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How much should you charge for a photograph?Florida Cop Turns Off Dash Cam Before Beating Elderly Man With Dementia
Cop then charges man with battery on police officer
Melbourne police officer Derek Middendorf turned off his dash cam before stepping out of his patrol car and kicking a mild-mannered 66-year-old man with dementia in the groin.
The hulking cop then fell on top of the feeble Albert Flowers, punching and choking him repeatedly while a fellow officer ran up and tased him in the face.
When they were done beating Flowers, they charged him with battery on a police officer and resisting arrest.
He remained hospitalized for a month.
Meanwhile, the police department was able to retrieve the video from the hard drive, even though Middendorf had turned it off.
They issued him a written reprimand for turning off the camera.
Middendorf said he was in fear for his life.
The incident took place in October. Flowers’ family filed a complaint against the department on Friday.
According to WESH:
Police responded after they said they received a call that Flowers had pulled a knife on one of his employees. Bross and family members said Flowers suffers from dementia.
“By the time the police showed up, everything was fine, and the gentleman in the white shirt that you see in the video told the officer before the officer kicked Mr. Flowers.
He said, 'Look, he has dementia. You need to talk slowly because sometimes he has a hard time understanding what is going on,' and the officer shook his head and kicked him,” Bross said.Bross said his client did not have a weapon on him.
They are planning to sue the officer and the Police Department because of the incident.
Comments
Written warning? Wow... They are really taking the abuses seriously now, eh?
Derek Middendorf ...just another dishonorable, cowardly piece-of-shit thug masquerading as a public servant. In fear for his life? Bullshit! I am not a cop.. but isn't that what their sidearm is for? It's hard to believe they are now being trained the appropriate response to a "life threatening situation" is to kick a man in the nut sack (which in this case is akin to a sucker punch.) I hope KARMA catches up to you Officer PIG... very, very soon.
I can't help but wonder if the nephew came over and punted that officers face down the street if it could be proved justifiable in court.
Wow "hulking cop"? Carlos doesn't even bother to pretend that he isn't completely anti-police when he writes his commentary does he?
The original call said that the old fella had pulled a knife on his family. The officer gets there and the guy who was supposed to have a knife advanced on the officer.
We don't have audio (yes yes due to the officer turning off his camera) but it's safe to assume the officer was telling him to stop. The officer used a front push kick to keep a potentially armed suspect away from him. I'm good with that part.
The part I have trouble with is after the officer knocked him down, the officer jumped on top of the man to place him in cuffs. I suppose he was thinking to subdue him while the kick had him disoriented but it's bad tactics if he had actually been armed.
If the suspect had been armed, the officer put himself in the danger zone. The best tactic would have been the kick, then backing up to reassess the situation rather than closing on the suspect.
I sure would like to know why these folks called the police if dear old dad was so gentle? And why was a knife mentioned?
Remember, the only thing police know about this call is that there is a guy that supposedly pulled a knife on his family.
"...but it's safe to assume the officer was telling him to stop."
NO. It's not "safe to assume" that... Because both cops explicitly turned off their recording devices.
The victim here was charged with a previous incident of assault on a law enforcement officer. In fact, If anything is "safe to assume", it's that this cop was looking for a quick bit of pay back and knew exactly what was about to happen. How else would you excuse them trying to destroy evidence?
And how about the repeated punches to the face? What about the taser to the face JL? Was that further procedure?
I understand you have to defend the pole smoking party for you and your brethren, but it's glaringly obvious to *everyone* else on this forum that you are part of the problem. Keep defending this behavior and driving that wedge between people and police.
Where did it say both turned off their cameras? And how did he try to destroy evidence? So turning off a camera means the destruction of the video? Never heard that before.
I don't agree with the punches to the face but the officer with the taser pulled up and saw his buddy fighting with someone who was reported to have a knife. I don't blame him at all for jumping in the fight.
The video was not readily available and the audio was lost due to the cop's actions.
