Gay bar raided in Atlanta with no cause

[willynilly]

A friend brought this to my attention. I get the impression not much is going to happen to the police or city since it's been pretty hush, hush.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-alvear/stonewall-2009-police-rai_b_286649.html

How could something like this happen in Martin Luther King's home town?
The following occurred about a mile away from my home in Atlanta, Georgia at 11:30 p.m. on Thursday, September 10, 2009.

Mark Danack was watching the football game at his favorite bar, The Eagle, when he heard somebody yell, "HIT THE GROUND!" He thought a fight had broken out. The lights switched on and up to 30 cops were yelling, screaming and ordering everyone to the ground. The police had raided the bar.

For what?


"Shut the f**k up!" a cop yelled at one of the bar patrons who asked why they were being forced to lay face down on the grubby floors.

An acquaintance saw the police shove an 80 year-old man to the ground because he was moving too slowly.

Why?

"No questions! Do what you're told or we'll arrest you!" The officers threatened jail time to anybody asking why they were being held against their will.

The search and seizures began. Everything in everyone's pockets was taken away.

[BioBeing]

Huh? They can't do that, can they? Don't they need a warrant or something?

[Jobar]

And someone has to sign a complaint, IIRC.

Sounds like something is rotten in the state of Georgia- someone on the Atlanta PD, I'm guessing.

I suspect this is going to wind up costing the city of Atlanta some fairly serious bucks. There'll be any number of lawsuits, and given the triviality of the charges and the severity of the police response, some officers may wind up losing their jobs, or at least be reprimanded.

[Sodong]

And someone has to sign a complaint, IIRC.

Sounds like something is rotten in the state of Georgia- someone on the Atlanta PD, I'm guessing.

I suspect this is going to wind up costing the city of Atlanta some fairly serious bucks. There'll be any number of lawsuits, and given the triviality of the charges and the severity of the police response, some officers may wind up losing their jobs, or at least be reprimanded.I sure hope that's what happens, bloody barbarians. Nothing like that has happened here (Toronto) since the early 80's but it used to happen a lot, just up the street from where I live now. I'm sure if anything like that happened again here there'd be a pretty angry and outraged response in the streets that would number in the 6 digit range. We're a pretty gay friendly city now for the most part but it hasn't always been that way.

[Jobar]

Pennington apologizes for Eagle raid — but leaves more questions (http://blogs.creativeloafing.com/freshloaf/2009/09/14/pennington-apologizes-for-eagle-raid-%E2%80%94-but-leaves-more-questions/)

# The Atlanta Police Department received a complaint in May about alleged illegal behavior taking place at the Eagle. Undercover officers visited the club on two separate occasions before Thursday’s raid. The officers said they witnessed sex between patrons at one or both of these two occasions, but not at last week’s raid. SoVo notes a police report about the Sept. 10 raid in which one undercover officer claimed he “observed two men in what appeared to be a sexual act” but “could not get a good visual due to the extreme low light in the room.”
# Pennington says he regrets that he didn’t notify Officer Danni Lynn Harris, the department’s liaison to the LGBT community, about the raid. He says Harris should have been present.
# Pennington says patrons were frisked for the officers’ safety.
# Pennington apologized for the incident.

[PostMortem]

We're a pretty gay friendly city now for the most part but it hasn't always been that way.

One of the things that turned cities like Toronto, Vancouver and elsewhere into gay friendly places was the realization by elected officials that GAYS VOTE! In percentages far higher than in the heterosexual population, and they are well informed and well organized.

It sounds like it's time for Atlanta to learn that lesson, 10 percent of the population can really sway the outcome of almost any election. Homosexuals and their supporters need to tell the Atlanta city council that any elected official that doesn't come out and strongly condemn the actions of the police and demand an honest investigation can be assured that they will be losing out on 10 percent of the votes cast. And if Atlanta is a city where the public vote on the police chief they need to tell him/her that they will be held to account at election time.

[JamesBannon]

30 on-duty officers? What were they expecting? Terrorists? Must keep these dangerous homos in line, I guess.

[Sodong]

Some pretty lame excuses. The same ones we heard about the Charles back in the 80's. Like the bar co-owner noted, the correct thing to do if there was anything illegal witnessed is to arrest the perpetrators, not humiliate, harrass, degrade and violate the rights of everyone in the bar. That clearly crosses the boundary between upholding the law and engaging in illegal, violent repression of a group that frightens the the pathetic little homophobe in ya. I hope they get raked over the coals.

[Sodong]

We're a pretty gay friendly city now for the most part but it hasn't always been that way.

One of the things that turned cities like Toronto, Vancouver and elsewhere into gay friendly places was the realization by elected officials that GAYS VOTE! In percentages far higher than in the heterosexual population, and they are well informed and well organized.

