This is an interesting video where witnesses say that police arrested a man in New Hampshire by claiming that he assaulted an officer. The alleged assault takes place around 3:20 on the tape.
There is a site called www.freekeene.com that says that the charge against ‘Big Mike” (Tyner?) was assault on a Manchester police officer. This follows the arrest of someone named Brian Manning for possession of pot.
The quality is very poor. One site says that “Brian Manning and “Big Mike” were arrested for smoking in Veteran’s Park” which is difficult from the claims made in this video. They are both described as activists. Whatever the charge, it does appear that the officer tells the man that he can leave and then accused him of “bumping” him. I do not see any bumping or the basis for an assault charge in the video.
Despite the differing accounts, the videotape does show the benefit of such citizen recordings. Boston police have joined other police organizations, particularly in England, in arresting citizens who try to videotape them during confrontations or arrests, here.
Mr. Kinney I find your reasoning for the actions of law enforcement irrational and troubling. You seemed to have forgotten about tenets of the consitution that protect citizens and rely on some abstract notion that a police state is central to our soceity. I guess I would expect this from the someone whos daddy is a police Captain as you put it.
Law enforcement today continues down a path of militarization and isolation from the general public. A great portion of citizens do not trust the police and unfortunately have turned to shooting first before the police shoot them.
You seem quick to gloss over the reason for the arrest as an officers undisputable right to detain someone.
To arrest someone without charging them just to make a statement is harrasment my young lad. And if it happens alot than your fine city will find itself bankrupt thanks to the likes of your police force and your police Captain father.
It seems that the officers in this video forgot about
To protect and to serve.
The cop is a sissy. He needs to get a real job. Preferably one in which little girls can do without being skeered.
@Cosmic Surfer
While I agree with your comments regarding my “expert” status, I must point out that I never claimed to be an expert, but merely to have a different perspective on the situation. Furthermore, your comments read far more into the situation and make far more radical suppositions than my own. You choose to believe that the Police commonly abuse state powers, I choose to believe that such instances are far less common than is popularly thought. However there is an undoubted and inarguable legal authorization for the actions taken by the officer in the video. Officers of the law have the right and legal imperative to take into custody those that pose a risk to the public safety and peace. The real issue will be what he was charged with. Likely he will be released and the arrest was more a matter of sending a message. You may keep your idealistic tendencies if you wish, but to persist in the notion that such police conduct is illegal, or even undesirable is foolish. It is so easy to decry the abuse of police power and the tyranny of their actions, but if police action were as restricted as you apparently wish, society would suffer greatly. This is not meant to condone abuses of police power, just merely to point out that not every discretionary application of power does not constitute an abuse. There is a range of activity that falls between, and you would be wise to recognize it.
@Mr Kinney – The fact that you are the “son of a Captain of the MPD” makes you no more an expert on this matter than anyone else. Were you there? Were you witness? No.
Your credibility on the matter is no less or greater than mine and I live about 1000 miles fron there and at 1 pm, I was busy at work so had about as much awareness of the incident as you at the time. Anything you submit is no more than supposition.
Every City has its needle park, Liberty Park, Veteren’s Park, Gateway Park.
The people passing, sitting st a bus stop, on a park bench or otherwise engaged are not ALWAYS criminals and if they are, then prove the fact. Harassment is harrassment, is harassment. If the guy was harassed then the cops SHOULD GO DOWN. If there was no proof of crime and he was set up to be arrested, that is harassment and entrapment.
It is ILLEGAL…no matter if the VICTIM is considered an “activist”, “drug dealer” or by-stander.
There is NOTHING in ANY LAW of this LAND that gives an officer the right to victimize citizens and this appears to be what you are inadvertentl;y suggesting here.
IF what is implied in the video (and videos can “lie” if they have not shown the entirety of the matter) is the truth of the matter. The man was sitting and otherwise not proving to be beligerant, uncooperative or abusive, then told he could leave, stood and tried to walk away, inadvertantly bumping or appearing to come close to the officer in question, this “perp” was a victim and the police need to be brought up on charges, suspended and other action taken, if the FACTS bear out.
Unfortunately, he will probably not get a fair shake unless he has the money for a real lawyer and become one more in a long list of “offenders” over populating prisons at the expense of the taxpayer and the benefit of some prvate corp paid $30,000 to $60,000 a year to feed him fat and starch, sit him in a concrete cell and allow him to learn how to HATE and become a real criminal
Makes one ponder how often these seemingly insignificant little dramas are played out, every day, 24/7 across the country. The number must be mind boggling.
The tape should include that, too.
What probable cause did the cops have to initiate these events in the first place? When is sitting on a park bench a crime?
As a citizen of Manchester and the son of a Captain of the MPD maybe I can shed some light on this issue. Veterans park is a den of all sorts of evils in the heart of downtown Manchester. There is an ongoing drug dealing and prostitution problem, and the park attracts all sorts of negative activity. Hence the routine police presence and undercover operations. Also these so called “activists” are nothing more than punk kids who start trouble when they’re bored. They have no agenda, they’re just another group of young people with too much time and not enough motivation to actually do anything constructive. Also, the kid gave the officer a ton of attitude and did make contact. That’s sufficient for the arrest under MPD standards.
I didn’t see any bump. The SS is getting out of control. Can he sue for false arrest/imprisonment?
Why does this thuggery not surprise me in the least? Oh yeah, I have seen it in operation in other Federal/State occupation…..