A report released Tuesday by the California attorney general details the history of abuse that permeated a small police department near Los Angeles. The report states that the Maywood Police Department was rife with sexual innuendo, racial profiling, and violence against suspects. One account alleges that officers Tasered a handcuffed man and his father while beating another man in the same room. AG Jerry Brown said the state would work to reform the department because “when you have rogue cops, it’s just intolerable in a free society.” (AP)A former FBI informant confirmed this week that that the bureau asked him to pose as a Muslim convert to investigate potential terrorist connections within Mosque social circles. Craig Monteilh says he lured congregants to a local gym so that the FBI could confirm their identity with security cameras. After conducting background checks, says Monteilh, the FBI would pressure the congregants to become informants against other community members. Monteilh has filed a legal claim against the FBI for breaking promises to pay him $100,000 and place him in the witness protection program after the bureau stopped using him as an informant in 2007. Last week, a group of Muslim organizations asked the Obama administration to review whether the FBI conducted racial profiling, saying the bureau’s conduct “reflects a deeply rooted mind-set that was promoted by the Bush administration.” (LA Times)
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://talkingpointsmemo.com/?p=143313