Watch: Inept cop holds man at gunpoint for 9 minutes during simple traffic stop

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Originally published at: http://boingboing.net/2017/08/07/inept-cop-holds-man-at-gunpoin.html

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So pulled over for having black passenger now instead of simply driving while black?

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bro-verload.

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And if the gun had gone off, that’s when the cop would reach under his trouser cuff for the untraceable drop-down weapon.

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“Unfortunately, the length of time that the officer’s gun was drawn lasted much longer than normal based on his location.”

da fuck

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Oh, good, another item for The List: black passenger complying with lawful order.

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drop-down weapons are no longer necessary. The courts and police review boards have affirmed that all you have to do is say “I feared for my life” and at point anything you do is acceptable.

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To me, this is what really needs to culturally change; the standard of what a “reasonable person” would do/feel has to be re-asserted, as it’s been completely supplanted by “all feelings are valid”. No, they are not all valid. NO reasonable person would have felt in fear for their life in this situation, as well as in so many others.

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My fantasy, if I was in this situation, would be to start psychologizing the cop. “How did you get to be this way? Was it your parents? Did they withhold affection if you weren’t tough enough? Did they make fun of you when you were scared? Obviously you have poor judgement and a lack of training, why continue being a cop if you’re so bad at it?”

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I get drawing the gun if someone is reaching for something under the seat, but then, when he’s got compliance with these two folks – who are both being cool as a cucumber under the circumstance – to de-escalate. Police just aren’t trained (at least not well enough) on when to de-escalate a situation.

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I don’t get drawing the gun if someone is reaching for something under the seat. Without any other clues that there’s a threat, why would reaching under the seat mean anything threatening? Is it because the person doing the reaching is a POC?

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I did that once. Didn’t work.

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Ever had a gun pointed at you for 9 minutes? And still managed to remain thoughtful and eloquent throughout the ordeal?

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I came in here for a “respect mah authoritah!” but was disappoint

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I don’t think that would be a good idea. It’s a person who can hurt and/or kill you without having to fear any consequences. Why would you risk making him think he’s is made fun of or just making him feel uncomfortable. Nod, do what he says, show proper deference, give him what he wants, start licking his steel-shod boots - try to make it out alive.

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Police Officers are trained to protect themselves in a cautious and defensive manner if they feel threatened. The cop in this case draws his weapon, never places his finger on the trigger, and waits for back up. His reasoning as stated in the additional reporting done was the threat that the passenger was reaching under the seat and while he saw the screw driver, did not know what else was there.

That is perfectly reasonable. He never lost his temper. He remained calm.

Does it suck that it came to that? Absolutely. If I had been in that position, I would find it strange that a passenger is reaching under a seat for paperwork like a insurance and registration. Under the seat would be a common place for a weapon of some kind, and quite an uncommon place for car papers. Anyone watching this can decry him pulling his weapon all they like, but he is a cop on a traffic stop, alone…he has a passenger reaching under his seat for something unknown. And while those 9 minutes I am sure felt like an eternity, once the second officer got there, things were resolved quickly and peacefully.

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  • Speeding.
  • License and registration not easily available in a known location.
  • Possibly making unannounced hand movements, depending on whose story.
  • Leaving music playing.

Don’t do that.

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It is a well known fact that police academies in America teach their recruits that all black people have an invisible Death Aura. A black person can kill a cop at 50 paces just by wriggling their little finger, picking their nose, or reaching under their seat for documents.

None of this is at all true, but the police academies continue to teach it anyway, because alternative facts.

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“license and registration and step out of the car, are you carrying a weapon on you, I know a lot of you are.”

–Shawn Carter

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