ACLU: Police staged confrontation amid convention

The American Civil Liberties Union claims undercover police officers posing as protesters staged a violent confrontation with another officer during the Democratic National Convention. The ACLU says it obtained a police document showing the undercover officers pretended to struggle with a police commander during a big demonstration so they could be removed from the crowd without blowing their cover, The Denver Post reported Friday. The ACLU says another officer who was unaware of the ruse thought the commander was being attacked and pepper-sprayed the undercover officers. It's not clear how many officers were involved or how they were affected by the spray. The ACLU questioned whether the fake confrontation worsened a tense situation and whether it violated any police rules. Denver police spokesman Sonny Jackson told The Associated Press Friday he was unaware of the report and couldn't comment. The ACLU didn't immediately return a message left by the AP. The ACLU says the incident occurred on the night of Aug. 25, the opening day of the convention. Police arrested 106 people that night, the most arrests on any day during the convention. Police have said anarchists planned to wreak havoc at convention delegates' hotels and at downtown businesses, and officers were trying to control the crowd. ACLU staff attorney Taylor Pendergrass wrote the city of Denver's independent police monitor, Richard Rosenthal, on Thursday requesting an investigation of the incident. "The actions of the undercover detectives on Aug. 25, 2008, may have had the effect of exacerbating an already 'tense situation,' as their feigned struggle led nearby officers and the public to believe that a commanding officer was being attacked by protesters and that the situation necessitated the use of chemical agents," Pendergrass wrote. Rosenthal told The Post he received the letter and was evaluating it. He did not immediately return a call from the AP.