Officers Run Background Check On Obama; Placed On Leave

Originally posted by Iamonlyhuman
reply to post by lpowell0627

 

The question that needs to be asked is: Would it have resulted in their suspension if they had searched an individual's background and not the President?

Actually, no, it doesn't. It was the Presidents they checked, not someone elses.

I would however like to think that if this happened to someone else and they became aware of it that the police would also be suspended with a view to disciplinary proceedings and possible prosecution.


The question you really mean to ask is - How would someone else know if they'd been checked out without good reason. You can't have flag on every single record, that clearly isn't manageable but people should be able to obtain an audit trail showing when their records were accessed. Anything they don't know about should be validated internally by the police/fbi/whoever and if its shown someone did abuse their access rights, they should be treated in the same way as these officers - which i hope is as harshly as possible.

reply to post by Maxmars



Very.


Mod Note: One Line Post – Please Review This Link.


[edit on 31-7-2009 by Gemwolf]

reply to post by lpowell0627


I just thought I add a comment from the link to the story you provided.

I am so tired of people pulling the race card on every issue. If these cops ran the check because of the issue with Gates and the cop whatever. Every cop in the United States should have felt betryaed by President Obama these men and women put their lives on the line everyday for very little pay and to be degraded by someone in that position was totally uncalled for. You people want to talk about abuse of power that is exactly what Obama did. He has done nothing since he has been in office except fly around the world running his mouth he has not done anything for the working people of the United States and probably never will! I don't care if it has been less than a year he should have been sitting in the White House trying to help the American people not worrying about what is going on ever seas and taking trips for his family at the tax payers expense with a little bit of work mixed in. Our troops need to be brought home and if the people in foreign countries want to kill each other let them. Our troops signed up to defend the US not foreign countries. If the US had kept all f the billions of dollars they had sent over seas for aid here we would not be in the shape we are in those people do not appreciate anything we have done for them.

This "person" talks about the Gates circle-jerk involving the integrity of the cops. S(h)e makes a good point on that one. Probable cause? Maybe, maybe not. Internal Affairs are on the case. REst assured they will get to the bottom of this.

reply to post by phoenix103


I understand all of that privacy stuff. It was the same thing when hospital workers checked for medical records on celebrities.

My point really was:

The secret service was notified AS SOON AS THE CHECK WAS DONE -- obviously via some electronic method as nobody called THEM.

The secret service then notified the police department.

I find this to be a huge amount of overkill over something that, although intrusive, is hardly threatening. Or is it? -- was my point.

Trust me when I say that this type of thing occurs everyday in every department across the country. Police officers run into all sorts of people on a daily basis. Some suspicious some not. A casual inquiry can often lead to an arrest due to outstanding warrants. That is why the cops have these computers.

The timing of this story stinks to high heaven. They are making an example out of these two officers as a warning to everyone. The eligibility issue has been making headlines over the past several days and now this story breaks. Hmm I wonder why??

This is simply a warning and a scare tactic. For me, it just raises more suspicion about Obama's little known past.

reply to post by jibeho


That's exactly my point -

The police didn't notify the secret service. It was the other way around. That's what I found so odd about whole thing.

Does the secret service somehow know eveything entered into an individual police car's computer??

reply to post by lpowell0627


Understood.

His record will have an electronic flag. Any access will be highlighted immediately as they need to know who/why for the purposes of protecting him. Historical records might lead to information which puts him at risk.

I think its perfectly understandable that the Secret Service were all over this quickly.

In fact, I'd say its proof positive that they are clearly doing a great job!

I know many people in the US don't approve of Obama but most of us around the world thing he's the best President since Kennedy - perhaps even Lincoln. He needs to be protected so he can fulfil his future - to the benefit of all of us.

These guys are stone cold idiots - what do they think they're going to find that paid opposition research guys working for politicians haven't? And didn't they even stop to think the check would raise some red flags?!?

Cops should not be running background checks or prying into people's private information unless they've been accused of a crime, period.

These guys should be fired.

reply to post by jibeho


Thank you.

The cops run my plates, and check for warrants, etc, whenever they are sitting behind me at a light and bored.

Also, Obama is a public servant. Hired and paid for by the American people. Why the hell shouldn't his criminal record be available to everyone all the time?

The secret service was on this faster than the guy that went to the bank and told the teller he was withdrawing thousands of dollars in order to kill the President.

