We have yet another motorcyclist who have gained Internet fame for his dangerous antics in a chase with police. The suspect even took selfies and slowed to taunt California highway patrol officers in pursuit.
He has been charged with reckless driving. I am sure the police were not amused. One rather large officer was shown with his knee on the back the suspect even after he had surrendered and was cuffed on the ground. I am not sure the kneeing was necessary given the surrender, particularly given the size of the officer who speaks with other officers with his full weight on the suspect.
I was wondering what Aaron Shock was going to do next now that he’s resigned. This is what happens when you don’t discipline your children.
Beck: I agree with Dave. This was not an expression of freedom, it was a display of irresponsibility. The motorcyclist’s actions were self-centered, in that they ignored the safety of everyone else around him and it was stupid from the standpoint of his own well-being. There is nothing noble or charming or admirable in his behavior, whatsoever. That anyone should think so is a more accurate expression of the selfishness of Americans in the post-society-no-longer-exists era.
Anarchy is not mayhem. Anarchy actually requires a great deal of responsibility towards society, and in that regard, true anarchists are more responsible than libertarians.
And the knee in the back is the least this guy should have received. In the old days, he would have been given a righteous cuffing for his idiocy. From the looks of it, it would be for his own good.
“And the knee in the back is the least this guy should have received. In the old days, he would have been given a righteous cuffing for his idiocy. From the looks of it, it would be for his own good.”
Granted, the guy’s behavior was idiotically reckless, but do you really want to recommend physical brutality as a pedagogical remedy?
If I’d been the handcuffing officer, I hope I’d have said something like, “Son, I don’t know what your problem is, and you probably don’t either, but you put yourself and a lot of other people at grave risk just now, and I hope you’ll get some counseling before you actually kill yourself or someone else. You have the right to remain silent…”
Beck:
Thanks for the pathetic ad hominem. My mean attitude isn’t screaming through streets and cutting through traffic and intersections with a ton of police behind me. My attitude isn’t risking anyone’s physical safety. If you were present during this and something went wrong, I bet you’d feel differently about consequences. Public roads are not private tracks for the whims of arrogant motorists and bikers. The rider endangered the lives of many and should be held accountable.
And nice job generalizing, by the way. Laced with class.
Tim:
Absolutely. But not at someone else’s expense.
Go out with style 🙂
Nice one Dave – your mean attitude is a true expression of the American psyche in 2015.
Yeah, that’s right – a lifetime punishment.
What a disgusting people Americans have become.
These days they’re reviled worldwide – with good reason.
Anarchist, Jane, 99: your stupidity impresses. He could have caused major accidents. People have been killed for far less than (yawn) standing and sitting on a bike (a GoPro on a dog is more entertaining, which isn’t saying much). And this stunt should stay with him the rest of his life: by barring him from operating any vehicle on public roads. Let him take the bus. Or better yet, find a bridge and leap. If he wants a rush, he can “express” himself by mixing water with terminal velocity.
It didn’t look that he was any the worse for wear due to the officer pinning him down with his knee. The guy exhibited insane behavior, therefore he was treated as if he could have been insane. He was up and fine when he was lead into the cruiser. There is enough police brutality out there. You don’t have to go inventing it where it isn’t.
@ Issac
“The guy exhibited insane behavior, therefore he was treated as if he could have been insane.”
From a Warrior Cop’s point of view, I suppose you’re right: the only thing worse than a disobedient Mundane is an insane Mundane. 🙂
I don’t know if the officer was following procedure or not, but I do know that the guy on the bike was looking for trouble. The rest of the story is just the specifics of what trouble he got into.
With apologies to “Chiggun”, that should have been, “Big Cop put big heavy knee in Mundane’s back long time, show him who is boss.”
The”long time” is obviously important.
I agree with Inga (Annie). Your civil liberties don’t end when you’re in custody. This was certainly excessive. But it tells us something about standard police procedure in our country. Militaristic tendencies.
As Chiggun (sp?) isn’t here, I’ll try to fill in for him:
Mundane not obey Cops, make Cops look bad. Big Cop put big heavy knee in Mundane’s back, show him who is boss. Next time, shoot Mundane.
The knee and weight behind it is excessive. The guy wasn’t combative, he layed down spread eagle all by himself. Just because it’s police procedure doesn’t mean it’s warranted.
The reason for placing the knee/crouching down on a suspect such as this during arrest is for two reasons: restraint from fleeing and protection from assault. The officer here is following standard police procedure. Remember, the suspect just attempted to elude several pursuing police vehicles, the chances of continuing to be an escape risk is higher than a run-of-the-mill arrestee.
Just because someone is cuffed and allegedly surrendering, it is not always the case that they do. Sometimes they use it as a ruse and then either flee or fight.
Yes, suspects do escape while handcuffed. Anecdotally I have seen it happen several times and one time in fact a handcuffed suspect moved his hands to the front, climbed into the front seat and stole a patrol car leading to a multicounty pursuit.
Another consideration is that if an arrestee becomes agitated and combative, if he is not held down he could injure himself also.
In reviewing the video, it appears the officer crouching down is in the process of handcuffing the suspect. Straddling a suspect on the ground is standard procedure during cuffing. If you do not control the suspect properly while leaning down he can slip free and grab your duty belt or holster and attempt to disarm the officer. If he has only one handcuff in place he can swing the hand having the cuff on it and cause serious injury to the face of the officer. That is why it is standard procedure to hold the suspect on the ground during cuffing.
Whether or not this particular suspect intended such furtive acts is unknown but officers cannot determine with certainty if a person will or will not pose a flight or safety risk.
I don’t know how long a time the officer was straddling the suspect but unless it was excessively long it would not be held to be an issue.
I had a friend who rode a motorcycle. He told me that once he was pulled over by a cruiser not far from a freeway exit. His license plate was small and attached so it could not be read except up close. When the cop had approached on foot almost close enough to read the plate, the rider took off and was off the freeway and onto side streets before the cop could get back in his car. Every once in a while a little Robert Mitchum comes along.
Why is your focus on the police officer? Whoever was in charge and designating pieces to everyone supposed to assess the weight of the officer? The cyclist endangered so many people. As a CA driver, a motorcycle passing between cars is scary. Why cycle through a clogged freeway between two lines of cars? One driver signaling he was trying to get in the lane to his right might start turning his car and wham because the idiot was going so fast. Freeways are not playgrounds! A knee in his back is probably the worst that will happen. He’ll get multiple tickets, a good lawyer will say “first offense”, “no jail”, “community service” he won’t show for and nobody looks for him, just too busy ticketing other idiots!
Shallow bag of tricks. Let’s hope he’s an organ donor.
Yes, with helicopters there is really no chance of escaping, used to be you did something like that, you went home, glad you weren’t caught, can’t believe you did something so dangerous, and that was the end of it. Now if you do something like this young man did, you get a criminal record that follows you for life and will damage your future job prospects and earning power. It is a shame. Used to be someone could move across the country where no one knew them and start anew. Not so now. I feel sorry for the young in that respect.
It is too bad that he was not more careful and avoided being caught ….. I am guessing that the major danger in this chase was from the cops
I gotta agree with Anarchist 2.0. I loved it.
Stupid motorcyclist.
Also stupid cop.
The story should have been about reckless motorcyclist arrested by professional cops.
Instead there is a major coda about a cop abusing a prisoner.
Says a lot about the cop mentality and the recognition that only rarely does a cop suffer consequences.
that’s one of the best things I’ve seen in a while. I love it when people express their freedom