Was Christopher Dorner Given Due Process? Petition Requests FBI Investigation

A petition questioning whether Christopher Dorner was given due process has been submitted to the Obama Administration. The petition, created today, requests a formal FBI investigation into the persecution and eventual alleged death of the former Los Angeles Police Department Officer.

Chris Dorner gained national attention when he was accused of killing a young couple. Monica Quan and her fiance Keith Lawrence were leaving a basketball game in Irvine, California when they were gunned down.

It was later revealed that the Quan was the daughter of a retired LAPD Officer. Randal Quan was responsible for defending Dorner in disciplinary hearings that eventually led to his termination. Dorner reportedly blamed Quan for failing to provide him with a fair defense.

As reported by KTLA, Chris Dorner’s “manifesto” appeared on his Facebook page and contained the following claims concerning his employment with and eventual termination from the LAPD:

“In 8/07 I reported an officer (Ofcr. XXXX/now a Sergeant), for kicking a suspect (excessive force) during a Use of Force while I was assigned as a patrol officer at LAPD’s Harbor Division.

“10 months later on 6/25/08, after already successfully completing probation, acquiring a basic Post Certificate, and Intermediate Post Certificate, I was relieved of duty by the LAPD … The department stated that I had lied and made up the report that XXXX had kicked the suspect.

“I later went to a Board of Rights (department hearing for decision of continued employment) from 10/08 to 1/09. During this BOR hearing a video was played for the BOR panel where XXXX stated that he was indeed kicked by Officer XXXX.””I have exhausted all available means at obtaining my name back. I have attempted all legal court efforts within appeals at the Superior Courts and California Appellate courts. This is my last resort. The LAPD has suppressed the truth and it has now lead to deadly consequences. The LAPD’s actions have cost me my law enforcement career that began on 2/7/05 and ended on 1/2/09. They cost me my Naval career which started on 4/02 and ends on 2/13.”

As reported by CNN, support for Dorner as a “hero seeking justice” continues to increase. The release of the “manifesto” gave a Dorner a voice and presented a “reason” for his actions. Sympathizers have organized Facebook pages in support of his stance against the LAPD. Most recently a petition has been created demanding that the FBI investigate the fact that Dorner was not given due process by the LAPD.

Professor Marc Lamont Hill, of Columbia University, discusses how someone accused of murdering two innocent people is being viewed as a “hero”:

“Don’t get me wrong. What he did was awful. Killing innocent people is bad. But when you read his manifesto, when you read the message he left, he wasn’t entirely crazy.

“He had a plan and mission here, and many people aren’t rooting for him to kill innocent people, they’re rooting for somebody who was wronged to get a kind of revenge against the system. It is almost like watching ‘Django Unchained’ in real life.”

The petition questioning whether Christopher Dorner was given due process is posted on petitions.whitehouse.gov. It specifically asks the Obama Administration to “[c]onduct a formal investigation with the FBI regarding the recent actions that the LAPD took against Christopher Dorner.”

The petition acknowledges that Christopher Dorner was an “alleged criminal” but claims that he was denied his constitutional rights. The current threshold is 100,000 signatures. The petition will need 99,937 more signatures before March 16 to be considered by President Obama’s Administration.