Arrested for trying to get into one's own home

[Flyndaran]

...

Quoteing me on the wrong subject, I was responding directly to BJ with that, not the original article.e.

Okay. I'll take that.

...
Well then we better go over your fathers record with a fine toothed comb to make sure, not giving the benefit of the doubt and all and I'm so glad we have you here what with your first hand knowledge of the situation and all to let us know that what the police did was illegally harass antagonize and arrest someone they didn't like.

Go ahead. He was the only one not on the take, when an entire city's department was indicted.
The cops got caught in an outright lie, so I won't consider anything they say without major proof as true.
When bashing reputations, I will take an upstanding minority to that of a cop as equal. In cases in which the cops' story makes little sense, then I reserve the right to take their story with a grain of salt.

[crazylegs]

As long as middle in this case means 90+ percent for the professor, then I'm ok.

Do you remember the recent case of the 72y/o who was tasered? The 72y/o who went to the press portraying herself as the mild, meek little old lady who golly gosh wouldn't ever do anything to get arrested?

Do you then remember the video that came out, and her subsequent silence to the same media that she went crying to?

I'm not saying this is exactly the same, but what I am saying is that we weren't there, we didn't witness it and we don't know exactly what happened. Without the full facts and all the evidence before us it's virtually impossible to come to a proper conclusion as to who acted correctly in this incident.

[Peppergirl]

What's that old saying? Something like, "There's three sides to every story. His, hers and then the TRUTH."

I think that's probably what's happening here. Seems like neither side acted entirely appropriately, and is each 'spinning' their particular side to garner sympathy and support.

[BroomJockey]

b) debating the actions and critcizing are 2 different things.

That's some damned fine hair splitting, especially since any position taken to the negative of their actions will involve criticizing them.

[crazylegs]

That's some damned fine hair splitting, especially since any position taken to the negative of their actions will involve criticizing them.

I'd disagree on that point, critising would be to say "They're rubbish and shouln't have done it; and debating is asking "Why did they do that?"

A subtle difference, but one none the less.

[Arcade Man D]

Being put in handcuffs or other restraints is not being arrested.

Try actually reading the article before you say stuff.

Gates, 58, was handcuffed and booked last Thursday following a police investigation into a suspected burglary at his Ware Street home near Harvard Square.

Emphasis mine.

Professor Gates was not "just cuffed". He was arrested. For trying to enter his own home, asking for the badge number and name of the plainclothes that arrested him (which an officer is required to give when asked), and then being justifiably upset with an officer who would not follow that protocol.

[BroomJockey]

A subtle difference, but one none the less.

Ah, wrong type of criticism. I default to "constructive" when talking about it. I understand, and still think the original statement dumb.

[crazylegs]

Try actually reading the article before you say stuff.

Don't know how it works in the US, but in the UK during a pre arrest search an officer can handcuff you if they believe you will attempt escape or are in fear of violence. However once the search is completed the cuffs come off and you're free to go (assuming that nothing is found that is!)

Ah, wrong type of criticism. I default to "constructive" when talking about it. I understand, and still think the original statement dumb.

Ah, having worked with the public for so long I've forgotten that some people can give constructive criticism!

[MystyGlyttyr]

If you don't want the cops to be mean to you, don't be mean to them. Granted, you still have the odds of getting the raging asshole cop who's going to wail on you no matter what, but as in any walk of life, polite mostly gets polite. Despite how it seems sometimes, douchebags are the minority.

If the policeman acted improperly, well, that sucks, but you don't exactly make a case for yourself by acting like a spastic freak over it. If the guy were calmly stating his case, a lot more people would believe him and be on his side.

Just in my case, I have a MASSIVE fear of police cars, coupled with Asperger's which means that my emotions can be...unpredictable...and every time I've interacted with police, I've never lost my cool beyond the point of shivering and crying. And one time, the officer was nice enough to go back to his car and turn off his lights (which might even be against the rules, I'm not sure) because that made it less scary for me.

And yes, all that includes a run-in with the dickhead officer who snarled and was mean and made me feel like dirt. But I stayed polite because he didn't need anything else to be a dickhead about and eventually he went away when it seemed he couldn't get the reaction he wanted-AKA typical bully.

