cbs-5 kcbs

Latest News

Ignored 911 Call Turns Fatal In Berkeley; Police Busy With Occupy Protest

Share this
View Comments
The Berkeley hills home where man was beaten to death. (CBS)

The Berkeley hills home where man was beaten to death. (CBS)

BobMelrose_KCBS_0001r

Reporting Bob Melrose

BERKELEY (KCBS) — Berkeley Police acknowledge they didn’t immediately respond to a call in the hills that would eventually result in a homicide this past Saturday.

Officers were preparing for an Occupy protest headed to UC Berkeley from Oakland and said it didn’t appear to be an emergency.

Neighbors in the area of Grizzly Peak Blvd. and Park Gate Road said that the police response to the call was slow.

KCBS’ Bob Melrose Reports:

Police issued a statement Monday night that said the initial call was for trespassing and that because on-duty officers were being reconfigured for the protest; only emergency calls were to be handled.

Police said they did immediately responded to a 911 call about an assault in the same area that came later that evening, but it was too late.

Peter Cukor, 67, had been beaten to death with a flower pot. The suspect, 23-year-old Daniel Dewitt, was taken into custody and will be arraigned on Wednesday.

His mother Candy said it’s a tragedy.

“Our hearts go out to the other family. It breaks my heart. We’ve all lost in this,” she said.

Dewitt was a football player at Alameda High School and his father was the first African-American City Councilman in the Island City.

(Copyright 2012 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

Share this
View Comments
  • AA

    Of late, Berkeley law enforcement has had its priorities mixed up.
    Apart from the overzealous traffic cops harassing unsuspecting motorists at every corner, the police has turned both clueless and corrupt, pursuing young people on behalf of wealthy, establishment friendly people more than their fair share.
    We need to review their policies and operating procedures to ensure that Berkeley cops continue to serve the community rather than threatening it.

  • arthur

    tell me I am posting a comment to fast then eat my shorts.

  • cwf

    The “occupy” protestors are mainly homeless people who have nothing else to do. It’s sad for the family of the man who died. They relied on the police to help them, while the police were busy watching the “bums”. If the homeowner had been smart, he would have either stayed in his house or taken a weapon outside when he went to confront the intruder.

  • el vagabundo

    Welcome to the “Age of Incompetence.” In case you have’nt noticed, most public servants are more concerned with padding their pensions and overtime than serving the few of us out there who still abide the law. The Berkeley fuzz would rather babysit the misguided occupying morons and bust you for a license plate light than confront real criminals. Wouldn’t you? My brother was a community psychiatric tech. He would pick up the local nut cases and take them to the looney bin for the so-called “24 hour hold.” He was required to report his activities to the cops because the cops were too frightened to do the job themselves.

  • Really?

    Hmmm…rampant violence in Oakland, Alameda firefighters watch as a man drowns, and now Berkeley officials choose not to respond to 911 calls; think the East Bay is a place to be avoided.

  • Big G

    Yet if the man would have been armed the suspect would be dead instead. You cannot in this day & age depend on the Police force especially in the East Bay to protect you. Seems to me the next time a supervisor says we should elimnate our right to bear arms, we should slap him & then recall him!!! I smell lawsuit, get ready to pay out again taxpayers!!

  • http://emielfisher.wordpress.com/2012/02/21/ignored-911-call-turns-fatal-in-berkeley-police-busy-with-occupy-protest/ IGNORED 911 CALL TURNS FATAL IN BERKELEY; POLICE BUSY WITH OCCUPY PROTEST | Emiel Fisher's Security & Investigation Blog

    [...] CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL STORY Share this:StumbleUponDiggRedditLike this:LikeBe the first to like this post. This entry was posted in Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink. ← NATO APOLOGIZES FOR AFGHAN KORAN ‘BURNING’ [...]

  • Diogenes

    Yes, but in California, especially this part of California, had he shot his assailant, he’d be going on trial for murder and they would be claiming he should have waited for the police to come and protect him.

  • cynthia

    Please sstop blaming the victim. If the police were doing routine patrols this may not have happened.

  • john collins

    Right on time

  • RB, Dallas, TX

    The Occupy Protest must have been an emergency since it took the whole damm police force.

  • MissouriJack

    Charge all protesters with murder.

  • Chuck

    There’s an old saying. Better to be tried by twelve than carried by six.

  • Joe Blow

    I think the state of Kalifornia is a place to be avoided.

  • GetReal

    Only if we can charge you with ignorance.

  • Lazybum

    I can only hope the dead guy was an OWS supporter, because an odd justice would have been done.

  • Bob Bailey

    well if you idiots do what we just did last week was to pass a law you have to get a permit and is only good from 7:00 am to 6:00 pm no overnight camping after 6:00 pm your tresspassing that frees the police to do there jobs but you want to act lise a bunch of idiots out there and yes the permits are 25.00 if they cant afford that then they need to get off their lazy a–es and go to work

  • Sean Foster

    Too bad the victim did not believe in the 2nd amendment, it would have meant one dead POS intruder, and would lessen our need for police who would rather square dance and drink horse urine with homeless anarchists.

  • mmm999

    Of course these pantie waist, steroid polluted, room temperature IQ low grade morons would rather beat up on unarmed kids then actually serve and protect. They’re degenerates.

    ——— http://911essentials.com

  • codeman

    get real. you would not know real if it fell out yo butt.

  • Bob Bailey

    if the idiots would act like adults instead of like a bunch of idiots then the police could do their jobs instead of babysittin the stupid people

  • Bob

    So let’s not blame the Occupy idiots for taking valuable police manpower away from real emergencies.

  • F. Mulder

    If I were the family of this poor guy–I would “sue” the hell out of The “Occupy” movement—since they have $600,000 in the bank in NYC—I would get a court order too “seize” & “Freeze” this account ASAP—-until My case came too court–nough said

  • Bob Bailey

    you must mean mexicali

  • Usmokedrugs

    If anyone should be charged with ignorance It should be the OWS movement.

  • TerriC

    If this a husband yelling at the wife, as domestic violence, the cops would have been there. Call the cops for a guy, donuts are more important.

  • Jack Ryan

    Amen to that, Fox !! … and by the way, say hI to Scully for me, won’t you? :)

  • maryJo

    “taken a weapon outside when he went to confront the intruder”

    reminds me of a saying: a liberal is a conservative who hasn’t been mugged yet. perhaps this unfortunate Berkeley resident was a liberal?

