Bucky Phillips manhunt controversy

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The Bucky Phillips manhunt controversy refers to the alleged pattern of police misbehavior during the massive law enforcement 2006 manhunt for escaped prisoner Ralph Bucky Phillips, who eventually pled guilty to the murder of a police officer during his flight.

[edit] Residents' dissatisfaction

Some residents of western New York were initially annoyed and angered at the search for Phillips in April 2006 by Erie County Sheriff's office. There were reports that helicopters were searching wooded areas and with the Sheriff's office informing residents what they were investigating. Calls to the sheriff were met with responses that included "we can't disclose that information." From the start of the search people who lived in Chautauqua County had their lives disrupted. Helicopters would fly low over households at 2 and 3 a.m., spook livestock and wake residents. Small children were afraid to go outside, fearing the noise of the helicopters[1].

Police competency was questionable to local residents [2]. There would be a sighting, and then Phillips would get away. This pattern was repeated for weeks and then months. Locals referred to cops as "keystones" and seemed to favor the idea of Phillip's being on the loose, due to his ability to escape capture, despite being seen in the area, and the hundreds of troopers brought into Chautauqua County [3] . No figures have been officially released, but some reports state that New York State spent eight million dollars on the manhunt from April until August of 2006. Many locals resented the police presence.[4] New York State Police were also criticized for not involving local law enforcement agencies in the search. [5]

On June 15, 2006, the story of Ralph "Bucky" Phillips broke nationally. The New York Times covered the manhunt and the situation for the local residents, with an attempt at telling both sides of the story. [6] After the shootings of August 31, some national news media expressed disbelief that residents weren't pleased with the search for the fugitive, even referring to them as "hicks" and "woodchucks" on Fox News Channel. News organizations tried to explain why Phillips repeatedly avoided capture.[7] No news organization has explained how someone who has been incarcerated for the past 20 out of 23 years could have such excellent survival skills, though Phillips could have learned these skills in his youth.

Police were said to have conducted illegal searches of the homes of Phillips' family members. They were searching property of residents unrelated to Phillips without warrants or informing owners. Residents reported their wire horse fencing had been cut by police on ATV’s, endangering their animals. Police agencies did not include local police or Chautauqua County sheriff officers in the hunt. Residents were both inconvenienced, were angry at the heavily police presence due to the proximity of an escaped convict, and some were even fearful of the police due to the shooting of Brad Horton.[8]

Several family members -- Patrina Wright, 23, Phillip's daughter, Kasey Crowe, 42, Wright's mother, and Norma Gloss, 65, Crowe's mother -- were watched, followed and allegedly harassed by police. Tracie Gloss, daughter-in-law to Norma Gloss, was arrested for allegedly helping Phillips, though the charges were later dropped. Family members started carrying video cameras so they could document the police harrassment they claimed they were experiencing. Several family members pressed charges against the police, including Gloss, for a shoulder injury that resulted from being slammed against a wall by police and Wright, for being kicked in the stomach while she was eight months pregnant. [9]

The alleged harassment of family members went on during the course of the search. New York State Troopers supposedly interrogated Wright's five year-old son at Wheelock Primary School without Wright’s knowledge or permission. Using this testimony and the testimony of an unidentified 10 year-old boy, troopers arrested Wright, Crowe and Richard Catanese, Wright’s boyfriend, on charges of endangering the welfare of a child. Wright's three children, including a three week-old nursing infant were put into protective custody and Wright was not allowed to see them for four days. Her children were returned a week later. It is believed that the shooting of troopers Baker and Longobardo were the result of Phillip’s anger about his grandchildren being taken away from his daughter. [10]

After Phillips was captured community leaders and citizens expressed their gratitude for the persistant efforts of the New York State Troopers in tracking down the fugitive. [11] From conflicting reports on the mindset of different segments of the western New York community it is apparent that some citizens felt threatened by the large police presence in the rural part of the state while others were worried about their safety in the proximity of an escaped convict.

Following the investigation to the hunt for Phillips, New York State Troopers PBA President Daniel De Federicis released a letter to Governor George Pataki and other state officials detailing problems during the search. The thrust of the letter is that state troopers were given inadequate equipment and weapons for the search, State Police commanders engaged in turf battles over personnel from various parts of the state, and asserts the FBI pulled out of the search allegedly after State Police commanders made it known other agencies were not welcome in the search.[12]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Dorothy Howard. "The People's Column", Evening Observer, June 1, 2006.
  2. ^ "Search Review is Needed", Evening Observer, September 10, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-09-08.
  3. ^ Carolyn Thompson. "Lives on hold as search for ‘Bucky' Phillips intensifies", The Evening Tribune, September 6, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-09-08.
  4. ^ "County is caught in the middle — of chase and prosperity", Evening Observer, August 27, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-09-08.
  5. ^ Dan Herbeck and Gene Warner. "State Police went it alone", The Buffalo News, September 9, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-09-08.
  6. ^ "Where's Bucky? Dragnet Yields Whimsy and Dread Upstate", New York Times, June 15, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-09-08.
  7. ^ "On Back Roads and in Deep Woods, Fugitive Has Edge Over Pursuers", New York Times, September 3, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-09-08.
  8. ^ Gene Warner. "Fathoming the Fugitive", The Buffalo News, August 27,2006.
  9. ^ "Wright Shares Story", WIVB, August 29,2006.
  10. ^ "Ralph Bucky Phillips Investigation: Grandchildren Are Returned To Their Parents", WGRZ, August 29, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-09-08.
  11. ^ "Cassadaga Community Turns Out To Thank N.Y. State Troopers", Jamestown Post-Journal, September 12, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-09-12.
  12. ^ "Did brass botch the search?", Times Union, September 20, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-09-20.
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