He was hulking compared to the old man.
There might have been a call about a knife, but there was no knife on the guy.
Cops get reports of guys with guns all the time. Does that mean they pull up to the scene and start shooting?
The cop lied when he said the old man approached him in an aggressive manner.
The cop lied when he charged the guy with battery on a police officer.
And the department failed when all they did was write him up for turning the camera off.
And you failed when you defended his thug ass.
That cop deserves to go to prison.
How was the officer supposed to know the part about the knife was a lie? The guy could have had a knife behind his back or in a pocket. So the cop was supposed to risk being stabbed on a knife call?
Lets say you had to deal with someone you had been told had a knife. Would you treat that person differently or would you walk up like there was no problem?
Wake up man.
Yes, I agree with you Johnny. The guy could have also had an M-11 behind his back. That's why the officer had to turn off the dash cam.
Johnny... I see a trend from you of always defending police actions, not from an administrators perspective, but from a beat cops perspective. If the officer felt any threat from a potential weapon he should have drawn his weapon upon ordering the suspect to stop. It could be that he ordered the suspect to him and when he didn't follow the order to stop as he neared the cop got frustrated and kicked him; we wont know since the officer turned off the equipment. Either way he should of created the distance before the suspect ever made it near him if he suspected a potential weapon on the suspect. Viewed as a whole the turning off of the camera followed by the violation of several procedures makes sense if the officer planned on acting other than properly, and the bringing of a boot to a knife fight adds credence to the explanation where the officer was not actually threatened but just annoyed. I am guessing that the beating afterwords is an extension of the overall excessive force displayed during this altercation.
BTW your muscle memory explanation is classic... and though there is some truth to it, it is not a defense. if it were many a resisting arrest charges would be dropped.
Johnny Law, your such a stupid Americunt. By the way your speed check raider is going to give you cancer, right in your cunt.
The willingness on your part to defend these type of unlawful actions by fellow police officers only brings harm and disgrace to the honest men and women who wear the uniform.
As you point out the officer would not have jumped on top of the man to place him in handcuffs if he thought he was armed. He certainly would not have turned off the video. Regardless of your statements of blind loyalty you know as well as everyone else this officers actions were wrong.
If you want to stand up for police officers, speak out against the one's like this type that bring shame to the uniform.
THAT MAN DID NOT HAVE A KNIFE IN THAT VIDEO HE WAS WALKING TO THE PIG BECAUSE HE CALLED HIM OVER THAT MAN IN THE WHITE SHIRT WAS TRYING TO TELL HIM EVERYTHING WAS COOL BUT THE PIG JUST WENT CRAZY ON THAT OLD MAN. AND THEN MADE A FALSE REPORT TO COVER HIS BUT. THAT IS A SHAME THE POLICE IS HERE TO PROTECT AND SERVE BUT NOW DAYS THAT ARE MAD BECAUSE THEIR LIFE IS NOT GOING RIGHT AND TAKE IT OUT ON THE PEOPLE IN THE STREET. iF HE DID THAT MAN LIKE THAT ITS NOT HIS FIRST TIME BEATING UP ON SOMEBODY HE JUST GOT COUGHT THIS TIME.
THAT MAN DID NOT HAVE A KNIFE IN THAT VIDEO HE WAS WALKING TO THE PIG BECAUSE HE CALLED HIM OVER THAT MAN IN THE WHITE SHIRT WAS TRYING TO TELL HIM EVERYTHING WAS COOL BUT THE PIG JUST WENT CRAZY ON THAT OLD MAN. AND THEN MADE A FALSE REPORT TO COVER HIS BUT. THAT IS A SHAME THE POLICE IS HERE TO PROTECT AND SERVE BUT NOW DAYS THAT ARE MAD BECAUSE THEIR LIFE IS NOT GOING RIGHT AND TAKE IT OUT ON THE PEOPLE IN THE STREET. iF HE DID THAT MAN LIKE THAT ITS NOT HIS FIRST TIME BEATING UP ON SOMEBODY HE JUST GOT COUGHT THIS TIME.