  • Chris

    Ah yes the people’s republic of Bezerkeley. Not surprising. I lived there in the 60s. From guys getting degrees in Magic from UCB to the Viet Nam protests…this city is sick. Occupy…Occupy what? A park? Go back to school and stop wasting your parent’s money on an education. You unemployed folks…go get a job! I’m part of your 99% but I work for a living and I’m forced to support you liberal losers.

  • Chris

    He’s the one who’s ignorant? I think not!

  • HughGKnutts

    Deadbeat democrat OWS’ers. There’s a reason state parks have signs that say “Don’t feed the animals.”

  • GRIZZ MANN

    Sad result from ignored 911 call.
    This happens at all Tea Party events, Remember?

  • Boycott CA

    I love watching the California implosion.

  • Dave

    When seconds count, the police are only minutes away….

  • Walter

    What happens when you ban guns from law abiding citizens…this type of event in my area reads…”Intruder shot dead, Sheriff thanks citizen for removing a piece of human debris and saving the taxpayer the cost of a trial.”

  • Dale N

    sad story and tragic indeed.

    the majority of you commenters make me want to puke. misplaced anger,hysterical finger pointing, name calling. lumping huge numbers of innocents in with a tiny number of trash, the list is endless. ive heard more intelligent comments from 1st graders.

  • Joe Marquis

    Blaming the First Amendment is not the answer. How about the Police respond to a 911 call which is an actual emergency. I was born conservative and no matter if I disagree with this protest it doesn’t change the fact the Police did not respond and do there job. The family will settle out of court with the city mark my words…..

  • Lou

    So…let’s say I J-walk and the police stop me to give me a ticket. Meanwhile, the police put a call by a woman afraid she’s being followed on hold because they have to give me the J walking ticket first. Meanwhile, the woman gets murdered by this stalker. So your logic says that the woman’s family should sue me because I J walked. This makes absolutely no sense and wouldn’t stand a chance in court.

  • j14401s

    The cities could easily get rid of the occupiers by charging them to get into a park, or wherever they are on public land. No money, no enter. Or, they could be put to work keeping the place cleaned up. Save the citiies a lot of money. Raise lots of money for the tills of the cities. Oh wait, I forgot, most of them are unemployed.

  • Chris

    “The suspect, 23-year-old Daniel Dewitt, was taken into custody…”
    “Dewitt was a football player at Alameda High School…”

    Why is a 23 year-old playing high school football?

  • REXHANDSOM

    That Dam Right Wing T Party is to Blame, ask Pelosi or VP Biden….

  • yobaby

    I don’t remember the Tea Party ever placing such a drain on Llaw Enforcement that they could not tend to the needs of the community. These types of stories is all you need to know about the selfish nature and misguided message of the Ocuppy Idiots!!!!

  • Joe Marquis

    100% correct…..Personally I would of used my 12 Gauge Shotgun and blown a hole right through any intruder that is going to do harm to my family or myself. Only criminals have guns now, law abiding citizens are being stripped of this lawful right everyday…..

  • Malcom

    I guess it being a hate crime go ingnored again

  • Pomona Pete

    I don’t understand any of this. I’m absolutely certain the police made a report, afterwards.

  • Jim Strathmeyer

    Which occupy patriots are acting like idiots? The police and government are the only idiots in this situation.

  • Jim Strathmeyer

    Why, what are the odds that that are rich or a corrupt politician or police officer?

  • Old Fart

    I was born in the East Bay 64 years ago. I just moved my faimly to Oregon out in the sticks. I will let you guess why.

  • mmilesll

    If this death doesn’t prove the problem cities across the US are having -trying to control a bunch of goons and protecting taxpayers in the rest of the city, I don’t know what will. The OWS group should all either be put in jail or disbanded, this has NOTHING to do with freedom of speech.

  • akw

    Tea Parties always apply for the proper permits for rallies and protests, and pay the associated fees for necessary security. That’s the way it’s supposed to work; the cities can then plan in advance and have the funding to pay for it. Occupiers think they shouldn’t have to follow the rules, and since most cities allowed them to set that precedent from the beginning, taxpayers have have to fork over hundred of millions of dollars and deal with tragedies like this!!

  • Anti Cop

    Definitely! If the Tea Party would have just brought their assault weapons and kill all the idiot OWS-ers, the cops could have meet in the local Dunckin’ Donuts for an hour before deciding to “save” the murder victim. Oh, that would have been too late to help. Oh well, just another day in a cop’s life….

  • El Kabong

    So a liberal living in Berkley was eliminated……..Why should we care ?

  • Calvin

    A gun is instantly available when the police are only minutes away. A weapon would have made all the difference in the world.

  • BMF

    Berkeley?

    The article didn’t say if the police were perparing for Occupy violence or if they were preparing a welcoming ceremony for the Occupy thugs. It’s Berkeley and so you don’t really know which it might have been.

  • the Dude

    So typical. Time to arm up people. Lock and load, this whole OWS movement is just getting started, they will using our valuable police force for some time. We are on our own.

  • Lipstick

    They are all idiots when the person in actual need cannot get the help they need because the fools are on parade.

  • ifonly

    Maybe that is the purpose of the OWS. To occupy the police willst their buds, , rape, steal and murder.

  • John

    Does the word “selfish” mean anything to you?
    The goal of your movement is to disturb the peace… .correct? I mean, you can’t get noticed if you’re just sitting there, quietly, doing nothing?
    If you were, then there would be no difference between you and any other semi-homeless person. But that’s not you. You literally wouldn’t be heard if you and your friends didn’t bang drums, block traffic, and get in other people’s way.

    Which is the problem.
    Once you do so, you are officially a public nuisance. Don’t get me wrong. I understand that you don’t THINK that you’re being a public nuisance. You think that you’re just “challenging the 1%”. Who, apparently, is everyone who isn’t dancing, juggling, and occasionally breaking windows with you.
    Thus, the police have to protect everyone who isn’t you, from you. Because when you guys reach critical mass, you will do anything to get noticed. That’s why the police are there. Its not because you’re reading Rules For Radicals out loud. Its because you’re being a pain in the ass to everyone who isn’t you.
    Its the very definition of selfish.

