When I was looking at the Tuesday wire service photographs from the Oakland City Hall grounds, the violent protest images were not in the mix because that confrontation had not yet occurred.  The late-night, violent protest was in response to the Tuesday eviction by the Oakland police.

Even though the story, written later in the evening, included information about the arrests and tear gas, no news images had moved by our production deadline, probably because Oakland is on Pacific time–a three-hour difference.

The photograph was chosen because it was a visual "moment" in time showing a police officer doing something interesting–not just walking through tents and trash.  The wire service images that moved overnight and this morning offer a much different look at last night's protest.

Credit should go to the Post for acknowledging the criticism and engaging it in a transparent way. But I'm not moved by McKaye's explanation. I understand deadlines, but considering that they actually had copy that indicated there was violence happening, the larger context should have been considered in picking the photo—or maybe, as Jason Linkins wrote, there shouldn't have been a image at all.

"While they investigate, police have closed 8th Street NW between and V Street and Barry Place, near a Howard dormitory and the 9:30 club. Southbound lanes of Georgia Avenue are closed at Barry Place," says the Post." The ages, genders and condition of the three injured people were not immediately known."

A police source tells City Desk none of the three victims are Howard University students and that one of them is in serious condition while the other two are in stable condition. The source also says cops have not been able to interview the victims and so don't yet know what motivated the shootings.

Court documents related to Simms' plea leave the impression that during both incidents, Simms and other conspirators didn't have much to say–Orlando Carter, 20, was calling the shots.

Of course, you'll remember that authorities believe that the night the first of a string of retaliatory killings got underway, that shooting was provoked by Carter's brother, Sanquan Carter, 19:

"By way of background, on the night of Sunday, March 21, 2010, nineteen-year-old Sanquan Carter, went to the 1300 block of Alabama Avenue, S.E. Inside an apartment at 1333 Alabama Avenue, S.E., Sanquan Carter had sex with a fifteen-year-old girl whose identity is known to the government. After that, Sanquan Carter discovered that a gold-colored bracelet that belonged to him and that he had removed from his wrist, was missing. Concluding that someone had stolen this property, Sanquan Carter became incensed. Angry and bent on violent retribution..."

But seeking payback, Sanquan Carter quickly called in his brother, who seemingly took command of the situation from then on, giving orders and marshaling the troops.

"Upon receiving the call from his younger brother Sanquan Carter, Orlando Carter directed Nathaniel Simms to call Jeffrey Best, whom Orlando Carter had just dropped off, and to tell Jeffrey Best to come back outside at once."

Simms, documents say, did as he was told.  Best also did as he was told, he came back outside and Carter picked him up.

After acquiring some guns from suspect Lamar Williams, 22, documents say, Carter again took the lead, letting his accomplices know exactly what was going to happen from that point forward. "With the three firearms in hand, Orlando Carter spoke with Jeffrey Best, Nathaniel Simms, and Lamar Williams about his plan to retaliate against the individuals believed to be responsible for taking property" from his brother.

The crew met up with Sanquan Carter and followed through,, according to documents, firing at a group of people on Alabama Avenue SE they suspected of having filched the jewelry. As a result, Jordan Howe was fatally shot while sitting in his car.

When, on March 23, Orlando Carter was shot in what he believed was an attempt to take revenge on him for Howe's death, he again took hold of the mantle of leadership. "In the aftermath of having been shot on March 23, 2010, Orlando Carter concluded that friends and associates of Jordan Howe were responsible for shooting him. Orlando Carter vowed to exact violent revenge and, to that end, recruited coconspirators whose identities are known to the government, including Nathaniel Simms, to assist him in executing a plan he developed."

We all know what happened then.

Yesterday, an arbitrator ruled that the D.C. police department's "All Hands on Deck" initiative violated the officers' contract and must be stopped. Chief Cathy L. Lanier promptly announced that the show must go on, indicating her intention to continue with AHOD weekends scheduled for November and December.

At this point, one cannot be surprised by the city opting for a take-no-prisoners strategy toward litigation. That's par for the course under bulldog Attorney General Peter J. Nickles.

