founder-offers-to-extradite-himself