Where were the wire cutters? *

The lede of today's Daily News story by James Nash says that wire cutters were found on car-theft suspect Stanley Miller when he arrested and bonked 11 times with a flashlight by LAPD officer John Hatfield. But were they found "on him?" Times reporters Matt Lait and Scott Glover write above the fold on page one that a source says the cutters were actually recovered after the arrest in the stolen car, 200 yards away from Miller. Precision matters here because officers have apparently cited the presence of wire cutters as justification for roughly subduing Miller. So what evidence does the DN story include to back up the lede? As I read it, only LAPD Commander Eric Lillo telling the police commission yesterday that wire cutters were found, but with this disclaimer: "Lillo wouldn't say whether Miller had the wire cutters in his pants or whether they were found elsewhere at the arrest scene." If that's it, the lede should been more careful and exact. From their side, Miller's attorney says he didn't have any wire cutters at all.

* Thursday backlash: Community and LAPD leaders react in the Times to the report that officer Peter Bueno found the wire cutters, the only weapon connected with Miller, far from the suspect.