THAT MAN DID NOT HAVE A KNIFE IN THAT VIDEO HE WAS WALKING TO THE PIG BECAUSE HE CALLED HIM OVER THAT MAN IN THE WHITE SHIRT WAS TRYING TO TELL HIM EVERYTHING WAS COOL BUT THE PIG JUST WENT CRAZY ON THAT OLD MAN. AND THEN MADE A FALSE REPORT TO COVER HIS BUT. THAT IS A SHAME THE POLICE IS HERE TO PROTECT AND SERVE BUT NOW DAYS THAT ARE MAD BECAUSE THEIR LIFE IS NOT GOING RIGHT AND TAKE IT OUT ON THE PEOPLE IN THE STREET. iF HE DID THAT MAN LIKE THAT ITS NOT HIS FIRST TIME BEATING UP ON SOMEBODY HE JUST GOT COUGHT THIS TIME.
THAT MAN DID NOT HAVE A KNIFE IN THAT VIDEO HE WAS WALKING TO THE PIG BECAUSE HE CALLED HIM OVER THAT MAN IN THE WHITE SHIRT WAS TRYING TO TELL HIM EVERYTHING WAS COOL BUT THE PIG JUST WENT CRAZY ON THAT OLD MAN. AND THEN MADE A FALSE REPORT TO COVER HIS BUT. THAT IS A SHAME THE POLICE IS HERE TO PROTECT AND SERVE BUT NOW DAYS THAT ARE MAD BECAUSE THEIR LIFE IS NOT GOING RIGHT AND TAKE IT OUT ON THE PEOPLE IN THE STREET. iF HE DID THAT MAN LIKE THAT ITS NOT HIS FIRST TIME BEATING UP ON SOMEBODY HE JUST GOT COUGHT THIS TIME.
THAT MAN DID NOT HAVE A KNIFE IN THAT VIDEO HE WAS WALKING TO THE PIG BECAUSE HE CALLED HIM OVER THAT MAN IN THE WHITE SHIRT WAS TRYING TO TELL HIM EVERYTHING WAS COOL BUT THE PIG JUST WENT CRAZY ON THAT OLD MAN. AND THEN MADE A FALSE REPORT TO COVER HIS BUT. THAT IS A SHAME THE POLICE IS HERE TO PROTECT AND SERVE BUT NOW DAYS THAT ARE MAD BECAUSE THEIR LIFE IS NOT GOING RIGHT AND TAKE IT OUT ON THE PEOPLE IN THE STREET. iF HE DID THAT MAN LIKE THAT ITS NOT HIS FIRST TIME BEATING UP ON SOMEBODY HE JUST GOT COUGHT THIS TIME.
THAT MAN DID NOT HAVE A KNIFE IN THAT VIDEO HE WAS WALKING TO THE PIG BECAUSE HE CALLED HIM OVER THAT MAN IN THE WHITE SHIRT WAS TRYING TO TELL HIM EVERYTHING WAS COOL BUT THE PIG JUST WENT CRAZY ON THAT OLD MAN. AND THEN MADE A FALSE REPORT TO COVER HIS BUT. THAT IS A SHAME THE POLICE IS HERE TO PROTECT AND SERVE BUT NOW DAYS THAT ARE MAD BECAUSE THEIR LIFE IS NOT GOING RIGHT AND TAKE IT OUT ON THE PEOPLE IN THE STREET. iF HE DID THAT MAN LIKE THAT ITS NOT HIS FIRST TIME BEATING UP ON SOMEBODY HE JUST GOT COUGHT THIS TIME.
