It Used To Be "Absolutely Unimaginable That This Could Happen In America"
This is utterly horrible. Horrible, horrible, unwarranted Police State behavior.
A man was given numerous invasive rectal exams, without consent, which found nothing, because cops decided that he "appeared to be clenching his buttocks" after they stopped him for rolling through a stop sign.
These include enemas, anal probes by doctors, sedation and a colonoscopy.
Steve Watson writes at InfoWars.com:
KOB Eyewitness News 4 reports that details of the case emerged during a federal lawsuit recently, with medical records and police reports indicating that deputies with the Hidalgo County Sheriff's Office and police officers with the City of Deming forced David Eckert to undergo multiple anal cavity searches, saying they had probable cause to search for drugs.His crime? Not making a complete stop at a stop sign.
While a doctor at one emergency room refused to go along with the "unethical" process, physicians at the Gila Regional Medical Center in Silver City agreed to carry out the anal exams, happy that the police had secured a search warrant from a judge.
...The lawsuit states that Eckert never gave consent for any of the procedures to be carried out and was vocally resistant throughout. In addition, the dubious warrant was not good in the county where the procedures took place. To rub salt in the wounds, the Gila medical center has billed Eckert personally for all EIGHT procedures.
"If the officers in Hidalgo County and the City of Deming are seeking warrants for anal cavity searches based on how they're standing and the warrant allows doctors at the Gila Hospital of Horrors to go in and do enemas and colonoscopies without consent, then anyone can be seized and that's why the public needs to know about this," said Eckert's attorney, Shannon Kennedy, who is arguing that there wasn't sufficient probable cause in the case.
"This is like something out of a science fiction film, anal probing by government officials and public employees," Kennedy stated, noting that the ordeal lasted over 14 hours, with some of the procedures being carried out AFTER the dubious warrant expired.
People need to wake up to what this country is becoming and has become -- ideally, before somebody sticks a latex glove up their ass.
via Jay J. Hector
Holy crap. There are some sick fuckers in the world. This sure sounds like there was some kind of psycho-sexual thing going on.
Cousin Dave at November 6, 2013 6:43 AM
The poor guy IS suing. Over multiple issues, but especially over clear violations of the scope, duration, and location of the search warrant.
This was especially blatant and the guy is very likely to be compensated with, forgive the bad pun, a buttload of money.. . .
Keith Glass at November 6, 2013 6:47 AM
@Dave: Nah, probably just small-town sheriff stuff. Could be Mr. Eckert has been getting away with stuff for years, remaining just out of reach. The cops figured this time they had him, but a BIG swing-n-a-miss. Or, they could be a bunch of sick f**ks, it is pretty remote country out there...
bkmale at November 6, 2013 7:10 AM
Ok, so they did this why? You can hold someone for 48 hours on suspicion. Put him in a cell, and give him a pot to poop in. Examine the results.
But then to charge him for the procedure?
I R A Darth Aggie at November 6, 2013 7:40 AM
That the "law officers" are asses is one thing; but, what's up with the doctor(s) that did go along with such an invasive procedure? What happened to their oath of "first, do no harm"?
Charles at November 6, 2013 7:46 AM
Amy Alkon
http://www.advicegoddess.com/archives/2013/11/06/it_used_to_be_a.html#comment-4035461">comment from CharlesThey are horrible for doing this. If I lived there, I would boycott that hospital. Those doctors' names should be brought out.
Amy Alkon at November 6, 2013 7:49 AM
" If I lived there, I would boycott that hospital." - Amy Alkon
That means you would have to drive for about an hour to get any medical care. Gila Regional Medical Center is the ONLY game in town, unless you're a veteran.
Fayd at November 6, 2013 9:09 AM
Amy Alkon
http://www.advicegoddess.com/archives/2013/11/06/it_used_to_be_a.html#comment-4035580">comment from Fayd" If I lived there, I would boycott that hospital." - Amy Alkon That means you would have to drive for about an hour to get any medical care. Gila Regional Medical Center is the ONLY game in town, unless you're a veteran.
