I found Tracy Ingle’s story referenced at Traction Control. Where are we going with this country of ours? Tracy Ingle isn’t a perfect citizen. As far as I am aware, however, our Constitution and way of life are supposed to guarantee the same basic rights and due process no matter who we are. While I am not naive enough to think the law is perfectly applied, we should expect better than this:
When he awoke, Ingle says he thought his home was being invaded by armed robbers. He reached for a broken gun, a pretty clear indication that he had no intention of killing anyone, but rather was trying to scare away the intruders. When he grabbed the gun, an officer inside the house fired his weapon. The bullet hit Ingle just above the knee, shattered his thigh bone, and nearly severed his lower leg. When the outside officers heard the shot, they opened up on Ingle, hitting him four more times. According to Ingle’s sister, one bullet still rests just above Ingle’s heart, and can’t be removed.
OK, so you have no sympathy for people who have had past brushes with the law. How about people who get this sort of treatment after having already been shot four times for their “sins?”
Police found no illegal drugs in Ingle’s home. They did find a scale, which Ingle’s sister tells me was an extra she was given when she worked at a medical testing facility. She used it in her jewelry-making hobby. They also found a bunch of small plastic bags. Again, Ingle’s sister says these were part of her business. “I was leaving the country for a while, and I stored a lot of my stuff at his house,” she told me. “The scale and bags were mine, and are both common things to have for anyone who makes jewelry.” Police also found the broken gun and a broken police scanner.
From those items, the police charged Ingle with running a drug enterprise. They also charged him with assault, for pointing his broken gun at the police officers who had just barged into his home. The judge set Ingle’s bail at $250,000, explaining that it had to be set high because Ingle had engaged in a shootout with police—never mind that Ingle didn’t fire a shot. Ingle was able to sell his car to pay a bail bondsman. But with no car, his injuries render him basically immobile. He had to walk two miles on crutches and an infected leg to his hearing last week.
That’s your drug war – ruining lives and stealing hope from people like Tracy Ingle. I know if my home was broken into in the middle of the night I would do my best to defend myself. I can only hope I wouldn’t face the same sort of disgusting treatment that Mr. Ingle is currently undergoing, but sadly, I think the only difference would be in the amount of resources I have available to muster a decent legal defense. Money talks and poor people get fucked by the unwinnable War on Drugs.
A web site has been set up to help in Tracy’s defense. Go check it out.