THAT MAN DID NOT HAVE A KNIFE IN THAT VIDEO HE WAS WALKING TO THE PIG BECAUSE HE CALLED HIM OVER THAT MAN IN THE WHITE SHIRT WAS TRYING TO TELL HIM EVERYTHING WAS COOL BUT THE PIG JUST WENT CRAZY ON THAT OLD MAN. AND THEN MADE A FALSE REPORT TO COVER HIS BUT. THAT IS A SHAME THE POLICE IS HERE TO PROTECT AND SERVE BUT NOW DAYS THAT ARE MAD BECAUSE THEIR LIFE IS NOT GOING RIGHT AND TAKE IT OUT ON THE PEOPLE IN THE STREET. iF HE DID THAT MAN LIKE THAT ITS NOT HIS FIRST TIME BEATING UP ON SOMEBODY HE JUST GOT COUGHT THIS TIME.
THAT MAN DID NOT HAVE A KNIFE IN THAT VIDEO HE WAS WALKING TO THE PIG BECAUSE HE CALLED HIM OVER THAT MAN IN THE WHITE SHIRT WAS TRYING TO TELL HIM EVERYTHING WAS COOL BUT THE PIG JUST WENT CRAZY ON THAT OLD MAN. AND THEN MADE A FALSE REPORT TO COVER HIS BUT. THAT IS A SHAME THE POLICE IS HERE TO PROTECT AND SERVE BUT NOW DAYS THAT ARE MAD BECAUSE THEIR LIFE IS NOT GOING RIGHT AND TAKE IT OUT ON THE PEOPLE IN THE STREET. iF HE DID THAT MAN LIKE THAT ITS NOT HIS FIRST TIME BEATING UP ON SOMEBODY HE JUST GOT COUGHT THIS TIME.
THAT MAN DID NOT HAVE A KNIFE IN THAT VIDEO HE WAS WALKING TO THE PIG BECAUSE HE CALLED HIM OVER THAT MAN IN THE WHITE SHIRT WAS TRYING TO TELL HIM EVERYTHING WAS COOL BUT THE PIG JUST WENT CRAZY ON THAT OLD MAN. AND THEN MADE A FALSE REPORT TO COVER HIS BUT. THAT IS A SHAME THE POLICE IS HERE TO PROTECT AND SERVE BUT NOW DAYS THAT ARE MAD BECAUSE THEIR LIFE IS NOT GOING RIGHT AND TAKE IT OUT ON THE PEOPLE IN THE STREET. iF HE DID THAT MAN LIKE THAT ITS NOT HIS FIRST TIME BEATING UP ON SOMEBODY HE JUST GOT COUGHT THIS TIME.
No, they also knew this man suffered from dementia, which is something they should be educated about. Dementia patients have a hard time understanding even simple statements (sometimes), and are often slow to respond.
I am glad there was at least one part of this sorry situation that you had "trouble" with. If you had more exposure to folks with dementia (and given how the Alzheimer's population is growing in this country, you will), you would have trouble with all of it. I am a nurse in an Alzheimer's day care, and a full time caretaker for my 94-year-old aunt who has vascular dementia. Peace.
You gloss over the dash cam thing JL. This cop forfeited being granted any reasonable benefit of doubt regarding his actions when he intentionally tried to cover them up..can't have it both ways. The fact that he turned his camera off is more than telling. What possible reason would an officer have to consciously and intentionally do that other than he had in mind to do something he didn't want recorded? Keep in mind the at the time he made his charges of aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer and resisting arrest...he did so assuming there was no video evidence to show otherwise. Approaching a police officer does not = aggravated battery and resisting. Cameras are installed to record events of police activity. The only reason to shut one off during a police event is to avoid that record being made. Too bad for this officer he wasn't smart enough to even know how to disable it. (typical criminal behavior)
JL..for all we know the cop told Mr. Flowers to "come here" as cops very often do on the streets.
So you think it was a deliberate plan by the officer? He thought, "Hey, I think I will turn off my dash cam so that I can beat the shit out of an old man with dementia in front of witnesses in the middle of a public street! It's a perfect plan! I'm sure the family members will keep quiet about the whole thing."
Give me a break.
