Early on the morning of December 15 CMPD detectives with the "Sexual Assault Unit" now headed by Major Vicki, interviewed Lavatae Evans for more than an hour. Police knew they had the right man, but were not sure if a crime had been committed because CMPD detectives felt that both victims ages 19 and 20 were lying about their relationship with Evans.
It is a well known fact that CMPD Officers are under pressure to show lowered crime numbers to Chief Monroe, particularly with regards to violent crime. Adding two rapes to an already violent month would not look good on CMPD's Compstat reports.
CompStat (short for COMPuter STATistics or COMParative STATistics) is the name originally given to the New York City Police Department's accountability process that has since been replicated in many other police departments including CMPD. But, the program is a number driven process that is inherently flawed.
Evans is a career sexual predator and criminal with a history of sex offenses. Information that was available to CMPD included prior arrests and convictions for first-degree rape of a child, first-degree sex offense against a child, kidnapping, auto theft, robbery and drug charges.
Despite questioning Evans for less than an hour, and even though Evans had not requested to leave, CMPD Detectives told Evans he was free to go. Within minutes of leaving CMPD headquarters Evans had zeroed in on his 3rd victim in less than 12 hours.
When the 3rd victim called police and identified the suspect as Evans, CMPD knew they had a major public relations nightmare on their hands. But when CMPD's Public Information Office first released information about the Evans arrest they failed to mention that just hours before they had Evans in custody, as a suspect in the first two rapes.
When Cedar Posts received the anonymous email early Friday morning it was clear that a major cover up was underway. So why did CMPD fail to mention that Evans had been in custody just hours before he committed his 3rd attack in less than 12 hours, when they first announced his arrest?
The answer is simple CMPD is totally consumed with the public perception of their operations and lying is the way they have elected to control perception.
With the heat turned up on Chief Monroe and questions from all directions thanks to the email, CMPD's plumber Rob Tufano began to deny and minimize.
CMPD's spin presented by Major Foster during a 3 o'clock Friday afternoon press conference was pure political posturing. Foster stated that as a result of the "inconsistent statements" by the victims, police didn't have sufficient evidence to charge Evans or enough probable cause to hold Evans while he was at the Law Enforcement Center.
Probable cause is defined as "a reasonable belief that a person has committed a crime".
Major Foster went on to say that investigators can't rely only on a victim pointing out a suspect to make an arrest.
"We have to do an investigation," she said. "We want to be fair to both parties."
Foster said Evans was free to leave at any time but cooperated in the investigation. She said officers had his address and believed they'd be able to find him if charges were later filed.
"The best we could do was try to verify the information."
Yet CMPD's over the top response to Evan's 3rd attack that included both SWAT and VCAT units dramatically conflicts with Foster's statements. If CMPD detectives were so confident that they could re-interview Evans at anytime why the SWAT and VCAT response?
The bottom line is that Evans should not have been released before CMPD Detectives had re-interviewed the victims. While Detectives might claim they didn't have probable cause, they certainly would have if they believed the victims. But in a culture where crime numbers mean everything Officers and Detectives are driven to "dumb down" the numbers. A rape becomes just an assault, and victims are minimized. The result of this culture is that victim's statements are often discounted, particularly minority victims.
In this case CMPD failed to protect victim number 3. The physical and emotional damage done to this victim is beyond what civil lawsuit that is sure to come can compensate. The damage to CMPD's reputation and that of the Chief is beyond recovery as well.
36 comments:
so they didn't have enough probable cause to arrest him at 8:30. but they did have enough probable cause to sign warrants a mere 2 hours later? What information developed in 2 hours that changed their minds? And why not admit that they questioned him in the first place. Why did it take an e-mail for them to admit the truth? Are any of our news agencies going to ask this question of CMPD or will they wait around for more information to fall in their lap and half ass investigate it. everyone of them bought the company line like good little boys and girls. its a real shame
Anonymous December 17, 2011 6:52 AM
I totally agree with you. The local Charlotte news stations are a total farce. When has it been known for them to investigate anything. They are just waiting to see what will fall in their lap. It seems that we should believe more of what Cedar is posting, as they take the time to look into things a little more than just posting whatever is out there.
Basically all the investigators are utilizing what I call the three P's. Piss Poor Planning.
Foster said that as a result of the inconsistent statements, police didn't have sufficient evidence to charge Evans while he was at the Law Enforcement Center.
Nice blame the victims.
Way to sum up the situation Cedar! If the CMPD had not already lost the trust of Charlotteans, they have now!
