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Updated: 1:58 AM May 21, 2006
Investigation Criticized
Parents fault OPD The parents of 12-year-old Amber Harris criticized Omaha police Saturday over the handling of their slain daughter's case and said racism was behind the officers' response.
Posted: 11:03 AM May 20, 2006 |
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The parents of 12-year-old Amber Harris criticized Omaha police Saturday over the handling of their slain daughter's case and said racism was behind the officers' response.
Human remains found May 11 in a city park were identified Friday as those of the girl, who had been missing since Nov. 29.
"We don't expect them to tell us everything," said her father, Michael Harris, "but we, as parents, deserve something."
His wife, Melissa Harris, said their daughter and the family deserved better treatment from the police and especially Chief Thomas Warren.
"He's not been supportive in this whole thing," she said during a north Omaha news conference.
The chief responded in a statement faxed to news media later Saturday morning.
"We expected that the parents of Amber Harris would express a cycle of emotions including anger and frustration.
From the beginning "we took this case very seriously," he said, in part.
The Harrises said police moved too slowly, telling them that they didn't know their daughter as well as they thought, that she likely was a runaway.
"This is just not Amber's character," Melissa Harris said. "They (police) need to believe parents."
She said the officers' first question about Amber was: "'Is she a ward of the state?'
"Michael and I have been married for 20 years," she said. "We have six kids ... and then his past came up. That's the past."
She was referring to her husband's 1983 conviction for rape and the times that four of their children have been in foster care because of what authorities said was excessive discipline.
Amber was not in foster care.
Michael Harris has four drunken-driving convictions in Douglas County, but Melissa Harris told the Omaha World-Herald in a December story that she "wouldn't stay married to some kook who was going to drink and beat everybody up."
Michael Harris told the newspaper that his was not a perfect family but that he and his wife loved their children.
Melissa Harris said Saturday she resented implications that family members may have been involved in their daughter's disappearance.
The Harrises said they believe racism was chief among reasons for what they say was an inadequate response by police. Michael is black, she is white.
They also said they will be campaigning for police to change their procedures for cases of missing children.
Among the changes they will pursue:
"This whole thing from the get-go was not done right at all," Michael Harris said. "Now it's our loss. We gotta put our daughter at rest."
Chief Warren defended his investigators and rejected the Harrises' allegations of racism.
"From the onset of this investigations until today's date, we do not have anyone who has come forward and stated that they observed Amber Harris being abducted or accompanying anyone voluntarily. It is normal during a missing persons investigation, when you do not have any witnesses, the first focus will be on the individuals who have the closest relationship to the victim," the chief said.
"Any claim that the Omaha Police Department was racially motivated or we neglected to devote the necessary resources to this case is absolutely false and inaccurate."
Warren said Friday that the people who found Amber's remains wish to remain anonymous. He emphasized that they were not suspects and that the homicide investigation will continue.
The Harrises said the remains have not been turned over to them and that they do not know when services will be held.
"She was a happy kid ... happy and singing all the time," said her mother, who added: "I know that she did not die easily."
When asked at the news conference what she thought her daughter went through, Melissa Harris said she did not know.
"Torture," said Michael Harris.
"Today just hug your kids and think of my girl," Melissa Harris said.
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