A journalist who was jailed on several felony charges while documenting a protest at UC Berkeley won a $162,500 settlement last week.

UC Berkeley police also seized David Morse’s camera as evidence and held on to his memory card for more than six months before a judge ordered it returned to him.

And when they did, he discovered they had deleted a photo he took of them arriving on the scene, which contradicted their story that he was fleeing from the scene.

But because of their unlawful arrest, the university not only had to dish out all that money, its police department will now be required to undergo training in dealing with the media, specifically in regards to obtaining videos and photos for evidentiary purposes.

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On 07/02/11 I crossed from Nogales, Mexico into Nogales, AZ and when I did I, as usual, I refused to answer questions unrelated to a legally required customs and citizenship declaration. The result was my being manhandled into the back room, yelled at, threatened, arrested, handcuffed, and placed in a cell. I remained in the cell for approximately forty-five minutes until a ICE Special Agent arrived and told the legally inept CBP officers that I hadn’t actually broken any laws. I wrote in detail about my arrest here.

Since my arrest I have retained the services of Attorney Keith Knowlton, a civil rights attorney in Arizona, who is pursuing a Bivens action against the Department of Homeland Security for my unlawful arrest.  He requested a copy of video from the Nogales Point-of-Entry as well as my arrest report.  Stunningly, they could not locate the video or an official arrest report… but they did locate the “inspection report.”

You’ll note that I was accused of murdering a federal officer (18 USC 1114) and “forcibly … impeding” a federal officer (18 USC 111) .  According to the report I was let go with a verbal warning.   Not bad I’d say for a homicide.

The very next day following my arrest I filed an official complaint with DHS/ICE/CBP’s Professional Standards Division regarding my illegal arrest and the unprofessional conduct exhibited by the officers.  I had an over-the-phone interview on 07/03/11 and was told that an investigation was started and that I would hear back within a month.

After hearing only crickets coming from the direction of the Department of Homeland Security for approximately four months, I filed a complaint with New Hampshire United States Senator Jeanne Shaheen’s office regarding their apparent unwillingness to investigate misconduct on the part of their own employees.  I also filed a complaint with the Arizona FBI office for a violation of the criminal civil rights law, 18 USC 242.  (The FBI has subsequently reported that they are not interested in investigating this further.)

I received a phone call from Senator Shaheen’s office today and was informed that ICE/CBP’s official position is that I was never arrested.  This clearly is because of the misleading, inaccurate, and lying report filed by the federal officer who arrested me.  I informed Senator Shaheen’s staffer that the CBP Officer lied on his report by omitting the fact that he both told me “you’re under arrest” and handcuffed me, prior to putting me in a cell.  The staffer, a very nice woman named Letizia Ortiz, told me that CBP reported me as being repeatedly uncooperative when I cross the border and that it is their position that I was never arrested on 07/02/11.  Their position that I was never arrested is based on the report filed by CBP Officer Aldrich.

If that is where they get their official position from, wouldn’t it also be their position that I murdered a federal officer?

Complete lies.

Be careful when dealing with the government.

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ORLANDO, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - The Orlando Police Department has admitted that one of their own officers used excessive force while trying to restrain a woman last year.  Surveillance video shows Officer Livio Beccaccio throwing the woman to the ground, knocking out her teeth while he was trying to break up a fight.

“On behalf of the Orland Police Department we’d like to apologize to Ms. Wareham for her injuries as a result of being thrown to the ground,” said Deputy Chief Jeff O’Dell of the Orlando Police Department.

The incident happened in February of last year after a large crowd leaving the Central Station Bar downtown became rowdy. City surveillance cameras clearly show Officer Beccaccio pushing Lisa Wareham to the ground, and then pushing another man.

“Officer Beccaccio’s actions were excessive — in both investigations there was no evidence to suggest Officer Beccaccio intended to cause injury, however his actions did,” O’Dell said.

Officer Beccacio was suspended for one week without pay because of the incident. Wareham was accused of hitting Beccaccio and spewing racial slurs to another man, but charges against her were later dropped.

Officers say that video painted a different picture than the written statements in Officer Beccaccio’s initial report.

“When you read the report you create a picture in your mind, then what you see in the video, and in his investigation he agreed that video was an accurate depiction of what happened that night.” O’Dell said.

Because of the inconsistencies in the report versus the video, the department is now changing its policy when it comes to how they consider surveillance video in cases involving excessive force.

“Now we are requiring our supervisors and lieutenants also in a situation requiring use of force, to review the video to make sure that the story we’re putting on paper matches what we’re seeing on the video,” O’Dell said.