Cops Behaving Badly

I saw this just a while ago and was outraged.Talk about media stupidity.Woman tries to outrun the cops twice and she is painted as the victim,WTF?


The title of the story should be,
Media stupidity.Cops suspended,criminal painted as victim.

ABC News: Cop Suspended After Arresting Woman Speeding to Father Having a Heart Attack
A Tampa, Fla., police officer who chased down a woman trying to reach her sick father is being criticized for abusing his authority during a simple traffic stop.

Deputy Sheriff Kevin Stabins said he clocked Melissa Langston going 63 miles per hour in a 35 mile per hour zone. Her destination was the hospital where her father was being treated for a heart attack.
On a police videotape of the incident, Langston can be seen saying to Stabins, "I'm in a big hurry. My father's having a heart attack. Can I please get there?"

Unmoved by her argument, Stabins decided to check her driver's license. When he did, Langston drove off.

snip..

As the officer approached a second time, Langston's car appeared to Stabins to pull away again.

snip..

Stabins was suspended for five days. All charges against Langston were dropped.

I've seen this video and both were wrong. She shouldn't have been speeding and she shouldn't have driven off twice. But the cop had no reason to yank her out of the car and slam her hard against the trunk. He should've just slapped the clinkers on her and took her to the station.

In this case, both were idiots.

I hope this woman's male kin deer rifle this turd.

Cops need to learn to properly fear their masters.

Voidwar said:

I hope this woman's male kin deer rifle this turd.

Cops need to learn to properly fear their masters.

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Dude, wtf?!?!?! :shock:

jamesrage said:

I saw this just a while ago and was outraged.Talk about media stupidity.Woman tries to outrun the cops twice and she is painted as the victim,WTF?


The title of the story should be,
Media stupidity.Cops suspended,criminal painted as victim.

ABC News: Cop Suspended After Arresting Woman Speeding to Father Having a Heart Attack
A Tampa, Fla., police officer who chased down a woman trying to reach her sick father is being criticized for abusing his authority during a simple traffic stop.

Deputy Sheriff Kevin Stabins said he clocked Melissa Langston going 63 miles per hour in a 35 mile per hour zone. Her destination was the hospital where her father was being treated for a heart attack.
On a police videotape of the incident, Langston can be seen saying to Stabins, "I'm in a big hurry. My father's having a heart attack. Can I please get there?"

Unmoved by her argument, Stabins decided to check her driver's license. When he did, Langston drove off.

snip..

As the officer approached a second time, Langston's car appeared to Stabins to pull away again.

snip..

Stabins was suspended for five days. All charges against Langston were dropped.

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So do you never think that cops are in the wrong or are capable of abusing their power? It sounds to me like this cop needed his ego massaged and she desperately wanted to reach her father so she . I think most people would probably do the same thing that she did.

Donkey1499 said:

I've seen this video and both were wrong. She shouldn't have been speeding and she shouldn't have driven off twice. But the cop had no reason to yank her out of the car and slam her hard against the trunk. He should've just slapped the clinkers on her and took her to the station.

In this case, both were idiots.

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He more than she. He should have volunteered to get her to the emergency room and then made sure her story checked and at most given her a verbal warning her fathers medical condition was no excuse for endangering others. When he slammed her against the car he was REALLY out of line.

Donkey1499 said:

Dude, wtf?!?!?! :shock:

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You don't think I'm kidding do you ?

Heres a cop aiding and abetting a criminal tresspass. . .

http://http://www.break.com/index/sheriff-allows-illegal-trespass2b.html

When the cops won't arrest a tresspasser while they witness it, this citizen feels helpless and powerless. The citizen should have shot both of these tresspassers. If I was on his Jury , he would walk. Sorry fat cop, should have read up on the law you waddle around pretending to enforce.

Stinger said:

He more than she. He should have volunteered to get her to the emergency room and then made sure her story checked and at most given her a verbal warning her fathers medical condition was no excuse for endangering others. When he slammed her against the car he was REALLY out of line.

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Shoulda, coulda, woulda; but he didn't. Maybe he was in a bad mood. Doing almost double the speed limit would piss me off too. But she still had no right to flee from him. He should be permanently suspended (at least) and she should face a hefty fine or jail time. The law is the law and they both broke it. It's only fair to prosecute both of them.

Voidwar said:

You don't think I'm kidding do you ?

Heres a cop aiding and abetting a criminal tresspass. . .

http://http://www.break.com/index/sheriff-allows-illegal-trespass2b.html

When the cops won't arrest a tresspasser while they witness it, this citizen feels helpless and powerless. The citizen should have shot both of these tresspassers. If I was on his Jury , he would walk. Sorry fat cop, should have read up on the law you waddle around pretending to enforce.

