utah taser incident

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did anyone really expect another outcome?

SALT LAKE CITY(AP) A Utah trooper who used a Taser to subdue a stubborn motorist who was walking away from him during a traffic stop felt threatened and acted reasonably, state officials said Friday.

Trooper Jon Gardner remains on leave, primarily for his safety, after numerous anonymous threats were made against him, said Supt. Lance Davenport of the Utah Highway Patrol.

Gardner twice zapped Jared Massey with a Taser when the driver walked away and refused to sign a speeding ticket on Sept. 14. The incident was recorded on Gardner's dashboard camera. Massey filed a public-records request and posted the video on YouTube, which said it has been viewed more than 1 million times.

"We found that Trooper Gardner's actions were lawful and reasonable under the circumstances," Davenport said at a news conference, joined by Scott Duncan, commissioner of the UHP's parent agency, the Utah Department of Public Safety.

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marine dad wrote:

"We found that Trooper Gardner's actions were lawful and reasonable under the circumstances," Davenport said at a news conference, joined by Scott Duncan, commissioner of the UHP's parent agency, the Utah Department of Public Safety.

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Bull. The cop did not take the high road. I listened to the vid 4 or 5 times and I never heard the cop say that the signing of the ticket was not admitting guilt. Normal proceedures is telling to person that the signing of the ticket is only for proof that the driver received the ticket. And it is not an admission of guilt.

Did the cop say that? I didn't hear it.

In my view it was not reasonable under the circumstances.

This is the kind of stuff that ticks off the public.

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Wwaaaaiiittt a second here. How can someone walking away from you be threatening?

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How'd the video get out so quickly?

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I saw this last night, that is a fine example of some power driven moron that is constantly on alert and looking for a reason to use force. I hope this idiot gets his ass sued off in court!!

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color of law wrote:

marine dad wrote:

"We found that Trooper Gardner's actions were lawful and reasonable under the circumstances," Davenport said at a news conference, joined by Scott Duncan, commissioner of the UHP's parent agency, the Utah Department of Public Safety.

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Bull. The cop did not take the high road. I listened to the vid 4 or 5 times and I never heard the cop say that the signing of the ticket was not admitting guilt. Normal proceedures is telling to person that the signing of the ticket is only for proof that the driver received the ticket. And it is not an admission of guilt.

Did the cop say that? I didn't hear it.

In my view it was not reasonable under the circumstances.

This is the kind of stuff that ticks off the public.

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I haven't seen the video.....anyone have a link?.....I'm NOT defending the LEO's actions but......in most states, signing the ticket may not mean that you're admitting guilt...but it does mean that you agree to answer to the charge/s made against you by either paying the fine or appearing in court.....when a "ticket" is written, you are in effect being charged with an offense and then being released on your signature...your own recognizance....your promise to answer, etc.
Again, in most states, the LEO can/will arrest you and take you to jail/before a magistrate if you do not sign.

Any of you LEOs correct me here if I'm "off"

I can't imagine a Taser being needed in a traffic stop unless someone was getting physical towards an officer....if the guy was just walking away, I think the cop should be charged with assault and be made to answer in the same court as any of us would........but we all know that just ain't gonna happen.

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Comp-tech wrote:

color of law wrote:

marine dad wrote:

"We found that Trooper Gardner's actions were lawful and reasonable under the circumstances," Davenport said at a news conference, joined by Scott Duncan, commissioner of the UHP's parent agency, the Utah Department of Public Safety.

Click to expand...

Bull. The cop did not take the high road. I listened to the vid 4 or 5 times and I never heard the cop say that the signing of the ticket was not admitting guilt. Normal proceedures is telling to person that the signing of the ticket is only for proof that the driver received the ticket. And it is not an admission of guilt.

Did the cop say that? I didn't hear it.

In my view it was not reasonable under the circumstances.

This is the kind of stuff that ticks off the public.

Click to expand...

I haven't seen the video.....anyone have a link?.....I'm NOT defending the LEO's actions but......in most states, signing the ticket may not mean that you're admitting guilt...but it does mean that you agree to answer to the charge/s made against you by either paying the fine or appearing in court.....when a "ticket" is written, you are in effect being charged with an offense and then being released on your signature...your own recognizance....your promise to answer, etc.
Again, in most states, the LEO can/will arrest you and take you to jail/before a magistrate if you do not sign.

Any of you LEOs correct me here if I'm "off"

I can't imagine a Taser being needed in a traffic stop unless someone was getting physical towards an officer....if the guy was just walking away, I think the cop should be charged with assault and be made to answer in the same court as any of us would........but we all know that just ain't gonna happen.

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The video is disturbing. I could not see any justification for using the taser. All charges against the motorist were dropped excl for speeding. You know that if it were even a close call they would have prosecuted. The really scary part is that the Utah staties said that the tasering (is that a word?) was justified.

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Comp-tech wrote:

I haven't seen the video.....anyone have a link?..

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It was on another thread in OCDO. Here is the thread:

http://opencarry.mywowbb.com/view_topic.php?id=6205&forum_id=65&highlight=utah+taser

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Thundar wrote:

Comp-tech wrote:

I haven't seen the video.....anyone have a link?..

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It was on another thread in OCDO. Here is the thread:

http://opencarry.mywowbb.com/view_topic.php?id=6205&forum_id=65&highlight=utah+taser

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Thanks for the link Thundar......

