Cop Who Shoved Bicyclist Indicted Using YouTube Footage
The police officer who seemingly randomly picked a bicyclist out of a critical mass crowd to tackle has been indicted for falsifying records and could also soon be charged with misdemeanor assault. The YouTube video [below], which went viral soon after the incident, was instrumental in the indictment.
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The officer claimed that the bicyclist had shoved him before the officer tackled him back, but the video shows no such incident.
Critical Mass is held on the last Friday of every month in over 300 cities across the world. Bicyclists join together for a cross-city ride moving as one unit and often disobeying traffic laws. The movement is intended to allow bicyclists, who typically must watch out for cars on the road, to be the traffic themselves.
[Via: Gawker]Photo Credit: Doug Letterman on Flickr under Creative Commons license.
Cops aren’t used to get their actions caught on video yet. This happens all the time, and you haven’t got any recourse if it isn’t on tape. It’s your word against a cop (and his corrupt colleages) so you will always lose in court.
Now, with video, the cop gets a little slap on the wrist. But he will be back, and he will be top-dog on the force.
The cop should be charged and convicted of attempted murder.
Wow what an idiot. I hope he gets some time for that. That is just wrong. Horrible cop.
Perhaps the cyclist had been “disobeying traffic laws” - with a selectively-edited video clip it’s impossible to say why the officer took the action he did.
I’m a cyclist, and I hate Critical Mass. Being “anti-car”, breaking traffic laws and harassing motorists spreads the impression that cyclists are all nuisances, and this reflects on how motorists treat me. I wish they’d find a more constructive way to promote cycling.
Fuck the police! =]
Governments have not found an efficient way to contain cyclists doing critical mass, protests or riots. That video is just an expected abomination we get when a stupider cop just don’t have a procedure to handle a protest like that.
I doubt that cop will get the punishment he deserves. I bet cases like this will only help states pass laws empowering cops to do things like that.
Idiot bicyclist .. He deserves what he got. Why do people expect that they can break the law, and then when they get hurt, they can just sue. The whole event is ridiculous .. the police should set up a road block and charge them all.
yeah the cop should be allowed to randomly attack anyone he wants right?
This is why cops are pigs. Criminals with badges. I hope he gets fired. This pig doesn’t even deserve to work mall security.
This absolutely crosses the line. I hope this cop is stripped of badge and serves jail time; I’m appalled. This was totally unnecessary.
Cops are used to getting respect, whether earned or not. Some are cops for good reasons, and are usually good cops. Some are cops for the power trip and have gigantic egos to boot. Some, unfortunately, go beyond ego and like being cops because they can rig an excuse to shoot people.
Different precincts “breed” different types, but in my experience most cops are good cops. It’s the “jerk” that usually does something like this.
This cop deserves punishment just like any criminal he would be arresting. In fact, I am fully in support of criminals getting harsher punishments for crimes against cops, AND I am in full support for cops getting more severe punishments for crimes against civilians. Frankly, this punishment was not severe enough. Showing leniency to an agent of the government that violated their oath sends the wrong message to the people they are supposed to be protecting. In this situation, where much authority is given, much restraint is expected.