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According to the sdpd, 24 year old Ricardo Carbajal was sleeping in his car at 4AM on June 25 in the 3000 block of Island Avenue when Phillip Bozarth approached, knocked on the window and noticed a gun on the passenger seat. Carbajal woke up and allegedly reached for the gun, at which point Bozarth fired into the car, say the police. Then Carbajal exited the car, while carefully keeping his right hand behind his leg so that officer Bozarth would think he was concealing a weapon. Bozarth felt he had no choice but to shoot Carbajal multiple times, who then, with fatal bullet wounds, had the strength to walk over to Bozarth’s police car and finally collapse. Paramedics were called, apparently not too quickly, and Carbajal was pronounced dead 15 minutes later. A gun allegedly was later found on the passenger seat.
Unlike Ricardo Carbajal, Phillip Bozarth survived and will be able to kiss his ten year old son as he puts him to bed tonight, assuring him that all is right with the world, at least for those who can kill with impunity. Unlike Ricardo Carbajal, Phillip Bozarth survived and will be able to put a fifth notch in his gun, five San Diegans shot down and killed in the performance of his ‘duty.’ Unlike Ricardo Carbajal, Phillip Bozarth survived and, if history is any guide, after a brief administrative vacation will return to the mean streets of San Diego, where he will be free to scare the shit out of citizens and seek out his sixth victim.
Carbajal’s family disputes the police account, calling Bozarth a ‘trigger-happy cop.’
Carbajal joins a long list of victims of trigger-happy cops in San Diego, murders with which the police brass, the rubber stamp ‘citizens’ review board, the district attorney, the city council, the state attorney general’s office and the fbi are all actively complicit for their deliberate neglect. In April, artist Jacob Faust, 25, was shot and killed by officer Stephen Holliday in what police say was a routine traffic stop. Holliday and fellow officer on the scene Keaton allege that Faust was reaching for a gun, which they say later turned out to be a plastic replica, but, of course, it was too dark to be certain at the time. The Faust family has pointed out many inconsistencies in this account and has filed an official complaint against the officers. Holliday reportedly plans to leave the sdpd after being cleared by the rubber stampers. Other recent victims include Luis Ramirez, Sonserra Holloway, William Miller, Mario Merino and Demetrius Dubose.
Despite its laid back reputation, San Diego has the fourth highest per capita rate of fatal police shootings in the country. Out of 450 officer-involved shootings during the period 1976-2001, in only two cases were charges filed and no convictions resulted.
A chronology of Phillip Bozarth’s previous fatal victims:
Robert Jennings, 35, on July 10, 1993, after allegedly lunging at Bozarth.
Marin Santos Castro Jr., 17, on Jan. 17, 1998, after allegedly pointing a handgun.
Rene Lopez-Vizzuett, April 14, 2001 after allegedly raising a toy handgun against officers.
I was unable to identify the fourth victim, who apparently was shot prior to Marin Santos Castro, Jr.
In a puff piece in the July 6 san diego union tribune, sdpd spokesperson, oops, i mean ut writer Joe Hughes attempts to ameliorate the grim reality of this fifth killing by listing three good things Bozarth has accomplished with sdpd. I was able to verify only one, pulling an unfortunate away from the edge of the coronado bridge, but by what sick calculus do three good events in two+ decades justify five murders? Hughes also quotes assistant chief Bill Meheu, predictably lying with enthusiasm about Bozarth: "He is an excellent and tenacious officer, a compassionate, caring man with a stellar record and a strong work ethic. He really loves and respects the community he serves."
In a month where Dick Murphy will be trading the mayor’s office for an almost certain stint in federal prison and Randy Cunningham appears headed down the same path, it is perhaps worth reflecting on how the elite seem quite willing to give up their politician lapdogs to the wolves when they become too much of a liability but have a very solid system in place to prevent the same from happening to their stormtroopers. An understanding of this difference would, i believe, provide ample insight into the dynamics of power in corporate amerika.
The sdpd’s strategy for dealing with officer-involved shootings appears to be to rapidly put out negative propaganda about the victim and fanciful accounts of what happened that render their officers eligible for sainthood. All of this is amplified by the corporate media. Then the process of actually producing an official report is dragged out long enough so that 1) anyone who might care has lost interest and energy and 2) evidence can be fabricated and stories can be gotten straight. It is a process that can exhaust the resources and energy of even the most determined families, friends and communities.