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So cops should be murdered because of a couple bad ones? What ever happened to due process and the right to a jury and fair trial?

Donkey1499 said:

So cops should be murdered because of a couple bad ones? What ever happened to due process and the right to a jury and fair trial?

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Murdered is not the same as killed while illegally trespassing.

DUE PROCESS involves a court order.

Here's another cop who should be deer rifled by the kin of his female vicitim. . .

http://http://my.break.com/media/view.aspx?ContentID=255296

Donkey1499 said:

Shoulda, coulda, woulda; but he didn't. Maybe he was in a bad mood. Doing almost double the speed limit would piss me off too. But she still had no right to flee from him. He should be permanently suspended (at least) and she should face a hefty fine or jail time. The law is the law and they both broke it. It's only fair to prosecute both of them.

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She has already been released with all charges dropped. He got his suspension. My son-in-law is a deputy sheriff, I'm going to ask him what the department procedure is.

Oh and yes she pulled into the parking lot, she did not flee. Wrong on her part, but she was not "fleeing". The second time was when the cop was trying to pull her out of the vehicle and her foot slipped off the gas.

Stinger said:

She has already been released with all charges dropped. He got his suspension. My son-in-law is a deputy sheriff, I'm going to ask him what the department procedure is.

Oh and yes she pulled into the parking lot, she did not flee. Wrong on her part, but she was not "fleeing". The second time was when the cop was trying to pull her out of the vehicle and her foot slipped off the gas.

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I didn't see that part. I only saw the video of the cop slamming her against the car. But regardless of that she still went double the speed limit, which could have put herself and the public in danger. She should be fined for that.

My mother got fined for "speeding" in a school zone. She was going 18 in a 15...... $500 fine I think it was

Donkey1499 said:

I didn't see that part. I only saw the video of the cop slamming her against the car.

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She was stopped just outside of the hospital parking lot, when he went back to his car to slowwwwwllly write her a ticket, while her father was possibly dying in the building next to them. For all she knew this could be the last opportunity for her to see him.

But regardless of that she still went double the speed limit,

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Yes she did 60 in a 30.

which could have put herself and the public in danger. She should be fined for that.

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I think a warning under the circumstances.

My mother got fined for "speeding" in a school zone. She was going 18 in a 15...... $500 fine I think it was

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Was she rushing to your deathbed?

The police are there to "serve" also. The cop was totally out of line, geez they were right there at the hospital and she told him her father was in there with a heart attack, all he had to do was use a little common sense, check out her story but let her get to his beside. Then he could have figured out what he wanted to do. And I bet if he had just ticketed her and she had gone to court it would have been dismissed. Extenuating circumstances.

If your child was drowning at the end of the pier and you went running out there to save him and a policeman standing there yelled out "no running on the pier" what would you do, what do you think the policeman should do?

dclxvinoise said:

So do you never think that cops are in the wrong or are capable of abusing their power?

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There are few bad apples out there.

It sounds to me like this cop needed his ego massaged and she desperately wanted to reach her father so she .

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She tried to evade the police twice and attempted to resist arrest.That cop should be commended not suspended.That woman should be charged and punished accordingly.

The cop behaved like an arsehole. He got his suspension. He needs to learn from it.

Voidwar said:

I hope this woman's male kin deer rifle this turd.

Cops need to learn to properly fear their masters.
______________________________________________

You don't think I'm kidding do you ?

Heres a cop aiding and abetting a criminal tresspass. . .

http://http://www.break.com/index/sh...respass2b.html

When the cops won't arrest a tresspasser while they witness it, this citizen feels helpless and powerless. The citizen should have shot both of these tresspassers. If I was on his Jury , he would walk. Sorry fat cop, should have read up on the law you waddle around pretending to enforce.

________________________________________________

Murdered is not the same as killed while illegally trespassing.

DUE PROCESS involves a court order.

Here's another cop who should be deer rifled by the kin of his female vicitim. . .

http://http://my.break.com/media/vie...ntentID=255296

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I change my mind...this guy gets a full two thumbs up for "Asshat of the Year." You have no ****ing earthly clue as to what you are talking about. Any property owner or cop who shoots a person for trespassing has just committed murder. Study your subject matter you bonehead. There is case law to back this up.

You are a very poor example of human life. I fear for your family and those unfortunate enough to live near you. I can't imagine anyone claiming you as a friend. Your comments are disturbing and offensive that I would actually pay to this forum to have you IP banned if it were an option.

