Video of Cop Assaulting Cyclist at Critical Mass Ride

Here is the police report he filed:

Finally, a police brutality video that has credibility. This is the first one posted here in a very long time that actually meets the definition. This cop should be canned should his story turn out to be bogus.




Any other camera views of the incident?

[edit on 7/30/2008 by AndrewTB]

Things like this warrant a full out assault on the police officer by 20 people

We're officially subservient to men in blue. We should be to an extent, as their job is very important to the infrastructure of our country, but we cannot forget for even a minute that they are people like you and me before they are "peace officers." It will take a lot more than a stamped badge and a uniform to garner my respect, that's for sure.

I have never heard of "Critical Mass'' until this thread and do plan to look it up so I can be ready when it happens here. I live in a rural area of Santa Barbara County and when these cyclists decide to do a run.....it is nithing but hazardous. as for the rules that cyclists are supposed to follow the same rules as any other vehicles, that never used to be the case. They are supposed to follow the same rules as pedestrians because they are riding unmotorized vehicles. Yet for some reason they allowed to ride on HWY 101, dangerous mountain grades where there are no shoulders, ride across a street. etc. They are hazardous. They in no way deserve the same consideration as motorcyclists. Sorry, no sympathy to them in mass.........but......on the other hand..........
in general, cops are bad news. And this one , sorry to say, is typical of what's out there in my opinion. The police force is nothing more than the SS of yesteryear revived.

I wonder why they are called PIGS?

reply to post by Karlhungis


The problem with this, as I still stand by the men and women who chose this dangerous line of work to mostly protect and serve the people, is that it makes one wonder how many reports filed by crooked cops are BS. If this wouldn't have been caught on tape this cop would have gotten away with this assault.

I haven't read many of the posts yet so I am searching for the person that is going to defend this act. I know there will be someone. There always is. Unfortunately, there is ZERO defense for this cop. Stripped of his badge and gun is the least of his problems as far as I am concerned. He should be removed from the force completely and charged with felony assault and falsifying of public testimony. Isn't a report filed by a police officer subject to some kind of law if that testimony is falsified? I mean, above and beyond someone lying. It's a cop that is pretty much forging an official document to try and destroy a completely innocent mans life.

Pathetic and extremely sad.

Originally posted by jasonjnelson
reply to post by slicely

 

THats funny. You ignored my point. Nice edit there.

How about the fact that the cop did not call halt, or stop.
Hell, they had to give frosty that warning, why not the cyclist.

And notice that the charges you assume are not mentioned by that cop. ust bogus ones.

Now what do you have?

What I have is an argument against your assumptions.

yes I assume that the cyclist was provoking before he comes on frame. I make that assumption with logic - because none of the other cyclists drew this reaction from either cop. Suddenly, they both draw a bead on him. You can SEE that on the video.

And how do you know that the cop didn't yell at him or warn him to stop? Want to provide me with some audio that proves your point? That's what I thought.

Again, my point - the cop is in the wrong. how many times do I have to say I am not defending the cop? What I am saying is that the Crictical Massers often have little defense themselves.

Blah. Its useless. I'm just trying you to see the WHOLE picture and obviously you are not interested.

reply to post by jasonjnelson


That is right. If you are insulted you do not have the right to knock someone off their feet. You have ever ability i am sure but not the right. If you are assaulted, you have ever right to defend yourself with the same amount of force that has been given to you, however; the difference between a police officer and a citizen on the street is simple and clear.. and explains why officers are given the duty and charge to uphold and detain those who are seen in possible violation of the law.