Okay, then, simple question. WHY did he reach over and turn off the dash camera?
That is exactly what happened JTroll. These freaks, amped up on steroids, can do whatever they want. They would beat the entire block into submission if necessary. And they would do it with smiles on their faces.
And if this is not the case tell us, with your decades of working as a cop, what other reason would there be for this thug to disable all recording prior to engaging the civilian? Give us a reason JTroll.
And...
The second steroid freak with a badge tazes the guy in the face point blank.
Justify that too J Troll.
Respect is earned JTroll. You can't beat it out of us.
Maybe he was saving the cruiser's batteries. Maybe he was using the older-model non-recyclable bits in his digital recording system, and didn't want to run out mid shift.
Really ... please give me one good reason to turn off the video camera before a citizen encounter.
Maybe the old demented guy was a undercover officer, and he didn't want to expose his identity ... to other officers?
"Really ... please give me one good reason to turn off the video camera before a citizen encounter."
There are any number of reasons that make more sense than the one you put forth. Maybe he had it on while looking for the involved parties but couldn't find them. Then he turned it off and was about to go back into service but found them and forgot to turn it back on.
Maybe he was pumped up on adrenaline from thinking he was going to have to deal with an armed subject and turned it off by mistake due to muscle memory. It's a common thing. In my department the camera comes on when the door opens up. When it comes on due to a non-police related matter such as getting out to take a piss or go eat, we turn it off. Sometimes we open the door and turn it off so much it becomes a bit of an automatic response. I have actually caught myself about to turn the camera off while getting out on calls just out of habit.
Another example of muscle memory is shown in the way we test our tasers. Each day we have to take the cartridge out and fire the taser for 5 seconds. It's called a "spark test" and we do it everyday. Some officers have developed this procedure into muscle memory and we have documented cases where in the middle of a fight officers have pulled their tasers, removed the cartridges and then fired their tasers. Of course the taser doesn't shoot any prongs and officers look stunned that it isn't working right.
A famous example of the dangers of developing the wrong muscle memory is found in the case of several CHP troopers killed (the Newhall Incident). Officers were engaged in a gun battle and one slain officer had put his spent brass in his pocket just like he did every time he went to the range. He didn't do it because he wanted to keep the street clean during a gunfight. He did it due to muscle memory.
Anyway, there are two reasonable explanations for why the camera got turned off.
I am curious as to how the department was able to retrieve video if the camera was off in the first place. I suppose it constantly records during operation.
JTroll, those are excuses and not reasons.
And after watching the video there is no doubt the thug was pumped up. On steroids. Allegedly.
And what about getting tazed in the face from point blank range...? Another example of a Thug's "right" to "officer safety"?
I wasn't responding to you troll boy. I was answering Griffin.
And yet you did not answer...
Everyone has excuses.
Except yo momma. She got nuthin' when your name comes up. She just kind of avoids eye contact, prays you aren't a serial killer, and hopes you move out of the basement...
Soon.
Jesus, Jl. Are you just another sick fuck?
This guy IS hulking, and he did this without provocation, as far as I can see from the video. How dare you make any statement here about justification for this?
All respect I once had for you just evaporated. Asshole.
JL,
Thank you for pointed out exactly why we should not allow cops to carry the means of projecting deadly force. They will gain muscle memory during training with devices such as handguns and shotguns. When it comes time to use those devices they will just go with their muscle memory and shoot the place up instead of making responsible decisions on when and if to use deadly force.
You have also explained with your muscle memory explanation why we see cops having a dance party on suspects faces while yelling stop resisting. They were trained that way, developed muscle memory and that's they way they behave when in the real situation even if that behaviour is not warranted by the circumstances at hand.
Perhaps in the future we will test potential police officers for this muscle memory problem before allowing them on the force.
Yes, redcoat goose stepping brown shirt fuck, that is exactly what he did. It makes filling out the report sooooo much easier.
