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posted by n1 on Tuesday May 19 2015, @12:55AM   Printer-friendly
from the officers-to-be-given-social-media-training dept.

Creative Loafing Atlanta reports:

Baton Bob, Atlanta's self-proclaimed ambassador of mirth, lost some of his joy on June 26, 2013. Dressed in his finest wedding dress, the well-known street performer's celebratory routine following the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to end the federal gay marriage ban was cut short when an off-duty Atlanta Police officer arrested him after what was initially described as an alleged "verbal altercation."

But Baton Bob — real name Bob Jamerson — later claimed the arrest violated his constitutional rights, so he filed a lawsuit against the city. Nearly two years after the incident, officials are offering a $20,000 settlement for Baton Bob's troubles. The Atlanta City Council's Public Safety Committee will take up the settlement this afternoon.

In February, Jamerson filed a federal lawsuit against the city, arguing that officers made a wrongful arrest that violated, well, nearly every constitutional right you can name. Those included Jamerson's "right to free speech, his right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures, his right to remain silent while in custody, his right to be free from compelled speech, his right to counsel, and his right to privacy."

[...] Lt. Jeffrey Cantin, who was on duty with APD that day, emailed APD Public Affairs to work their "media magic with this case," according to the lawsuit. The filing says APD's internal investigators later discovered that Cantin proceeded to tell Jamerson to "post something positive" on his Baton Bob Facebook page. According to the lawsuit, APD officers told the performer that doing so was the only way he would be released from custody on a "signature bond."

 
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  • (Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday May 19 2015, @04:33AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday May 19 2015, @04:33AM (#184925)

    "post something positive" on his Baton Bob Facebook page. According to the lawsuit, APD officers told the performer that doing so was the only way he would be released from custody

    Just giving up some money is not enough. Think about what would happen to someone that was not a police officer doing this, then double it. That would be more appropriate.

    Handcuffing someone, stuffing them in a car, stripsearching them, then throwing them in a cage and tell them the only way they will ever be let out is to post something positive about the experience on facebook so the person that did it would not get in trouble. No. If it were a normal citizen they would be looking at many years in prison. The police officer that did this and the police officers that chose to not uphold the law through not arresting him for doing it should get the same punishment doubled for doing it under color of law. The local prosecutor that failed in their public trust by letting known criminals go unpunished should be in line shortly afterwards.

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