But the decision to continue with AHODs during the appeal process stands to incur tremendous costs to the District in a time when city budgeting is under immense pressures. And not just in legal fees: In his decision yesterday, arbitrator John C. Truesdale awarded overtime pay to officers who have participated in this year's AHODs.

A back-of-the-envelope calculation provided by the police union indicates that overtime for each AHOD weekend could reach $1.5 million. (That's an extra $17.50 per hour for the 3,600 sworn patrol officers making an average of $35 per hour working three extra eight-hour shifts.) The department declined to provide its own figures, though police spokesperson Traci Hughes does say "it is a substantial amount."

Hughes says that Lanier took the costs into account when deciding to continue the program. "All of the ramifications are being considered," she says.

Let's review those ramifications: Taking the union's numbers, the arbitrator's decision already means the city is potentially on the hook for $10.6 million in unbudgeted costs. And now, by vowing to continue with the two additional AHODs, Lanier is possibly drawing another $3 million from a police budget recently trimmed by the D.C. Council.

Certainly the city hopes to prevail on appeals to the Public Employee Relations Board and, if necessary, D.C. Superior Court. Success, however, is far from assured. Are AHOD's crimefighting and public relations benefits worth risking $3 million in taxpayer funds in the meantime?

LL asked At-Large Councilmember Phil Mendelson, who oversees the police budget, if the cops can afford that kind of money. "Sure, if we give up something else," he says, adding that "presumably everything else is what they need."

If the ruling is upheld, and the city's on the hook for $10 million or more in overtime, he says, "That's going to be a serious problem."

Mendelson says he's "not an AHOD hater," but questions the wisdom of continuing the program in light of the arbitration ruling: "I've never had much patience for Peter Nickles' strategy of pursuing an action that has been struck down assuming there is an appeal that he will win. So far the record of success is thin....Rather than just add to the cost out of stubbornness, Mr. Nickles ought to be a little more careful and counsel suspending the program pending the appeal."

Nickles did not immediately reply for a request for comment.

The police union chief, Kristopher Baumann, prefers to focus on concerns beyond the price tag: "It's not only fiscally irresponsible, but just think about the message it sends to citizens and criminals, that the police chief and the attorney general don't respect the rule of law."

The Metropolitan Police Department's "All Hands on Deck" initiative violates the terms of officers' labor contract and must be ended, an arbitrator has ruled.

"AHODs," three-day periods during which all sworn police officers are required to work eight-hour patrol shifts, have been a favorite tool of Mayor Adrian M. Fenty and Chief Cathy L. Lanier since 2007. They've credited the initiative with being at least partly responsible for record low levels of violent crime. But police union officials have long decried the AHODs as essentially a publicity stunt that generate goodwill for politicians at the expense of rank-and-file officers. The Fraternal Order of Police filed a grievance challenging the practice earlier this year.

In an opinion released today [PDF], arbitrator John C. Truesdale largely agreed with the union's arguments, ruling that the AHODs violated several terms of the police contract. He declined to take into account the policing value of the AHODs, calling them "apparently well received in the District of Columbia." But due to the contract violations, he ordered the department to rescind the 2009 AHOD order and pay time-and-a-half overtime to officers who participated in the six AHODs that have taken place this year.

Two more AHODs are scheduled for this year—starting Nov. 13 and Dec. 17. A request for comment from city officials, including on whether those AHODs will continue, was not immediately returned. Lanier vowed in a statement to continue the AHODs and appeal Truesdale's ruling.

Despite the victory, police union chief Kristopher Baumann was not in a gloating mood. "It's sort of bittersweet, because this turned out to be a big waste of time and money....This was an initiative or a program that was not effective."

The department can now appeal to the Public Employee Relations Board, and on to Superior Court if necessary. Baumann calls on Fenty and Lanier to "respect the decision, respect the law, respect the contract and not appeal it again and again and cost the District hundreds of thousands."

"The odds of them prevailing on appeal are almost zero," he says.

UPDATE, 7 P.M.: Lanier has released a statement: "I disagree with the arbitrator’s decision and am confident it will be overturned on appeal. I announced the dates for the All Hands on Deck a year in advance out of consideration for the officers and their families. The crime emergencies of the past were reactionary, costly and extremely hard on the officers and their families. Notwithstanding today’s ruling, the All Hands on Deck initiatives will continue pursuant to my authority under both the labor agreement and District personnel law. As our reduction in violent crimes and homicides this year demonstrates, the initiative is in the best interest of our city and the safety of our residents. I do intend to appeal today’s decision and look forward to a ruling on the legal conclusions reached by the arbitrator in this action."

