“I think to comment whether these officers should have been arrested would be premature because I don’t know all of the evidence. I trust that the state attorney has evaluated the reports and has made the appropriate determination. I think like any person who is charged with a crime in this country, we have to wait to see what the evidence will bear before we rush to any judgement and that is the same right that would be afforded anyone.” Angela Powell, Esq. Senior Counsel, Manning & Kass, Los Angeles, California
“Michael, we still have a long way to go. I am really struck by friends and colleagues, knowing that I have been tolling in the trenches for 35 years and asking ‘what I think about the fact that all of these allegations of abuse have happened all of a sudden’ and I tell them ‘welcome to my world.’ It’s not that it’s happened all of a sudden, it is now because of the advent of technology that America is beginning to get a glimpse of what really happens on the street of urban cities throughout this country.” Carl E. Douglas, Esq. Douglas/Hicks Law, Beverly Hill, California
“To everyone who says Marilyn Mosby should have submitted her findings to a Grand Jury, I say are you kidding? How much more proof do we need in our country that Grand Juries do not work in police excessive force cases? She (Marilyn Mosby) absolutely did the right thing, and we have a new model going forward for accountability for police shootings.” Lisa Bloom, Esq. The Bloom Firm, Woodland Hill, California
“Technology is critical. Now everybody essentially is walking with a video camera. Just take your phone and in a second you’re able to capture the entire interaction between police officers and the community. Like Mr. Douglas mentioned, this is something that we’ve been dealing with for years; this is nothing new to us. We get calls everyday about these kinds of cases, the difference now is that you have video tape evidence of it and it’s not just family of the decedent’s word against the officer or witnesses accounts against the officers. You actually have an objective witness in the video camera showing what happened. I think that’s what brought this issue more to light. I’m happy that people are not to afraid to take out their cameras because people could run the risk of being charged themselves or being harmed themselves.” Jamon Hicks, Esq. Douglas/Hicks Law, Beverly Hills, California
“Generally speaking I find that the technology helps officers. It helps document that every day they’re putting their lives on the line to protect ordinary citizens and keep our streets safe. Nine times out of ten they’re doing what they’re suppose to be doing, helping. And on the one out of ten occasions when there’s some issue that needs to be addressed, it (Technology) helps us as well. It helps us solve the problem. So generally speaking, I like having the recordings because they help us defend the officers and show they were doing what they’re supposed to be doing, helping our citizens.” Tony Sain, Esq. Manning & Kass, Los Angeles, California.