But I digress....

I have been a cop for almost 13 years and I am a Lieutenant in charge of internal affairs. The cop was suffering from his ego getting hurt, not much more. Don't focus on just the fact that she was speeding and drove off from him. You have to look at the totality of that encounter. Yes she broke the law, twice. If her story was indeed true then her actions, while not legal, are somewhat understandable. The officer should be intelligent and reasonable enough to understand that what he was doing was certainly standard procedure but not necessarily called for at that point. It was a traffic violation. Physical force was not required in this case. Cops have discretion in how they enforce the law in most cases. Traffic violations are one of those cases. This cop was legally justified in his decision to arrest this woman, but it was a very poor decision to do so. I do believe a warning would have sufficed and a ticket would have been the worst I could have thought of. I personally would have never written her a ticket. I would had her follow me to the hospital but I would not have run emergency. My purpose would have been that she get there safely and not endanger other motorists or pedestrians in her travel. She was obviously (and justifiably) upset about her father.

Cops too often forget what our role in society is. There are times when we are required to adjust our conduct to deal with a particular person or situation. I think everyone can reasonably agree with that. But during our everyday interaction with the public we have a responsibility to be professional and courteous. Why? Because it is imperative that law enforcement officers maintain the trust and confidence of those they are charged to serve and protect. I can't tell you how hard it is to do my job when I am forced to deal with a citizen who has been unfairly treated by another officer. It is a test of patience at the least. They don't trust me and believe I am no better than the offending cop.

The average citizen has very few encounters with the police. So when they do have a bad one it is very easy to why it can be so traumatic and radically alter their perception of all other officers. Ideas of the "thin blue line" crop up, a feeling of powerlessness and fear take over when you see those lights. You feel you have been truly victimized by those charged with protecting the victims. Conversely, cops deal with the public on a daily basis. For the most part cops are very knowledgeable of the law and their job duties. So when they are confronted day in and day out by ignorant citizens who believe they know the law better than the cops...say somebody like Voidwar...it starts to wear on them. They are only human. Further cops spend a good portion of their time dealing with offenders who already hold little regard for the law or those enforcing it as well as a small section of victims who are less than honest and attempt to take advantage of them. All of sudden it's much harder to differentiate between the different categories of citizen. You stop trusting people and before long you find yourself questioning some victims almost as hard as you question suspects. You get baseless complaints and guys like me haul you in and grill YOU the cop like a criminal, all in the name of ensuring that the citizens concerns are addressed. Now it starts to become "us against them" with them being everybody that isn't a cop.

I always find it interesting when I meet new recruits. I interview them all and put them through a class in their FTO phase. I can tell there are really two distinct categories that new recruits fall into. The "true believers" who really want to help, that want to stand in the breach and protect the public. And there are the "*** kickers and name takers" who are completely mesmerized by the fact that they finally get to wear a badge and carry a gun. THEY are now the law. These are the guys I will be dealing with in the near future. I always put notes in their personnel file as a matter of due diligence. My boss worries that I am setting the office up for a future liability. I simply tell them "then maybe we should rethink what assignment we give this guy." Usually I make sure the FTO's pay special attention to these guys demeanor. We can usually hammer that **** out of them. Some do slip through and before long the public has been subjected to their true character. We try to handle it accordingly...sometimes it's too late.

Anyway, if this guy had come before me he would have gotten no less. Suspension and use of force training to say the least.

JeffMerriman said:

I have been a cop for almost 13 years and I am a Lieutenant in charge of internal affairs.

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dirty cop got caught with his hand in the till ? hmmm? :mrgreen:
that is how they recruit into IA, is it not?

JeffMerriman said:

If her story was indeed true then her actions, while not legal, are somewhat understandable. The officer should be intelligent and reasonable enough to understand that what he was doing was certainly standard procedure but not necessarily called for at that point. It was a traffic violation.

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From what I see on the video they are AT THE HOSPITAL when he pulls her over. Then he takes his sweat time with here while she knows her father is in there possibly DYING. When she "evades" him again, as some are calling it, she turns right into the parking lot. And then when he trys to get her out of the car it is obviously still in drive as he is telling to put it in park and then he pulls her out.

Why he didn't tell her to just pull in and park it and then go in and check her story is beyond me. He could have then advised her she had violated the speed limit and at most given her a warning. Geez her father was having a heart attack!!!

Police are to protect and serve.

DeeJayH said:

dirty cop got caught with his hand in the till ? hmmm? :mrgreen:
that is how they recruit into IA, is it not?