It took them 2 - 3 days to find an armed man on a mission to kill the President, but only a few minutes to know someone had requested a background check??

reply to post by jd140

Unless they have a valid reason to suspect someone of a crime then a criminal background check cannot be done without written permission.

Well there are plenty of laws I suspect him of breaking! Maybe they got word he was going to visit their county, and they planned on arresting him for TREASON!!

Both sides are correct. If this were a normal person (your sister's boyfriend) it would still be an invasion of privacy, but nobody would ever know! It is not a criminal issue, it is a civil matter.

The fact that this is POTUS and alerted the Secret Service is the kicker. Police do this all the time, nobody is making a stink about it. There is probably a Barack somewhere in their county and they can claim it was an anonymous drug tip! They won't get in any serious trouble unless they have KKK ties or turn out to be Republicans!!

reply to post by phoenix103


This really had nothing to do with whether or not I think he's doing a great job.

I am shocked that the secret service has all of these "computers" watched.
This wasn't the main frame computer in the state police's barracks. This was an individual computer in a cop's car.

Wasn't one of the problems police departments face the inability to spread information throughout many states quickly because there computers are not linked? Has this been fixed? Or just for the secret service?

I think I remember it being a problem after Katrina.

reply to post by lpowell0627


I realise you aren't talking about his politics, was just putting my view as to why the cops might have done it (esp after the whole race thing). Either that or curiosity.

Someone here is bound to know about the computers the US police have in their cars, sadly, I do not but i'm pretty sure the data isn't local (i.e. stored on the machine). I imagine that when they do a query it pulls the data back from a server, it'll be the data in this server that is flagged.

Originally posted by lpowell0627
I am shocked that the secret service has all of these "computers" watched.
This wasn't the main frame computer in the state police's barracks. This was an individual computer in a cop's car.

They aren't/weren't "watching" any given computer. The "flag" was raised when there was a search of the National Crime Information Center database using the President's name. A record of that search would have contained the IP and other information about the computer used. All of which would make it quite easy to determine who had initiated said search.

Originally posted by phoenix103

....

I know many people in the US don't approve of Obama but most of us around the world thing he's the best President since Kennedy - perhaps even Lincoln. He needs to be protected so he can fulfil his future - to the benefit of all of us.

Wow, just wow. I think you need to compare the president's you're contrasting here. Obama, a virtual political unknown from Chicago (ahem), with a mere few months in office ... better than Kennedy or Lincoln? I can't imagine upon what your basing this assertion (except maybe Madison Avenue/Hollywood perception engineering.)

But I'm sure it will be well received nonetheless.

By the way, I can't presume to speak for America, but Obama is not the problem, and never has been. Obama is just their most attractive marketing option. The problem is the body politic, who they belong to, and the illusion that we have a choice - or that one well-spoken man can change that from within the party itself.

While I can't stand Obama or anyone in the Federal Government at this point, it is illegal and unconstitutional to do what these officers have done. It is NOT legal or American to run people through without probable cause and a warrant, period.

lol lol lol lol lol THat is some funny stuff. Wonder how long it took?

reply to post by 12m8keall2c


Thanks -- that's exactly what I was looking for.

Originally posted by projectvxn
While I can't stand Obama or anyone in the Federal Government at this point, it is illegal and unconstitutional to do what these officers have done. It is NOT legal or American to run people through without probable cause and a warrant, period.

While I almost always agree with vxn. This time he is wrong. It is an invasion of privacy, but it is not illegal or unconstitutional. It may not be admissable in court, and there are certainly grounds for a civil action or an employment termination, but it did not break any laws.

If I rummage through files at my work looking for dirt on someone that is unrelated to my job duties, I may get fired and sued, but I won't get arrested.

PLUS, see my earlier reply. We have plenty of reasons to suspect Obama of treasonous crimes. If a cop heard Obama would be near, and he suspected him of treason, it is his sworn oath and due diligence to run the check and make the arrest!! ( I know that wasn't the cops real intent, but it might get them off the hook, and its kinda funny! )

[edit on 30-7-2009 by getreadyalready]

What the police did in this case is highly questionable yet at the same time possibly commendable.

It's been many years now since the police have operated with the mind set of 'protect and serve' yet one does have to ask...

Why did these two officers feel compelled to check?