I like living in a large, urban area for this reason.
But also, if you have principles, and you throw them over because you're a little inconvenienced, well, they aren't much in the way of principles.
Amy Alkon at November 6, 2013 9:13 AM
Colonoscopies carry a small (5 per 1000 or so) but real risk of serious complications, some of which, like gastrointestinal perforation, can be fatal and require major surgery. This risk is justified because doctors are searching for deadly cancers, not unpaid speeding tickets or stashes of weed. I'm glad to hear there was at least one physician who refused to throw away his ethics, but it seems to me that the sort of evil quacks who will perform dangerous medical procedures for no medical purpose are not the sort of doctors who will take the exceptional care needed to make sure those procedures are carried out safely.
What happened to First, Do No Harm?
Martin at November 6, 2013 9:36 AM
Uh, what if I continue to go there, but only after staging a massive public pissing on its steps?
(not actually my hospital nor do I live in that state.)
jerry at November 6, 2013 9:37 AM
I see that Charles beat me to that line by 2 hours, but this is still disgusting.
Martin at November 6, 2013 9:47 AM
One question I have is whether they actually did a colonoscopy or if it was a sigmoidoscopy. In order to do a colonoscopy correctly, the patient is required to drink about a gallon of a particular fluid to void his bowels. This is supposed to be done about 14 hours before the examination. A sigmoidoscopy would only go into part of the colon and would probably see about as far as he would be able to put any stash.
Fayd at November 6, 2013 10:04 AM
Amy Alkon
http://www.advicegoddess.com/archives/2013/11/06/it_used_to_be_a.html#comment-4035714">comment from MartinAlso, for some patients -- and I'm one of this small group -- the anesthetic used in colonoscopies, endoscopies, sigmoidoscopies, causes cognitive diminishment. It persisted in me for a matter of weeks.
Amy Alkon at November 6, 2013 10:26 AM
Fayd, considering they gave him three enemas, I don't think having his bowels voided was an issue.
Regardless, what a disgusting display of the power. I think the cops she be fired, and every medical "professional" involved should lose their licenses.
sara at November 6, 2013 10:56 AM
I hope he sues, I hope he wins, and I hope people lose their livelihoods over this.
ahw at November 6, 2013 11:11 AM
"That the 'law officers' are asses is one thing; but, what's up with the doctor(s) that did go along with such an invasive procedure?"
Can't help but wonder if they were threatened...
Cousin Dave at November 6, 2013 11:14 AM
Just re-read the article: Oh, good, he IS suing... I hope he wins, and I hope heads roll.
ahw at November 6, 2013 11:17 AM
Cousin Dave; I was sort of wondering the same thing - But, I was wondering more along the lines of would the hospital's funding some how or other be threatened; would the doctor's pay raises or recomendations for when/if they move on be a "doesn't cooperate with the law" which would very well kill any job placement or advancement for those doctors.
Have you read any of the stories that came out of Bishop Tutu's Truth and Reconciliation committees from the days of Apartheid in South Africa? Some of what the "law officers" there were threatened with are amazing. Threats of taking away their pension are just minor ones. Some of them were threatened with being charged with sedition which could very well have landed them in jail with some of the very Black nationalists that they had previously arrested - a death sentence for any white police officer in South Africa.
Such threats have a way of making any one of us do things that we normally wouldn't. So, it does make me wonder about those doctors.
I asked the question rhetorically; but, one does have to wonder were they, in fact, threatened? Or, did they think they were doing good? My god, there are too many unanswered questions to this story. I just wish the news media in this country would try to uncover the story behind these stories instead of playing pretend journalist.
Charles at November 6, 2013 11:49 AM
Police are America's heroes.
If they want to strip you naked and jam things up your ass, it's a small price to pay for the privilege of being the most free, wealthy, healthy, sane, and well-balanced nation on the planet.
