Prater - Excessive use of force: one mothers struggle against police brutality and misconduct

Excessive Use of Force

Excessive Use of Force

One Mothers Struggle Against Police Brutality and Misconduct

Loretta P. Prater

Rowman & Littlefield

Lanham Boulder New York London

Published by Rowman & Littlefield

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Copyright 2018 The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc.

All rights reserved . No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote passages in a review.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Prater, Loretta P.

Title: Excessive use of force: one mothers struggle against police brutality and misconduct / Loretta P. Prater.

Description: Lanham : Rowman & Littlefield, [2018] | Includes index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2017031630 (print) | LCCN 2017045702 (ebook) | ISBN 9781538108017 (electronic) | ISBN 9781538108000 (cloth : alk. paper)

Subjects: LCSH: Police brutalityUnited States. | Discrimination in law enforcementUnited States. | African American menFamily relationships. | Mothers and sonsUnited States. | Wrongful death United States.

Classification: LCC HV8141 (ebook) | LCC HV8141 .P72 2018 (print) | DDC 363.2/32dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017031630

The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information SciencesPermanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.

Printed in the United States of America

This book is dedicated to the memory of our beloved son, the late Leslie Vaughn Prater, and in honor of Stefan DeWitt Prater, our remaining pride and joy. We love our sons very much and they will forever live inside our hearts.

Acknowledgments

T he first acknowledgment is to my immediate family. My husband, Dwight, while dealing with his own feelings of loss, has stood by my side, provided strength when I was weak in grief, and supported me in all of my endeavors. I certainly could not have endured the emotional pain or written this book without him. I recognize that not only did Dwight lose Leslie, but, in many ways, he also lost the woman he married. I will never be the same. Our younger son, Stefan, shares in our grief. Stefans relationship, with his older brother and only sibling, is different from, but enlightened by, the mother-and-child relationship. There is a kind of a sacred bond between African American men and their mothers, as can be further explored in Keith Browns book, Sacred Bond: Black Men and Their Mothers , and demonstrated by Stefans relationship with me.

I must acknowledge Lucille and Willie Pinkard, the loving maternal grandparents who raised me. Without them, I would not be the person I am today or have the fortitude to write this book. Other family members were instrumental in my journey in completing the manuscript. My aunt Louise Arnold, who has been like a devoted older sister to me and had a close relationship with Leslie and deep love for him, and my mother, the late Willie Mae Smith, provided words of encouragement that helped to sustain me during these difficult times. Cousins Ronald and Dollie Montgomery and Dorothy and Alvin Winton are among extended family members who provided encouragement. The numerous ways in which they helped me are too many to name.

I have also been blessed to have supportive in-laws who stood beside us during our darkest days, including many years after Leslies death. Dwights brother Herman and his wife, Lawanda; his brother Michael and his late wife, Kathy; and Dwights sisters, Terry and Andrea, have provided strength to us. They marched with us, attended numerous meetings in Chattanooga, and collected information helpful to our case. Dwights brother Marion and his late wife Barbara, from Las Vegas, were unable to participate in the ceremonies in Chattanooga, but they provided moral support through their cards, calls, and prayers. Their son Anthony, one of Leslies favorite cousins, sent a beautiful message that was read at Leslies funeral. I must also recognize Stefans wife, Heather, and his friend Rick Bakewell, for the emotional support they provided to him. Heather also provided the book cover picture.

Many friends supported us emotionally, spiritually, and physically by their presence. The late Ingrid Peter, prior to her death in April 2012, attended all of the memorials, marches, and Chattanooga City Council meetings and listened to me describe my heartache during countless long-distance phone calls. Our former pastor, Rev. Paul A. McDaniel, provided support and spiritual guidance during our initial and continued grieving process. The presence and encouragement of friends Johnny and Juanita Holloway, Dr. Phyllis Bell Miller, attorney Emma Jones, and the late Dr. Marcia Riley will always be remembered. Many other friends and relatives, as well as people who hardly knew us personally, forwarded expressions of sympathy and concern, which helped to sustain us.

I would like to thank my publisher, Rowman & Littlefield, and editor Kathryn Knigge. I certainly appreciate the significant assistance of my primary book reviewer and dear friend, Marsha Haskell. I consider her to be my literary angel. Other reviewers included Dr. Tom Linares, Dr. Vida Mays, Dr. Robert Polack, Judy Zabike, Jeanice Scott, Vera Campbell-Jones, Dr. Francisco Barrios, Joycelyn Phillips, Johnny Holloway, Dr. Morris Jenkins, Dr. Festus Obiakor, former police chief Carl Kinnison, and attorney Al Spradling. Further assistance was provided by Dr. Jeremy Ball and Dr. Linda Heitman. I thank Dr. Susan Swartwout for her superior technical assistance. I would like to express appreciation to attorneys Nick Brustin, John Wolfe, Amelia Roberts, and Barry Scheck for their support of this project. To all of the other supporters and friends of our family who have offered encouragement and prayers, I say thank you. Your words helped me to continue the journey.

Lastly, I would like to thank all of my former English and grammar teachers from elementary school and beyond. Those outstanding educators stimulated my interest in writing and facilitated the foundation for my ability to write, and are partly responsible for my enjoyment and appreciation of the written word. A special note of thanks is extended to Mrs. Christine Simmons Hicks, my twelfth-grade English teacher at Howard High School in Chattanooga, Tennessee. This may sound odd, but I really loved those English term paper assignments, which I consider an early precursor to my doctoral dissertation and subsequent writing projects.

Prologue

I dont know where to start. There were so many times when I would say to myself, Today is the day that I will devote to writing the book, and I will do absolutely nothing else today. Then conveniently, other things would intervene and postpone my good intentions. Maybe it was work, a telephone call that I initiated, volunteer obligations, or just an unlimited number of various excuses to keep me from sitting at the computer and working on this book. I had to question myself, Why the avoidance? Was this something that I really wanted to do or just something I should be doing? I knew the answer. I learned years ago that humans are programmed to welcome pleasure, repeat the circumstances that are pleasurable, and avoid pain. I anticipated that writing this book would bring pain, and possibly intensify it. So, I chose the route of avoidance. I knew that I would have to uncover some feelings that I had tried to bury for the past thirteen years. However, I also remained convinced that this book must be written. In my opinion, only I could write this story. Maybe I was being selfish, thinking that only my perception of the events should be reported. Of course, I will also include some sentiments and reflections of other family members who were close to Leslie.