  • ella

    Well, it does say that the perp’s father was a city councilman… so the odds are pretty good.

  • stfum

    Hey morons your posts have blamed feveryone for this guys death except the loser that beat him to death with a flower pot!

  • jpbrody

    I don’t have a gun, but this is just one more vote to get one — an instance where if the victim would have had a weapon, the headline would have been different. Police can generally help you only after a crime has been committed.

  • Self-absorbed

    “Sorry you had to die, but we’re busy trying to save the world.”
    -Preoccupied With Ourselves movement

  • calhoun211

    I hope you move on to the second grade soon.

  • Craig Eliot

    “Our hearts go out to the other family. It breaks my heart. We’ve all lost in this,” she said.
    My dear, the only thing you WOULD lose is a piece of garbage if there was still a death penalty in your state. Unfortunately, Americans don’t have the guts for justice any more.

  • Bob

    Liberalism kills again. I wonder when Obama will say the cops acted stupidly?

  • calhoun211

    Drug much?

  • EvilBuddyP

    I carry a gun because a policeman is too heavy.

  • BlasterFudd357

    OWS wants to occupy a park …with a toll booth like in ‘Blazing Saddles’
    ..LOL It’ll be a while before I get that out of my head!
    Here in Utah you very seldom read storys like this…Prayers for the family!

  • Russ

    Berkeley everybody has EVERYTHING mixed up.
    Remember, when seconds count, the police are minutes away… my 12 gauge semi automatic shotgun is a heck of a lot closer. But wait, I’m in Indiana, so I would HAVE a shotgun.

    Maybe they could have flung granola at the perps.

  • GRIZZ MANN

    When seconds count , it is good to know, police are only minutes or hours away.

  • Lou

    Hear! Hear! It’s a sad state of affairs when most schools, especially public ones, don’t teach critical thinking anymore. It results in emotional statements based on group identity rather than reality. Both the “right” and “left” are guilty of this, I just wish that people would stop wishing for people’s deaths because they’re a member of the wrong “team”.

  • Russ

    They have laws against guns, don’t they? Why not have some laws against murder too? Won”t that fix things? Check with Pelosi.

  • GRIZZ MANN

    Niemöller is perhaps best remembered for the quotation:
    True then, True now.

    First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out –
    Because I was not a Socialist.

    Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out –
    Because I was not a Trade Unionist.

    Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out –
    Because I was not a Jew.

    Then they came for me — and there was no one left to speak for me.

  • Rich in Cali

    So by driving around the police could have prevented a homicide. Cynthia, you have no idea how things work. Must be from Berkeley.

  • Mitch

    I hope the same happens to you.

  • GRIZZ MANN

    In law, assault is a crime causing a victim to fear violence. The term is often confused with battery, which involves physical contact.
    The OWS protesters are always in assault mode.

  • Ppfan

    That was the best comment yet pomona pete! Love it. Government at it’s best.

  • Sparkle

    I find it odd that so many flattering things are said about the perp and the accomplishments of his family, and absolutely nothing is mentioned about the victim other than his name.

  • Rex Dart Eskimo Spy

    Will San Fransisco outlaw potted plants in response to this horrible tragedy?

  • Lou

    Ah, here’s a little bit of logic!

  • Lou

    Haha! Touché!

  • bob’s cousin

    That’s because it’s the morally correct thing to do. What emergency pulled the police to the Occupy protest? Any?

  • PTCRUISERMAN

    YEAH! YOU SAID IT WELL! THE IDIOTS MAY WAKE UP, BUT MAY BE A LITTLE LATE!

  • walter12

    The day is coming for these communists, Marxists, traitors, deadbeats, criminals, and dopers. The big one is coming to SF soon.

  • GRIZZ MANN

    “tea baggers are a waiste of human skin and should be eradicated.”
    Sounds like anti sexual or Gay sentiments.
    Where is the waiste of human skin.
    Waiste 1 thumb up

    (Insult, Offensive)

    1. A person who is only good at womanising.
    2. A male prostitute.
    3. A Playa has-been.

    A combination of two words: Waste and Waiste.
    “Waste” being what the person is.
    “Waist” being the only functioning body part the person has.
    Colin is a real waiste.
    The fair scot in room 4 is a real waiste.

  • hoser

    When the big Mega-banks donate millions to local police dept’s, what did you expect? They have no loyality to the public for which they took an oath to protect.

  • GRIZZ MANN

    Headline “Ignored 911 Call Turns Fatal In Berkeley; Police Busy With Occupy Protest” did not say driving around.Highlight ignore.

  • art

    Shoot the ignorant occupies and move on to policing duties. OWS not worth the time they take up. Now a real person dies due to there stupidity

  • george

    @Chuck: Clever phrase, but we’re talking California here. Land of the O.J. jury. Land of the Menendez bros. jury. Land of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The 12 who try you here could turn out to be your worst nightmare.

  • george

    Your act of jaywalking did not rise to the level of massive civil disobedience requiring (we’re told) the time and attention of an entire municipal police force.

  • Bud

    “Which occupy patriots are acting like idiots?”

    Occupy patriots. Haaaaaahahahahahahahahahahaaaaaaaagh

  • James

    I was deliberetly hit by a car in Bezerkly a few years back. There were three witnesses. The police stopped the driver after witnesses called 911 and gave them the plate numbers. hHe police let her go and then refused to do anything. Even after I complained to the city, they did nothing, they would not even tell me who the driver was.Two things are for sure. 1, the girl was somebody they choose to ;protect over the victim and two, the city of Berkeley is a political fiasco where it is justice depending who you are and how much political clout you carry.

  • Is It Just Me ?

    The article states that “Berkeley Police acknowledge they didn’t immediately respond to a call in the hills that would eventually result in a homicide this past Saturday.” This statement should be modified slightly to “Berkeley Police acknowledge they didn’t immediately respond to a call in the hills that would eventually result in a Lawsuit this past Saturday.”

  • concerned local reader

    Sadly, that victims mistake was going back outside to confront the trespasser a 2nd time, after he already confronted the trespasser once then went indoors to call cops on his landline.

    A long of the second-guessing is coming from people who are totally ignorant of the narrow winding hills streets that lead up to the victim’s home. Those streets are even more slow to navigate when it’s dark at night as that crime was.