Besides, some of these officers have been to college, so they're pretty smart.
Gog_Magog_Carpet_Reclaimers at November 6, 2013 12:39 PM
Doctors and nurses working under US military orders have been complicit in the abuse of terrorism suspects, a new independent US report says.
The study says medical professionals helped design, enable and participated in "torture and cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment" of detainees.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-24801084
Gog_Magog_Carpet_Reclaimers at November 6, 2013 12:42 PM
Some radio show I had on this morning had one of the mans' lawyers on. Apparently part of their excuse for this is 'The drug dog alerted on the drivers seat, so he must have had something up his butt.'
Not even touching on the abuses of signaling a dog to sit and claiming "He alerted!", turns out the dog used isn't even certified for that job...
Firehand at November 6, 2013 1:42 PM
Turns out they've done this TWICE:
http://dailycaller.com/2013/11/06/police-forced-a-second-man-to-have-invasive-surgery/
And
"The dog’s name is Leo, and according to KOB-TV 4, he is no longer licensed by the state of New Mexico to assist police in drug searches. Drug-sniffing dogs must be re-certified each year; Leo’s license expired in April of 2012, months before the Young and Eckert incidents."
Firehand at November 6, 2013 1:44 PM
No amount of money is compensation. People need to see the inside of prison.
MarkD at November 6, 2013 1:58 PM
@bkmale Here is the backstory on Mr Ekert and the DPD: "In September of 2012, David Eckert was stopped for a cracked windshield in Deming, New Mexico. The police allowed him to walk away after issuing a citation (he was stopped in front of his house) but continued to badger him with questions. When he asked them if he were free to go, they decided he was being rude and seized his car to do a drug search. No drugs were found."
Our investigation reveals another chapter. Another man, another minor traffic violation, another incident with Leo the K-9 and another example of the violation of a man’s body.
Police reports state deputies stopped Timothy Young because he turned without putting his blinker on.
Again, Leo the K-9 alerts on Young’s seat.
Young is taken to the Gila Regional Medical Center in Silver City, and just like Eckert, he’s subjected to medical procedures including x-rays of his stomach and an anal exam.
Again, police found nothing, and again the procedures were done without consent, and in a county not covered by the search warrant.
We’ve learned more about that drug dog, Leo, that seems to get it wrong pretty often. He might be getting it wrong because he’s not even certified in New Mexico.
If you take a look at the dog’s certification, the dog did get trained. But his certification to be a drug dog expired in April 2011. K-9s need yearly re-certification courses, and Leo is falling behind.
This is all (above) from electablg.com
I saw the doctor's name (and Yelp review site)in an earlier article. I will post it if I find it again. I am completely outraged by this one, sputtering mad and may not be making complete sense. I'm verklempt, as Grandma used to say.
We are not wintering in Elephant Butte this year. I have already written to the NM Tourism Org, telling them I will not be spending any time or money in the state this year and why. Land of Enchantment is now the Land of Forced Anal Rape, not buying into that.
bmused at November 6, 2013 2:54 PM
Gila Regional Medical Center billed Eckert for the law enforcement requested procedures – about $6,000 according to his attorney, Shannon Kennedy.
“They actually sent it to collections,” she said.
bmused at November 6, 2013 3:00 PM
The "Doctors" involved are
Robert Wilcox MD
Okay Odocha MD
Local commenters were reviewing them on Yelp last night. They deserve to be ruined professionally.
The complaint is at http://www.scribd.com/doc/181747773/Complaint-David-Eckert-v-City-of-Deming-Hildago-County-Gila-Regional-Medical-Center
It is beyond belief that I can tell my MD "NO" to a procedure, but not a Cop.
bmused at November 6, 2013 3:06 PM
Small town, big hell.