That SOB was wrong in his use of the taser in this instance and should be fired, charged with assault and banned from law enforcement.....this man has NO HONOR.....but we know this will never happen.
Crap like this is the very reason for all the resentment/distrust towards LEOs in general these days....what i can't understand is why the "good" LEOs that are left tolerate this type of behavior amongst their fellow officers and just accept the sterotype that is being forced onto all LEOs by their actions.

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Regardless of whether or not the officer acted appropriately with the taser, the attitude he displayed on the video is very unprofessional, and he certainly shouldn't be in any position of authority.

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I don't disagree with you Comp-tech. All I'm saying is I did not hear the swine explain anything to the guy.

Just do what I tell you to do. Don't you understand I'm the law and you don't have any constitutional rights.

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I wonder what would have happened if the guys wife had recently been to one of the these?
http://www.azcentral.com/community/scottsdale/articles/1115phx-taser1116.html

One of these days.....

LoveMyCountry

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This link has video on both recent incidents, and this guy speaks pretty bluntly.

http://freedominourtime.blogspot.com/2007/12/wasnt-suspense-terrific.html

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More brave protectors and servers who had no choice but to set this handcuffed unresisting woman up in the center of the room so they could zap her. Good thing, too, she was about to really annoy them with her voice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8b3Z1lbHpo

Notice how funny it is to see her yelp and hit her head on the chair.

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Unfortunately, it looks like soon we'll need a "True Tales of Electric Weapons Abuse" forum... right after the "True Tales of Property Defense" forum.

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kurtmax_0 wrote:

Wwaaaaiiittt a second here. How can someone walking away from you be threatening?

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76-2-404 Peace officer's use of deadly force.
WP Zipped -- 2,262 bytes -- Last Update 19-Apr-04
76-2-404. Peace officer's use of deadly force.
(1) A peace officer, or any person acting by his command in his aid and assistance, is justified in using deadly force when:
(a) the officer is acting in obedience to and in accordance with the judgment of a competent court in executing a penalty of death under Subsection 77-18-5.5(3) or (4);
(b) effecting an arrest or preventing an escape from custody following an arrest, where the officer reasonably believes that deadly force is necessary to prevent the arrest from being defeated by escape; and
(i) the officer has probable cause to believe that the suspect has committed a felony offense involving the infliction or threatened infliction of death or serious bodily injury; or
(ii) the officer has probable cause to believe the suspect poses a threat of death or serious bodily injury to the officer or to others if apprehension is delayed; or
(c) the officer reasonably believes that the use of deadly force is necessary to prevent death or serious bodily injury to the officer or another person.
(2) If feasible, a verbal warning should be given by the officer prior to any use of deadly force under Subsection (1)(b) or (1)(c).

Amended by Chapter 51, 2004 General Session
Download Code Section Zipped WP 6/7/8 76_02024.ZIP 2,262 Bytes

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I'm not justifying the UHP Officer but this is 1 of the many Codes that could be used in this situation

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77-7-6 Manner of making arrest.

(1) The person making the arrest shall inform the person being arrested of his intention, cause, and authority to arrest him. Such notice shall not be required when:
(a) there is reason to believe the notice will endanger the life or safety of the officer or another person or will likely enable the party being arrested to escape;
(b) the person being arrested is actually engaged in the commission of, or an attempt to commit, an offense; or
(c) the person being arrested is pursued immediately after the commission of an offense or an escape.
(2) (a) If a hearing-impaired person, as defined in Subsection 78-24a-1 (2), is arrested for an alleged violation of a criminal law, including a local ordinance, the arresting officer shall assess the communicative abilities of the hearing-impaired person and conduct this notification, and any further notifications of rights, warnings, interrogations, or taking of statements, in a manner that accurately and effectively communicates with the hearing-impaired person including qualified interpreters, lip reading, pen and paper, typewriters, computers with print-out capability, and telecommunications devices for the deaf.
(b) Compliance with this subsection is a factor to be considered by any court when evaluating whether statements of a hearing-impaired person were made knowingly, voluntarily, and intelligently.
1995

77-7-7 Force in making arrest.
If a person is being arrested and flees or forcibly resists after being informed of the intention to make the arrest, the person arresting may use reasonable force to effect the arrest. Deadly force may be used only as provided in Section 76-2-404 .
1980


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These are ALL Utah codes bytheway

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sorry if this goes OT, but towards the end of thevideo the LEO says " I have to take a look in the front of this, real quick." Can he search the vehicle without permission? And if he can, and feels the need to,shouldn't he search the whole vehicle? Just a question that came to mind while watching the video.

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kurtmax_0 wrote:

Wwaaaaiiittt a second here. How can someone walking away from you be threatening?

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I know I was just going to ask that. It was probably more a case of the motorist not "respecting his authority" so he got pissed and tased him. Cops need to learn that we a citizens, not subjects.:banghead:

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kurtmax_0 wrote:

Wwaaaaiiittt a second here. How can someone walking away from you be threatening?

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The same way that a criminal fleeing a crime scene can be killed by a citizen for being "threatening".

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Dumbass was moving away from the officer but his hand was headed for his right hand pocket. At that point I have to agree that the officer had ever reason to use the taser. The problem is that it never should have reached that point in the first place. The escalation that led to the tasing I lay at the officer's feet.