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Lol...no not hardly. Only the largest cities have what are typically thought of as "rat squads." I got internal affairs for two reasons: 1) I spent several years as a detective and detective commander with a spotless reputation for ethical conduct and fairness, and 2) I inherited it when I took over administrative support.

About five years ago I helped take down my own Sheriff and three captains for corruption. If that tells you anything.

Stinger said:

From what I see on the video they are AT THE HOSPITAL when he pulls her over. Then he takes his sweat time with here while she knows her father is in there possibly DYING. When she "evades" him again, as some are calling it, she turns right into the parking lot. And then when he trys to get her out of the car it is obviously still in drive as he is telling to put it in park and then he pulls her out.

Why he didn't tell her to just pull in and park it and then go in and check her story is beyond me. He could have then advised her she had violated the speed limit and at most given her a warning. Geez her father was having a heart attack!!!

Police are to protect and serve.

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I agree. Officers have discretion for a reason. His response to the situation was not called for. I will be the first to defend an officer actions when they are justified, even if to the general public it looks extreme. This is not one of those situations.

JeffMerriman said:

You have no ****ing earthly clue as to what you are talking about.

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I have a different opinion than you. This does not mean I do not know what I am talking about. I am talking about this . . .

Amendment IV
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

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JeffMerriman said:

Any property owner or cop who shoots a person for trespassing has just committed murder.

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They get shot for resisting, isn't that how you cops put it ?

JeffMerriman said:

Study your subject matter you bonehead. There is case law to back this up.

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Ya gonna quote me probable cause ? Or "In Plain sight", or "Open Fields" ?
Go ahead, I'll tell you every one of those is just a codeword used when cops and prosecutors want to ignore an American's Fourth Amendment rights.

JeffMerriman said:

You are a very poor example of human life. I fear for your family and those unfortunate enough to live near you. I can't imagine anyone claiming you as a friend.

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You don't know a damn thing about me, which makes you factually ignorant.

The above, is you braying this ignorance.

JeffMerriman said:

Your comments are disturbing and offensive that I would actually pay to this forum to have you IP banned if it were an option.

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Can't stand my insistance on my First Amendment right to free speech either eh ?

JeffMerriman said:

So when they are confronted day in and day out by ignorant citizens who believe they know the law better than the cops...say somebody like Voidwar...it starts to wear on them.

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Your problems with me stem from my comments on the trespass video, and not the speeding video. I do know the law.

Amendment IV
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

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The citizen insisted on a search warrant.
If she was in the right, she would have gotten a search warrant easily.

Deputy Cooper bullied that citizen, using his gun and badge to intimidate the citizen into allowing the criminal trespass and warrantless search. This citizen had a right to physically prevent this criminal trespass. Deputy Cooper was there to deter the citizen from exercising that right via the threat of badged physical force. He brought a gun, but he didn't bring a search warrant. She resorted to the force first, by bringing this thug to intimidate the citizen, rather than convincing a judge to issue a warrant as she is legally required to do.

Cops these days think they are the only legitimate wielders of force, and they are wrong. The citizen is within his rights to defend his fourth amendment rights by force.

Donkey1499 said:

Shoulda, coulda, woulda; but he didn't. Maybe he was in a bad mood. Doing almost double the speed limit would piss me off too. But she still had no right to flee from him. He should be permanently suspended (at least) and she should face a hefty fine or jail time. The law is the law and they both broke it. It's only fair to prosecute both of them.

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Getting pissed off was the problem. He was unprofessional and didn't care to assess the situation properly, and he let his anger take over. If he can't control that, he is a bad cop.

I heard on O'Reilly that she is not going to sue. So they better hold their breath at the Tampa PD and keep their fines to themselves.

I think the reason a lot of people are bothered about this is because the woman is white and attractive. But the cop was still using poor judgement, and she didn't deserve the manhandling.

A cop inforces the law.What you sayin her dads heart attack was made worse some how? was she the doctor operating on him?

Voidwar - on your trespass example. I believe that Florida and Texas have amended their self-defence laws but even in those states shooting a mere trespasser is still going to end in a conviction for murder.

Diuretic said:

Voidwar - on your trespass example. I believe that Florida and Texas have amended their self-defence laws but even in those states shooting a mere trespasser is still going to end in a conviction for murder.

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Were not talking about a mere trespasser.

She was a repeated trespasser who had escalated the situation by bringing an accomplice with a gun.

She brought force into the situation, rather than convince a judge to issue a search warrant, she came back with a bully.