Thursday 17 June 2010

Youth Suspect in Seattle Police Punching Case Had Prior Criminal Rap Sheet

Update on today's big viral video. The main story's at Seattle Post-Intelligencer, "Police Guild: Officer Did Nothing Wrong in Videotaped Punch." That piece doesn't identify the teen girl suspect, but at the Seattle Times it turns out the girl, Angel L. Rosenthal, has quite a criminal record:

Rosenthal appeared Tuesday in King County Juvenile Court, where supporters said that she lives at the Virginia Miller House, a residential facility with behavior-modification programs for teen girls, but was in contact with her family. It's unclear why the girl is not living with her family.

King County Superior Court pro-tem Judge Ann Danieli found that Seattle police had probable cause to arrest Rosenthal for investigation of third-degree assault and obstruction. However, the judge agreed with the girl's defense attorney that she should be released ....

Rosenthal was charged in November with second-degree robbery. According to prosecutors, she punched a 15-year-old boy in the face while she and a group of youths were on their way to a rave in South Seattle last Aug. 28. The boy told police that his cellphone and $20 were stolen in the incident. A 14-year-old boy told police that he was punched in the head and his hat was stolen.

Authorities say the case was dismissed when the boys refused to testify.

In April 2008, Rosenthal was charged with third-degree theft after she allegedly stole a minivan in Tukwila, prosecutors said. Kent police said she used a screwdriver to break the ignition and start the vehicle.

The charge was later amended to theft of a motor vehicle. Rosenthal was given a deferred disposition — charges would be dropped if she stayed out of trouble — because it was a first-time offense, said Ian Goodhew, deputy chief of staff for Prosecuting Attorney Dan Satterberg.
More at American Power.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

What do you want to bet the girl's over-reaction was a ploy to sue the cop for abuse of power? He had every right to defend himself from the girl in pink who ATTACKED HIM! This officer did the right thing and did a good job to get things under control. He is going to be persecuted simply because he is white and the girl is black. If he gets reprimanded and congressman Etheridge (he beat up the high school student in North Carolina) gets a pass then we might as well throw in the towel.

LifeoftheMind said...

People are allowed to photograph from a distance but not to interfere with a lawful government activity. Unless you have a matter of safety to mention, like knowledge that someone has a medical condition that would be relevant to the officer or knowledge that they are armed, you should not say anything to the officer while he is focused on making the arrest. If the officer was aware that the person being arrested was a minor then he could I believe order people not to photograph her, to protect her privacy and not his own. The efforts of the person doing the video to distract the officer and dissuade him from carrying out his proper duties were unlawful. The person who who made those comments, "Are you serious" and "You are ripping her clothes" who is I believe the person recording this, should be arrested. We should definitely not throw in the towel.

Actions meet Consequences.

Murray said...

All she had to do was what a police officer told her to do.

Anonymous said...

The restaint this cop used was huge, with her resisting, and the girl that got hit grabbed and then shoved him. He could have used mace, tazer, or club. He could have used many holds that would have caused pain, or thrown her to the ground and pinned her. We didn't see the reaction of the girl that was arrested when she got her J-walking ticket, I'm sure she was sweet and respectful. He was in a tough spot, knowing that he was surrounded by cameras and many young men that looked as though they wanted to jump in if things got heated. Hats off to the cop, through the stupid chick in jail.

Anonymous said...

Who in their right mind would want to be a Cop today?