‘Cathy “Bags” Lanier’
courtesy of ‘Women_in_Uniform’

MPD Chief Lanier appeared on the Kojo Nnamdi Show this afternoon to talk about police issues with Kojo and analyst Tom Sherwood.  Chief among them was the investigation surrounding the death of Ali Ahmed Muhammad near the DC9 nightclub.  The Chief gave out no new information, despite repeated proddings, but said that she did stray from charging documents and published witness statements in her remarks the morning after the shooting beating.

Chief Lanier also stated that they are still awaiting the Medical Examiner’s report in the case, but gave no timeline for the release of the information, beyond the fact that they’re still waiting for full toxicology reports.

The rest of the hour covered labor issues lightly (Chief Lanier would love to give officers a raise, but is not authorized to participate in labor issues, and with the unfair labor practices complaint filed, hands are doubly tied), as well as rehashed what we already knew about the shooting of Parrot in Adams Morgan (officers are recertified twice annually in firearms safety, including a segment on animals, investigation is still ongoing).

One issue that received attention was the bill before the city council that would release the identities of minors charged with repeated violent offenses.  Chief Lanier wasn’t as excited about the release of names, as much as she was excited that this bill would permit her department to share information with appropriate city entities the files of repeat offenders that would permit agencies to intervene “between chronic truant and violent offender.”

Tom Bridge

I live and work in the District of Columbia. I write at We Love DC, a blog I helped start, I work at Technolutionary, a company I helped start, and I’m happy doing both. I enjoy watching baseball, cooking, and gardening. I grow a mean pepper, keep a clean scorebook, and wash the dishes when I’m done. Read Why I Love DC.