(Unless you watch WSOC, who seems to think CMPD can do no wrong!)
will they count this as 3 rapes or 1 or just reduce it all to 1 assault since they were all related?
The reason they didn't charge Evans at first is they expected the victims to recant. CMPD Detectives were presuring the two girls to change their statements, they spent more time talking to the victims than they did this thug. Cedar is right the last thing they wanted was to add another rape to their crime tally. Talking victims into dropping the charges earns big points with RoMo. No charges no crime. That is how RoMo Rolls.
While I wasn't there, I can only imagine both girls trashin this fine upstanding citizen cause he ain't their baby daddy. You know, he's such a fine brother, I wanna be his ho, yada, yada, yada. I can only imagine those interviews, probably a bunch of crap running out of their mouths. How many times have we heard this kind of trash. He probably din't sell them any crack.
Betcha, he was talking trash about them....you know how it goes, ya know, I don't mean no disprespect, but them bitches are just some ugly hos, they wanted to trade a little for some crack and I wasn't down with it, cause I got a girlfriend.
Anyway, I can only imagine they were all over the place. Seems like a huge mistake in hindsight by a bunch of inexperienced detectives in the Sexual Assault Unit. I believe some old timers fell out of favor and that house was cleaned. So this was bound to happen.
I laugh at the comments as if you all know what actually goes on. I agree with Cedar on a lot of issues within CMPD, but these comments are ridiculous. While the numbers game does happen, it's not at the detectives level. What benefit would they have to encourage a victim to recant their story. What you all fail to realize is that most detectives enjoy putting people in prison. With that being said, even the accused have rights. Believe it or not, victims lie! Stop jumping to conclusions. BTW, that email that Cedar got along with all the other media outlets was full of inaccuracies and I hope they investigate and burn the person that sent it because instead of putting the dirtbag in prison they screwed up the case for the prosecution. It's difficult enough to get the DA's Office to accept cases as it is without this stupid s*** going on. THANKS A**H***! And, no, I'm not a RoMo crony.
Nothing about this shocks me. Idiot COPS turn loose a rapist. Can it get any worse? Thank God he didn't rape and murder a child.
Y'all koolaid drinkers who kiss Foster's butt want to buy into the BS be my guest.
But RoMo's gonna lie as long as people like you let him. But I can see the day when someone on City Council want his lying black ass hung from a tree. That day is closer than you RoMobots think.
If a case is screwed up, it's Foster going on t.v. to say "there were inconsistencies in the victims' statements" they couldn't fix--which clearly wasn't true, because with no further talking to them or research, they got a warrant on those charges after he kidnapped another woman at knifepoint, pulled her into his momma's house, and forced her to perform oral sex on him.
Either they had good charges with the first two victims or they didn't. Clearly they did, but Foster and the rest of the Sgt. Pepper Band tried to make excuses for there sloppy police work and for releasing a KNOWN sexual predator CONVICTED of prior offenses. And why not charge him immediately with the gun charge, then work on the rest? Lazy, sloppy, irresponsible, inexcuseable.
Contrary to what Foster said, you can hold someone for 24 hours without charges. And he wasn't asking to leave. They told him to in less than an hour.
If the police department would quit lying so much, people wouldn't feel so desperate that they have to write anonymously to expose it.
Yes, good detectives want to lock guilty people up when that is the case. But other detectives feeding into a corrupt system where they are told to hold the crime numbers down at all costs will do different things.
You want to string up someone who did a good thing to expose the corruption? Why aren't you calling for exposure of all the CMPD corruption? You need to rethink your priorities. It's this kind of cover up the blue line at all costs thinking that's helping RoMo put this department in the toilet, flushing down every good honest officer witht he rest of the SH_T.
that was "their" sloppy work
missed the edit button
Doesn't happen at the Detective level???
Are you kidding me, that is too funny.
Seems like you are the clueless one.
Most "Detectives" nowadays are just Officers Rodney has hand picked, as is most everyone else in Investigations these days.
What benefits would it have to talk someone out of their story? As someone said, it would keep the numbers down and once again give that false "perception" of safety.
No, you were not raped, you were assaulted.....they do this with many things.....downgrade the crime and keep them from being reported as Part Ones.
Like a "damage to property" would be preferable to Larceny from Auto....see how that works??
Rodney does.