    Even if the cops had been allowed to answer that first non-emergency call for help with a trespasser, there’s just no way Berkeley cops could have traveled from the Berkeley flatlands up to that distant hills home in less than 5-10 minutes.

    All things equal, it would NOT have saved the life of that homeowner who, for unknown reason, chose to go back outside. Other reports suggest he got attacked and killed within 1 minute of leaving the indoors safety of his own home.

  • jaime guttierez

    Please, you morons, stay right where you are in california. Invite o’dingbat to an occupy camp… maybe michelle will vacation there.

  • Steven

    I thought that calls to 911 were defined as ‘emergency’ calls by default…….

  • pitter43

    The police should just shoot any occupy rioter and tend to the business they were hired for, protecting innocent people.

  • dave

    Yeah, but the armed cops around the capital in DC acted like we were the Viet Cong. The easiest job for DC cops are the days the tea party comes to town

  • EH

    Due to the quick thinking and smart strategizing of the Berkeley Police Department, a group of people were observed standing around.

  • EH

    Nice work, Chief.

  • YouDude60

    well said.

    May i add the 1% that has caused our economic problems can be found in Washington DC., not in Oakland CA. Occupy folks should protest there.

  • EH

    Did you hear about that new breakfast deal at Huddle House?

  • remnant

    They relied on the police to help them…”

    Big mistake! Do not depend on the police to save you unless they just happen to be there when you are attacked, a real long-shot!.

    They may be counted on to show up at the scene, cordon it off, interview everyone, and arrest any perps dumb enough to still be around. They often can put it all togther well enough to identify the perps and locate and arrest them. That is their job.

    If you are fortunate to live in a State where the Second Amendment is not ignored, it and your “carry permit” are your first line of defense. Otherwise, your friends and relatives will have to get solace from the methodical workings of the justice system AFTERWARD. Don’t like those choices? MOVE to a State that still recognizes, upholds, and defends the Constitution! Crime is lower there because the perps never know who is armed.

  • zena4

    ANYONE who could call the OCCUPY PROTESTORS , PATRIOTS…needs their head examined.

    And it’s time we shut em down, as they are nothing but Trouble.

  • http://theprevailingethos.com/2012/02/22/man-killed-police-were-busy-with-occupy-protest/ Man Killed – Police Were Busy With Occupy Protest | The Prevailing Ethos

    [...] Nutty News California – Berkeley Police acknowledge they didn’t immediately respond to a call in the hills that would eventually result in a homicide. Officers were preparing for an Occupy protest headed to UC Berkeley from Oakland and said it didn’t appear to be an emergency. Neighbors in the area said that the police response to the call was slow. Peter Cukor, 67, had been beaten to death with a flower pot. The suspect, 23-year-old Daniel Dewitt (Picture), was taken into custody and will be arraigned.  Full Article [...]

  • http://www.city-data.com/forum/politics-other-controversies/1503378-berkeley-man-dies-cause-police-dealing.html#post23084500 Berkeley man dies cause police dealing with occupy protest – Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians, Conservatives, Liberals, Third Parties, Left-Wing, Right-Wing, Congress, President – City-Data Forum

    [...] [...]

  • Zimriel, one of those who can see

    When I saw that a 23 year old man beat a 67 year old man with a flower pot, with different last names: I had an idea as to what the relative ethnicities would be.

    Turns out I was… right.

  • Hugh Jass

    Did they just eulogize the PERP instead of the victim in this article? Okaaayy…

  • someone else

    @YouDude60, aw, don’t be so harsh! The over-indulgent parents of Occupy Oakland’s perpetual college students, unemployed anarchist hobos, and other loudmouth provocateurs, only keep giving ‘em enough $$$ to travel up & down the west coast (thereby helping to enrich the big 1% gasoline corporations with their current anti-1% socializing). But not enough $$$ to get to the east coast and back. Bummer. I’d help pitch in, if only I could be sure it would be a 1-way-only trip.

  • Hairy Wall

    Well looks like the 99% have begun offing the 1%, albeit indirectly. Instead of flowers the left is now utilizing the pots this time around. Guess they learned something in the 60s riots after all. Too bad citizen Cukor was depending on the police to show up instead reaching for a 38 or 9mm to even out the odds of survival. May be California should start banning flower pots.

  • Mike

    AMEN!

  • lukenev

    Our daughter went to Cal Berkeley. The place is a stink hole, filled with dirt bags, and other sh– divers. I an glad that I live and have always lived in another state. California citizens you deserve what you have for you voted for them all…

  • Larry Pierson

    When seconds count the police are only minutes away.

    Arm yourselves. Jesus told us to do so in Luke 22:36. It is Biblical to kill in self defense if that is what it takes to stop a thug from hurting you.

  • skeeter bob

    they need to charge every one of those filthy hippys with accessory to murder and exicute them all!!!!!

  • George Johnson

    @YouDude60,NO! YOu MAY NOT ADD THAT because it’s a LIE!

    If ANYbody cause cany economic problems out there, it’s the DIMOCRAT party!!

    Out of control spending, vote buying, paybacks to friends, unions and donors….

    That whole stupid “99%/1%” is just BS from the radical marxist/communist organizers of that whole protest. You’re being USED (or you believe that nonsense) and you don’t even know it.

  • Attention to Details

    BOB MELROSE, Get you facts straight. No 911 call got “ignored” you sorry excuse for a news reporter. (Meanwhile other posters are quoting and reposting your lie on other message boards.)

    The victim phoned Berkeley’s NON-EMERGENCY phone number at 8:45pm, and spoke calmly when reporting a trespasser on his property.

    The first 911 Emergency call was at 9:02pm, by the victim’s wife, to urgently report an attack then in progress. That call was promptly answered within a minute.

  • awe

    still believe the Police can protect you when criminals strike? Way to go liberals! you disarm honest citizens your neighbors in favor of Police only protection and now you don’t even have that! When seconds count the Police are only minutes away.Every time an innocent person is killed their blood is on your head Mr. Brown Ms. Pelosi Boxer and Feinstein. Your a disgrace. Here in the Midwest we believe a persons life is valuable and we are allowed to protect ourselves and our families. Unless you vote out Liberal Socialist Democrates the carnage will continue. Look at the places with high murder rates. They are states where honest citizens are disarmed. Here in the Midwest our crimes rates are decreasing every year.Do yourself a favor and restore your 2nd Amendment rights before you and your family are raped or murdered while you wait for police who never come.