The simple explanation of why you cannot do what the officer did is thusly... when something bad happens.. maybe something that could hurt you or others.. you MUST run away from that and get yourself to a safe location... a police officer.. must run to that danger to protect the people on the streets. It is the same reason why police as well as fire departments can go right ahead.. smash your car up to bits because it is in their way during a situation. And honestly.. which is very scary.. anyone can become a police officer. ( as we see in the video) so if you really want to know what rights you have and don't have as a police officer.. seek employment.. go train.. spend time in the class room and when you get out and get your badge and gun.. understand that you are charged to protect and serve the masses and if that means remove one person, with force or with the word please, from a group of dozens that fly by you on bikes.. so be it. If this biker was causing the issues as stated on the police report, he could be charged with anything from obstructing traffic to reckless endangerment/driving. If this situation took place within two cars.. the officer may have P.I.T the driver of said "car" which is much more violent and dangerous to the officer, suspect, and people around them, to stop and end the situation. ( i do doubt NYC cops learn how to do the P I T.. not many car chases)

As for the cops body language someone noted before. A police officer, in preparation for a stop or an arrest will not do anything to make himself a bigger target. His audible commands are enough.. even if the person is deaf. One of the only times an officer should be using hand signals is to direct traffic.. or if they are being used as a school crossing guard. The image of the cop standing with his feet shoulders apart.. with their hand in the air and a whistle in his mouth.. is false. The officer had total control of the situation, kept a low profile to avoid as much danger to himself as possible ( the officer was actually a greater physical risk than the rider) Some say the officer could have just stopped the rider by standing in front of him.. like a road block... NO.. if the officer was knocked off balance and his weapon fell to the ground and was now in public sight and view to take.. that would have been a whole new can of worms.

I saw this video eventually , I saw the cop move to intercept then body check the cyclist, but the thing I can't understand is why?
Maybe as the camera panned round and the cop turned round to look at the oncoming flow of bikes he noticed that the cyclist did something he shouldn't have?
I know the cyclists over here in the UK (especially this morning ) they do stupid things like run red lights as if they don't mean anything, even riding across traffic coming from a side road, even though the cars have right of way. Many a time I've nearly been knocked over by a cyclist and many a time in the past a cyclist has knocked over a pedestrian and injured and even killed them.
A car is always at fault if he hits a cyclist, even if the cyclist pulled across the cars path. Cyclists go round each other without looking over their shoulders to the see if the coast is clear to do so.
So with regards to this cop, maybe he was having a bad day and decided just to take his frustration out on an innocent. or Maybe he saw something the camera didn't , Maybe the cyclist hit a pedestrian and didn't stop?
We'll never know unless more footage comes to light or another witness comes forward. I reserve judgement until all the evidence is on show.

In most states in the USA, if you are on the road with any form of transportation, you must follow the same rules and laws as you would if you were in a car. Obviously, it is easier to bend or break those laws on a bike, and I will say that 89 times out of 100 if a bike rider is witnessed not upholding his/her self to those laws they might get a "hey! dont do that" from a cop. But in situations like a flash mom like protest... nope.. you are going down to funky town.

I was riding a bike in Los Angeles and an officer told me I was not supposed to ride in that area. He could have told me nicely but he yelled at me and seemed very angry. If I had showed any defiance I'm sure I would have been body slammed also. I think the cops just need to be more tolerant.

I agree. Police officers, unless in a situation that really has to have a point made.. should not be yelling at people. It bothers me more than the DMV when I see an officer at a traffic stop or another event that i cant really go into.. not only yelling at the citizen.. for doing something as simple as getting their paper work too soon. ( please only get your paper work when the officer asks for it.. if he/she thinks you are getting a gun you will be out on the ground in no time flat and i am sure we will be posting about you next!) but trying to totally scare the citizen.

