Strange behaviour by ACPD Officer towards OCer, caught on film

[ORCGUY]

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ProShooter wrote:

Ore wrote:

If you ask me, this OCer is a moron.

1. First of all, he DID NOT call about the squad Aimed Nickel wrote:

I stopped it after he called the police department. If things are going okay, the last thing you ever need to do is involve the police. Whatever strange interaction this guy had was brought about by his own actions. That said, I fully support OC and would love to see more and more people doing it, but the kind of attitude displayed by this guy does nothing useful to further the cause.

I work for a local municipality and here's how "NO PARKING" zones work: it's city property, the cop is a city employee, the car is city property. The city can choose to keep it's stuff and people wherever it wants. At worst, the sign shop will come out and change NO PARKING to POLICE VEHICLES ONLY. I'm sure you've seen such signs before.

We have real problems, like Chet and Dan's harassment in Norfolk, to deal with without instigating things ourselves. I know whoever this guy was perfectly within his right to OC and question where the police vehicle was parked, but this interaction, for better or for worse, was his own fault.

Very well said Ore and Aimed Nickel.......

I find it refreshing that 2 fairly new members see this video for what it really is - an attempt to poke a sleeping bear to see if they can turn it into an anti-OC situation.

+1 & +1

 

[GLENGLOCKER]

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ProShooter wrote:

GLENGLOCKER wrote:

I wonder if ProShooter would be so inclined to look the other way if a cop broke the law to get something on him or a family member???

Your comment sir, is offensive. I have said repeatedly that if the officer parked there for no good reason, then ticket him. I also said that there may have been a legitimate reason beyond what we have seen that could justify parking there. Without that knowledge, I am not going to condemn the man. I would expect thatsomeone speeding aninjured child to the hospital in their private car wouldnt be ticketed for speeding as there is a greater cause to be seen. Its not always black and white.

Your insinuation that I am "looking the other way" in this case is downright rude, obnoxious and totally wrong. You know nothing about me, the man I am, or the way that I wore that badge for 12 years. When you have served on both sides of the fence, then make the accusation that I am covering for the cop. Until then, keep your "looking the other way nonsense" to yourself.

Was the officer illegally parked? Yes. But was there a reason? Sometimes, a police car may be parked at an intersection to passively enforce traffic laws

Does this still make it legal?? When the Government breaks it's laws to enforce laws it's still breaking the law. And to try to berate me in lack of an intelligent argument and bring up how you are an ex cop tells me your one of them "it's none of the people's buisness what us cops do". Also why does a police officer get to use taxpayer supplied gas and put wear and tear on the taxpayer's property instead of using his own car?? Or is this something we should be barred from asking about??

 

[richarcm]

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ODA 226 wrote:

I think both of them were jerks looking for trouble.

Sometimes those crazy libertarians can seem like trouble makers but I do admire their passion for making sure that those who enforce the law are humbled from time to time. I still don't see where he did ANYTHING wrong. He was completely within the law, polite, and respectful.

The problem is that sometimes doing what is right means going against the grain. What he did was something that needs to be done more often only it is something that most people won't do out of cowardess. I'll be the first to admit that I'd THINK about doing what he did but probably WOULDNT just because its too much trouble.

Two cheers for the camera man!!!

 

[richarcm]

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Ore wrote:

If you ask me, this OCer is a moron.

1. First of all, he DID NOT call about the squad car out of civic duty; he did it for the sole purpose of antagonizing the cops.

2. Secondly, the cops gave him no trouble about OCing. Even in the second encounter, the cop only gave his opinion; he didn't question the legality.

3. It's not clear to me whether the cop followed the OCer, or the OCer stalked the cop.

4. AND, if the cop did follow him, so what? You poke someone in the eye, you'd better expect that they're going to poke back.


This OCer tried to pick a fight and get it on video. He planned and hoped for a negative encounter with the police from the start. HE is the problem, and a perfect example of the type of person that makes the cops think we're all idiots. He's a big drama queen trying to play the poor victim. Grow Up, buddy!!

1. How do you come to this conclusion?

2. It was perhaps responsible of him to make aware of the fact that he was OCing. Although I can see where it wasn't necessary. In the second instance the cop didn't need to be giving his opinion. Once you are representing a law enforcement departmentI don't believe you should be giving any opinion about the law. That is not his job and is really bad form.

3. How and when did the OCer stalk the cop? I never saw that part of the clip. It is however COMPLETELY clear that the cop followed the OCer. Whether you want to call that stalking is another story. But he was totally following him. Is that even debatable? It was filmed....

4. The cop can follow the OCer if he wants. He didn't break any laws doing so as he practically stated to the OCer. It was a beautiful day, hes allowed to walk where he wants. But again, its bad form when you are representing a law enforcement department to skirt the lines of the law so close.