  • Me again

    @GRIZZ MANN, wow, impressive. FYI the original quote said the word COMMUNIST where you subsituted the less offensive word SOCIALIST. Besides, Niemöller lived in Germany (not a democracy) and himself actually opposed communism.

    Thanks for for your display of irrelevant propaganda.

  • AngryAmerican

    Lol- he said, ” Occupy Patriots”.
    Another leftist moron.

  • me

    Just shoddy reporting. Dewitt’s football playing was 6 years ago.

  • AngryAmerican

    The Left and the Democrat Party are mainly responsible for the country’s decline over the last 50 years. Republicans who have moved Left are also responsible, as well as Corporate corruption of the Congress.

  • george

    Good point. Across the bay in San Francisco, there used to be (maybe there still is) an ad hoc group of leftist bicyclists that called themselves Critical Mass. They would gather downtown late on certain Friday afternoons and purposely clog the streets so as to make automobile commuting a nightmare. Yes, they always received an official police escort from the SFPD. Doncha love it when tax dollars are devoted to activities that make the taxpayers’ lives miserable?

  • george

    That would have been racist. Remember?

  • Exposing the Fascist

    LOL, what does one expect in a Fascist country. Of course suppressing free speech is more important.

  • MaD_dOG

    Once again, when seconds count, the police are only hours away.

  • me

    The original call was placed on the non-emergency line, and, spoken in a calm manner. Whoever wrote the inflammatory title of this article is spreading a lie.

  • The Sage Waitress

    Hey Occupoo! The stock market is up 30% since you came on the scene. You are the best thing to happen to Wall Street in a long time. I think you are all plants for the billionaires anyway. In an few years, you will all be working on Wall Street.

    Ha Ha Ha.

  • george

    I love that quote, “We’ve all lost in this.” Perp’s mother declares herself one of the victims. All that was missing was the usual “Oh, but he’s such a GOOD boy.”

  • mikesvoice

    Chalk up this death to the Socialist/Liberals/Progressives/DemocRATs who have supported this Occupy Movement….they wanted to relate it to the “Tea Party” which never required Police action nor the millions of $$$ to clean up after them….This is what you get when you allow the DemocRATs to be elected and make the rules…lots of “feel good” stuff with no action and no results…..no budget fro over 1,000 days…no major bills passed in last 12 months…forced Health Care down our throats as well as forcing the US taxpayer to pay for abortions…vote them out!!!

  • BDDD

    Shrewdness is as shrewdness does… . Simply a fact… .

  • Rod

    It should be against the Law to use a flower pot as a weapon! The government should regulate the sales of them and enforce the manufacturers to make pots that only weigh in excess of 450 pounds so they could not be used by a single person to harm someone.

  • Phill Collins

    I blame the criminal for being a criminal. I also blame the victim for being a victim, just like the occupier’s. Both will be a victim and remain victims just as long as they continue to think the government is the answer to their problems. The government is the problem and it needs to get out of they way of self preservation, self prosperity and self responsibility.

  • me

    Once again, the original call for help was placed at 8:45pm to a non-emergency police number, spoken in a calm voice, about a mere trespasser on private property. Once again, when the emergency call for help was made at 9:02pm, about the savage attack in progress, cops were dispatched within one minute.

  • me

    You going for a record overload of red herrings?

  • me

    Time for your evening meds, EH.

  • mikesvoice

    If it “smells fishy” to you perhaps you need to wash your hands!

  • Power Glower

    Ban all flower pots!!! Criminals will never again use a flower pot in this manner if they are banned.

  • stoptouchingthatmabel

    Occupy a coffin.

  • NRA Life Member

    “Somebody’s gotta go back and get a sh|tload of dimes!”

  • NRA Life Member

    It’s nice to see the light bulb illuminate. Welcome to the brotherhood. Be safe, get firearm training.

  • NRA Life Member

    At least a 10 day waiting period on the purchase of potted plants. Must have size restrictions, too. The large ones are much more dangerous than the small ones, ya know?

  • NRA Life Member

    Wake up! You have described the entire state of Commiefornia. It’s not just Bezerkley.

  • NRA Life Member

    All of us didn’t vote for them. We common sense people are just vastly outnumbered by the clueless.

  • LaVonte d’Ashawn Jackson IV

    “Occupy Patriot” …Shut up stupid.

  • http://www.bizzyblog.com/2012/02/21/man-dies-after-police-fail-to-respond-to-initial-non-emergency-911-call/ BizzyBlog

    [...] follow-up report contains the admission that was indeed the case: Ignored 911 Call Turns Fatal In Berkeley; Police [...]

  • Brian

    What does OWS care if someone dies when they are screaming “LOOK AT ME, ME, ME, IT”S ALL ABOUT ME, ME. ME, PUT ME ON TV, V, V”.

    Worthless selfish inane juvenile delinquents. Get out the fire hoses.

  • me

    The first call was on his city’s police’s Non-Emergency phone line, not 911. The headline of this article is just wrong.

  • 99%er

    “occupy patriots” Right on brother… there are still people in this country that believe in freedom and liberty ( not “Bud” or “AngryAmerican” or “LaVonte d’Ashawn Jackson IV” ) <— These people would love to live in a stazi style total control police state, they welcome it.

  • GRIZZ MANN

    I am glad the incident did not escalate to the 911 call that was ignored. Wait, it was another call that was ignored. Was the 911 call that was made, ignored?Iwish it was made clearer..

  • johnkmassage

    the parents look like complete idiots blaming everybody but themselves. they are almost too perfect liberals.

  • Sam

    Since when is an attack on another person NOT an EMERGENCY!?

    Had the victim been armed, the “poor little minority” perp would have been on a slab. BUT, because the Berkeley peace freaks believe that firearms are “evil,” and unConstitutionally block people from their right to own firearms, citizens will continue to die.

    Fck your osambo, I’m KEEPING MINE!!!!!

  • Joe Cool

    You don’t need to post a comment to fast; you can fast for Lent. (But I think eating shorts goes against the spirit of the fast.)