Did they, do they, do any of us have a feeling, a suspiscion, a doubt, a sixth sense guttural instinct that just maybe we need protected from Mr. Soretto?

A lot of folks do, and some might say because of the controversial veil of secrecy placed on most of Mr. Sorettos records that he himself is in part responsible for those concerns.

Common sense would tell an investigative mind especially one with any police experience Mr. Sorettos records would have either been scrubbed, or completely manufactured from the ground up, and not have been reflective of the real Mr. Soretto who ever that may in fact be.

Assuming that they were manufactured and not scrubbed a good investigator would be looking to know what has actually been manufactured and then to forensically investigate from there.

In other words was he in Chicago on December 4th 1994 when he allegedly got that speeding ticket? Was it a real police officer with the Chicago Police Department and a real in sequence ticked number and does the real officer have any recollection of having written the ticket, does his signature and badge number match, who was the vehicle and lisence plate registered too, does the Vehicle Identification Number match up.

Most people pop up on the grid at some point even if it is just a speeding violation, a J-walking ticket, failure to show up for Jury Duty, a ticket for a small amount of marijuana posession etc., etc.

The new National Data Base police officers access actually will tell a Miami Beach Cop who stops you for having a tail light out that 30 years ago you got caught with a gram of marijuana.

It tells them within seconds of running your I.D.

So they would have been looking for when and where Soretto popped up on the grid, and all known aliases associated with Soretto through finger printing or self incrimination when he did pop up on the grid.

Given the supposed grass roots and religious and minority rights causes he is alledged to have been involved with in the past it would be highly unlikely at some point he didn't get on the grid and in the system.

The absence of some things would suggest scrubbed.

The presence of some things might suggest manufactured if the actual events then could be researched and discovered to not have taken place.

Chances are though the officers motives were along the 'protect and serve' line.

Ultimately if America is to ever rid itself of the rampant corruption in the body politic it will take actions outside of the political system designed to stymie and thwart them.

It took seconds for the flag on his computerized file to send an electronic message to the Secret Service and probably just minutes for them to clamp down on the leak. That is what I mean about how it likely can't be achieved through the actual system. The system is designed to protect the corrupt and shield them through the misuse of the colour of authority.

The fact that men in uniform who are police officers have these suspicions along the 'protect and serve' line is telling.

It means they themselves are worried and fearful of who Mr. Soretto might be, and that they feel their fears and concerns are valid.

Notice how the police are being villafied in multiple media stories at the moment?

This could be why, because many law enforcement officers, soldiers and citizens are concerned about Mr. Soretto, who he is, his past, and his stated objective of 'Fundamentally Changing America".

This ellement of concerned law enforcement is in part what is going to drive the argument for the people in the 'victimization' cults to favor a national and unconstitutional national police force, the million man civilian paramillitary security force for domestic use Soretto talked about wanting.

The new SA Brownshirts.

These are the reasons he wants it, citizens in a position to utilize lower public office to 'protect and serve' or at least try.

Citizen soldier veterans who remember the constitution.

Free thinking, intelligent and articulate people like many of the people here on ATS are all potential hazards and road blocks to the Soretto agenda.

Yes this story proves police abuse of power, but it also proves people even in law enforcement who work for the government are seriously questioning and seriously having doubts and it really is not because of his race, it's because of the policies, the rush to cram through sweeping legislation that does fundamentally change the constitutional system of governance and the rights of citizens, the speeches coming out of Soretto and key administration officials and the fact that he is shielding his past.

This is a lot more serious than a racial issue, and any who falls into that trap is dooming this nation at this point.

There is no transparency or accountability in our government or in it's officials and in part this story proves it is practically a crime to find out what they don't want us to know.

I applaude these officers and their initiatives.

I do believe their motives were to protect and serve.

The system is never going to be fixed from within at this point, people are going to have to step outside of it to restore constitutional government to this nation, and it is a good sign that there are still some authorities willing to do that.

Hopefully there will be more.

Hopefully more and more of us will add our voices to their efforts.

Cops need to be kept on short leashes...they are waaaaaay out of control lately. They have absolutely no right to pull up that man's background...and they knew it. It's an abuse of the resources that citizens are trusted with. Just because they filled out a job application had a successful interview and passed a few tests doesn't make them some sort of new creation.

They're citizens using public resources to obtain information that is none of their concern and not necessary to do their job.

If they want to know about Obama they should use the internet like everyone else.