Abuse of Power Thread (Cops, Governments, Etc.) - Part 1

[Kar]

Talk that other cops tried to help him get his story straight. This is why no one ever believes the cops. Even when they do something this clear cut, we still have people trying to lie for them. Manipulation of evidence? No way. If there was no footage, what are the chances this case would be in court?

Exactly. But when people on here question the cops' stories we're feeding into "Black Lives Matter" propaganda

 

[MessiahDecoy123]

Well this situation in Cincinnati is more proof we need body cams on the police.

This cop probably would've got away with murder if there were no body cam.

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

Weird how we get a story in here about a cop who gets caught straight up murdering an innocent man and all the normal folks who come in here to defend the police are nowhere to be found

 

[craigdbfan]

I need to read the story but if the cop murdered this guy in cold blood then give him life or death (that won't happen for obvious reasons though). I think cops get more bad press than they deserve but there's no doubt that there's a big problem with most police departments and it goes far beyond than this.

Oscar Grant was another case that I'm surprised didn't get as much outcry than something like the case with Michael Brown. That to me doesn't make any sense at all.

Grant and seemingly this man were flat out murdered/executed. In this clear black and white (no pun intended) scenarios, swift punishment on the officer should be implemented to create a better culture in police departments everywhere.

 

[The Guard]

The bolded parts are everything that is completely wrong. Number one you can not be arrested for being rude with an officer. Any American can say whatever the hell we want in any way that we want (assuming it's not a threat) to an officer and that is protected under free speech which was recently held up by the SCOTUS.

So you think that she was arrested and handcuffed because she changed lanes without signaling? The officer didn't appear to have any intention of arresting her until she became rude.

Free speech is all well and good. You're right that it has been upheld that in certain circumstances, you can absolutely be rude to a cop.

However, some jurisdictions have laws about disorderly conduct and public nuisances and so on, and it is at an officer's discretion. Especially if there is threatening language used, which doesn't so much apply in this case, but often does apply to situations. Will the arrest be upheld? Not necessarily always,but you can absolutely be arrested for being rude to an officer in certain areas.

Number 2 he had no right to pull her over and his department has already come out and said he should not have pulled her over and he had no right to arrest her.

It's a gray area. He was making a traffic stop for a traffic violation.

It's entirely possible that his Department has done that because this has become a public relations nightmare. He was, in fact, apparently pulling her over for a lawful reason. She changed lanes without signaling, which is apparently against the law in that part of Texas. At least this is what the media has reported.

Number 3 you can not be arrested for refusing to comply with an officer.

I note that you forgot to bold the part where I said "depending on the circumstances".

You absolutely can be arrested for refusing to comply with an officer, depending on the circumstances. Especially if the officer is trying to arrest you and you resist, which he verbally tells her to stop doing in the transcript of the stop.

Asking to put out a cig or to get out of the vehicle is not a lawful order.

That depends on why he gave it. If he gave it because he was not comfortable dealing with her while inside the vehicle, then there's a gray area there.

And I believe an officer CAN legally ask you to step out of your car for any reason.

According to the case "Pennsylvania VS Mimms", an officer, in the course of a traffic stop, is allowed to request a citizen to exit the vehicle.

You really have no clue as to what the hell you're talking about

You are welcome to your opinion. I have a degree in what I am talking about, and I feel like I've discussed it fairly intelligently thus far.

And there's no reason to be so rude about this conversation. I'm not sure why you feel there's a black and white answer to every one of these situations. The circumstances matter.

 

[The Guard]

Weird how we get a story in here about a cop who gets caught straight up murdering an innocent man and all the normal folks who come in here to defend the police are nowhere to be found

This surprises you? You think people are just defending the police no matter the circumstances?

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

So you think that she was arrested and handcuffed because she changed lanes without signaling? The officer didn't appear to have any intention of arresting her until she became rude.

Free speech is all well and good. You're right that it has been upheld that in certain circumstances, you can absolutely be rude to a cop.

However, some jurisdictions have laws about disorderly conduct and public nuisances and so on, and it is at an officer's discretion. Especially if there is threatening language used, which doesn't so much apply in this case, but often does apply to situations. Will the arrest be upheld? Not necessarily always,but you can absolutely be arrested for being rude to an officer in certain areas.



It's a gray area. He was making a traffic stop for a traffic violation.

