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Cop handcuffs on-duty firefighter for not moving truck

dolphinocean

dolphinocean

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As he was being handcuffed on the side of the 805 Freeway near Orange County, the firefighter, 12-year veteran Jacob Gregoire, told reporters who had gathered, "I just want to let you all know he’s arresting me."

Later, according to CBS News 8, Gregoire told the arresting officer, whose name has not been released, "It’s unbelievable you guys have to treat us like this. We are trying to help you guys."

The officer replied, "We asked you to clear the road, you said ‘No.’ You are being arrested for not moving."

Gregoire was reportedly detained in the back of a highway patrol car for several minutes before being released. He was not charged.


Chula Vista Fire Chief Dave Hanneman told CBS, "To detain one of our firefighters in the middle of an incident is ridiculous."

In a statement, Hanneman praised the firefighters for doing what they were trained to do — protecting the scene of an accident with their trucks.
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Another case of bad cop letting personal pride get in the way of official duty. This cop handcuffed and arrested one of the firefighters on scene of car accident while they were treating car crash victims. The cop asked the firefighter to move the firetruck and he firefighter refused because it was put there as protection against another potential accident coming their way.
 
The fire department has the right of way and can leave the truck where it is.

How can the officer possibly justify this action?
 
Well I can imagine a case where a fire dept officer chooses to ignore the need to re open the road with his need for another long break, but since I don't know the circumstances in this case who knows, but fire dept personnel and equipment are not above the law.

Mason66 said:
The fire department has the right of way and can leave the truck where it is.

How can the officer possibly justify this action?
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CalGun said:
Well I can imagine a case where a fire dept officer chooses to ignore the need to re open the road with his need for another long break, but since I don't know the circumstances in this case who knows, but fire dept personnel and equipment are not above the law.
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They are if they are working on a scene.
 
CalGun said:
Well I can imagine a case where a fire dept officer chooses to ignore the need to re open the road with his need for another long break, but since I don't know the circumstances in this case who knows, but fire dept personnel and equipment are not above the law.
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True, and you would agree that even in a case where the police officer is viewing the circumstances one way (public safety / highway obstruction) and the fire fighter or paramedic is viewing the event with more interest in tending to a victim (no matter how much traffic is impacted), I still don't see the need for a police officer to arrest a firefighter over the difference of opinion. Unless the firefighter is actually doing something criminal, I don't see how the cop doesn't come off as seeming unreasonable?
 
Personally, I can see how both individuals handled this situation improperly. Doesn't sound to me like there was much desire for communication nor any mutual respect for the job each was tasked with doing. At every scene like this, there is a supervisor from both disciplines and they simply needed to coordinate how the situation was going to be handled.
 
CalGun said:
Well I can imagine a case where a fire dept officer chooses to ignore the need to re open the road with his need for another long break, but since I don't know the circumstances in this case who knows, but fire dept personnel and equipment are not above the law.
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The circumstances are clearly outlined in the article and video. The fire fighters used thier fire truck to block some lanes so that they could help those that were injured along the side of the road. As they were helping the injured people the cop asked one of the fire fighters to move the truck. The fire fighter refused. The cop handcuffed him and put him in the back of the cop car. It is also standard protocol for the fire department to use their vehicles to block lanes. The statement in the video even says that this (the blocking of the road/lanes with fire trucks) will continue to happen.

So yes...in this instance and in any other instance where there is an accident in/on any road the fire department is above the law and may block road with their vehicles. This is actually quite common all across the US and in every single town that I have ever been in. And i've lived in a LOT of towns across the US, from coast to coast.
 
CanadaJohn said:
Personally, I can see how both individuals handled this situation improperly. Doesn't sound to me like there was much desire for communication nor any mutual respect for the job each was tasked with doing. At every scene like this, there is a supervisor from both disciplines and they simply needed to coordinate how the situation was going to be handled.
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In a emergency response situation it is usually the police who take the roll of supporting the emergency responders. In a hot "crime in process" call where the fire department may also be called out, the emergency responders need to heed what the police officers on scene judge to be the situation on the ground.

All of this should just come down to common sense, but we all know there is not much of that around anymore.
 
And in that instance the cops is wrong. I'm merely saying there could be an instance where the fire dept is wrong and the cops need to act.

Kal'Stang said:
The circumstances are clearly outlined in the article and video. The fire fighters used thier fire truck to block some lanes so that they could help those that were injured along the side of the road. As they were helping the injured people the cop asked one of the fire fighters to move the truck. The fire fighter refused. The cop handcuffed him and put him in the back of the cop car. It is also standard protocol for the fire department to use their vehicles to block lanes. The statement in the video even says that this (the blocking of the road/lanes with fire trucks) will continue to happen.

