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In a US federal civil rights lawsuit, a Connecticut man has shared footage to bolster his claims that police illegally confronted the pedestrian because he was filming one of them. Authorities seized Michael Picard's camera and his permitted pistol, and the officers involved then accidentally recorded themselves allegedly fabricating charges against the man.
Picard's police encounter began as he was protesting a sobriety checkpoint while lawfully carrying a handgun in a holster. The plaintiff often protests near sobriety checkpoints in the Hartford region and is known by locals and police in the area, according to court documents. "Cops Ahead: Keep Calm and Remain Silent," read the 3-foot-by-2-foot sign Picard held up to motorists ahead of the checkpoint in West Hartford last year.
-- submitted from IRC
(Score: 4, Insightful) by DannyB on Thursday September 22 2016, @08:30PM
Did you read? This guy was peaceful. Law enforcement acted like d***s. And then fabricated charges. And if not caught would have been happy to commit perjury in court. Who exactly are the bad guys here? The cops.
The lower I set my standards the more accomplishments I have.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by TheGratefulNet on Thursday September 22 2016, @08:35PM
there's even a known term for when cops lie in court:
testi-lying.
sad. so sad. are we a banana republic? seems we are jealous of other shithole countries where this is assumed to be SOP.
there was a recent news article about a judge ruling it was OK for black folks to run from cops, especially if they are not breaking any laws. the reasoning is: encounters with cops can end your life and we, now, all pretty much recognize this. you used to be told to avoid talking to them, but, shit, I'd avoid even being NEAR them, at this point. I'm a white guy but I'd probably 'run from cops' if I saw them nearby. they are loose canons and if you say the wrong thing, even innocently, you could end up in a world of hurt. not worth it.
don't talk to cops and, now, don't even risk being NEAR them.
what HAS the USA come to? dammit. this is not the country I was raised in; I don't recognize my home anymore. its like someone swapped out our good principles while we were all sleeping.
"It is now safe to switch off your computer."
(Score: 5, Insightful) by bob_super on Thursday September 22 2016, @08:44PM
> this is not the country I was raised in
Yes it is. But your eyes are a bit more open.
There's a very long list of facts to corroborate that these things didn't start yesterday.
> I don't recognize my home anymore
Understandable, since the crude spotlight makes things look very different from the pink filter that was (and still is for many) the norm.
> its like someone swapped out our good principles while we were all sleeping.
Don't worry, hollywood will soon get back to KoolAid mode.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by The Mighty Buzzard on Thursday September 22 2016, @08:50PM
You're mostly right but it is getting worse.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 22 2016, @10:02PM
> You're mostly right but it is getting worse.
No. Its getting better. In large part due to the spotlight.
You only think its getting worse because it used to always be in the shadows and no one took the accusations seriously.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by The Mighty Buzzard on Thursday September 22 2016, @10:57PM
Interesting but wrong. Shining a light on corruption used to make the rats scurry for cover. Now we have the most corrupt politician to ever run for president on the ballot, taking out witnesses against her wholesale and people are still going to vote for her even though they know this. They don't even have to hide the corruption anymore because they genuinely believe there's fuck all we can do about it.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 23 2016, @05:33PM
Trump is killing people? You'd think that would be making the daily news cycle!
(Score: -1, Offtopic) by Francis on Friday September 23 2016, @01:11AM
I'm sorry, but I'm with Buzzie on this one. Just look at Clinton. They caught her read handed taking huge amounts of money from private parties for "speeches' and she refuses to disclose the substance of any of those speeches. WTF can she possibly be saying that's worth seven figures? If it's a speech that's so brilliant that it justifies that sort of a price tag, then she should release it for us all to marvel at.
Not to mention that she avoided being prosecuted for mishandling classified materials any normal person handling it in that kind of inept way would have been indicted at the very least. The fact that they didn't even try to get an indictment speaks volumes about the corruption. She's fundraised for all sorts of politicians and now she's above the law.
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 23 2016, @03:10AM
I see the Clintrolls are out again today. She can suck my cock.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 23 2016, @09:16AM
I'm sorry, but that's Monica's job.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 23 2016, @04:25PM
> this is not the country I was raised in
Yes it is. But your eyes are a bit more open.
There's a very long list of facts to corroborate that these things didn't start yesterday.
> I don't recognize my home anymore
Understandable, since the crude spotlight makes things look very different from the pink filter that was (and still is for many) the norm.
> its like someone swapped out our good principles while we were all sleeping.
Don't worry, hollywood will soon get back to KoolAid mode.
I know it makes you feel good and smug to have been right all along (I'm guilty of that, including in this post), but this kind of patronizing tone does nothing to help, and drives people away. This person is reflecting upon new facts and this is an opinion changing opportunity. If you talk down to them, insult them, or generally offend them they'll just turn away.
Rather than just dismissing them as things "everybody knows [xkcd.com]," it's better to give them more information. You can talk about how the various US agencies monitored Muhammad Ali, Martin Luther King Jr., and numerous others [wikipedia.org]; or the murders of the Mississippi civil rights workers [wikipedia.org]; or the practice of parallel construction [wikipedia.org]; or the practice of asset forfeiture [wikipedia.org]. You can even give examples, such as how the SWAT team killed the dog of the mayor of a city [wikipedia.org], or the numerous police killings [theguardian.com] in the US.
If you give actual examples of things the person didn't know in a neutral way, you are more likely enlighten them to what they had previously been ignorant of... you may even "convert" them such that they can help in the future.
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Friday September 23 2016, @04:45PM
> I know it makes you feel good and smug to have been right all along
No, it makes me angry that people who have had all the world's information at their fingertips for well over a decade are still falling for basic "our system is the best/strongest/bravest, the other are jealous retarded idiots" blinders-on worldviews. And I'm not just talking about an excessively vocal minority of a specific country.
So many humans are dumb and selfish, yours truly included, that it's amazing we ever get to know about toxic clouds shimmering in the sun on Titan.
Point taken on educating rather than mocking. Have a +1.
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Friday September 23 2016, @01:54PM
testi-lying
That is what is occurring when police are giving their sworn testi-phony.
The lower I set my standards the more accomplishments I have.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 22 2016, @09:45PM
The cops are doing exactly what they're supposed to -- the fault lies with the legislators who pass such a ludicrous assortment of catch-all "crimes" so that anyone can be charged with *something*.
There isn't anything *wrong* in what Picard was doing, but there were things that were unlawful. You pretty much can't exist without being in violation of something. *That's* the root problem.
(Score: 1) by Francis on Friday September 23 2016, @01:03AM
Absolutely and combine that with the practice of piling on whole lists of crimes that could possibly be applicable to force a plea bargain and I'm not even sure how that represents justice.
If you make the list long enough, chances are you'll be able to convince the jury that the defendant is guilty of at least one of the crimes they're being charged with. The fact that an Alford plea is even a thing speaks volumes about how little they care about justice in the legal system.