Cheye Calvo Reflects on SWAT Shooting
Cheye Calvo is the DC-area small-town mayor who had his two pet dogs shot and killed by a botched drug raid about a year ago. In an article to be published in this Sunday's Washington Post, Calvo reflects upon his experience -- not just the raid itself, but on the actions of the police department afterward. Excerpt:
I remain captured by the broader implications of the incident. Namely, that my initial take was wrong: It was no accident but rather business as usual that brought the police to -- and through -- our front door.
In the words of Prince George's County Sheriff Michael Jackson, whose deputies carried out the assault, "the guys did what they were supposed to do" -- acknowledging, almost as an afterthought, that terrorizing innocent citizens in Prince George's [County] is standard fare. The only difference this time seems to be that the victim was a clean-cut white mayor with community support, resources, and a story to tell the media.
What confounds me is the unmitigated refusal of county leaders to challenge law enforcement and to demand better -- as if civil rights are somehow rendered secondary by the war on drugs.
Mr. Calvo has been a super advocate for reform -- he has given up countless hours of his spare time to study and speak on this subject so that fewer people will be victimized the same way his family was. He spoke at a Cato Hill Briefing over the summer.
Calvo told his story at Cato last year.
