Cop caught on tape!

[stevenson]

Check out this cop being a total jerk. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GgWrV8TcUc

[stevenson]

Link to the story behind the video.

http://www.abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=4282823&page=1

[dolfan]

Did you see Fox News this morning where the jailers dumped the quadriplegic out of his wheelchair into the floor like a sack of potatoes to frisk him? On video, now. To me, this is the kind of thing that people need to perk up and pay attention to when it comes to criminal procedure. Now, this is a soapbox moment, so please forgive me, but this mess happens ALL THE TIME. Cops are good fellows and ladies, I know them and count many as my friends. BUT, they don't deserve the general public mantle of credibility, the free pass we give them. The bunker mentality they must live with, or the sadistic mentality some of them bring to the job, skews everything. I don't hold that difficulty against them, but the system MUST be reformed to shift the burden of perception to the State and not just the burden of proof. There must be an inculcation of demonstrable honorability among them, or upon any minimal showing of misconduct, jurors and finders of fact should be directed to find in favor of defendants, even if it means acquittals of guilty people. That's the only way to keep this stuff from happening --- that, and defunding the massive bureaucracy and de-incentivizing (sp?) the industry of the criminal justice system.

[stevenson]

I deal with young people all the time. And I just couldn't believe the way this cop treated this kid. If any of us did what he did, there would be no investigation.....you'd go to jail for assault!

But he gets put on "paid" administrative leave.

[DaJudge]

Did you see Fox News this morning where the jailers dumped the quadriplegic out of his wheelchair into the floor like a sack of potatoes to frisk him? On video, now. To me, this is the kind of thing that people need to perk up and pay attention to when it comes to criminal procedure. Now, this is a soapbox moment, so please forgive me, but this mess happens ALL THE TIME. Cops are good fellows and ladies, I know them and count many as my friends. BUT, they don't deserve the general public mantle of credibility, the free pass we give them. The bunker mentality they must live with, or the sadistic mentality some of them bring to the job, skews everything. I don't hold that difficulty against them, but the system MUST be reformed to shift the burden of perception to the State and not just the burden of proof. There must be an inculcation of demonstrable honorability among them, or upon any minimal showing of misconduct, jurors and finders of fact should be directed to find in favor of defendants, even if it means acquittals of guilty people. That's the only way to keep this stuff from happening --- that, and defunding the massive bureaucracy and de-incentivizing (sp?) the industry of the criminal justice system.

Spoken like a defense lawyer

[Paully_44]

I read this today in our local Seattle PI newspaper

As leaders in Seattle and elsewhere call for stronger police accountability, three former Seattle officers hope to cash in on that movement with an action cam for police.

The officers' fledgling company, VIEVU, has developed a small, wireless digital camera that could be a tool to record officers' interactions during an arrest or traffic stop.

[Ilovebigcats]

I am torn on this one. He shouldn't have been so aggressive but I agree the kid need to be taught some respect.

It's funny.... he saw the camera and you know he was fixing to say if I see this on Youtube...

[stevenson]

What did the kid do that was disrepectful? And wasn't he disrepectful first?

The Today Show said that the cop telling the kid that he could end up dead if he didn't address him properly is considered a threat. This cop used excessive force and was verbally abusive to this kid.

I say fire the cop and send a message that this kind of behavior won't be tolerated!

[Ilovebigcats]

Well, we didn't see what was going on before the video started. There was an obvious lack of respect. The cop should NOT have touched the boy. That was wrong. But expecting respect was appropriate... though he was too aggressive and demanding.. he was right but his methods were wrong.

He didn't threaten the kid... he informed him true. If he is disrespectful to the wrong person he might end up dead. It was a scare tactic.... whether it is a good method or not, people do it all the time.

That's just my opinion though. If he hadn't of "man handled" the boy, I would have no problem with the video. In fact, I would probably ground or whip my kids when they got home for being disrespectful.

I would suspend the cop or fine him... I don't think he should be fired. Warned definitely. Punished definitely. Fired no.

Again... just my opinion.

[EagerBeaver]

Well, we didn't see what was going on before the video started.

And that makes it hard for anyone -- nearly impossible IMHO -- to pass judgment based on the video alone.

[stevenson]

I don't know about all that. The video starts with the officer walking away from his vehicle. You can hear another kid telling the kid the officer is speaking to to take his earphones out. I think the kid didn't hear the officer and the officer thought the kid was ignoring him. You can hear the other kid explain to the officer that the kid couldn't hear him.

I don't care how disrepectful the kid was, that officer has to stay in control of the situation and he was clearly not in control. He lost it!

Maybe the kid didn't respect the officer or his authority, but what the officer did, didn't gain the kids respect either! That kid probably walked away with alot of hate and anger towards that cop. That cop has to remember that he was the adult and needed to act accordingly.

I still say...fire him! He's already shown he's a loose canon. What if the next person who "disrespects" him is a 85 year old woman?

[Sherry]

Let's face it, the cop lost it. The kid was disrespectful, and the cop may have not had enough coffee that morning and it was the last straw, but whatever the reason, he blew up. He was wrong in how he handled the manner at hand. As a police officer he should have been in control, especially when it comes to children. The damage he has done is huge to all the kids who see this video, either they will be scared, or if it's just they will lose respect of our men and women in blue. It only takes one.

[oletimer]

Kids generaly take their lead from their parents. They knew better then to there skate boarding. The kids were doing wrong so do we not get them while we kill the cop? Fair play!

Before bashing the cop, check his record and see if this is his way of doing things, if not then maybe some lind of punishment.

I still say...fire him! He's already shown he's a loose canon. What if the next person who "disrespects" him is a 85 year old woman?

If there are no other charges against him, then this one time is not a loose canon. I do know that most times it takes two to have an argument.

Not only does he have to have a job to feed his family, but it takes a lot of money to train a policeman.

[paul]

No where in the video did this kid pose any danger to the cop. The Cop's man handeling the kid was out of line.

If the cop wanted respect for his position, he went about it completely the wrong way. (IMHO) His jarhead ( no offence to any present or former Marines ) approach was obnoxious

[Alan]

Several of my friends are cops, I worked as a jail officer, and even I can say he was way out of line. I've never heard of a cop getting so upset about being called "dude".