  • crazyworld

    Actually, Mary Jo, you would think that little idiom would be true, but from personal expereince with my in-laws, who are about as liberal people can be. They invite their “intellectual neightbors” (professors at colleges, mainly) to all family dinners. One the their daughters is now a lawyer, choosing to live in Memphis, TN (long way from home0 & work defense work. SHE was mugged at gunpoint and STILL was taking up for the guy, talking about his “victimhood” that made him do it. Well, at least she walks the walk, but it blew me away!!!

  • Joe Blancher

    I have a small arsenal ready to protect my family and property. I don’t depend on the police or government for protection. Be prepared.

  • Jeff

    Occupiers in DC may as well be Vietcong… both groups are communist in nature….

  • Stan

    Flower pots don’t kill people, people do.

  • Davis

    Occupiers are misguided, unemployable leaches that need to readjust their focus and understand the real problem here…Obama’s failed policies. Why don’t they go to DC and occupy the area right in front of the white house. Most Americans work hard for what they have and no one should get a free ride. It used to be that if you wanted something, you worked for it. If you wanted a better life, you strived to do better and get a better job. Now we are a society of wussies who just want to extend their hands and hope someone else will provide that better life. Grow up and make something of yourself.

    The stupidity of all these protests is that we have dedicated and wasted millions of taxpayer dollars on mobilizing police, fending off unruly protests, and cleaning up the mess that is made by these neanderthals. Imagine if we could allocate the wasted money to education or other needed social programs. Instead we are dealing with lowlifes, vagrants and people who just have no social value. Sad.

  • Theodore Sumrall

    WE NEED SOME NEW LAWS TO MAKE FLOWER POTS ILLEGAL.

  • Rick O’Shea

    When seconds count the police are only minutes away.

  • http://www.bryancain.net/2012/02/22/02-22-12-finnish-boob-glance-dhs-fbi-shutdowns-and-more-status-update-w-bryan-cain/ 02-22-12 – Finnish Boob Glance, DHS, FBI Shutdowns, and More! – Status Update w/ Bryan Cain! « Bryan Cain — News – Music – Videos – Tech and Teaching

    [...] Man murdered while Berkeley police prepare for Occupy protest: #statusupdate #priorities : http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2012/02/21/ignored-911-call-turns-fatal-in-b&#8230; [...]

  • mike

    Its too bad, but then again, things could get out of hand quickly if the police didn’t keep an eye on such a large crowd.

  • Richard

    Been mugged; talked my way out; still a social anarchist by creed. Keep generalizing, it’ll get you places.

  • for real

    Old Fart, ok, I’ll take a guess. Oregon’s booming meth industry?

  • http://www.usmessageboard.com/the-flame-zone/209473-the-war-on-flower-pots.html#post4851224 The war on flower pots !!! – US Message Board – Political Discussion Forum

    [...] [...]

  • blamminski

    The lines would have read ” common yard ape with rabies killed in da hills”

  • TroyG

    Thank God I live in America’s Heartland, far from the loons in S.F., L.A. & Berkeley.
    A warning bell ought to be going off in CA right about now, but it seems you folks are happy to be victims for the bad people in your midst.

    THE POLICE CAN’T PROTECT YOU!
    POLICE ARE THE CIVIL SERVANTS WE PAY TO HAND OUT SPEEDING TICKETS, AND TO DRAW CHALK LINES AROUND DEAD VICTIMS AT THE CRIME SCENE.

    Those of you who are unwilling to defend your own lives should just shut up and hope the police arrive in time for your 911 call. After all, you have allowed yourselves to become totally dependent on someone else to defend your right to life because you are too weak mentally to do so yourself.

  • David

    . You need not blame the Police blame yourselves and your politicians. Good job in taking and seriously crippling the 2nd amendment rights in you state of CA well done

  • Steafan Dubhuidhe

    The title should read, “Given the choice between saving a life and repressing free speech, police choose to repress free speech, resulting in a death.”

  • Ed

    Occupy Patriots?….ROTFLMAO!
    I just got a vision of Patrick Henry pooping on a police car!!!

    Occupy Patriots? ROTFLMAO….

  • killerbee

    And the liberals solution?? New laws against FLOWER POTS?????

  • Ed

    Occupy Patriots?…
    Thanks for the laugh! I’ll be chuckling over this all day….

    Occupy Patriots!!!! LMAO!!

  • Bart

    911 are for people who cant protect themselves….45 is the number I dial up for thugs…”Mr. Glock, we have a situation that needs your attention..” but then again I live in Texas where I have constitutional rights.

  • killerbee

    Everyone is missing the point. Those Berkeley cops were organizing to PROTECT the Occupiers, not protect the city and citizens of Berkeley. Liberals are just plain KOOKS

  • Cheryl

    So, it is the victim’s fault that he was killed–because “for unknown reason, chose to go back outside”. You mean, he was killed because he exercised his freedom to exit his dwelling and access his yard? Unbelievable.
    Equally unbelievable is the comment from Candy, the perp’s mother. “We all lost in this”? The child she raised trespassed on another’s property, refused to correctly respond to the first warning (w/o police involvement), continued in his unlawful behavior and escalated to murder when confronted a second time. IMO, she and her husband helped create this situation. They could have prevented their “loss” by properly managing their child before this tragedy. I get that some children make incredibly poor choices despite their parents’ best efforts but for a first offense in such a young person to have escalated to a brutal murder in a matter of minutes suggests that the child had a history of issues that had not been appropriately addressed.

  • Bill

    Ain’t communism great!

  • Dutra

    Didn’t have to see the photo of the culprit. I knew.

  • Marbran

    Brutally Honest, there really isn’t any rebuttal to what you have posted. Everything you’ve stated is true and easily backed up with facts.

  • Philabias

    sounds to me like the cops need to be fired and a new group needs a job and someone capible of prioritizing needs to be installed over them. but as far as i can see this will only get worse. there are no real men to choose from in california. i guess the men moved east and the worthless gays are all thats left

  • Steve

    To solve this problem just bring the occupiers up on charges, if the people were killed them charge the occupiers with interfering with the regular duties of the police department.

    Or don’t they have the balls to do that??

  • Jim Dietz

    911 National Dial-A-Prayer

  • badpenny

    Clueless and Corrupt? Sounds like every liberal area! Ya get what you ask for!

  • badpenny

    If it does, I’m sure Mary-Jo will just shoot them instead of being a victim! Liberals love being the victim….do you guys get off on it? Is that what it is?

