Cyclist Bangs on Off-Duty Cop's SUV....
#76
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The subject cop didn't exercise the temperament, morality, judgment or restraint I expect of paid peace officers. If someone in my charge behaved similarly I'd take serious disciplinary action. If the accounts of the cyclists and witnesses are accurate, that cop is a bully with a badge, not a peace officer.
Last edited by Paul Barnard; 10-18-15 at 06:52 AM.
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many of us who do not live in the USA look at what's happening and shake our heads in disbelief. The police have armored tanks and other military hardware and they routinely use SWAT squads to serve simple warrants.
How would the cyclist be able to slap the SUV if it was not really close? I suppose the police apologists will claim that the cyclist must have swerved into traffic and maliciously tried to damage the vehicle of an innocent, law-abiding citizen. Why would he do that?
The way the cop's car is parked across traffic shows that he was not too concerned about driving responsibly.
How would the cyclist be able to slap the SUV if it was not really close? I suppose the police apologists will claim that the cyclist must have swerved into traffic and maliciously tried to damage the vehicle of an innocent, law-abiding citizen. Why would he do that?
The way the cop's car is parked across traffic shows that he was not too concerned about driving responsibly.
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I guess we're trying to catch up with Europe where cops routinely carry machine guns, spring loaded billy clubs, and use commandos to serve warrants.
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I also see police with all sorts of nonsense toys in the metro NYC burbs. I haven't decided yet if it's because they watch too much TV and believe that's the real world, of if it's the result of Federal financing assistance.
We don't have much by way of federal subsidies for normal local policing (which is as it should be). But since 9/11, or maybe even before, we a have all sorts of grants for special needs. That means there's tons of dough for the asking, but only if you buy a mobile command post, set up a bomb squad, equip a special anti-terrosim unit, or the like. Once they have these goodies they have to find a use, but the system bypasses the normal critical thinking, whereby dollars are tight and most local governments won't part with them easily.
We don't have much by way of federal subsidies for normal local policing (which is as it should be). But since 9/11, or maybe even before, we a have all sorts of grants for special needs. That means there's tons of dough for the asking, but only if you buy a mobile command post, set up a bomb squad, equip a special anti-terrosim unit, or the like. Once they have these goodies they have to find a use, but the system bypasses the normal critical thinking, whereby dollars are tight and most local governments won't part with them easily.
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Just because I'm tired of arguing, doesn't mean you're right.
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WARNING, I'm from New York. Thin skinned people should maintain safe distance.
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I am quite amused by all the obvious anti police people in this thread who are throwing the term 'witness' around.
I read the article and i did not see one mention of any official witnesses that gave official statements to the police.
However, i did see mention of other cyclists supposedly making witness statements on a cyclist blog.
There's no chance that could be biased lol.
I read the article and i did not see one mention of any official witnesses that gave official statements to the police.
However, i did see mention of other cyclists supposedly making witness statements on a cyclist blog.
There's no chance that could be biased lol.
#81
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I am quite amused by all the obvious anti police people in this thread who are throwing the term 'witness' around.
I read the article and i did not see one mention of any official witnesses that gave official statements to the police.
However, i did see mention of other cyclists supposedly making witness statements on a cyclist blog.
There's no chance that could be biased lol.
I read the article and i did not see one mention of any official witnesses that gave official statements to the police.
However, i did see mention of other cyclists supposedly making witness statements on a cyclist blog.
There's no chance that could be biased lol.
A witness showed up who said she saw the cop weaving as he drove and asked if she should stay to give her information the cop told her that he did not need her information and she could (/should) go. The cyclist said he did need her information and she should stay. This was a red flag that caused me to stick around. I got her number on two of my business cards and tried to give the cyclist one. The officer told me I could not give someone who was under arrest anything, I said its just a business card. He took the business card from me. I told the cyclist I would post something to thechainlink.org so he can locate me if he doesn't still have her info. in the hopes of making this searchable I'm putting his name in the Tags, but I do not know if I have the spelling correct.
#82
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Umm, did the cops even bother to ask any bystanders what happened in a simple arrest by an upstanding member of the union.
I think not.
I think not.
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Like I said.
No witnesses mentioned in the story who actually gave a statement to the police.
That equals zero witnesses so far in case anyone wants to stick to the facts.
A bike blog is chatting about the possibility of what again lol?
Rebel without a clue
No witnesses mentioned in the story who actually gave a statement to the police.
That equals zero witnesses so far in case anyone wants to stick to the facts.
A bike blog is chatting about the possibility of what again lol?
Rebel without a clue
Last edited by bakes1; 10-18-15 at 01:15 AM.
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The subject cop didn't exercise the temperament, morality, judgment or restraint I expect of paid peace officers. If someone in my charged behaved similarly I'd take serious disciplinary action. If the accounts of the cyclists and witnesses are accurate, that cop is a bully with a badge, not a peace officer.
Genuine officer, or not. I definitely agree that the officer was being a bully.
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lol! no such thing
And, taxpayers don't seem to be jumping at the bit to force police officers to wear bodycams, so now we have a nasty rogue cyclist's word versus the word of a "peace officer" in court.
I can flip a coin and get a more fair judgement than the cyclist will get in this scenario.
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I can think of no reason that someone who witnessed the incident might approach giving an official statement with a bit of trepidation.
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The cyclist will eventually catch up with these people and they'll either submit statements to the police (and thus become witnesses) or they'll appear for the defence at the trial. Either way the cop will have to face it.
