Florida Police Retaliate Against Investigative Journalist

This morning we noted an item about an investigative reporter who’s being treated like a wanted criminal by the Dade County, Flordia police he’s investigating. The police posted an online BOLO, or Be on the Lookout notice, usually used to post notice about loose criminals.

We’ve got source documents and further development, after the jump across the thin blue line…

Mike Kirsch, a CBS4 journalist, has been following a story about how police stations not only don’t have standardized forms for filing complaints against the police, they exercise intimidation tactics against those who request them, as we previously wrote.

The BOLO, posted to a Broward County Policeman’s Benevolent Association website, claims the Channel 4 reporters are conducting a sting where the reporter will speed down the road. Later, the same car appears with a black male driving. If pulled over, the BOLO claims the occupants become hostile and try to pick a fight. If there’s a negative police reaction, then a complaint is filed with their department.

Matt writes, “I called the BCPBA (954 584-7600) and asked the nice receptionist how they could condone publishing advice to police on how to avoid being caught crooked, and she advised me that I should email the BCPBA president, Dick Berkman, at dick@bcpba.org and ask him. It sounded to me like she thought the whole thing stank, too.”

We’ve posted the BOLO below, with blur on the reporters cell phone and home address. The original version contained that information.

bolo.jpg

Read more:

Broward PBA Retaliates After CBS4 Investigation [CBS4]
Mike Kirsch’s bio, video library.

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