n the blink of an eye, a peaceful day of yardwork for Penny McCarthy turned into a nightmare. She was on her driveway in Phoenix, Arizona, in a sleeveless shirt, shorts, and slippers, when a team of United States Marshals pulled up in unmarked vehicles and aimed firearms at her. Penny—who is a 67-year-old grandmother—was clearly at their mercy. And yet, the officers threatened to “hit” her, frisked her, placed her in handcuffs and ankle shackles, and drove her away from home. The officers did not so much as check Penny’s driver’s license or run any other basic checks on her identity before violently arresting her. The whole time, Penny calmly but persistently insisted that there must be a mistake. The officers claimed that she was Carole Rozak, for whom they had an arrest warrant. But Penny was not Rozak, and Penny had no connection to Rozak. The officers had made a huge, inexcusable error.

In Milton, Florida, Deputy Zachary MacPherson observed 20 year old Aleczander “Zander” Cash, who is autistic, walking across his residential street and into his home. Becoming angry that he couldn't hear him (due to his wearing headphones), MacPherson banged on the front door, and when Cash answered, yanked Cash out of the front door of his home and onto the ground, handcuffing and arresting him. Not only was no crime committed by Cash, but Deputy MacPherson admittedly did not have a warrant.