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It is situations like this. That makes me glad I asked my parents' for, and was presented with, a GoPro Hero 4 Silver. For my birthday back in May.
While I understand why he hit the (off-duty)officer's vehicle. At the same time that could be considered 'assault on a police officer'.
Still, I hope the officer is held accountable.
Another thought does come to mind. If the officer was really off-duty. Then why did he have a pair of handcuffs on his person. Because, Police officers don't keep their gunbelt on that has their handcuffs(uniformed-only), or keep their handcuffs(plainclothes) on their person. When they are off-duty. They have to turn that in before they leave the station.
Some departments are allowing officers to take their cruiser/plain brown wrapper, home. The county police here allow that.
While I understand why he hit the (off-duty)officer's vehicle. At the same time that could be considered 'assault on a police officer'.
Still, I hope the officer is held accountable.
Another thought does come to mind. If the officer was really off-duty. Then why did he have a pair of handcuffs on his person. Because, Police officers don't keep their gunbelt on that has their handcuffs(uniformed-only), or keep their handcuffs(plainclothes) on their person. When they are off-duty. They have to turn that in before they leave the station.
Some departments are allowing officers to take their cruiser/plain brown wrapper, home. The county police here allow that.
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I believe this incident is just one in a many type of poor interactions between police and the general public, having found their genesis in the time span of the 60's when the politicians found it somehow expedient to remove our police from WALKING BEATS and placing them behind the wheel of vehicles and a set of mirrored Ray Bans. No one knows police and therefore there is no respect. Where there is no respect, there is no decency. Where there is no decency, the crime rate will rise.
Take the police out of the vehicles and put them on a bicycle patrol or walking patrol. The crime rates will go down and hanging out at station 2 will decrease.
Take the police out of the vehicles and put them on a bicycle patrol or walking patrol. The crime rates will go down and hanging out at station 2 will decrease.
Last edited by jeichelberg87; 10-18-15 at 11:51 AM.
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Nice to know that you are so confident in your own psychic powers as to KNOW that it is the cop, and NOT the reporter or the lawyer at fault. I once knew a young lady that was equally assured of her psychic powers.... but I never felt she was completely sane.
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But basing a post on the limited or possibly inaccurate information doesn't require the assumption of facts not presented, and as limited as it is, it's better than relying on imputed fiction to base a post on.
FACTS (even limited or unreliable ones) trump FICTION and wild guesses. Also, life isn't a digital zero sum game. Error isn't black and white, and saying that one party was wrong, doesn't imply he was totally wrong, nor does it imply that the other party wasn't also wrong to a degree.
That cuts two ways. IMO - the cyclist was a jerk, but being a jerk doesn't warrant an arrest, and the issue I posted to was the disproportionate reaction of the officer (based on the facts as reported. Nor does saying an officer was wrong in a particular instance imply anything generally about police officers, or even how this one may be on an everyday basis. YOU are the only one making broad brush statements in response to a number of relatively level head posts. Yes, there were some posts that seemed to reflect "cop hater" mentality, but I don't speak for or to those.
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An ounce of diagnosis is worth a pound of cure.
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WARNING, I'm from New York. Thin skinned people should maintain safe distance.
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An ounce of diagnosis is worth a pound of cure.
Just because I'm tired of arguing, doesn't mean you're right.
“One accurate measurement is worth a thousand expert opinions” - Adm Grace Murray Hopper - USN
WARNING, I'm from New York. Thin skinned people should maintain safe distance.
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For those familiar with Chicago, this story is one you just shrug your shoulders at and say, yeah that's Chicago cops. Illinois is corrupt top to bottom and Chicago especially so. Chicago cops have been used to operating with virtual impunity for decades. They had all-but-official policies of torturing suspects for much of this. Illinois had the strictest laws and enforcement against filming police in the nation until the IL Supreme Court struck them down, for the very reason of trying to evade accountability. I've had friends who worked in emergency rooms who witnessed police coming to fetch "one of their own" who was drunk driving and crashed to avoid punishment. I think one of the differences with other cities is that the culture goes deep into the police department, the prosecutors, the judges, everyone is in on it, because it's part of the overall corruption.
Anyone with any sense treats cops like a wild tiger. Powerful, dangerous if provoked, potentially very irrational. This article sums up well what it's like to cross Chicago cops: Our Three-Year Struggle to Get Chicago to Admit We Were Beaten by the Police | VICE | United States. And this is more like what day-to-day abuse from Chicago cops looks like: Chicago Police Found Guilty of Covering Up Bartender Beating - ABC News
Anyone with any sense treats cops like a wild tiger. Powerful, dangerous if provoked, potentially very irrational. This article sums up well what it's like to cross Chicago cops: Our Three-Year Struggle to Get Chicago to Admit We Were Beaten by the Police | VICE | United States. And this is more like what day-to-day abuse from Chicago cops looks like: Chicago Police Found Guilty of Covering Up Bartender Beating - ABC News
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Malarkey you say. Have you ever seen a uniformed officer come to a department/precinct, in their uniform and police cruiser? That had not started their 'shift'? But was already in their police uniform when they got to the station? I certainly haven't. I have seen plenty of uniformed officers', allowed to take their police cruiser to their home. But none in their uniform off-shift. There is even one officer for a local city police department who takes his/her squad car to their home. I haven't followed them. Their apartment/condo is within feet of a 7Eleven and it is obvious the way I have seen them park on multiple occasions. That they are not there(repeatedly) for a domestic call or crime scene after crime scene.
Last edited by Chris516; 10-19-15 at 07:17 PM.
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Yes, as a rule rather than an exception.