Whoops, sorry we scared you to death
Alberta Spruill, 57, was peacefully in her Harlem apartment on May 16. Police raided the apartment with a no-knock warrant, detonated a flash grenade, handcuffed her – and Alberta died of a heart attack.
It was the wrong apartment. The police raid was based on a phony tip from an informer. And now a completely blameless woman is dead.
“The informant who led police to burst into an innocent woman’s home in Harlem was due to be dropped from the confidential informant program because his earlier tips hadn’t panned out, a law enforcement source said yesterday.”
Let’s see if I have this correct. Police, using info from an informer they knew to be unreliable, did no further investigation, then smashed down a door, threw in a grenade, and scared someone to death. I was in NYC as this was being reported. Her neighbors said if the cops had asked neighbors about her, everyone would have said she wasn’t involved in drugs.
The type of warrant used here is truly noxious, as it allows police to break into a home without identifying themselves and without doing prior surveillance. Warrants like these are routinely approved by judges. They shouldn’t be. Warrants like this should not be allowed to exist.
Al Sharpton is calling for a serious investigation… But you figured that out already, right? You also know with Sharpton involved, this case isn’t going away any time soon either.