Lori Miller at November 6, 2013 4:00 PM
Susan Kavanaugh
Executive Assistant
505-827-7469
susan.kavanaugh@state.nm.us
This is the person to whom I addressed my email detailing concerns about visiting New Mexico this winter. She is with the Tourism Dept. Her boss Monique Jacobson does not list an email address. Chicken.
bmused at November 6, 2013 4:03 PM
The procedures could potentially have been done without consent if the patient was known to have swallowed a toxic drug baggie (i.e. cocaine, heroin, meth or MDMA, etc., not marihuana) and there was x-ray proof of said baggie. In (and only in) such a case where the bag represents a possible threat to life and a massive overdose of a toxic drug could be fatal (except for heroin, if caught in time) could this be done. For example, I have seen a lady of ‘easy virtue’ who had swallowed a baggie of H, which proceeded to rupture in the early morning while she was sleeping in the ER, and we found her in the morning cold and dead. In short, a procedure could potentially be done if there is a clear threat to life, and even then you would be on shaky ground to perform a procedure without consent. This case is clearly medical malpractice given all the negative x-ray results. There is nothing law enforcement can threaten a physician with if they refuse to perform an illegal procedure without consent so these two doc’s licenses are forfeit. Unfortunately, ‘I was following orders’ only works if you have the full force of the government covering you (i.e. don’t expect to see anything happen to the unethical docs at Guantanamo Bay).
coffee! at November 6, 2013 5:44 PM
Update - Here are the names and faces of the pigs involved:
http://www.kob.com/article/stories/S3211354.shtml
Martin at November 6, 2013 6:55 PM
This case seems to have united the blogosphere like nothing I've ever seen before. I've seen it reported with equal amounts of outrage on a Christian libertarian site and an atheist/leftist/feminist one, in addition to here.
Rex Little at November 6, 2013 10:36 PM
Amy Alkon
http://www.advicegoddess.com/archives/2013/11/06/it_used_to_be_a.html#comment-4037095">comment from I R A Darth AggieThey had no reasonable standard of probable cause. I am, of course, not a lawyer, but I read a lot in this area.
Our liberty needs to be taken very, very, very seriously. The presumption that we are innocent until proven guilty is one of the things that separates us from a totalitarian state. We will sometimes let guilty people go because of it, same as (we should) in traffic stops. What is most important is that we not draw in, search, and punish innocent people.
Amy Alkon at November 6, 2013 11:21 PM
"But also, if you have principles, and you throw them over because you're a little inconvenienced, well, they aren't much in the way of principles."
I am so sorry to see this.
You still submit to patdowns because giving up vacationing in Paris would be inconvenient.
Radwaste at November 7, 2013 5:39 AM
Meanwhile you have cognitive dissonance to argue that the NSA has a right to read your e-mail and drugs should be illegal.
But then you complain that Amy wants to fly to Europe.
Jim P. at November 7, 2013 7:09 PM
They had no reasonable standard of probable cause.
The Party can arrest Teabag scum at will
Stinky the Clown at November 8, 2013 4:41 PM
Jim P: I have NEVER said that NSA has that "right". You should know better, as I am careful to note that state and Federal agencies do not have rights, they have POWERS.
All you have to do is read that thread. NO WHERE have I said NSA has a right.
What I HAVE done, and which you mistook for endorsement of the technique, is explain how data mining must occur for AI to be effective in determining threats.
Now, step right up and say that LSD should be legal. You really can't be rational about that, because what I have said from the beginning is that industry has no objective standards for impairment for these drugs which they can apply to the employee in a critical position. Since you seem to have trouble grasping this, I will repeat the key feature of this limitation: only the illegality of a drug lets a corporation punish the drug user or prohibit them from a critical position for those drugs without impairment standards.
Wow. My position is a long ways from what you have thought to this point, isn't it? Sorry you thought that.
Radwaste at November 13, 2013 10:59 PM
By the way: even if I had the views Jim P. mistakenly attributed to me, that wrong would not make someone else's inconsistency right.
People are so eager to avoid blame, they rush right in and defend others with that fallacy.
Radwaste at November 13, 2013 11:01 PM
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