Police Brutality?

[uptownliving]

WCNC recently ran a story about a guy that is suing CMPD for Police Brutality. The Police now have the video on their website that you can view.

I viewed the entire video and am not sure this is Police Brutality, but there is a definate escalation point where the guy gets the crap beat out of him because he won't put his hands behind his back. He was charged with DWI, Driving While License Revoked and Resisting an Officer. This same guy has since been arrested for Assault on a Female, 2 Hit and Runs, 2 times for License Revoked, and Assault with a Deadly Weapon.

View Video

My personal dealings with CMPD have all been positive...working with them while being charged (speeding ticket) as well as reporting crime and their response.

Curious to know what others feelings are on CMPD.

[monsoon]

I've posted here before about my own personal experiences with the police in regards to being harrased because they presumed I was Gay and wanted to make a point.

It is my opinion however this is probably a subset of the police and they do have a difficult job given the alarming and rising crime rate in Charlotte and a judicial system that doesn't dole out the appropriate punishment in many cases.

[Neo]

I watched this video probably a couple of weeks ago when it was first put on the county's website. The guy certainly didn't feel compelled to assist the police and if someone being questioned/arrested by police doesn't cooperate I'm all for the police doing what they need to apprehend the person.

I think people think too much about this type of thing when it happens. What other option did the police have? I don't see brutality in this video but I do see the police being stern in their handling of the uncooperative suspect which is completely justified IMO.

[voyager12]

I think the CMPD can be overly aggressive towards groups that they perceive to be "extremist" or on the fringe. I participated in the last Charlotte Action Center for Justice Protest on Halloween. There were only about eight of us standing on the corner of South&East in front of the Shell station that evening. We all stayed on the sidewalk holding our signs. A CMPD officer came by said that if any of us stepped one toe into the road we would all be arrested because that would constitute a "disturbance" None of us were planning on playing in traffic. I also think that considering their overreaction to our protest on the Square in Uptown they would have taken a more friendly and cooperative approach. They don't seem to be very open to working with organizations in the community that may not fit Charlotte's conservative mold and instead confront and harass us constantly.

[Southernyank]

Get On The Ground Stupid!!! was that cop spanking that guy? "Put-your-hands-be-hind-your-back." no that wasnt brutality... that jerk deserved the spanking.

[rnc]

I think the police in that clip were incredibly patient. It was 11 minutes into it before they even pulled him out of the car. With how unpredictable and uncooperative he was acting, he's lucky he didn't get shot.

[SmellyCat]

I have had to deal with the CMPD on several occasions for crimes I have been a victim of and have found them to be quite cooperative. I think cops get a bad rap in just about every city I've lived in. Sure, there are a few bad apples, but aren't there just about anywhere? I think singling out a few as being representive of the entire force is unfair stereotyping.

[monsoon]

It seems to me that we had a post here earlier in the year where the police beat up some protesters. The forumers though they were not right in doing this.

[dubone]

At every point of escalation, they seemed to radio it in, and be upfront about the fact that they were escalating. It is clear to all of us what could have been done to avoid it. They were not asking him to do anything more than get out of the car, then putting his hands behind him, then getting on the ground.

Civil societies need police, and police must have the option to use force when the civilians are disobedient and potentially dangerous. This guy was clearly on drugs or something that made it impossible for him to comprehend the situation. That meant it was very likely that he could do something to harm others, and the force by the police were justified.

If he was drunk or high and driving, he could have killed someone. Should the police have just let him go when he wasn't agreeing to be arrested? No, they had to do whatever they could to get him under arrest.

People need to accept the consequences of their dangerous behavior. If you're going to get yourself so intoxicated that you can't follow police instructions, then you should recognize that you might get hurt.