Photo by Darrow Montgomery

If only this car could talk. Though it looks like somebody thought it could talk, which is why they shot it full of holes.

In any case, there's gotta be a story behind the black vehicle identified in its temporary tags as a 1998 Land Rover (VIN #391804) now sitting across the street from Pierce Park in Adams Morgan.

There are magic marker-type writings on the windows that seem to indicate somebody from the 5th District of the Metropolitan Police Department marked the car on May 9. That same somebody tried to cover the shot-up windows and put duct tape over the bullet holes. They're big holes.

A neighborhood resident told me some shady-looking fellows who didn't look anything like cops recently dumped the auto off as discreetly as they could. The resident told me the dumpers didn't appear to be happy when they noticed somebody was watching the drop.

Bottom line: Something bad happened with this car.

And now it's taking up a prime parking spot.

The latter's really gotta get folks steamed.

Perhaps what set off the Giants was Burress' behavior in a March 18 traffic stop in south Florida. The 6-foot-5 receiver was reportedly driving like "he was going to kill somebody," according to a police report cited in an account in the New York Post. It was apparently Burress's fifth traffic violation in a month.

Once pulled over, Burress acted like a guy who'd learned nothing from the events of the past six months. Here's the Post's news account:

The embattled gridder– who was released by the Giants on Friday and faces 3½ years in prison on a gun-possession charge after shooting himself in the leg at a Manhattan nightclub on Nov. 29 — followed every question and command with a "F- – - you," according to the citation.

How's that for making T.O. look like an angel?

At 7:30 p.m. Mount Pleasant and Irving Streets NW opened up. But they were closed for some time following an accident between a UPS truck and a sedan. According to D.C. police on the scene, four cops were injured but they were going to be OK. The accident did not look good. There was yellow police tape everywhere—closing down most of Mount Pleasant Street. Tape blocked off Irving Street as well. Crowds gathered at the corner to watch and gossip about who was at fault, marvel at the sturdiness of the UPS truck, and try to figure out what the cops were doing before they got injured. DCist was on the scene first.

Update 7:51 p.m.: "All non-life threatening injuries," reports Officer Quintin Peterson at the D.C. Police Department's public information office. He adds that his fellow officers were not pursing anyone at the time of the accident. "They were just driving, the guy just hit them from the side."  No blame has been assigned as the investigation is on going.

More pictures after the jump.

Corner of Mount Pleasant and Irving

Cop guarding the wreckage

View From My Second Floor Window

The guy, after all, has a knack for being in the right place at the right time in this town, Superman-style. First off, the Houston transit cop, on loan to the Metro transit police for the inauguration, saved a 68-year-old woman who fell onto the tracks by rolling her under the lip of a Chinatown/Galley Place platform as a train passed.

Then, as a Houston TV station reported yesterday, he was among the first responders to the deadly rowhouse fire on North Capitol Street on Wednesday. According to CNN, Swainson and others knocked on doors of adjacent houses to evacuate those folks.

Please, can we keep you, please?

The news came out of a legislative hearing in which the state's top cop had given testimony. The Post notes that the disclosure showed that the cops' surveillance operations of activists were far more extensive than previously known:

"The surveillance took place over 14 months in 2005 and 2006, under the administration of former governor Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. (R). The former state police superintendent who authorized the operation, Thomas E. Hutchins, defended the program in testimony yesterday. Hutchins said the program was a bulwark against potential violence and called the activists 'fringe people.'

[Superintendent Terrence B.] Sheridan said protest groups were also entered as terrorist organizations in the databases, but his staff has not identified which ones.

Stunned senators pressed Sheridan to apologize to the activists for the spying, assailed in an independent review last week as 'overreaching' by law enforcement officials who were oblivious to their violation of the activists' rights of free expression and association. The letter, obtained by The Washington Post, does not apologize but admits that the state police have 'no evidence whatsoever of any involvement in violent crime' by those classified as terrorists."

When are the police going to learn from the mistakes of the past?