Forums › Rave › Party Reports › USA: Armed police raid a legal party and beat children!
I’ve seen the video of this & it just makes me sick!
The jumped up f**kers.
I hope , all of you in america & particularly those involved in this incident sue the asses off out of the police, break them !
Sue them for so much that they’ll have to patrol on a mule & buy their own uniforms..
Peace to all – except those who will beat people & point guns at them for having a good time – especially if it’s not ‘their’ idea of a good time!
Land of the Free – don’t make me laugh….
Rave Party Guests Claim Excessive Force from SWAT
Video report: http://www.4utah.com/mediacenter/default.aspx?videoId=23374
LAST UPDATE: 8/23/2005 8:55:01 PM
(ABC 4 News) — Rave party guests from around the world claim the Utah County Sheriff used excessive force to break up a party in Spanish Fork Canyon last Saturday night, and they may seek redress in federal court.
Still, the Utah County Sheriff’s department stands behind its officers and said the video proves the accusations are false.
About 90 law enforcement officers from multiple agencies broke up what they said was a rave party on public and private property in the Diamond Fork area of Spanish Fork canyon.
Utah County Sheriff’s Sergeant Darren Gilbert said they made about 60 arrests for weapons offenses, driving under the influence, underage drinking, drug possession and distribution, resisting arrest, assault on a police officer and disorderly conduct.
Officers found cocaine, Ecstasy, marijuana, mushrooms, alcohol and large amounts of drug paraphernalia.
Gilbert said a 17-year-old West Jordan girl was found overdosed on Ecstasy, and was treated and released to her parents. He said there were more than 250 people at the party. That is the number for which the county requires a permit, bond and county commission approval. Gilbert said the party did not have that approval.
Jonathan Meader and Lucinda Davies were at the Spanish Fork rave. They said part of the thrill comes not knowing where they will hold the rave until the last minute.
“The raving is a celebration of being alive, and people choose to use drugs sometimes, and lots of people don’t. There are so many people that do not use drugs at these parties because we go for the music and we go for the people and we go for the family,” Meader said.
Meader and Davies claim the organizers of the rave party did a good job to create a safe environment and watched in shock as 90 officers in SWAT gear converged on the crowd.
“It was like they were expecting a riot or a war,” Davies said.
Meader claimed the officers hit people with the butts of their guns.
Accusations of police brutality flood the internet on a well organized international rave network. Photos of the party and accusations against officers came as far as England and Australia.
Utah County Sheriff Jim Tracy denied the accusations. He said undercover officers purchased a large quantity of drugs at the party, justifying the police raid and the 60 arrests.
Salt Lake Attorney Brian Barnard plans to seek redress in federal court.
“It makes absolutely no sense at all to crash the party two hours into the event and to come in like storm troopers,” Barnard said.
Tracy said none of the photos or video shows any misconduct by his officers. He will have an outside agency investigate any formal complaints made by those arrested at the rave party. So far, Tracy has only received anonymous emails and phone calls.
instances of police brutality at free parties and teknivals is sadly on the increase everywhere – you only need to look at the recent Czechtek for that as many other people have commented.
That this happened in the US, or more specifically in Utah, sadly does not surprise me either. I’ve recently spent two years living in the states and it most certainly is the land of the free, that is, if you’re white and middle class….
some brief anecdotes of my experiences…….
smoking a reefer in the louis armstrong park in new Orleans with two other white female friends — we were approached by this crazy but cool black guy who was dishing out some beats from a bucket he was carrying while freestyling into the bucket (what a cool sound!) about three crazy white girls smoking a reefer in broad daylight. while we laughed about it with him the sad fact that he told us was this – we were ok as we were white, female, and young – try doing that when you’re black, male and young (try even just hanging out on a park bench without smoking a reefer!). now I have to wonder with the current situation in New Orleans if bucketman made it out alive – it would seem that a lot of other black, working class people (not to mention the homeless or squatters), simply did not figure into the evacuation programme. So much for the awesome might and humanitarian power of the US – if you’re white and rich you’re ok – if not, you’re fucked………
two summers ago i camped in the canyonlands district of Utah – a beautiful place miles away from civilisation. Once again, i was smoking a reefer after a hardcore hike through a canyon – enjoying my surroundings when a mormon family walked past me and my freinds. we said hello and didn’t think much more of it, but when we got back we were approached by the park ranger and asked to leave as we were suspected of illegal activities!! smoking just a reefer in the middle of nowhere and we were still persecuted – this bust in Utah does not surprise me. Mormons are an odd bunch anyway and Utah is against most things that are fun or liberatory.
in my experience – it’s getting harder and harder to be free in the US.
my thoughts go out to those who were brutalised at the rave and to those in New orleans who were not white enough or rich enough to get away……
Police Raid Outdoor Music Event
http://utah.indymedia.org/news/2005/08/11330.php
by Parker Pinette Monday August 22, 2005 at 04:30 AM
ppinette@gmail.com
Attendees of the outdoor electronic music event dubbed “Versus II” taking place the evening of Saturday, August 20th in the Diamond Fork area of Spanish Fork Canyon in Utah County arrived at the event with confidence that the concert organizers had obtained the proper permits and legal clearance to hold the event. Personal accounts available at the local electronic community websiteutrave.org paint a scene of police brutality and mayhem, many accounts bearing eyewitness to the forceful arrest of young girls.