"not at the detectives level" . This may be the funniest and self absorbed statement so far. It is at EVERY level and the detective that posted that statement is trying REALLY hard to convince him or herself. I can't blame any of the officers or detectives that dole out this crap. I love those that get on here and say for others to "change what you are doing" or "stop being a yes man". If those of you are so bent on stopping the corruption or changing the culture why do you post as anon? I think we all know why we post as anon and why you keep your heads down. We all have shifts to work and off duty to maintain and there is nothing we can do until Romo falls from the graces of the city council. It is obvious that nothing so far has made a dent in their confidence in his leadership, which is a scary damn thing in itself.
you can send proof and information to people willing to do something direct and useful with it.
that's the minimum ethically required.
read here and read other blogs, it's happening and having an impact.
and if you care about nobody but yourself, you'll still do that, because if it hasn't hurt you outright yet--just look around...
you already say it has hurt you if you are walking around with your head down worried about off-duty pay. you're supposed to be protecting and serving, and going home with pride to your family, safely.
can you do that with conditions like this?
are your friends and family in Charlotte more or less safe since rodney hit the scene? generally, are the cops you have to count on to back you up more or less qualified?
if you're not getting special favors among rodney's special chosen ones by ass kissing and who knows what other favors to get special duty pay and perks, are you making decent, fair pay compared to those who are?
quit making excuses of self-preservation. cough up the proof to make the dent in their confidence instead of going along with it. cedarposts and citynewswatch come to mind.
You stupid f***ers can post this shit all you want but nothing will change the fact that the chief of police is a stong educated black man who has the power over your dumb white ass and thats what is your problem and if you don't like it that a black man can be educate and rise to a position of important than what do that say about you? Maybe you don't like the chief because he went to a better school that you and got his degree by working and not because his parents be pay for him to go party and drink beer with frat boys like you. Maybe it because the chief don't be no good n***er like you boy Herman Crane and he be real and from the street and he knows what you don't? This city is run by strong black men elected by people who think and know when they see people who know why they want o take things to the next level. You just need to put you mind right with the lord and and maybe then you'll see that the truth don't be black and white, its what right.
Edited by CP
Anonymous December 17, 2011 9:14 PM
Your head is so far up your FU**ING ASS. That you will need a plastomaty to see which way you are going. He is not a strong black man, just one DUMB FU**ER. And as for his degree. What degree? I'm sure that he hasn't even finished it yet. So, this here would not qualify for him to be a Chief. Plus he probably came from some small as department and inflated his resume.
Please and don't play that religious shit here after what you just typed.
Anon 9:14
Nice try trying to stir up the racial pot.
Didn't work, no one could be THAT stupid.
He doesn't have a legitimate degree idiot, he got it the old fashioned way, using influence.
He is a strong black man for sure, a black man who strongarms everyone.
Go away.
He could be orange, and he would still be corrupt.
Idiot.
anon 10:21, thanks for saying
racist idiots of any description can shut up.
this is about something else. and it's bringing everyone down.
Well, since these all happened in ONE day these 3 rapes will definitely be counted as ONE! That is the Monroe math....
And people keep buying what Monroe is selling....unbelievable.
And Walton and City Council are the Great Enablers.
Well, as long as Walton keeps supporting the corruption, he will keep getting paid off with raises!
Anderhaps City Council and Foxx think the false lower crime stats will get them elected.
When it's uncovered they are false I think it will help grit them unelected and more....
Come on people, It’s terrible what happened to the victims but It’s not CMPD who committed the crime. It’s the POS that has no respect for himself or other people and has been arrested on numerous occasions. This guy should have remained in jail, but remember your talking about the State of Mecklenburg. The court system is a joke, you will get more time in jail for drugs than you would a serious crime, sad but true. To those who like to slander the Police, shut your trap and if think you can do a better job, do it. Its Police, Fire and Medic and the great U.S.Military who risk their lives every day not you……
12:32,
actually, you don't even make the top 10 list for highest risk jobs. The trash men are at much greater risk than you are with much lower pay. Check the statistics.
http://www.collegiatetimes.com/stories/17255/the-most-dangerous-jobs-are-the-ones-we-need-the-most/p1
Nobody's "slandering the police."
There are lies being put out by the CMPD brass and it seems like a fair number of non-brass are going along with it. If they weren't going along with it, he wouldn't be getting away with it. Crime Statistics are high on the list of lies.
Mayor Foxx knows it. Walton knows it. City Council knows it.
You don't have to get a certain job to understand truth and lies. You just need access to the information Monroe has been hiding from the public since he came on board with his phony degree, lying about the degree he had received but not earned and then saying he was confused about both, with a cloud over his head from the federal investigation over misused funds Macon GA (where he "lost" financial records).
