Opposing Views – by Jonathan Vankin
Yesterday, we told you about the horrifying case of David Eckert, a New Mexico man who was forcibly subjected to repeated anal probes after a drug-sniffing dog wrongly smelled something illegal when Deming, N.M., cops pulled Eckert over.
Eckert’s original offense: failure to fully stop at a stop sign.
Eckert’s story spread across the internet throughout the day, leaving the entire nation shocked.
Today, the same TV station that first reported the Eckert story is reporting a second nightmare. This one also involves forced anal penetration by doctors at Gila Regional Medical Center in Silver City, where Eckert was also victimized.
And again, the incident began with an innocuous traffic stop and a mistake by a drug sniffing dog — the same dog who messed up in Eckert’s case.
An investigation by KOB TV shows that the dog, named Leo, has not been certified to detect drugs since April of 2011. Dogs must be re-certified every year.
Police would not comment, so why Leo was still being used to detect drugs — or why the dog was never recertified — remains unexplained.
Leo’s mistake in Eckert’s case happened in January of 2013.
The new case, in which Timothy Young was subjected to forced abdomen X-rays and anal probe by a doctor’s finger, took place on Oct. 13, 2012.
Young was pulled over by police for making a turn without using his blinker signal. The cops unleashed Leo on Young’s vehicle. The dog indicated that he smelled drugs.
Police then took Young to Gila Medical Center (pictured) where he was forced to undergo the unwanted and humiliating procedures. As with Eckert, no drugs were found inside Young’s rectal cavity or in his car.
As with the Eckert case two months later, police obtained a search warrant for the internal search of Young’s body, but it was not valid in Grant County, where Gila is located.
Now attorney Shannon Kennedy, who also represents Eckert in his $10 million lawsuit, is suing again on behalf of Young, who only came forward with his story after seeing the publicity received by Eckert’s case.
According to Kennedy, the cases of Eckert and Young are not the only examples of mistakes by the uncertified drug dog, Leo.
Meanwhile, the rest of the nation is left to wonder exactly what is wrong with law enforcement in New Mexico, not to mention the medical staff at Gila Regional Medical Center.
Sources: KOB TV, U.S. News and World Report
“Meanwhile, the rest of the nation is left to wonder exactly what is wrong with law enforcement in New Mexico, not to mention the medical staff at Gila Regional Medical Center.” – If the common denominator in all cases is an “unwarrented” finger up the ass, then I would guess THAT might be the motivating factor…