Reports state that at approximately 11:30pm upwards of 90 officers, many wearing full camouflage gear, gathered from Sherrif and SWAT departments in surrounding areas stormed the previously peaceful gathering dedicated to music and dance. At least 1 helicopter was dispatched, along with large tranport vehicles designated for both officers and detainees. Numerous statements from attendees indicate excessive force being exerted by many officers. Inuries including mild to severe bruises and cuts have been reported by party goers as young as age 17.
The Utah County Sherrif’s Office has expressed a long term vendetta against what they call “Rave” parties. Statements from the Sherrif’s office as well as eyewitness accounts make it clear that this was a premeditated attack on the promoters and community supporting these events. While the Sherrif’s office has stated that many drugs and pieces of paraphernalia were obtained, they fail to note how many of the 60+ citations were for drug violations. Many accounts indicate the majority of citations and arrests were for resisting arrest. The Sherrif’s office states that the party was raided on the grounds of failure to obtain a mass gathering permit for an event hosting more than 250 attendees. Reports vary as to the number in attendance, estimation ranging from 250 to 1,400. Controversy exists as to whether a mass gathering permit was actually obtained, however, a Health Department permit was obtained, and hired security and emergency medical service personnel were on site.
Many eyewitness accounts indicate that officers singled out party goers attempting to document the events on camcorders, cameras and camera phones. Victims have claimed that officers knocked cameras out of the hands of the owner, even confiscating some. Luckily, one video has surfaced, and is quickly spreading across the internet, as well as being featured by at least one local news station. The video clearly displays a large number of officers dressed in full camouflage fatigues, some brandishing rifles. In the higher quality version of the video, which includes sound, it is apparent that the use of a taser was employed. While the video is somewhat unclear at times, the viewer can plainly see an officer atop a young girl fully subdued on the ground on her stomach; he swings on her at least twice, as more officers rush forward to manhandle the girl. It is clear that many others were subdued using similar levels of force.
Initial reports from local news stations side with the Sherrif’s Office, one anchor calling the event a “drug party” without batting an eye. Reports tend to focus on the drugs and paraphernalia acquired by police, rather than the obvious violation of civil liberties reported by those in attendance and depicted by the amateur video, which has been provided to all major local news agencies.
Surprisingly, the local Fox News affiliate Fox 13 seemed to give the most unbiased report, stating that many attendees had reported excessive force, as well as showing the official media response from the Utah County Sherrif’s Office. Clips of the previously mentioned video were also shown.
Other news agencies have gone along with the Sherrif’s Office in painting a picture of drugs, guns, and sexual assault running rampant at electronic music events in general, and especially this one. KUTV Channel 2 News blatantly inferred that the hired security was merely in place to prevent the sale of drugs by anyone but the event organizers. All major reports restate the claim made by the Sherrif’s department that a 17-year-old girl was found by officers to have overdosed on ecstasy, treated on site, then released to her parents.
Many attendees and members of the electronic music and dance community are organizing lawsuits against the Sherrif’s Office. The ACLU has been contacted as well as many organizations dedicated to educating and protecting the electronic music community. Vigilant party goers are compiling evidence, including video and pictures of the event, as well as personal accounts and documentation of injuries inflicted by law enforcement.
First Czechtek 05 and now this!! It’s fucked up, have all the world leaders got together and said right the first thing we need to do is get rid of those pesky ravers!?!?
I’ve noticed this kind of police response over here more and the scary thing is that they really might turn a bunch of predominantly peace loving people violent. I remember the first time I got pushed around by police at a rave, I almost lost my cool after seeing my wife getting pushed down under a load of none descript riot cops and being beaten back when I tried to help her.
They have no respect for us or our views on life.
I don’t think its a worldwide conspiracy from up high (blair, bush, putin, zemin, bin laden and all the rest are too busy fighting over oil TBH)
but a worldwide social problem that generations and cultures are becoming so divided there is civil conflict on the streets over whether multi-day music festivals and the use of recreational drugs in society is acceptable.
there is already a culture of agression and violence developing on the rave scene, sadly much of it is inwardly directed
in all these countries these are “local riots stirred up by local people”
although the CZ action may have been sanctioned at central government level it was occuring after an increasing groundswell of anti-rave complaints from older Czech citizens
the riot cops in Great Britain have also been deployed because locals complained that certain areas were becomign “soft touches” for raves
same in the other countries in Europe
and the right-wing religous lobby were getting angry as UTAH has had raves for some years now (look on our older articles and the pill test site and the state is mentioned many times)
there is a big backlash against the “liberal permissive society” and “multiculturalism/political correctness” that happened from the 1960s to the 1980s (stuff like 9/11, madrid and 7/7 hasn’t helped matters) – many older people actually feel “there is too much freedom and human rights nowadays”
but in most areas is been middle aged farmers and locals against their own youth from their own area – many would like to fight the ravers themselves (and some have tried), but in many cases either the law or their own physical weakness prevents them from doing so
its actually worse than a worldwide conspiracy, its father against son and brother against brother – and it is mostly the men who are involved as many (even those who claim not too) enjoy a good fight….
but its something which could cause the world to burn, yet if people were prepared to listen to each other and negotiate it need never happen.
i’d love an update on what legal recourse there was… whether or not the license was valid, whether anyone brought a charge of brutality / assault… and what kind of charges were brought against the organiser and party-goers
dose anyone know what is happaning over the pond about this? its one of the most fucked up thing to happen in the music seen. not just rave but any sort of music event.
Updated the third or forth post of this thread with the original clip of the armed police raid.
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Forums › Rave › Party Reports › USA: Armed police raid a legal party and beat children!