I know a lot of people hate the thought of having to be nice with someone who's potentially got power over them and doing something they don't like, but hey, that's life. Just peek back over at CS.com.

[Nyoibo]

Try actually reading the article before you say stuff.

Again, responding to a specific post, not the article, read before you say stuff.

[Dreamstalker]

No one said that this jet lagged professor was berserking like psycho. That is dangerously close to libel.

Agreed. There was a photo taken where it was said he was "yelling", but the truth of that will never be known. I personally don't think he was as "psycho" as the article commentors make him out to be. I'd be peeved too, y'know? Just because someone has their mouth open in a photo doesn't mean they were screaming.

My grandfather always struck me as one of the best state troopers around (polite, respectful, but could he ever be firm when a situation warranted) . I know good cops and bad cops sometimes in the same town (luckily the bad ones here don't seem to last long). I support the force generally; if a member does something to warrant distaste, my beef is with the individual.

I still tend to be a bit shy around them (maybe it's the gun), but I was raised to always respect the police and be polite.

[Shangri-laschild]

They are beat cops not S.W.A.T. Beat cops job is to protect the innocent more than capture the guilty and definitely not to act like it's war and everyone is a potential enemy. That crap gets cops shot more than acting nice ever will.

That's not exactly true. Officers are trained to always be aware of their surroundings and while they shouldn't be automatically at everyone's throat as if they're the enemy, they should be prepared for someone turning out to be a danger to them. Not saying every officer does that or that every officer is pefect, but that's how they are trained. Also, that's not exactly how SWAT works, at least where I am. My best friend is an officer in the department I work in but is also on the County SWAT, which includes every city in the county except for one. Most of the calls are handled by the "beat cops", including the arrests and searches for criminals. SWAT is usually only called out when it's something really really big. Like I said, it may be different where you are, but the that would only go to show that it could also be different where this takes place as well.

Professor Gates was not "just cuffed". He was arrested. For trying to enter his own home, asking for the badge number and name of the plainclothes that arrested him (which an officer is required to give when asked), and then being justifiably upset with an officer who would not follow that protocol.

As has been said, we don't know all the facts. While he may have been very much in the right, it doesn't mean that things happened exactly how he said they did either.

[Flyndaran]

...
I know a lot of people hate the thought of having to be nice with someone who's potentially got power over them and doing something they don't like, but hey, that's life. Just peek back over at CS.com.

Being nice is not a legal requirement in the U.S. Free speech allows average citizens to say anything they want even if it's laden with profanity. A cop has to take such non-constructive criticism as part of their job. If they have such poor self-control or thin skin, then they shouldn't be a cop in the first place. A badge doens't magically make them better than us. They must earn our respect like everyone else.
Yes, it's probably most effective to be nice to the bad cops, but effective is not legally required. And the bad cops that push it should be brought up on charges or at least fired.

[BroomJockey]

Being nice is not a legal requirement in the U.S. Free speech allows average citizens to say anything they want even if it's laden with profanity.

You know, I'm just gonna say this: I'm sick and damned tired of that being used as an excuse. "I'm ALLOWED to be an asshole." Whoopdee fucking doo. Yeah, you can say anything you want. So how about the rest of society bucking up on their free speech and actually telling these people that their behaviour as a human being is unacceptable? How come I never see anyone saying that? It's always "Well, he can do that!" How about "He can, but he's an asshole for doing it, and should have known better?" Free speech is all well and good, but I wish people would stop using it as a pass on being fuckholes.

[Flyndaran]

You know, I'm just gonna say this: I'm sick and damned tired of that being used as an excuse. "I'm ALLOWED to be an asshole." Whoopdee fucking doo. Yeah, you can say anything you want. So how about the rest of society bucking up on their free speech and actually telling these people that their behaviour as a human being is unacceptable? How come I never see anyone saying that? It's always "Well, he can do that!" How about "He can, but he's an asshole for doing it, and should have known better?" Free speech is all well and good, but I wish people would stop using it as a pass on being fuckholes.

I'm not saying that other private citizens don't have the right to repspond to dicks with thier own dickery. I'm just saying that those in positions of power defending all citizens and not just the nice ones need to develop thicker skin. They aren't paid to waste time harrassing the overwhelming number of dicks in the world. They are paid to catch criminals.