Man Faces Jail for YouTube Video of State Trooper

[blackdimonds]

Welcome to the new Socialist Republic of Obamastan!

Trooper is lucky he didn't pull that crap in my state, as a huge number of us have carry permits. He would have been dropped like a bad girlfriend by most here. No id before weapon comes out and moved into an offensive position! WTF? Where do they train these "state troopers", night watchmen school?

All I can say is shame on the trooper, shame on the state and shame on the federal government for allowing this sort of thing. As far as I can understand here, Mr. Graber is not wanted for a felony, and was not in the act of committing one either, so why a felony type stop? And then the "wiretapping" charges are just a slap in the face of all Americans.

 

[DarkBlue21]

I think the cop should be fined for illegal front tints.

 

[Hupiscratch]

What I saw in the video is that although speeding, he didn´t seemed much faster than anyone on that highway. He overtakes the cars at a very slow rate to be overspeeding. What´s the limit there?

 

[jeffk464]

Ok where is the ACLU, one time I would be happy to see them and they are MIA. Is this case about to go to trial, or already in court? If not I say we start a fund, to hire a top notch legal team to defend this one.

 

[mrmike_49]

The ACLU needs to jump this with both feet! Sue the h#ll out of the Maryland police force who raided this guys home and arrested him. That is just blatant intimidation, and police who try it need to get slapped down in court!

 

[mrmike_49]

[citation][nom]blurr91[/nom]I hope the state trooper gets nailed to the wall. I hate thugs who abuse power by hiding behind their government employment.[/citation]
I doubt it was the same trooper that went later and arrested the guy and raided his house - it's the whole police force

 

[drutort]

i dont know if others have said it... but look at all the cars around... this supposed cop traumatised a lot of other civilians and can u imagine sitting in a car and see some random guy run out of a car with a gun at that bike, and u prob think this guy is going to rob/kill and i/we could be next...

he is so lucky no other civilian had a gun and could have shot him dead, as they would not have heard him say that last line from within a vehicle... no ID at all nothing is very bad...

nobody takes things verbally, he could have said i am your father im whatever fill in the blank without any kind of id this is BS

 

[jeffk464]

By the Rorick, with the video evidence of the guy running up to him with a gun, I think it would be ruled a justified shooting. He would have been legitimately in fear for his life up until the point where the cop identified himself. If the motorcyclist did shoot the cop and there was no video evidence my guess is he would get a needle in his arm. It would be assumed that the cop identified himself. By the way if I had a gun and someone approached me like that I would probably have tried to get a shot off.

 

[maestintaolius]

[citation][nom]jeffk464[/nom]Ok where is the ACLU, one time I would be happy to see them and they are MIA. Is this case about to go to trial, or already in court? If not I say we start a fund, to hire a top notch legal team to defend this one.[/citation]
The ACLU is involved, as I said in my earlier comment, they are taking up this man's cause and providing counsel.

 

[jeffk464]

I read the attorney generals opinion and it sounds like the ACLU is involved and that the attorney general is on the public's side. If the DA does not drop this case he is going to end up looking like a fool, just like the DA in the Lacrosse case looked.

 

[thearm]

I thought that was going to be a big deal. That was nothing.

 

[CoryInJapan]

Its times like these that make me want to move from america to canada.

 

[fulle]

Recently, not over a year ago, there was a person who was impersonating an officer who would car jack people, hold them at gun point, and then sexually assault them (there were both male and female victims).

 

[fyasko]

wow, we are all screwed. google transit cops in san diego and other major cities, these cops are out of control.

 

[fyasko]

[citation][nom]blackdimonds[/nom]Welcome to the new Socialist United States of Obama![/citation]

we've(citizens) been dicked over by cops since reagan bub.

 

[Guest]

this is more detailed:
http/www.youtube.com/watch?v=QNcDGqzAB30&NR=1

 

[Guest]

the cop never points the gun at the guy on the bike.

yes he should have identified himself 2 seconds earlier, but he's only human and it's a fairly inconsequential mistake.

also, there was a marked police car right behind the bike.

cops probably are a little jumpy around high-speed motorcycles because of stuff like this:

http/www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Hyui0GVYLM

the stop itself is no big deal. it's not the perfect traffic stop but you have to give the police a little leeway since they're taking all the risks.

the outrageous part is the wiretapping charge, which is rightly being thrown out. the guy who made the stop IS probably a huge asshole and i bet he pushed for the charge in a pathetic bid to deflect some of the backlash over his performance in the video.

anyway, to the people saying america is a dictatorship and we don't have rights: open your eyes please.

to all the people saying cops suck; yes a lot of them do, but it's nice to have them around every now and then.

 

[Guest]

Welcome to the new Socialist Republic of Obamastan ???

Obama was highly critical of an incident where police excesses led to someone being dragged out of their own home for trespassing. While I can't read Obama's mind, I suspect he would agree with most here that the trooper was out of line.

The fact that this incident happened, and that the motor cyclist could have also had a weapon and a gun battle may have broken out on the spot is made worse in that it isn't that shocking of an occurrence in the US. In my opinion I think the large mistake was that the trooper did not show proof of identity, which still could have been forged. Is it unreasonable to assume that someone who showed such disregard for the law and the safety of other drivers might possibly be carrying a weapon? After car chases shown on television, it is common to see weapons drawn before a suspect is in custody. Perhaps this officer showed bad judgment with excessive aggression and poor procedure, but in the US it's not unreasonable to assume someone being stopped under these conditions may pose a significant risk.

Beyond the bad behavior of the motor cyclist and the trooper, the worst part is the subsequent confiscation. The idea that electronic documentation of a public interaction is somehow considered illegal poses a major threat to civil rights. Such control could be extended to the news media to limit dissemination of information. While both the cyclist and the trooper deserve legal scrutiny, the one who authorized the search and seizure of the cyclist's private property should be held accountable for their decisions with possible severe penalties. Fortunately no one was hurt in the original incident, which unfortunately can't be said for our rights from government intrusion in the aftermath.

 

[cp8427]

Another reason why we need a complete overhaul of all levels of government.

 

[ern88]

This is an iffy one. I think pulling the gun was wrong. What he should have done was pulled his Badge out and flashed that instead of his 9mm. But there is no denying that the biker was breaking the law. Both should get a slap on the ass in public and set free lol.