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Cop pulls a gun on a Yamaha jetboat owner!!??

I think that all of us understand why cops carry guns and how they enter situations unknowing of what may lay ahead. They just want to go home at the end of the day alive...and should. We all wouldn't want their job and probably couldn't do it if we tried. Cops have one of the hardest and risky occupations along with our men and women in service. I respect every LEO and military personnel as they are putting their life in danger for the good of society but they too have rules. I don't think one forum member here has a different view.

The problem I have with what we saw in the video is not the gun pull. An officer who feels threatened has every right to begin to protect himself. The issues I see are the antagonizing language used by the officer AND most importantly the LEO did not state any reason for his stopping and then just wonders off. It truly appears to be a harassment visit. I get that LEO's have to do this to move bad elements out of neighborhoods and gather intell, etc.

Like I said before, there's more details in this case we don't know but I can't see how any new detail could make the LEO's behavior acceptable.
 
The issues I see are the antagonizing language used by the officer AND most importantly the LEO did not state any reason for his stopping and then just wonders off. It truly appears to be a harassment visit. I get that LEO's have to do this to move bad elements out of neighborhoods and gather intell, etc.

Like I said before, there's more details in this case we don't know but I can't see how any new detail could make the LEO's behavior acceptable.

Thank you Murph! I appreciate your thoughts and agree with you 100% that some of the comments the Officer made were antagonistic and unprofessional, and for that he should get written up. He did not handle himself or the situation well at all and he behaved poorly. Here's the BUT, lol Joe Citizen was less than totally cooperative and acting erratically. The key is to maintain your composure and remain professional even when the other guy is being an ass. It sounds like the guy is a "frequent flyer" (he admitted it himself). The cop would have been smarter to drive on by. Unless he was there for a legit reason like one of the neighbors calling in a complaint that he was actually responding to. We can speculate all night about why he was there. I too am concerned about why the Officer did not see it through. He called for a back up unit and then just re-holstered and left! WTF? He should have said why he was there. He could have said, "Hey buddy, why are you taping me?" Nothing wrong with that. I can ask. No one says you have to answer or that I have to like your answer. If someone gives me a good enough reason (I hope he had one) to use constructive force, and doesn't comply with simple commands during our interaction, we are definitely having a conversation when my backup arrives. I would calmly and professionally explain to him that he was behaving in a manner that made me feel uncomfortable and to fear for my safety. I've done it plenty of times. I would also politely suggest that if in the future a Police Officer asks him to take is hands out of his pockets, stand still, stand over here (in a safe location), etc., he should do so to avoid any unnecessary escalation of the situation. If the guy has a chip on his shoulder, or a hard-on for the local cops, and baited the cop into a confrontation, shame on him. If he did and the cop fell for it, shame on the cop. If Joe Citizen has a legitimate gripe he can contact the Department I.A. Division, County Prosecutor I.A. or I.A. at the State level. "This is going all over Youtube!" Was that his hope from the beginning? If so the cop granted his wish. And believe me, cops who draw lawsuits are NOT looked on favorably by the Department or local government. Sad part is, he'll never be vindicated if he was in the right because the insurance fund will settle, Joe Citizen will get paid, and the cops name will be Mudd for the rest of his career, if he doesn't just quit or retire. Darren Wilson was totally cleared of any wrongdoing and his life was ruined. What it truly appears to be is a total lack of respect for the Police and for himself. Who is this guy gonna call when he's really in trouble or God forbid one of his kids needs help? He'll call the Police, and I promise you, they'll respond and they'll help...and he'll say they did it wrong.
P.S. It does not appear from the photos I've seen that the SUV the Officer was driving is equipped with a video camera, or that he was wearing a body camera...definitely time for Rohnert Park PD to invest in some.
 
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No offense to anyone and their opinions, I appreciate the different points of view whether I agree or not. With that being said...I'm getting back to boating and why I frequent this forum...and leaving this thread behind.
 
For anyone interested. Here is another story/follow up story on a similar incident with the same police department and a different perpetrator/ victim (depends on your point of view). This one has me all confused, it seems like your screwed whether you show your hands or not. It seems like the safest thing to do is not answer the door if the cops come knocking in rohnert park.

http://wn.ktvu.com/clip/11791488/2-...nd-incident-with-rohnert-park-police-officers
 
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For anyone interested. Here is another story/follow up story on a similar incident with the same police department and a different perpetrator/ victim (depends on your point of view). This one has me all confused, it seems like your screwed whether you show your hands or not. It seems like the safest thing to do is not answer the door if the cops come knocking in rohnert park.

http://wn.ktvu.com/clip/11791488/2-...nd-incident-with-rohnert-park-police-officers

uh huh....

Facebook, see what happens? :rolleyes:
 
Ever had an angry teenager screem at you like she was possessed because you were taking away her cell phone? I really don't think this department (not all police departments) are corrupt but something more damning like just stupid! Remember the Peter Principle? Well after that interview with the Top Cop ...
 
They can't hold the 911 recording. A public info request will need to be turned in to get the call recording. There's no ongoing investigation so it should be released ASAP.

Call most likely came from a throw a way phone--untraceable.
 
I just saw a follow-up story on this on ktvu fox news (ktvu.com) . I'd prefer to post a link to it but there isn't one yet. Here are the highlights:

The media interviewed the "victim" if you will.

They tried to interview the officer involved, his manager and the mayor of the city, all resulted in the same response, "No comment".

The city's independent investigator found that the officer involved "acted reasonably".

The officer involved is no longer on paid leave, he transferred to the city's fire department in August.

The firemen in this department are allowed to carry service weapons, when asked if the officer involved carries a weapon as a fireman the response was, "no comment".

The officer's report was released and there were many inconsistencies (from my perspective lies) in it when compared to what was captured on video. When the city officials were asked about it the response was, "no comment".

The victim's lawyer accused the police department of retaliating against the victim because of incidents related to the victim's son.

A lawsuit against the city and possibly against the officer was filed this week, maybe today.

I will post a link to the news story if/when it is available but on a personal note, I know this guy and don't like to refer to him as a victim but having met him just three years ago and boating with him a little over a year ago he looks, sounds and just seems a lot different now , and not in a good way, for having had the experience. Before the "he deserved it" comments start, consider that but for the Grace of God or just bad luck that he could be anyone of us, hooking our boats up in front of our homes. Did the victim deserve it? Did the officer act reasonably? Did the police department or city? I don't think so.
 
Thanks for the update Ronnie. I hope he has competent council to dig through the mud in this case.
 
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