Texas DPS Tracking Down And Arresting Rioters And Looters

Chris Menahan
InformationLiberation
Aug. 23, 2020

The Texas Department of Public Safety is tracking down and arresting rioters and looters and the media is absolutely furious.

On Friday, The Texas Tribune ran a propaganda piece attacking the cops for their conscientious police work and suggested that lawfully arresting people for breaking the law is somehow inherently police brutality.

1/ This summer, Texas DPS officers have tracked down and arrested more than a dozen Texans as part of a highly-publicized investigation into police brutality protesters from May.

Attorneys call the probe an unparalleled political “witch hunt.” https://t.co/7bW4Tyx7IY
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) August 21, 2020

The Texas Tribune also suggested the mere act of arresting black people for crimes they allegedly committed is racism.

3/ The majority of the 14 people DPS says have been jailed so far are suspected of only misdemeanor crimes.

Nearly half of the arrestees are Black. Almost all are in their teens or early 20s. https://t.co/7bW4Tyx7IY
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) August 21, 2020

The Tribune quoted the accused rioters' attorneys suggesting the arrests were part of a conspiracy "to distract the public from recently-heightened criticism of American law enforcement's use of force against Black people and instead bolster the perception of officers as protectors."

5/ Protesters have described being arrested at gunpoint and their families harshly interrogated months after the protests.

Some have been arrested multiple times for actions during the same protest almost three months ago. https://t.co/7bW4Tyx7IY
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) August 21, 2020

7/ Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick specifically praised DPS’s actions during Austin protests in an unrelated press conference this week, saying without the state police, Austin’s leadership would have put the city’s residents in danger. https://t.co/7bW4Tyx7IY pic.twitter.com/AnIHvY43Tk
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) August 21, 2020

From The Texas Tribune:

DPS reported 11 officers were injured with cuts and bruises from assaults during Capitol protests that weekend, and tens of thousands of dollars worth of property damage was done. The agency dismissed accusations against the department in an email to The Texas Tribune Wednesday, saying there was no indication of officer misconduct or complaints filed. The agency said descriptions of arrests and interrogations told by defense attorneys and protesters were "riddled with inaccuracies or completely false." No further specifics were given by Friday afternoon when asked about falsehoods.

"Those who were arrested were not peaceful protestors; they were engaged in various types of crimes – some of them felonies – that jeopardized the safety of citizens and officers," the statement said. "Anyone who attacks the state Capitol or the DPS Troopers who are sworn to protect it will be investigated, charged and arrested when there is sufficient evidence to do so."

How dare they!

9/ Seven officers in five police cars showed up at Teal’s grandmother’s house with guns drawn in July, his lawyer said.

Teal wasn’t there. According to his lawyer, the officers said other agencies may send officers back with a no-knock warrant if Teal didn't surrender himself.
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) August 21, 2020

Who knew it was a crime to attack police officers???

11/ Teal’s story is not unique. Keegan Godsey was arrested at gunpoint while getting into a car nearly a month after the protest, according to his attorney.

He’s accused of spray painting the doors of the historic building of the state Capital. https://t.co/7bW4Tyx7IY pic.twitter.com/ir1qKHRA7I
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) August 21, 2020

13/ During her second arrest, Nordstrom said law enforcement officers in plain clothes interrogated her in a truck in her apartment’s parking lot and asked if she was involved in any socialist organizations before taking her to the jail. https://t.co/7bW4Tyx7IY pic.twitter.com/xQvdD9iXO7
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) August 21, 2020

14/14 DPS rejected depictions by protesters and their lawyers, but did not respond to specific questions from the Tribune about officers’ actions regarding protesters. https://t.co/7bW4Tyx7IY pic.twitter.com/X0g4ojiIEV
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) August 21, 2020

Remember folks, crime is just a social construct!

Right-wingers should be arrested for thought crimes but leftists must be shielded from arrest when they loot and riot!

Those rioters in Texas filmed setting a homeless man's bed on fire and beating people in the streets were the good guys!

[Header image by Jason Lawrence via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0]

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