  • Rational Hypostasis

    Remeber, caring for selfish liberals is always an emergent situation that saps the community. Whether its at a occupy rally or at a planned parenthood clinic.

  • scaupus

    Cops are obsessed with suprressing public political expression. The entire chain of command that allowed this 911 call to be delayed so the cops could stand around watching some hippies wave their hankies should be fired! Is that why we pay them their bloated executive salaries, early pensions, double dipping bribe taking corrupt, self-serving boy’s club members? Apes with guns and badges. can’t be bothered with the ONE THING THEY SHOULD BE DOING – answering citizen’s calls for help!

  • Kevin

    Two comments:

    1. The Occupy “Movement” kills people.
    2. Criminalizing guns doesn’t help when flower pots aren’t outlawed, too.

  • http://www.usmessageboard.com/politics/196517-what-if-anything-has-ows-actually-accomplished-7.html#post4851781 What, if anything, has OWS actually accomplished? – Page 7 – US Message Board – Political Discussion Forum

    [...] [...]

  • NavyAntiSubVet

    Homeless? You are kidding, right. I live right outside DC and went to see the occupiers at McPherson Square. A bunch of juveniles camping out, doing drugs, peeing on the sidewalk and complaining that the police were too rough on them. In VA, if a turd like this came up to my house, I’d walk out with my Glock 22 strapped on, we can carry openly here like the Constitution requires us to do, and if the turd came at me, he would be peeing in his pants with that .40 caliber stuck in his face!

  • scaupus

    Right on. What i said, but much pithier.

  • mike

    The young man was mentally ill, paranoid schizophrenic. That gets lost in this picture. Race isn’t the issue. Mental illness is. Just as with the Jared Loughner shooting of Congresswoman Giffords, gun control wasnt the issue nor talk radio, but his extreme mental illness. That is in addition to the misguided response by the police department. Their lousy priorities.
    People, stick to the issue. Not immigration. Not your own racial hatreds. Not the third world.

  • mikesvoice

    If this man & Jared Loughner can figure out how to kill people, how mentaly disabled are they….the murders were not an accident, but intentional. I’m not buying the insanity defense!

  • .40 in AZ

    A little jealous are you. LOL

  • http://www.snspost.com/occupy-causes-slow-911-response-result-murder/ ‘Occupy’ Causes Slow 911 Response, Result: Murder | SNS Post

    [...] READ THE FULL STORY HERE [...]

  • 243523

    I bet you were surprised when you saw the race of the person arrested for the murder!

  • http://www.bob-owens.com/2012/02/occupy-berkley-murder/ Occupy Berkeley responsible for slow response that led to murder committed by son of former Democratic city councilman « Bob Owens

    [...] more police presence to keep them from raping one another to death, and an 67-year old man is murdered as a result of the slow police response. Berkeley Police acknowledge they didn’t immediately respond to a [...]

  • Phillip Anderson

    It been clearly ruled in courts that police are responsible for “PUBLIC” safety, NOT personal safety. Thus you cannot sue when police don’t respond, police are great at generating revenue and investigating, but horrible when it comes to stopping a crime in progress.

    Which is why you HAVE the right to defend yourself (provided local laws make it illegal to follow the constitution, ie gun ownership), only you are responsible for your and your families safety.

  • Kamaria

    What kind of idiot do you have to be to not realize the responsibility lies on the police and police alone?

  • zona blue

    Berqa-ly, Hmmmm. I’m surprised the police are allowed to stop protests in this communist bastion of progressive thinking. Too bad the old gentleman had to die, and for what? OWS thugs? Good grief.

  • deshon bradley

    im sorry i have to reply to brutally honest about minorities, you are a complete fool, idiots cross racial lines, im from a white city of lima ohio in the midwest, i have whites here brutally raping kids, the body of a missing ohio girl turned up in a white male rapists home, ive read reports of a white european man who killed a toddler because he was playing a video game and the toddler was crying.another white male brutally beat an 11 year old for not doing chores. idiots cross racial bounds criminals are white, black, yellow, and green. if there were no black people on earth then white people will be committing crimes, the Nazis committed great crimes and i believe they were white. the reason you say blacks do all of this badness, is because thats the majority of the crime reports that we read about. I am objective and I look at a number of news sites, and crimes are comitted by all races, sexes, etc..

  • BigTex

    And this is why your safety is your PERSONAL responsibility. All of the anti gun crowd in the nation needs to pay attention to things like this. If the home owner had been armed, this would have been a different story. The police are not there to “protect and serve”…they are there to stop crime when they happen upon it being committed, and to solve crimes once they have been done. NOT to protect you.

  • Gimreefer

    noo the pigs decided the call was not important. it had nothing to do with OWS people standing up against the corruption and greed. kill the fed and those working in it.

  • David

    Everyone knew it would eventually come to this. These selfish Fleabaggers have been costing people who actually PAY taxes millions and have been diverting much needed resources for months now just to babysit them and clean up their messes and of course there’s the vandalism. These people have seriously overstayed their welcome, abused their right to assemble and they need to be dispatched once and for all. It seems to me that if at this point the city or state officials refuse to remove them, that should be enough to vote them out of office.

  • mikesvoice

    Gimreefer, perhaps with a little luck…If & when you need the Police for your protection, they will be busy as well when you call & we will have one less OWS supporter to contend with!

  • Vicky Bevis

    Great! They tell us about the prep-only good things-& completely ignore the man killed, who was 44 YEARS senior to the the 23 yd. old.

    Do I detect some manipulation going on here?

  • Vicky Bevis

    How do you know that the police didn’t have a roving car somewhere in the area much closer they could ahve called?

  • Bill

    Police can make more money for the city arresting 50 protesters than arresting 1 murderer.
    Simple economics.

  • WilliamPenn

    Incidents like this are exactly what Occupy wants. They are communist/Obama funded anarchists trying to disrupt American life.

  • Crabjuice

    You’re all missing the point, here.
    We could have prevented this senseless murder if we had implemented flower pot control laws. There should be a 10-day waiting period for purchasing flower pots!

  • Joe

    ROFLMAO – Occupy Patriots – They need to lay off the hallucinogens.