It sounds like it's time for Atlanta to learn that lesson, 10 percent of the population can really sway the outcome of almost any election. Homosexuals and their supporters need to tell the Atlanta city council that any elected official that doesn't come out and strongly condemn the actions of the police and demand an honest investigation can be assured that they will be losing out on 10 percent of the votes cast. And if Atlanta is a city where the public vote on the police chief they need to tell him/her that they will be held to account at election time.Yep. Organization is the key and raids like this are intended to discourage it.

[Sodong]

30 on-duty officers? What were they expecting? Terrorists? Must keep these dangerous homos in line, I guess.Some really monumental gay sex, presumably :evil:

[JamesBannon]

30 on-duty officers? What were they expecting? Terrorists? Must keep these dangerous homos in line, I guess.Some really monumental gay sex, presumably :evil:

Think of the bondage possibilities! (Well, for the lesbians anyway. Being a straight male, I'm not into sex between guys).

[PostMortem]

Yep. Organization is the key and raids like this are intended to discourage it.

Well, let's hope it has the opposite effect.

[Jobar]

Yep. Organization is the key and raids like this are intended to discourage it.

Well, let's hope it has the opposite effect.

It already has. Follow some of the links from that Creative Loafing story.

It seems the Eagle is Atlanta's most famous leather bar, known for "its cavernous dark rooms and shadowy corners". So I wouldn't doubt that undercover police there would spot some pretty kinky goings-on. Still, that's no reason to use thirty cops to bust the whole place!

[JamesBannon]

Yep. Organization is the key and raids like this are intended to discourage it.

Well, let's hope it has the opposite effect.

It already has. Follow some of the links from that Creative Loafing story.

It seems the Eagle is Atlanta's most famous leather bar, known for "its cavernous dark rooms and shadowy corners". So I wouldn't doubt that undercover police there would spot some pretty kinky goings-on. Still, that's no reason to use thirty cops to bust the whole place!

I could understand if it was a drugs raid, or if the bar had ties to organised crime, but that wouldn't appear to be the case here.

[munnki]

Guys getting it on is hardly unusual in a gay bar and, even if illegal in the strictest sense [public place], it doesn't excuse thirty officers bursting in and doing what they did. I didn't think these things still happened in the states...

[DMB]

Perhaps gay is the new black. <joke>

[Monad]

People getting it on is hardly unusual in a any bar

FIFY

Don't know about you but I know many people (inc me) who have had sex in public (such as behind the back of a bar or in a lavatory). It does not make it the responsibility of everyone else in the bar or the bar owners etc.

[munnki]

Wait... why don't the gay community in Atlanta raid a police station and make them all lie on the floor?

:p

Eye for an eye, no

[sohy]

We're a pretty gay friendly city now for the most part but it hasn't always been that way.

One of the things that turned cities like Toronto, Vancouver and elsewhere into gay friendly places was the realization by elected officials that GAYS VOTE! In percentages far higher than in the heterosexual population, and they are well informed and well organized.

It sounds like it's time for Atlanta to learn that lesson, 10 percent of the population can really sway the outcome of almost any election. Homosexuals and their supporters need to tell the Atlanta city council that any elected official that doesn't come out and strongly condemn the actions of the police and demand an honest investigation can be assured that they will be losing out on 10 percent of the votes cast. And if Atlanta is a city where the public vote on the police chief they need to tell him/her that they will be held to account at election time.

I am certainly not defending the actions of these particular police officers but Atlanta is already an extremely gay friendly city and I've never heard of anything like this happening in the many years that I've lived in the greater metro area. If it were in Cobb county, I'd not be all that surprised, but this type of thing doesn't happen in midtown.

I will be very surprised if this investigation doesn't make some head rolls. Never mind that these guys vote, the gay community in Atlanta tends to very affluent, and like it or not, money talks louder than most anything else.

[Matty]

I think the Georgia police have the rtight to search and seize, plus give a slap to or taze, as well as lock up, any guy found in possession of a Right Said Fred album, an interest in in home furnishing and more than 2 films starring Meryl Streep.

Can't fault them on the Right Said Fred bit.

[Goodchild]

I think the Georgia police have the rtight to search and seize, plus give a slap to or taze, as well as lock up, any guy found in possession of a Right Said Fred album, an interest in in home furnishing and more than 2 films starring Meryl Streep.

Can't fault them on the Right Said Fred bit.

Lucky me! I don't live in Georgia, have no Right Said Fred albums, am dreadful at home furnishing and only own one film starring Meryl Streep.

I'm untouchable bwa ha ha!

[willynilly]

Even with a warrant and the search being for officer safety there are all kinds of problems here. Laying on the floor, bigot remarks and not returning property is bs. I have no idea about the law on informing owners and what not but this is outrageous. I love the found absolutely nothing.