Those who seek justice in these cases need your support and help. A good place to start is Copwatch.
The Sagon Penn Chapter of CopWatch/San Diego meets the 4th sunDay of every month 6:30PM at the Hot Monkey Love Cafe at El Cajon Blvd near College Ave
CopWatch Conference/Panel Discussion
August 27 9AM-5:30PM Hot Monkey Love Cafe Sliding Scale Donation/No One Turned Away
Panels: Profiling, Harassment, Abuse of Police Power, 'Justifiable Homicide'/Murder by Law Enforcement Officials
Grassroots organizations for tabling, contact Janice Jordan 619-475-8227
 http://copwatch.com
http://jacobfaust.com
http://radio.indymedia.org/news/2005/06/5291.php
 e-mail:: queer-j-brad@riseup.net
 Homepage:: http://radioactiveradio.org
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I wonder if this cop would have acted in the same way had he been in Point Loma or La Jolla, and the person involved had been an Anglo person sleeping inside a SUV?
Another example of the murderous, racist, and classist SDPD.
Mr P
To the cop - I bet you think that you are a man don't you , your a pussy a panzie boy , so if not true why don't you came at us like a man , but you can't can you , well one day it will be your turn . Alway's watching the cop's and yes that means you pussy boy , look at the pussy he's going to cry or die . O I almost forgot thank's for sucking my dick when I was five yers old , doe's your police dep. know that one , well they will and every one alse to . Love you killer . P.S. I'll take my time , like you did , love the way you grab my balls..I was just a little boy .
you know
moral of the story : don't have a fucking gun on your car seat. And if a cop approaches you, don't be a retard and grab it. You WILL get shot. Why did this dumbfuck have a gun on the passenger seat in the first place? that's an invitation for trouble.
This is a justified shooting, whether you cop-hating, criminal-supporting communist/socialist crybabies realize it.
What do you expect the officer to do, let some cracked out thug blow him away?
I'd have capped his ass too.
the world is probably a better place with this turd dead anyways.
MM
e-mail::
The moral of this story is that cops need to step away from their fanatical obsession with the 9MM. MULTIPLE shots, and the suspect STILL made it all the way to the police car.
Yogimus
The cops have shot 4 people in Point Loma since 2000, same thing here.
m
Yo man, in California you are not supposed to have a handgun sitting on your carseat. And if 5-0 comes up to your window to have a chat, you definitely should not try to grab it. The best thing is to keep your hands on the steering wheel and let the officer know you are not a threat. I speak from experience.
Yo
Here's a list of some of the things Officer Bozarth has done in the past couple of years.
Earlier this year Bozarth disarmed a man with a loaded, AR-15-type rifle without firing a shot.
Also earlier this year Bozarth disarmed another man with a loaded 9 mm pistol also without firing his weapon or causing injuries.
In February, Bozarth and another officer grabbed a man before he could jump from the San Diego-Coronado Bridge.
In 1996, Bozarth arrested a man trying to strangle a woman with a rope inside a car.
Also in 1996 he arrested a woman wildly waving a gun at motorists and pedestrians.
Did you not do your research before writing this propoganda or did you leave the truth out on purpose? Either way, you are a jackass!
Pman
If it looks like a duck and walks like a duck ? .
The point is once a killer always a killer .
w
Phillip Bozarth, Five-Time Killer and Member, sdpd
And a damned good cop. We need more like him.
Yogimus
Is that GARCIA from RENO911??? hahahaha looks like a real fucking bitch to me.
ger
"I wonder if this cop would have acted in the same way had he been in Point Loma or La Jolla, and the person involved had been an Anglo person sleeping inside a SUV?"
Yah, probably! If a cop is approaching you, make no movements and keep your hands where they can be seen. Any idiot should knows this and if they don't they deserve to be shot! If you had a history of being lied to, and cussed at, threatened on a daily basis, and generally hated, and had others in your group being murdered by a gang members as a right of passage you would take a strong stance to protect your life. Plus, if someone reached for a gun and you know that your friends have been shot in similar situations you would not hesitate to shoot that person...and you would not call it murder. You owuld call it self defense. In fact, that's what it's been called and you've all be OK with it, but add cop into the mix and now all of a sudden it's murder? Who is the bigot here? If it talks like a duck and falsely accuses like a duck and uses words that are close but not completely accurate like a duck...it must be a...you get the picture.
A convicted furbelow conglomeratist
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