So yes...in this instance and in any other instance where there is an accident in/on any road the fire department is above the law and may block road with their vehicles. This is actually quite common all across the US and in every single town that I have ever been in. And i've lived in a LOT of towns across the US, from coast to coast.
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I would most certainly agree the police not interfere with proper fire dept duties. I just happen to have witnessed a case where the fire dept was too busy gathering a girls phone number and social status to open a road way and the officer was later chastised for not taking the necessary steps for moving them on.....**** happens.

Del Zeppnile said:
True, and you would agree that even in a case where the police officer is viewing the circumstances one way (public safety / highway obstruction) and the fire fighter or paramedic is viewing the event with more interest in tending to a victim (no matter how much traffic is impacted), I still don't see the need for a police officer to arrest a firefighter over the difference of opinion. Unless the firefighter is actually doing something criminal, I don't see how the cop doesn't come off as seeming unreasonable?
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Del Zeppnile said:
True, and you would agree that even in a case where the police officer is viewing the circumstances one way (public safety / highway obstruction) and the fire fighter or paramedic is viewing the event with more interest in tending to a victim (no matter how much traffic is impacted), I still don't see the need for a police officer to arrest a firefighter over the difference of opinion. Unless the firefighter is actually doing something criminal, I don't see how the cop doesn't come off as seeming unreasonable?
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I don't see the fire department helping the police department much after an incident like this.

It is in the best interest of the police department to stay on the good side of the fire department.
 
So much for that "to serve and protect" motto.
 
CanadaJohn said:
Personally, I can see how both individuals handled this situation improperly. Doesn't sound to me like there was much desire for communication nor any mutual respect for the job each was tasked with doing. At every scene like this, there is a supervisor from both disciplines and they simply needed to coordinate how the situation was going to be handled.
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In this scenario, the FD outranks everyone.
 
Mason66 said:
I don't see the fire department helping the police department much after an incident like this.

It is in the best interest of the police department to stay on the good side of the fire department.
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I agree with that.
 
Mason66 said:
The fire department has the right of way and can leave the truck where it is.

How can the officer possibly justify this action?
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No, not in all circumstances. It wasn't a fire response scene. The scene was controlled by the police. He refused an order from the agency that had control of the scene. They probably wouldn't normally have arrested him, but he looked like he wasn't going to budge.
 
apdst said:
In this scenario, the FD outranks everyone.
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No so at all. It was a traffic accident, paramedics already had the victims, the police (CHP) are traffic.
 
clownboy said:
No so at all. It was a traffic accident, paramedics already had the victims, the police (CHP) are traffic.
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If the FD is still working the scene, they own it, until they release it to the cops.
 
apdst said:
If the FD is still working the scene, they own it, until they release it to the cops.
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As much as it kills me to say it, apdst is right here. First response has control of the scene unless it's a crime scene. DWI can be exceptions, but that's usually rare.
 
Kobie said:
As much as it kills me to say it, apdst is right here. First response has control of the scene unless it's a crime scene. DWI can be exceptions, but that's usually rare.
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Why does it kill you to say it? If you think I'm right, then you go with it. Just because you're wrong all the time, it shouldn't be that hard. ;)
 
apdst said:
Why does it kill you to say it? If you think I'm right, then you go with it. Just because you're wrong all the time, it shouldn't be that hard. ;)
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It kills me to say it because I don't like you. However, when you're right, you're right, and I know enough FD, FR and cops to know that you're right. Kudos. Relish it. ;)
 
Kobie said:
It kills me to say it because I don't like you. However, when you're right, you're right, and I know enough FD, FR and cops to know that you're right. Kudos. Relish it. ;)
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You people let your emotions get in your own way; it's why you're wrong all the time. You don't even ****ing know me!
 
apdst said:
You people let your emotions get in your own way; it's why you're wrong all the time. You don't even ****ing know me!
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Well no, I don't know YOU per se, but I know the persona you project on the internet, I've seen it a million times here and elsewhere, and I'm not a fan. But way to take me giving you credit for being right and turning into yet another opportunity to hurl insults at me. I should have known better. Lesson learned.
 
Until police officers get fired for these kinds of abuses, they will never stop happening. It seems like police are the ones that rare ever face real consequences for breaking the rules.

Arresting a firefighter for doing their job is insane. If anyone else in society obstructed a firefighter they would go to jail.
 
dolphinocean said:
Yahoo!



Another case of bad cop letting personal pride get in the way of official duty. This cop handcuffed and arrested one of the firefighters on scene of car accident while they were treating car crash victims. The cop asked the firefighter to move the firetruck and he firefighter refused because it was put there as protection against another potential accident coming their way.
Click to expand...

Firefighters are trained to park the truck that way to give protection to the ambulances, victims and personnel on the scene. I mean a car going at a high rate of speed wouldn't do much to a fire truck in a collision but it could certainly destroy an ambulance.

Once again we have another idiot cop..... Not shocked considering many police agences only accept potential applicants with IQ's between 90 and 120 (that is fact)...
 
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