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NYE Negligent Discharge

It turns out that some of the fireworks on the Las Vegas Strip happened after New Years this year. An officer with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department managed to fire his rifle while moving barriers after the annual party on the Strip ended.

That round from his personal AR-15 (which Metro officers are allowed to carry while on duty) even managed to hit a bystander. Reportedly, two other people in the other thought they had been hit as well, but had no “visible injuries.”

Presumably, the injuries the unidentified man who was shot suffered were minor and resulted from the bullet bouncing off the pavement, rather than a direct impact. However, there are several interesting things about the negligent discharge involving Vegas’ local “Gang That Can’t Shoot Straight” (but does shoot early and often anyway). Prominently, among these is the lack of actual information that has been provided about it.

As mentioned in the video (by “What Happened in Vegas,” director Ramsey Denison) embedded below, the coverage of the incident itself initially received very little coverage locally. The post-NYE press release from the LVMPD didn’t mention it at all and it wasn’t reported by local news until two days later.

Note: If you have videos, stories, upcoming events/protests, or personal interactions with the police (and/or “justice” system) that you would like to share, send them to us and we will do everything we can to bring it to the attention of the world. In addition, you can visit the Nevada Cop Block resources section for information and links to the rights of citizens when dealing with police, during which you should always be filming.

Even then, what coverage was provided didn’t even discuss the nature of the injury beyond describing it as “minor.” Early reports also failed to identify the officer involved. It wasn’t until that information was leaked and subsequently reported by independent media sources that some of those blanks started getting filled in.

An obvious reason for this is that attracting tourists to Las Vegas for New Years is one of the biggest cash cows for the casinos located on the Strip. The LVMPD, those casinos, and the city government all go to great lengths to prevent anything getting out that might make people feel unsafe or question whether they should come to Vegas.

That’s especially true after the shooting at the Route 91 Festival on October 1st. As also mentioned in the video below and illustrated within “What Happened in Vegas,” by and large the local media is more than happy to play along with and facilitate that, as well. (The fact that the award winning documentary about corruption and police brutality in Las Vegas has been kept out of theaters within the city is itself an example of that.)

The LVMPD’s Corrupt Vice Squad and the FBI Probe

Beyond that, there might be another reason for the silent treatment. The officer responsible for the negligent discharge is one of the many poster boys (and girls) for corruption in and around the police departments patrolling the Las Vegas area. That officer, Detective Al Beas, is already being investigated by the FBI as part of a wide-ranging corruption probe into the LVMPD Vice Squad.

Several years ago Beas, along with Detective Chris Baughman, Detective Warren Gray, and Lt. Karen Hughes, were praised locally and portrayed in media as a group of crusading heroes that were saving women who had been forced into prostitution. In reality, they themselves were victimizing women and participating in sex trafficking.

Eventually, it was exposed that they were working on the behalf of certain pimps, including record producer and hip-hop artist Mally Mall, to eliminate their competition. Not only were they arresting the rivals of their “clients” they were also sleeping with prostitutes and then coaching those women to act as witnesses against the pimps at trial.

Lt. Hughes and Deputy District Attorney Liz Mercer, the lead prosecutor who convicted those pimps, reportedly were also sexually involved with the detectives and even the prostitutes. Mercer is now married to Det. Baughman, which has been characterized as a tactic to avoid having to testify against him, via spousal privilege.

Several of those pimps, including Arman Izadi, Ocean Fleming, Raymond Sharpe, and Micah Duncan (aka Wheelchair Mike) are seeking new trials based on the revelations from the FBI’s corruption investigation. So, yet again, due to who is involved this unrelated incident carried the potential to shine a light on a much larger issue that the LVMPD would much rather keep quiet about.

BTW, in spite of stating, “Officers guarding a crowd without intending to use their weapon should not have a round in the chamber,” Metro spokesman Jay Rivera has indicated that Detective Beas is not expected to be disciplined for his negligent discharge. In addition, Las Vegas Police Protective Association President Steve Grammas said he is unaware of anyone ever being fired for an unintentional discharge.

I wonder how that would go if someone without one of those Magic Uniforms that renders its wearer impervious to meaningful consequences for their actions (upto and including murder) had fired off a round (and hit someone), unintentionally or otherwise, on the Strip during New Years.

As has been detailed numerous times here at NVCopBlock.org, What Happened in Vegas explores the extremely controversial killings of Trevon Cole, Erik Scott, Stanley Gibson, and Tashii Farmer-Brown by Las Vegas police and the cover ups that followed. Several other instances of violent, racist, and/or outright criminal acts by members of the LVMPD are also featured to illustrate the overall systemic corruption within the department.

What Happened in Vegas also addresses several unanswered questions and issues about the investigation surrounding the shootings from the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas by Stephen Paddock during the “Route 91 Festival” on Oct. 1st. What Happened in Vegas is currently available on iTunes as well as on VOD (Video on Demand) or DVD.

“What Happened in Vegas” Trailer

“What Happened in Vegas” Filmmaker Intro

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