There are times and its usually with new drivers, that officers will make the traffic stop as annoying and freaky as possible ( within the limits of the law) so maybe.. just maybe.. that driver will think twice about going 85 in a 55. But 99 times out of 100.. a cop will adapt to your energy. if you are clam, cool and collective.. the cop will only be a jerk.. if you are acting like you have done something wrong.. looking like you are expecting the cop to be shady.. you are going to get Major A$$ Hole

But in my line of work.. maybe its a bit different. I do not really deal with the people that much.. i am out and about but.. we do not associate with anyone... we just sorta float along.. .. but when i do deal with people.. its always.. from me mind you... yes sir.. no sir.. very good sir.. have a great day ma'am, my you look nice today .. did you lose weight....oh let me get that for you... and if something is strange... yup.. they are on the floor in seconds flat... sadly.. you cannot teach someone how to be nice.. and I think most of the cops i see today are hanging up their cuffs.. gelling up their hair and putting on their wife beater T shirt and going to act like they are some sort of Gotti family member at some pointless club.

In the end.. you are who you are by the time you are 5

[edit on 30-7-2008 by ThirtySecond]

reply to post by ThirtySecond


I'm sorry but your arguments lack a TON of ummph here my friend. You have to look at what the officer reported. He reported that the biker then AIMED his bike at him and tried to ride him down causing him (the cop) to be knocked off balance and cutting his arm.

Where do you see this biker swerving to HIT the officer and where to you see the officer falling to the ground and cutting his arm?

The other argument about the weapon is moot. You are assuming that the massed crowd around them are all thugs and will pick the weapon up and use it on him.

Someone also mentioned that both cops seemed to pinpoint the biker and start to move towards him. Sorry, that doesn't appear to happen either. The second officer is simply looking downline like they both were the majority of the time. The abuser then picks this guy out of the crowd and makes the move to forcefully knock him off his bike.

You are making excuses for the ignorant brutality of this one officer.

Now, before you start to assume that I am against cops in general, forget that line of thought. I respect the police force. I know that the good majority of them are decent people that truly respect the job that they have in protecting the communities that they work and usually live in.

This guy deserves to be arrested and put in jail for assault. Period.

Nothing is going to happen to the rookie cop. After all his dad is a retired detective and police take care of their own.

Please read my past posts and you will see that I actually said that the report was false on that aspect. And if your attention to detail is as good as it seems.. i have no ability to trust your views when it comes to what you saw or did not see the two officers do when they began to move to the area that riders projected path.



It is not moot it is what the officer is trained to do. You cannot assume for one moment that you are in an area that is safe to leave a gun laying around. If you have a problem with how police officers are trained, then please take it up with your town, state or local governments.. rather than posting on this website.

I make no excuses for police brutality, I do however support and explain how some or most police departments train their officers to help protect themselves and the citizens at large.

Good! Please be sure to give to your local PBA and continue to support them. I don't care if you do or you do not support you police.. but you are right.. most are just good men and women looking to make a buck to ( as bush says) "put food on their family"

Who are you to judge a situation at which you know less than 20% of what happened. The officer is clearly incorrect when it comes to how the suspect was "stopped" but you know nothing of what happened before. Your quick blame of guilt and sanction is no better than any of the things that people on this website are fighting against.

reply to post by groingrinder


Not too sure about that. Though I will say that if the officer only wrote exactly how he took down the suspect on his report about, he would be fine because the charges listed in the report allow the officer to make such actions... however, the human nature to lie to protect yourself is going to hurt him in this profession.

In my opinion, this episode is a screaming example of the mass idiocy that
is rampant in our "society"...and it's tenfold anywhere the population is large.

The cyclists are a bunch of morons who apparently have nothing better to do than
assert their "rights to the road", as they see fit. It all started in San Francisco. Big surprise, eh?

The cop is a hot headed thug who doesn't have the self-control and judgement
that is needed in that line of work. He should be fired asap.

Yep....I call stupidity all around on this one.

reply to post by lw2525


I was watching the beginning of Morning Joe this morning on MSNBC and Mika started reading news stories.
She got halfway through the first sentence of this story and Joe stopped her cold.
She seemed miffed and Joe said, "We will talk about that later".
I do not know if they ever did because I did not watch the whole thing.

www.liveleak.com...

just a little bit of Critical Mass taken from liveleak but the videos are from their own websites

[edit on 30-7-2008 by ThirtySecond]