Johnny Law...I find it sad and yet I'm not totally surprised by all the excuses you make for this rotten police officer. It's what you do, defend and protect each other til the bitter end, even if you know in your heart of hearts what's being done is wrong. There was no knife found. Yes, I think it WAS most definitely a deliberate ploy by the officer. While you may have your head in your fifth point of contact, even you are not oblivious to all the counts proven against police officers such as him who have hidden behind their badges to do wrong, thinking they will never be prosecuted. "To Protect and Serve" is more like "We Do What We Want" at the expense of the victims. Yes, protect your blue brethren with your last breath, but who are you fooling? Certainly not anyone on this page, and while you vehemently defend him I think you know what's up. In any case I hope that officer gets prosecuted to the fullest extent (jail) AFTER he loses his job. There are too many rotten eggs around as it is.
"Officers of Melbourne Police Department their is a rotten one amongst you"
----> http://pastebin.com/TVai5FDC
Interesting. Maybe this is why Middendorf is currently off the job but for an unrelated "injury"
There is nothing wrong with what this officer did as far as the kick and the jumping on top of him. Sure maybe tactically it wasn't the best thing to do as JL pointed out, but as far as brutality that is nonsense.
I might take issue with the 2nd officer tasering him in the face if that did in fact happen but I don't see it in the video. Looks like he points it and probably warns him.
Just curious, does a stab wound cause less damage if the man doing the stabbing has dementia?
Nothing wrong with that? Brilliant.
I don't know Oscar, how exactly does your rectum feel?
I don't know about Oscar's but your mom's was pretty sore after I left last night.
Yo Mamma jokes?
Careful JTroll. Your humanity is showing. Next you will be bragging about your new DSLR, all excited like a school girl just asked to homecoming.
wow and you are suppost to be an officer? I realy hope your no where near where i live. it sounds to me like you may be just like the type of officer you are defending. That was no where neer a frontal kick...that was a deliberate kick in the nuts. If the officer was in fear for his life. why didnt he tazz the man BEFORE he called him over. This man made no threatening move at all as he approched the officer. Then he was down..and gets tazzed in the face??? How was he going to move with that FATTTT-ASS on top of him?
As a resident of Melbourne there is no surprise here. The Melbourne Meter Maids are some of the worst forms of police. They all like to go around as if they are in the military and the citizens are the enemy. They are very afraid to go after the real problems of the drug dealers. They know exactly where they are but beating a little old man is easier. I have been a fan of this sight from the start. We have all seen it over and over. Their big bust of the month was a few prostitutes and they made that front page news through a press release. The POS chief will do nothing since “cover up” is the name of their game.
Are these dashcams that can't be fully disabled common in police forces? Seems like a swell idea to me, and I wasn't even aware such things existed in police cars.
Neither are the cops, apparently. Which is a good thing.
By turning off the camera, it seems like the cop KNEW he was going to give the guy an ass whupping. Otherwise, he'd surely want it on in the event he was attacked or otherwise given a hard time by the old fella.
I think most police video recording systems are run on a loop and dumped at preset time intervals.
And what is being done in the larger picture to change all of this? NOTHING!
PIGS have been doing this shit for the 50 years I have been paying attention - only now we have cameras to prove it.
Nothing will change, I predict, until people start killing these miscreants.
The man didn't have a knife, nor did he appear to be attempting to attack the officer in any way. He is elderly, AND has dementia. He is disabled. The cop, in my opinion, was overly aggressive. If he felt threatened, he could have knocked the man down (clearly he didn't have any problem subduing the man, another clue that the man likely wasn't being aggressive) This was a brutal and unnecessary use of force. And I have to wonder, if the cop was truly feeling threatened or felt the need to defend himself so forcefully against this old, sick and feeble man, wouldn't he want the camera ON to show this, and to justify his actions. One would think so. It seems clear to me that the cop was having a bad day, and decided to take it out on this old dude. That he deliberately turned the camera off tells the whole story.
I want to be a Cop Killer when I grow up!
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