I'm not a "cop basher". I actually really admire them and wouldn't have minded going that career path if I were a little younger. I've had a trooper in my family. However there are still BAD cops. They exist. This guy may or may not be a BAD cop but he was VERY sketchy. And he DID break the law by parking illegally. You can debate that all day long but the law is the law and it was all caught on tape. The rationale was stated and it had NOTHING to do with his job.

OCer: 1

Sketchy Cop: 0

 

[ProShooter]

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GLENGLOCKER wrote:

Was the officer illegally parked? Yes. But was there a reason? Sometimes, a police car may be parked at an intersection to passively enforce traffic laws

Does this still make it legal?? When the Government breaks it's laws to enforce laws it's still breaking the law. And to try to berate me in lack of an intelligent argument and bring up how you are an ex cop tells me your one of them "it's none of the people's buisness what us cops do". Also why does a police officer get to use taxpayer supplied gas and put wear and tear on the taxpayer's property instead of using his own car?? Or is this something we should be barred from asking about??

Does someone speeding their injured child to the hospital make speeding legal? No, but it can be excused for a greater good. All I've ever said is that there may be a perfectly legitimate reason why he parked there. We'll never know.

You seem mighty bitter about something. Got some parking tickets somewhere?

Careful, the chip on your shoulder is dangling precariously.

 

[richarcm]

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ProShooter wrote:

GLENGLOCKER wrote:

Was the officer illegally parked? Yes. But was there a reason? Sometimes, a police car may be parked at an intersection to passively enforce traffic laws

Does this still make it legal?? When the Government breaks it's laws to enforce laws it's still breaking the law. And to try to berate me in lack of an intelligent argument and bring up how you are an ex cop tells me your one of them "it's none of the people's buisness what us cops do". Also why does a police officer get to use taxpayer supplied gas and put wear and tear on the taxpayer's property instead of using his own car?? Or is this something we should be barred from asking about??

Does someone speeding their injured child to the hospital make speeding legal? No, but it can be excused for a greater good. All I've ever said is that there may be a perfectly legitimate reason why he parked there. We'll never know.

You seem mighty bitter about something. Got some parking tickets somewhere?

Careful, the chip on your shoulder is dangling precariously.

The cops STATED the reason that the car was parked illegally and it was because 'there were complaints from residents that a cop car was taking up parking spaces'. There is no need to guess as to what the rationale was.

Now if I were to guess above and beyond what was stated by the officers (see above) it would be that parking sucks at that complex. The cop, rather than wait around for a spot to open, decided that it would be easier to park illegally. Being that it was a marked cop car he assumed that nobody would complain and he wouldn't get a ticket. Why not? But that is my guess as to the actual reasoning.

 

[diesel556]

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richarcm wrote:

The cops STATED the reason that the car was parked illegally and it was because 'there were complaints from residents that a cop car was taking up parking spaces'. There is no need to guess as to what the rationale was.

+1

 

[GWRedDragon]

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"Hello? Police? Yeah one of your cars is illegally parked, you need to have it moved immediately!"

What the heck did this person THINK would happen?? :banghead:

Sounds like someone trying to get the police to arrest them out of spite so they can get a settlement.

On the other hand, that's practically right next to my house. I'd fall over if I saw someone OCing around here.

 

[ORCGUY]

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One more thought. Many officers in Arlington County get a lower housing cost, to live in a, shall we say, not so nice area. They are given a low rate, to park their take home cruisers in a highly visible area, and respond if needed to the needs of the community they are living in WHILE THEY ARE OFF DUTY!

Ever think of that?

They could say, "f that, I'll pay a little more and live up the street where the people I'm paid to protect won't harrase me for being here!"

:banghead:

 

[Ore]

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Richarcm,

Sure, there are bad cops. But there are also bad OCers. You know as well as I that this was not about the guy doing his duty as a citizen. Let's get real here. He brought a camera, hung around for the cops to show up, and then hung around longer for the off-duty cop to come back. He obviously went out for the purpose of getting you-tube footage, hoping for a "situation" to get himself some attention. If you think otherwise, you're kidding youself.

 

[richarcm]

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Ore wrote:

Richarcm,

Sure, there are bad cops. But there are also bad OCers. You know as well as I that this was not about the guy doing his duty as a citizen. Let's get real here. He brought a camera, hung around for the cops to show up, and then hung around longer for the off-duty cop to come back. He obviously went out for the purpose of getting you-tube footage, hoping for a "situation" to get himself some attention. If you think otherwise, you're kidding youself.

I agree and I dont think that the cop nor the OCer in this video are bad. I think that the cop broke a law and represented his department poorly.The OCer didn't break ANY laws that I'm aware of, held law enforcement responsible for their actions and was very polite (unlike the officer's snide and sarcastic attitude). He may have been looking for attention but so what? What's the crime in that? Rather than do it by filming him beating up the neighborhood kid, vandalizing someones car or doing drugs he got his attention by doing something GOOD. You people are really searching for straws....

Was the OCer my ideal model of a perfect citizen. NO. But did he do ANYTHING WRONG OR ILLEGAL? No.

