Now, getting out of your car during a traffic stop is never a good idea unless ordered to do so. That however doesn’t excuse that cops behavior and the way he made up the law as he went along.
This guy and officer Roid-Rage would get along great.
State Sponsored Criminal #508: Andy Cox
Because an officer of the law can just make it up as he goes along and in the end qualified immunity will protect him even if grossly negligent in his understanding.
h/t Uncle
TMM is the owner, editor, and principal author at The Minuteman, a competitive shooter, and staff member for Boomershoot. Even in his free time he’s merging his love and knowledge of computers and technology with his love of firearms.
Many know his private name and information however due to the current political climate, many are distancing themselves due to the abandonment of Due Process.
Two observations- I stopped carrying my wallet in my back pocket when I started carrying regularly, and I always keep my hands nice and visible. Neither of these things excuse an officer screaming “or I will shoot you in the f&%#ing back” of course.
I carry my wallet in my back pocket because its much more comfortable for me. While driving though it gets removed from the back pocket and put in a cup holder.
This officers behavior is over the top and it seems like it’s encouraged.
I should specify, when I started OPEN carrying regularly. That being said, yes. This is absolutely ludicrous and unprofessional, not to mention illegal. If ignorance of the law is no excuse, how much more when you are sworn to uphold it? For the officer to advise this guy he will shoot him in the back while his hands are on the car- he would certainly be in the wrong to do so, hence I certainly see him being in the wrong to offer that service.
Over the top is right! “I’ll shoot you in the back!” WTF is that!!!
Unfortunately, this cop made nothing up. In FL if you accidentally expose your firearm you are breaking the law. This is not the first case, neither will it be the last. Until FL either passes an open carry, or Constitutional carry law.
I should add, there is no duty to inform in FL.
Actually, that’s wrong.
http://dailycaller.com/2011/06/20/florida-decriminalizes-unintended-displays-of-concealed-weapons/
You act as if 1) cops know a damned thing about law, and 2) they give a shit. Cops need no reason, nor probable cause to arrest anyone for anything.
No, I understand EXACTLY how cops are. You made an erroneous statement: “Unfortunately, this cop made nothing up. In FL if you accidentally expose your firearm you are breaking the law.”
I was just letting you know that what you said isn’t what the law says.
And I admitted I had forgotten about the change, but so evidently have the pigs, or ignored it more likely. Be sure to remind the pigs while you are chastising me. Cops are above the law, and can arrest you for merely not liking the way you look. They are the ones doing damage to people, physically, financially, and legally.
See Matafilm’s link. The issue is the “incidental” viewing at the start ends up at the cops “discretion”.
That said, no jury would actually convict because there is nothing reasonable about calling that anything other than incidental viewing.
The bottom line was the cop did in fact pull the old law because he was too stupid to know the current law and then threatened to shoot someone in the back over it.
Do you really want to go to bat for this officer?
I’m not going to bat for anyone. I live in FL, and have heard many instances of people being arrested, and convicted for exactly what occurred in the video. And it continues despite the law change. We have a A.G. who is, even as we speak trying to railroad an open carrier. Cops don’t know/care about the law, and I don’t know about where you live, but here, if you are arrested, The few trials that go to juries, get convictions 98% of the time. All the others they threaten you with life in prison for an eighth of weed, so you plead to several years. Because the judges openly display their bias by threatening to make sure you go away for life, despite the law. The legal (no justice to it) system is so broken, and corrupt they could likely get a conviction for unlawful open carry, of a person never having held a firearm. Regardless of facts. Because of pervasive stupidity, and unfounded trust in the corrupt cops, arrest = guilt in their minds. And if this moron of a cop had shot this guy in the back, and killed him, nothing would come of it. He might have gotten a week or two paid vacation as a reward, but that’s it.
So as you just pointed out. The cop didn’t know the law but at the beginning you said he didn’t make any of it up. Which is it?
If you are dealing with officers who don’t know or care about the law, you need to drive them and their superiors out of a job.
If you got a conviction for open carry of someone who never held a firearm, that’s a failure of the jury. Your jury is the last line of defense, they are trying the law and the person. If your jury calls that law and that application of the law “reasonable” your state is fucked. Period. It means your society is too stupid to properly perform their civic duty.
I find that so far over the top I honestly want a link of an example. Many people are deathly afraid, and they should be, but often they’re scared into a plea. It’s cheaper for the state.
I still have no idea whether or not this pig knew the law, or if he knows it yet. We have no ability to do anything about our police force, they get hired on condition of stupidity, and blind obedience. And yes, this state is completely fucked. Primarily from yankees, and Cubans fleeing their homes, coming here, and demanding we turn FL into the shitholes they left.
Here’s the link to a story about our A.G. railroading a concealed license holder. http://www.examiner.com/article/florida-attorney-general-pam-bondi-fights-against-gun-rights
As for the rest, I have nothing linkable. Just personal experience from having been in court rooms many times, and seeing many judges threaten many defendants with life only to get them to plead out to 4, or 5 years.
I know, the plural of anecdote is not data, but that’s what I got. Much personal experience with corrupt, useless, stupid, dangerous cops, and criminally biased, corrupt judges. If I could afford to get the hell out of this state, they could kiss my ass.
Judge and prosecutors were threatening me with extensive sentences when I had my accident. I educated myself and refused to blink. As I said at the end, the legal system operates on fear. The judge and prosecutor want to get you to cave because that’s what works out best for them.
You’re not presenting me with anything I don’t already know, from better first hand experience than most.
Either way, the pig threatened someone, against the law, and was threatening force beyond a reasonable level for the situation. He’s a state sponsored criminal no matter how you cut it. Your first comment appears to attempt to justify the cop by claiming he acted lawfully. He did no such thing, what you have is people attempting to twist the spirit of the law. Either get a good attorney if you want to stay there, leave, or get a better law passed.
Work on fixing the system, don’t accept it, draw as much attention to it as you can. Attempting to write this officer off by saying:
Does nothing but allow them to continue getting away with their corruption. Accidental exposure is legally protected however the legal system is attempting to disregard “The spirit of the law”. Anyone can read the text of that law and watch that video and it is “accidental viewing”. If you cannot escape charges given your laws and that evidence, might I suggest a rail, tar and feathers. Because that time has come. Either that or get a decent lawyer.
“Your first comment appears to attempt to justify the cop” I never have, never will even consider defending any cop. I needed to be reminded that they passed a law to protect concealed carriers from momentary/accidentally exposing their firearm. From the numbers of arrests, and convictions, so do the police, and courts, including our A.G. This state is too far gone for me to do a damn thing about. Millionaires can afford the lawyers required to beat the system, I can’t. Luckily to this point, I have not needed one. My brother on the other hand, had one, and he is nearing the end of his bullshit, illegal, and unjust 4 year prison sentence. My brother’s was not a case that involved firearms, or any unlawful action for that matter. But it did involve a lying “witness”, corrupt police, bogus warrants, and a biased judge.
The thing that strikes me after the cops bizarre behaviour, is how the guy being cuffed and stuffed -never- stops talking. OMG people, if you’re being detained (let alone arrested) it’s “shut up” time. wow… all IMO obviously.
Most people don’t know that they should just their mouth. I answer yes or no and provide the bare minimum.
Outside of the internet 😉 constantly yammering on at the mouth is rude, take a breath. In addition to that, this has been making the rounds for years; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8z7NC5sgik before that the ACLU bust card http://www.aclu.org/files/assets/bustcard_eng_20100630.pdf Rights are not just for bad guys. If you have any friends who haven’t seen both, please forward.