Current Events > Woman raped in unmonitored drug sting sues police handlers

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https://apnews.com/article/legal-proceedings-lawsuits-law-enforcement-assault-crime-331a94138a13fd374f2a5f7ea69eb282

A police informant raped twice during an undercover drug buy in Louisiana has filed a lawsuit alleging her law enforcement handlers failed to monitor her in real time and allowed the attack to play out despite concerns over how long she was inside a known stash house. The suit filed this week in Alexandria alleges Rapides Parish sheriffs deputies coerced the woman into working as a confidential informant after her arrest on felony drug charges and failed to keep their promise to protect her if a purchase went bad. The January 2021 incident was the subject of an Associated Press investigation that highlighted the perils police informants face seeking to work off criminal charges in often loosely regulated, secretive arrangements with law enforcement. The womans attacker, Antonio D. Jones, was convicted of rape in November 2022 and later sentenced to 10 years in prison. Prosecutors recently asked a judge to reconsider that sentence, saying it deprecates the seriousness of the rape and Jones extensive criminal history. The woman wore a hidden camera that recorded Jones forcing her to perform oral sex on him twice in an attack so brazen he paused at one point to conduct a separate drug deal.

Authorities said the device did not transmit the attack in real time, but experts told AP the technology to monitor undercover transactions has existed for generations and should have been used to protect the woman in this case. The lawsuit alleges that deputies waiting nearby feared for the womans safety because she was in the home too long and that one, Deputy Cassie Jolene Saucier, considered going in before ultimately deciding to allow the undercover deal to play out. The lawsuit also names retired Lt. Mark Parker, the ranking official overseeing the operation, who told AP last year that the sheriffs office didnt start using equipment capable of monitoring in real time until after the womans rape and often sent informants into stings without any recording equipment at all. Weve always done it this way, Parker said. She was an addict and we just used her as an informant like weve done a million times before. Looking back, its easy to say, What if?

Lebronwon posted...

Weve always done it this way, Parker said. She was an addict and we just used her as an informant like weve done a million times before. Looking back, its easy to say, What if?

He does realize that's a horrible justification, right?

Lebronwon posted...

She was an addict

Basically "we see her as subhuman"

Bandit_Keith posted...

He does realize that's a horrible justification, right?

Right. I can't imagine saying that and not realizing how fucked up it sounds. Hopefully they have a better handle on this stuff now, since they've started using real time monitoring following her incident.

Lebronwon posted...

She was an addict and we just used her as an informant like weve done a million times before. Looking back, its easy to say, What if?

This is just them saying the quiet part out loud. I hope the woman wins

"That's how we've always done it" should never be a justification for anything