alumni group, I learned that Minneapolis police had broken into my duplex on
Glenwood Avenue to seize a tenant, Anthony Foresta, who was staying with his
sister. They are my former wife’s oldest son and daughter.
Anthony was arrested last August and charged with participating in a
drug-related murder that took place in south Minneapolis in March 2013. There
was no direct evidence linking him to the murder of which he claims no
knowledge. Evidently, he was arrested upon the testimony of his former girl
friend who made a coerced confession to the police and also the testimony of
that former girl friend’s friend who was the girl friend of another man who
might have been involved in the murder.
The case was set to go to trial last December but the judge - I think it was
Judge William H. Koch - allowed the county prosecutor to delay the trial
several times because presumably it did not have enough evidence to convict.
Most recently, it was delayed until the first week of April. Then, because the
prosecution’s star witness could not be located, the trial was again postponed
until some time in July - nearly a year after Tony’s arrest.
I note that the sixth amendment of the U.S. Constitution provides that persons
accused of crimes be given a “speedy” trial. A Bar Association guideline
defines a speedy trial as one occurring within 90 days after arrest. There are
some exceptions to this rule but the prosecution’s inability to prove its case
is not one of them.
Tony had been at the Hennepin County jail for about eight months when the judge
ordered him released on probation in early April. He was on house arrest,
wearing electronic ankle bracelets. Since Tony had no other place to go, I
allowed him to stay with his sister who was a tenant in the duplex.
One of the conditions of Tony’s probation is that he maintain telephone contact
with the probation officer. This was the initial reason for the raid.
Evidently, the probation officer tried to call him yesterday morning but was
unable to make contact. The reason was that the equipment malfunctioned. The
police in large numbers - about 15 of them - therefore raided the duplex and
seized Tony.
During the raid, an officer spotted white powder on the kitchen table. This,
he thought, was clear evidence that illegal drugs were being used. In fact,
Tony had cut a prescription-drug pill in half because the whole dose was too
strong. But the officer, deputy Allan McHugh, managed to convince a judge, who
might be Robert M. Small, that he had probable cause to search everything in
the apartment. Thus began a rampage that resulted in everything being thrown
on the floor in all the apartment rooms. If you’ve seen the “tear” scene in
Citizen Kane you would have a rough idea of what was done.
The worst effect, however, is that the Minneapolis goons who carried out this
raid smashed in the front door to gain entry after setting off two loud bombs
to gain people’s attention. There was a thin glass window that they could have
broken to reach the interior lock, but, no, this is not how members of the
Minneapolis SWAT team do things. They must kick in the door. Police in other
jurisdictions show more restraint. Since the front door to that duplex is of
an unusual size, I am looking at hundreds of dollars in damage.
I think residents of Minneapolis, even those living on the north side, are
entitled to a professional police force and not officers who practice thuggery
upon the citizens they are sworn to protect and serve. (The officers high-fived
each other after smashing in my door.) Last Monday, Tony’s mother and I had an
opportunity to meet briefly with Mayor Hodges at her monthly open house to
discuss police matters. I retain hope that the Mayor, my City Council member,
and other elected officials will manage to bring the Minneapolis Police
Department under civilian control. In the meanwhile, I will try to let others
know what is happening under the guise of “law enforcement” in our city.