The cop on the other hand DID break the law (which was NOT work related), DID represent HORRIBLE form for the Arlington PD, and DID follow the OCer which IS borderline "stalking".

You can criticize the OCer if you really want to be picky and critical of things that really don't matter at the end of the day or you can criticize the cop for breaking the law, intimidating and creating a bad image for a very local PD department (which is a public entity).

 

[mkl]

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GWRedDragon wrote:

On the other hand, that's practically right next to my house. I'd fall over if I saw someone OCing around here.

I OC in that area. I OC while walking through there to rosslyn,clarendon, or ballston weekly and whenever I hit the italian store. Never had a problem, haven't seen anyone fall over.

 

[richarcm]

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mkl wrote:

GWRedDragon wrote:

"Hello? Police? Yeah one of your cars is illegally parked, you need to have it moved immediately!"

What the heck did this person THINK would happen?? :banghead:

Sounds like someone trying to get the police to arrest them out of spite so they can get a settlement.

On the other hand, that's practically right next to my house. I'd fall over if I saw someone OCing around here.

I OC in that area. I OC while walking through there to rosslyn,clarendon, or ballston weekly. Never had a problem, haven't seen anyone fall over.

I've OC'd there with friends.

 

[bnkrazy]

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I don't see anything wrong with a little civil disobedience.

I do think the APD officer should have been much more professional in his actions after the incident. They are trained to handle difficult situations and do so daily.

I'm shocked to see all the "what do you expect/he deserves what he gets" comments. Even if the OCer was intentionally stirring the pot in hopes of getting a reaction, I would think that this incident would be a cake walk for most officers to handle compared to almost any other type of incident. There wasno officer safety concern even, at most this amounts to a bit of administrative discipline, if that.

That this officer decided to follow a citizen around that filed a complaint against him, perhapsin anattempt to intimidate, or simply annoy him should raise big red flags.

What is the message the APD is trying to send here if they allow this behavior to go unchecked?

 

[richarcm]

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bnkrazy wrote:

I don't see anything wrong with a little civil disobedience.

I do think the APD officer should have been much more professional in his actions after the incident. They are trained to handle difficult situations and do so daily.

I'm shocked to see all the "what do you expect/he deserves what he gets" comments. Even if the OCer was intentionally stirring the pot in hopes of getting a reaction, I would think that this incident would be a cake walk for most officers to handle compared to almost any other type of incident. There wasno officer safety concern even, at most this amounts to a bit of administrative discipline, if that.

That this officer decided to follow a citizen around that filed a complaint against him, perhapsin anattempt to intimidate, or simply annoy him should raise big red flags.

What is the message the APD is trying to send here if they allow this behavior to go unchecked?

I think a lot of people on here get hyper-defensive of law enforcement due to several people who can be considered "cop-bashers" and therefore are going a little overboard in regards to this event.

The cop was MORE than obviously out of line. The OCer pushed the issue a bit but he is a civilian not employed by tax money and was doing something GOOD even if he were looking for attention. He was doing soemthing that we should all be THANKING him for doing.

 

[ProShooter]

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GWRedDragon wrote:

Sounds like someone trying to get the police to arrest them out of spite so they can get a settlement.

That thought crossed my mind as well.

 

[richarcm]

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ProShooter wrote:

GWRedDragon wrote:

Sounds like someone trying to get the police to arrest them out of spite so they can get a settlement.

That thought crossed my mind as well.

I'm sure it crossed some people's mind that the cop was trying to get the OCer to do something stupid so that he could open up that little duffle bag of his and throw some handcuffs on him.

The facts are on the video. The law was broken by the cop. Assumptions of intent can be made on both sides. But what actually happened was filmed.

 

[nova]

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[ProShooter]

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ORCGUY wrote:

One more thought. Many officers in Arlington County get a lower housing cost, to live in a, shall we say, not so nice area. They are given a low rate, to park their take home cruisers in a highly visible area, and respond if needed to the needs of the community they are living in WHILE THEY ARE OFF DUTY!

Ever think of that?

They could say, "f that, I'll pay a little more and live up the street where the people I'm paid to protect won't harrase me for being here!"

:banghead:

There's a federal program that offers that as well. Its called the "Officer Next Door" program. Lower home prices to enticeofficers to move to crime ridden areas. Too bad so few people will give a police officer credit for that.

 

[Ore]

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richarcm wrote:

I think a lot of people on here get hyper-defensive of law enforcement due to several people who can be considered "cop-bashers" and therefore are going a little overboard in regards to this event.

The cop was MORE than obviously out of line. The OCer pushed the issue a bit but he is a civilian not employed by tax money and was doing something GOOD even if he were looking for attention. He was doing soemthing that we should all be THANKING him for doing.

Yep, he's a real hometown hero. Now he can make a FOIA request, file a complaint with the city, governor, President, and Congress; sue for $10 million over the "mental stress" of the incident; and start a petition to fire both cops; and maybe write a book about the police parking conspiracy and cover-up in Arlington County. Then y'all would really love him, I suppose.