  • dipdawg

    When a large group of people are amassing in a area the police have to respond or they are not doing their job. Mob mentality leads to all kinds of trouble makers who start vandalizing and looting, If the police do not respond they are negligent and would be blamed if it goes bad.
    Everybody wants to tell them how to do their job but dont want to do it themselves.
    This leads to a lack of resources in other areas.

  • cntrlfrk


    It is far past time to treat these OWSers (Obama’s Worthless Servants) as the terrorists that they are.

  • Doug Ragan

    If the terrorists of OWS would stop committing acts of terrorism, cops would not have to put so much effort into handling these groups.

    Then again, if cops would simply open fire on this terrorist group each and every time it committed an act of terror, the terrorist group would soon go away because they are all cowards.

  • rrhamilton

    “God bless the Occupiers.” — Nancy Pelosi (O-CA)

  • Tim

    @ Missouri Jack. You’re a moron. I guarantee you’re not from a city with more than 10,000 people in it in but fuk MI. Kill yourself.

  • Nemrodh

    so much for freedom of assemble..

  • catfish

    Seems to me that everyone has forgotten the protests of Vietnam and other things where the government doesnt do whats in the best interest of humanity. most of these comments were posted from an iphone or ipad i’d assume.keep consuming garbage with your hard earned money. there is no god and it doesnt come with you when you die. keep feeding into the problems instead of thinking around them.

  • mikesvoice

    nemrodh, freedom of assembly does not provide for trespassing on private or public property at one’s will….also that “freedom” does not allow those expressing that “freedom” to infringe on someone else’s “freedom”…there are responsibilities that the OWS crowd chooses to ignore when it comes to the “rights” of others!!!

  • Ghandi

    Just more black on white crime the way I see it. Pelosi and Steny Hoyer will want to outlaw flower pots now. If that old man had had a gun he would have called the second time for different reason. There would have been a dead fool instead of the old man being dead.

  • MaD_dOG

    Once again, the police were not where they were needed when they were needed.

    Take advantage of your second amendment rights.

    Just sayin’

  • David patton

    So, did any of those police offers get fired, or were they protected by their union?????????

  • EViL_STeVe

    OCCUPY RESTROOMS!

    JOIN THE BOWEL MOVEMENT!

  • Gringa

    This old codger was going to get reamed no matter what. First of all, he’s a 1%er–evil incarnate in the city of Berkeley. A 6,000+ sq ft home in the Berkeley Hills runs into the millions. Even IF he had owned a gun, if he had actually used it to defend himself (Officer, he was coming at me with a flower pot!), he would have been arrested for murder and they would have tacked “hate crime” on to the charges since the dude he would have shot was black, thus, making him eligible for the death penalty.

  • EViL_STeVe

    OCCUPY RESTROOMS

    BE PART OF THE 100%

    OWS Supports Mcdonalds

  • EViL_STeVe

    911. What is your emergency?

    I’m sorry all officers are currently in the restroom, and there appears to be som sort of blockage.

    OCCUPY RESTROOMS!

  • Mwrip

    It’s a peaceful protest. You do need a few cops to direct traffic and to make sure the crowd isn’t blocking major roads, but there’s no way in hell you need the entire PD for that.

    This is mismanagement plain and simple, and entirely either the city’s or the PD’s fault – whichever gave the order to massively over-deploy cops to a nonviolent event.

  • Ratt

    Uhhh, Hmmm, how do you have a 23 year old in High School playing Football ?

  • http://blogs.dailymail.com/donsurber/archives/51435 Daily scoreboard « Don Surber

    [...] 14. From CBS: [...]

  • GRIZZ MANN

    Dispatchers, not police are responsible for response.

  • GRIZZ MANN

    Nimrod was a great hunter, not an Elmer Fudd.

  • mikesvoice

    Are you implying we should all “lock & load” and go hunting????

  • Wastrel

    Nicely said, Bob, but not really relevant. When you protest the rules, you don’t follow the rules. Viva Occupy!

  • GRIZZ MANN

    Nimrod,the grandson of Ham, did not use a gun. Lock and load refers to flintlocks, etc. The reason is so you do not discharge while loading your weapon.

  • mikesvoice

    “Lock & Load” is currently used in the US Military as well…not only did/does it apply to flintlocks but modern weapons as well…the question is still relevant, were you implying we should all go hunting?

  • http://finance-talking.info/berkeley-man-murdered-after-%e2%80%98pre-occupied%e2%80%99-police-fail-to-respond-to-initial-%e2%80%98non-emergency%e2%80%99-911-call/ Finance Talking » Blog Archive » Berkeley Man Murdered After ‘Pre-Occupied’ Police Fail to Respond to Initial ‘Non-Emergency’ 911 Call

    [...] follow-up report contains the admission that was indeed the case: Ignored 911 Call Turns Fatal In Berkeley; Police [...]

  • dipdawg

    Dewitt was a football player at Alameda High School and his father was the first African-American City Councilman in the Island City.

    What in the world did this have to do with it????

  • GRIZZ MANN

    Of course, always search for TRUTH.

  • Thomas Jefferson

    AA – No, you idiot, we don’t need to “investigate” police. We NEED — to arrest these morons who are “occupying” cities all around the nation, and lock them up for disturbing the peace; blocking traffic and daily commerce; urinating and defecating in public; breaking into and looting businesses; and for generally being too damned stupid to be allowed to populate the Earth!
    This is a PERFECT example of what happens when the police are unable to respond to legitimate calls for help when they’re too busy dealing with a bunch of Jack – A **es!

  • http://prairiefirenews.com/fuhrer-for-a-day-2-0/ FUHRER FOR A DAY 2.0! | Prairie Fire News
  • dbe

    Lawsuit City. Just wait. This one will cost the citizens a MILLION BUCKS. Just wait and see.

  • cheap surgery

    You propose a nice article. In our staff, medical care we need some good subject as yours.

blog comments powered by Disqus
Listen Live!

NOW ON CBS SAN FRANCISCO

web1 connect4cbs5 NOW ON CBS SAN FRANCISCO contactkcbs01 NOW ON CBS SAN FRANCISCO  NOW ON CBS SAN FRANCISCO weathermancini01 140x85 NOW ON CBS SAN FRANCISCO cbs5jeffawards01 140x85 NOW ON CBS SAN FRANCISCO kcbstwitter 140 NOW ON CBS SAN FRANCISCO

Follow CBS San Francisco