It's entirely possible that his Department has done that because this has become a public relations nightmare. He was, in fact, apparently pulling her over for a lawful reason. She changed lanes without signaling, which is apparently against the law in that part of Texas. At least this is what the media has reported.



I note that you forgot to bold the part where I said "depending on the circumstances".

You absolutely can be arrested for refusing to comply with an officer, depending on the circumstances. Especially if the officer is trying to arrest you and you resist, which he verbally tells her to stop doing in the transcript of the stop.



That depends on why he gave it. If he gave it because he was not comfortable dealing with her while inside the vehicle, then there's a gray area there.

And I believe an officer CAN legally ask you to step out of your car for any reason.

According to the case "Pennsylvania VS Mimms", an officer, in the course of a traffic stop, is allowed to request a citizen to exit the vehicle.



You are welcome to your opinion. I have a degree in what I am talking about, and I feel like I've discussed it fairly intelligently thus far.

And there's no reason to be so rude about this conversation. I'm not sure why you feel there's a black and white answer to every one of these situations. The circumstances matter.

Her being rude is not a valid reason to arrest her. That is free speech. Plain and simple. Just because she caught an attitude gave the officer no right to arrest her. All she had to do is ask if she was being detained, if not then she could legally drive away. I've stated before how doing so is stupid and can get an unlawful arrest that will get thrown out, but that doesn't help if one loses their job over it. Being rude is not a public nuisance nor any other thing that would hold up in court. So officers who abuse their power like this need to be dealt with. As to the reason he pulled her over and why his department said it was not a valid reason is because he was already in the process of pulling her over when she made said illegal lane change. He had no reason to do so until after he was doing it. I know damn near anything can be considered resisting arrest once they tell you you're under arrest, but again he had NO VALID REASON FOR DOING SO. Smoking a cig in your car and catching an attitude is not a valid reason. Not sure how many times I have to explain this to you. I just checked and legally, yes you are supposed to get out of the vehicle so she was wrong for that.

I apologize if I came off as rude in any way, that was not my intention. But cops that abuse their power like this really piss me off. On the other hand I think most cops are good guys doing an incredibly hard job and I commend them for that

This surprises you? You think people are just defending the police no matter the circumstances?

I know you haven't been in this thread that long but yes there are actually posters who do that

 

[MessiahDecoy123]

This surprises you? You think people are just defending the police no matter the circumstances?

I've seen people defend the cop who shot the man in Cincinnati, so yeah. There are people who defend the cops every time.

 

[Hotwire]

A person's attitude will most certainly affect how they are treated by a cop. Just like any other job. As I posted earlier, because I was cautious in where I pulled over and that I was polite to the cop, I got off with a warning when I was spotted for DOUBLE the speed limit. (I could have been arrested, lost my license, and had my car impounded.) Now, if I had pulled obey in a way that put him in danger, or had given him an attitude, he could have chosen to go with a more severe punishment.

 

[warhorse78]

Did anyone see the cop that got suspended for throwing food at a handcuffed homeless man like he was some sort of circus animal?

http://wfla.com/2015/07/27/video-sa...tigation-for-throwing-food-to-handcuffed-man/

 

[MessiahDecoy123]

A person's attitude will most certainly affect how they are treated by a cop. Just like any other job. As I posted earlier, because I was cautious in where I pulled over and that I was polite to the cop, I got off with a warning when I was spotted for DOUBLE the speed limit. (I could have been arrested, lost my license, and had my car impounded.) Now, if I had pulled obey in a way that put him in danger, or had given him an attitude, he could have chosen to go with a more severe punishment.

Well of course a cop has the right to give you the appropriate punishment for breaking a certain law. But a cop finding a fake reason to arrest someone one is a clear abuse of authority.

Sandra Bland wasn't going twice the speed limit. She failed to signal only after she was being pulled over so she had good reason to question why she was initially pulled over. She didn't deserve to be arrested, jailed for days, and probably lose her job simply for challenging a cop's motives and asserting her rights.

The punishment should fit the crime. If it doesn't then it's a miscarriage of justice. Period.

 

[Hotwire]

Well of course a cop has the right to give you the appropriate punishment fo a certain breaking the law. But a cop finding a fake reason to arrest someone one is a clear abuse of authority.

Sandra Bland wasn't going twice the speed limit. She failed to signal only after she was being pulled over so she had good reason to question why she was initially pulled over. She didn't deserve to be arrested, jailed for days, and probably lose her job simply for challenging a cop's motives and asserting her rights.