Monroe has a long history of this crap, as Cedar has documented.
Nobody is "slandaring police"
Anonymous 12:32, I never stated that it was one of the high risk jobs, and never said anything about pay. Get my stats right, please before you post your D.A comment, you need to read what the other person said first.
CMPD is in a world of trouble because of what Rodney Monroe has done to the Department, plain and simple.
He has lowered standards on every level.
He has shown bias and favoritism and promoted and given people better assignments regardless of their qualifications.
He has told lies, covered up, used fear, intimidation and vindictiveness to control and "lead".
He has been in over his head from day one.
If the truth will cast doubt on him and show the mistakes
he has add, he just lies, he seems to have no problem whatsoever lying and manipulating the truth.
And he has surrounded himself with others who think the same.....Katrina Graue, Harold Medlock, Paul Zinkann, Ricky Robbins, to name just a few.
He has not got the respect of anyone that knows anything about what is going on at cmpd....neither do his lackeys have anyone's respect.
He will not be able to maintain this shaky facade much longer.
Humpy Dumpty is gonna fall......
You can't hold someone for 24 hours without charges in NC. In order to detain someone you need reasonable suspicion, which has a finite detention limit. In order to hold someone for 24 hours, you would need probable cause and they would have to be under arrest.
I've read Shakespeare, the works of Socrates and Plato, the Gettysburg Address and every Presidential Inaguaral address. But nothing, nothing has so profoundly touched me as the comments left December 17, 2011 at9:14 PM.
1:38 you forgot to use the scarcasim font.
re: the post by anon December 17, 2011 at 9:14 PM...
Why is it so acceptable to make the racist comment "strong educated black man"? Not only is it racist, its arrogant.
We would never get away with saying "strong educated white man" or reference any other race.
Don't you think there was plenty of probable cause....given his past arrests?
And the women that made the complaint, if they had been taken seriously?
This was all about keeping the charges kept to a minimum!!!
The did not want two rapes on the books.
Now, because of their deceit and wanting to cover up, they have of course made it much worse.
@ 7:23
Probable cause doesnt mean he probably did it.
Facts or evidence is needed. In Mecklenburg you need more than in most places.
You charge a person without enough PC he / she walks free and you cant ever charge them with that crime again.
If you don't bother to try to make probable cause, it's easy to miss the mark. CMPD apparently didn't even ask to see the hotel video, or secure it for evidence. CMPD TOLD Evans to leave while he was willingly at the station talking after they found him hiding in another hotel room.
And with his record, they told him to go in reportedly less than an hour, then lied about it. They said he committed another kidnapping and sexual assault while they were looking for him--not saying they had told him to go after having him in custody.
Trying to keep the lie of low crime numbers going.
Anon 11:00
You are 100% correct.
Anon: 7:23
"Probable cause doesn't mean probably guilty".....
Well, it PROBABLY doesn't mean shit if you don't want to take a report or do a proper investigation.
And it seems the rush to judgement here was in not believing the two people that were the VICTIMS.
You can make all the excuses you want.
At the end of the day, another procedure was totally ignored because, once again, people were too busy covering their asses AND covering up for Rodney by perpetuating the false crime stats, the cheating, the corruption.
This is how Rodney and his Posse roll...deny, deny, deny, lie, lie, lie.
Cedar,
I took a trip up north and ran into several people from other agencies (including but not limited to VA and DC) there was a lot to be said about Monroe...NO BODY WANTS HIM! The people whom I spoke with really felt sorry for CMPD and our unfortunate situation...They to knew what he was capable of doing. How one person could put a black mark and tarnish if not destroy an agency just by opening his mouth...He(Monroe) suffers from Napoleon syndrome and is one of the most racist people I have ever encountered - quote from a former subordinate- the other descriptors are non the less true but that particular one hit home because it was a minority who said it...
Anon 8:05
I have heard everything you said and more about Rodney.
And hearing so many personal stories from people about his racism, it is absolutely true.
He is a joke in the law enforcement community. People can't believe he got this job, and more, that he has kept this job. With all the shady wheeling and dealing, the lying, the misappropriation and shifting of funds, using JAG money where it shoun't be, using grant monies not as intended, promoting unqualified people to push his own personal agenda of "diversification", doing away with training, not following Directives, and changing them to suit his personal whims.
He has been a one man demolition crew!
His regime will go down as the worse ever in the history of cmpd.
He has totally destroyed cmpd in the short time he has been here.
People know he is corrupt, and he has the respect of no one.
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