. >>> joining us now is civil reicherts attorney john burris who has been involved in many police abuse cases including the oscar grant shooting by a bart police officer. john, thank you for joining uses how effective do the think the protests are-they are effective in the sense that they are bringing people together and articulating their concerns in a national way. rarely do you have an opportunity to see this kind of protests in hundreds of cities and with thousands and thousands people protesting. basically saying that the criminal justice system has essentially forsaken a sense of truthfulness and righteousness. i think it's very, very important what they are doing and obviously no one wants to deal with violence, but to the extent that many people have participated and mostly of them have been nonviolent, i think it's extraordinarily important. of course you now have to take the issue of protesting to the next level and that is that you have to figure out what that you would like to accomplish and that is something that leaders of the protest march will have to work through. >> an

. >> joining me now john burris, criminal defense attorney. thank you so much for being here.tart with the timing of the release of the report. the los angeles police have said according to the "los angeles times" that they placed a hold on ezell forward'sd's autopsy report designed to ensure that any witness statements about the fatal encounter between ford and two veteran gang officers were not influenced by information released publicly about the shoot ppg. >> i think the issue he raised is a legitimate one. the question of how long should that have taken place, i think four months is a very long time not to release a coroner's report because it creates confusion and uncertainty for the family. certainly the actual report itself in terms of what is complete within a day or two generally takes six weeks just because you want the toxicology reports and everything. so within a six week period after that report should have been released and any report any investigation does not take place in terms of the witnesses clearly could have been done within that six weeks. so four mont

john burris, i want to go to you, because we're now at the stage where the question is, what's next. there's two possible questions here. one is the federal investigation and a possible federal prosecution and secondly, what civil remedies does the family have in bringing a lawsuit? >> two things. in terms of a federal prosecution, the u.s. attorney's office or department of justice can bring a criminal lawsuit against the officer under 18 us 242. and race is not required. it is just really the use of excessive force under the color of law. that can be done. that's not that challenging of a case. it's not any different than bringing a murder case against a police officer. that actually can be done, although people think it can't be, i think it easily, it can be prosecuted. there's plenty of evidence to show technically when an officer says that he contemplated his legal right to take this shot, the last two shots. that certainly suggests to mow that was a reckless disregard. now of course they can bring a federal civil rights case under 42 usc 1983. these are common cases that are br

john burris, a member of rodney kings legal team whos cases are often made on cell phone footage, says it can make all the difference in court. >> he is beating her up, yo. >> oh my gosh. >> when cell phones came out years ago, i myself would use a cell phone. when i got stopped, i would have somebody on the phone, i would tell my wife "i've just been stopped by a cop... a police officer" and you know, i'd hold it up, or i'd let it sit there. >> put your phone down. >> and even in cases where reaching for a phone doesn't cause an officer to go for his gun, the phone itself can become a target. >> i haven't done anything... >> if i were to record, i'd probably put some type of hidden camera in my car. again, because it's not a set law, they could do whatever they want. >> welcome back to tech know. you're about to take us on a behind the scenes look at one of your favorite pieces you've done on goggles that can see cancer. >> it must have been an extra treat, because it's featuring a technique in your field. >> i do have a personal connection to the story. the detection method for the c

john burris, a member of rodney kings legal team whos cases are often made on cell phone footage, saysn make all the difference in court. >> he is beating her up, yo. >> oh my gosh. >> when cell phones came out years ago, i myself would use a cell phone. when i got stopped, i would have somebody on the phone, i would tell my wife "i've just been stopped by a cop... a police officer" and you know, i'd hold it up, or i'd let it sit there. >> put your phone down. >> and even in cases where reaching for a phone doesn't cause an officer to go for his gun, the phone itself can become a target. >> i haven't done anything... >> if i were to record, i'd probably put some type of hidden camera in my car. again, because it's not a set law, they could do whatever they want. >>> this c.i.a. director's extraordinary mood to dispute the senate report on the c.i.a. and torture. bernie madoff 's secretary of 20 years joins us as new outrage comes out in the case. >>> and a debate over fraternity in americas. -- in america. >> i'm antonio mora, welcome to "consider this". those stories and more ahead. >

. >> civil rights attorney john burris pursued what's known as writer's scandal here in occasion lands in which four police officers were accused of planting evidence and beating citizens. the city admitted no wrongdoing but it ended with a 10.nigh million dollar payout to 119 plaintiffs. sol of this money comes from insurance companies. the city picks up the rest of the tab essentially taxpayers are the ones who pay for cops behaving badly. according to one study from 2006 to 2011, the new york city police department paid $348 million in civil rights settlement and judgments. the los angeles police department, 3 gray million dollar. chuck phone county sheriff's office paid 58 million. it may be an unsatisfactory system for taxpayers and many fathers who have said they would rather get justice than money but burris says that until we see major reforms at police stapingsz across the country, there is no reason to believer the cycle of police brutality followed by expensive civil rights cases will go away. >> remember, michael brown is just 1 case. i have had five police shootings since