Usacomplaints.com » Miscellaneous » Complaint / Review: Baltimore City Police Department (Northeast District), Barbara Alan-Mitchell, Askew Gatewood - Baltimore City Police Department (Northeast District) Barbara Alan-Mitchell, Askew Gatewood abused & mistreated, corruption Police brutality. #38573

Complaint / Review
Baltimore City Police Department (Northeast District), Barbara Alan-Mitchell, Askew Gatewood
Baltimore City Police Department (Northeast District) Barbara Alan-Mitchell, Askew Gatewood abused & mistreated, corruption Police brutality

Enclosed: Letter I sent to news stations and newspapers online. [Beginning of first letter of complaint.]

My name is Bethany [Last Name].in April of this year I was arrested by, what my friends, family, and I think was, a racist female African-American officer. This was my first offense.

Three officers arrived at my house on a 311 call because my husband and I had an argument. He called simply to state he was worried about me (because I have previously gone off walking or driving around before to cool off) and asked if anyone spotted me to try to encourage me to come home. Approximately three hours after my husband called, two police cars and three officers show up. One officer, from the start, had an apparent attitude and very unprofessional manner.By this time everything was completely fine and everyone in the house was trying to get to sleep. My mother, with whom my husband and I live, as well as my husband and myself went out to greet the officers and let them know everything was fine and asked them to leave.

Officer Barbara Allen-Mitchell persisted with her attitude and implied we were all drunk and she demanded to know what was going on. Again, we asked the officers to leave because everything was fine and there was no need for them to be there. Officer Allen-Mitchell then called me a "prissy white bitch" and said I "ought to get locked up just to learn a lesson". I called her a racial term, as I took her calling me a "prissy white bitch" to be very offensive and completely out of line. I told her I committed no crime and if she wanted to lock me up then she could go ahead. I did have an attitude at this point, but I am not a police officer who is supposed to help people. All this woman did was antagonize and make the entire situation escalate.

Officer Allen-Mitchell proceeded to handcuff me and more or less make fun of me. She then threw me off the porch, but later claimed it was raining and that caused me to slip. I ended up on the ground about four feet from my porch, handcuffed, with one officer twisting my arms and one officer having their foot on my neck and pushing my face into the mud. I kicked both the officers that were hurting me while I was on the ground. Then I was escorted to a police car but kept outside the police vehicle. I had no shoes or socks on (due to the fact I was preparing for bed) and it was about 45 degrees outside pouring down rain. I had on only a pair of sweat pants and a tank top and was shivering the entire time and asked if I could be seated in the vehicle while they waited for a paddywagon to show up. I was not allowed in the vehicle but made to wait outside for over two hours, and I am not even sure why. I was not fighting at this point or resisting at all. The officers pointed a gun at my husband and threatened to shoot my dog that was barking inside our home. My husband was only asking them not to lock me up and was not doing anything threatening, only acting worried about his wife.

Eventually I ended up at Baltimore Central Intake Center overnight. I posted $500 bail and hired a lawyer for my court case. I was charged with domestic violence, though my husband has never pressed any charges against me and I did not commit any kind of domestic violence, and I was also charged with two second degree assualt charges. I don't deny the assault, but if someone harms me I may retaliate in self-defense. I feel my civil rights were violated. If I committed a crime prior to the time I was handcuffed, I may feel different about this case in terms of my rights, but due to the circumstances, I feel this behavior is unacceptable in our police force.

At court the judge for my case was Askew W. Gatewood, Jr. I saw cases before mine where many atrocities were committed and he seemed very tolerable. I witnessed a case where a man beat his pregnant wife and was caught with an illegal handgun, and his case was dismissed with no probation, court costs, or anything.

When my case came up he called me "an ugly person" and said I "wrote a check my ass couldn't cash." I was sentenced to one year supervised probation and House of Ruth Domestically Violent Women's Program, which I must attend every week for sixteen weeks as group sessions and pay $5.00 per session. I must also see my probation officer twice monthly. My husband, family, and friends think this is ridiculous, my co-workers think this is ridiculous, and everyone that knows me thinks this is just ridiculous. If I had financial resources I would have appealed this case.

I have talked to many people about this and have neighbors and family who witnessed the events the night I was arrested and saw everything that happened, including when I was thrown off my porch for simply exercising my free speech. I am not saying I was right, but I certainly feel my rights as a United States citizen were violated, and no authorities seem to care. This should not be the behavior and events that are acceptable in today's society. This is unprofessional behavior that must be stopped. I will do all I can do to expose this type of injustice. Thanks for your time and consideration. I hope to hear from you soon and work together for a better justice system.
[End of first complaint letter.]

Follow Up: Letter sent to Judge Gatewood for revision of probation
[Beginning of letter to Judge Gatewood.]
To Whom It May Concern:

Bethany [Last Name] is employed as a waitress in the dining room at Hazelwood Inn. One of the nights she was hired for was every Wednesday.

It has come to my attention that she has requested off Wedesdays to attend a domestic violence program with the House of Ruth which only has its group sessions every Wednesday. On this day she is indispensible. For a couple weeks a new waitress covered her shift. This waitress recently quit unexpectedly. Another waitress covered one shift but cannot cover each Wednesday. It is nearly impossible to schedule a productive shift when she is the only waitress readily available to fill this slot.

In this business there is a high turnover rate, and Wednesday nights tend to be busy at times, thus demanding a reliable waitress. Bethany is very dependable and lives nearby as well — that's why she was chosen for this night as well as some other busier nights. A few customers have stopped coming in as frequently due to the fact they have to wait longer when someone does not come in and they like Bethany's service because she is congenial, and knows how they like to be served.

I told Bethany she could not keep missing Wendesday nights as she has been. Bethany has informed me that she is actively looking for another program and will try to find a group session elsewhere if possible on another night on which she is not normally scheduled or one that isn't as busy as Wednesdays. I strongly encouraged this and was delighted when she told me of her plans.

Because she was hired for Wednesday nights we especially need her those evenings. She cannot give up her Wednesday nights. Thank you for your time and understanding.
[End of letter.]

This jugde does not care that my employment is jeopardized by attending a program. I am not trying to get out of the program, simply re-schedule. This is a no-win situation due to the fact that if I am fired that is a violation of probation. I am supposed to keep the same job throughout my probation. Apparently this judge cannot revise somehting so simple. I am offended by his sentence regardless.
My husband and I are still together and have a good relationship. Officer Alan-Mitchell was out of line during my arrest and should be exposed for the power-hungry racist officer she is. She should not use her position for her own means, but for justice, and I definitely do not feel as though justice has been served by any means.

Because this is a problem with the city's bureaucracy nobody seems to want to touch this. Hopefully reaching out to usacomplaints.com will help expose this unjust officer and judge as well as the Baltimore City System that has been scrutinized for years to no avail.



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