The punishment should fit the crime. If it doesn't then it's a miscarriage of justice. Period.

You're right, the cop went too far. However, in Texas, failure to signal a lane change is arrestable. He was originally giving her a warning, then things escalated. Again, he was in the wrong and took things way too far, I'm just saying, an arrest was one of the possible outcomes from the stop.

 

[Kar]

You all need to see the Cincinnati video then. Because in that video the man did what he was the told and the cop flatout pulled out his gun and shot him in the head. He asked him to step out of the car so the man reached to unfasten his seatbelt. There is another video that I saw the other day (I'll post it once I find it again)...In a cornerstore in NY about a week or so ago two cops just charged in and beat this guy who had his hands up, complied, surrendered, all that. These cops are out of line, whether the victim is black, white, brown, whatever. Actual action against police brutality won't happen until one of them shoves Taylor Swift at a concert.

Oscar Grant was another case that I'm surprised didn't get as much outcry than something like the case with Michael Brown. That to me doesn't make any sense at all.

Grant and seemingly this man were flat out murdered/executed. In this clear black and white (no pun intended) scenarios, swift punishment on the officer should be implemented to create a better culture in police departments everywhere.

I noticed this too. Oscar Grant was the first video I had ever seen. I remember when it came out and I was just blown away by how this happened and there wasn't a national outcry. But around that time social media (which is definitely a driving force behind alot of these campaigns today) wasn't as heavily involved in the movement as it is now. It was more so a community outcry at that point.

 

[Teelie]

Even the people who blindly defend the cops will sometimes realize that cops can and will commit crimes equal or greater than those they are meant to be arresting.

 

[moviedoors]

in Texas, failure to signal a lane change is arrestable.

And that's just so stupid.

 

[Teelie]

It's Texas so it is also believable.

 

[ShadowBoxer]

Smh

 

[moviedoors]

It's Texas so it is also believable.

Unfortunately. Seriously though, why is not signalling a lane change an arrest-able offense? Ticket-able, sure. Hell, give more tickets to people that don't signal, but getting cuffs slapped on and going to jail? Over a ****ing turn signal?

 

[Golgo-13]

Human beings commit crimes. Cops are humans beings.

 

[Lencho01]

Everyone Has the Right to Mouth Off to Cops

 

[Kar]

I remember I was with some girl friends of mine leaving a party. A cop zoomed by us and got pretty close to us as we were getting in our truck but they kept going and one of the girls hollered out "**** the police". Cop stopped and immediately turned around and when he got out he just kept snapping and tryna find reasons to arrest us or give us a ticket.

They may not like the BS and that's understandable but they have to maintain their professionalism. "**** the police" or any mouthing off towards the police doesn't give them the right to punish you. Go on about your day.

 

[Webfoot Hero]

I remember I was with some girl friends of mine leaving a party. A cop zoomed by us and got pretty close to us as we were getting in our truck but they kept going and one of the girls hollered out "**** the police". Cop stopped and immediately turned around and when he got out he just kept snapping and tryna find reasons to arrest us or give us a ticket.

They may not like the BS and that's understandable but they have to maintain their professionalism. "**** the police" or any mouthing off towards the police doesn't give them the right to punish you. Go on about your day.

Maybe your friends should just have a little more common decency and not be a total a-hole to someone just because of their profession. Seems your friend lacks a bit of common sense since antagonizing the cops (or for that matter, anyone else) is not a good way to stay under the radar and/or not get confronted.

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

It's the old free speech argument again. You are free to say what you please, but others may try and punish you for it. It's def wrong, but I can see some upstanding cop working a bad part of town for years doing everything he can to try and serve his community. All day long though he gets nothing but disrespect. It would tax any normal human. But, sadly everyone there has a negative perception of police due to decades of first-hand accounts of police abusing their power. It almost seems like the system is doomed to repeat itself in a vicious cycle until something drastic happens on both sides

 

[MessiahDecoy123]

It's not against the law to insult the president, why should a person end up in jail for insulting a cop?

 

[Webfoot Hero]

I just make it a point to treat everyone who is on their job with a little respect because you never know when you'll need them in the future. I equate antagonizing a cop to someone mistreating a waiter or cook in that I wouldn't expect good service if you piss them off too much.