Pixiq

Ian Graham! Come on Down! You're the next winner of the cops abusing their authority lottery!

If the only thing that distinguishes the subject of an arrest from anyone else present is that the arrestee is exercising a Constitutional right, then the arrest is by definition a false one.

Further, under 18USC241, the fact that TWO officers are acting together to violate the man's Constitutional rights both as a member of The People and of the press, both officers are guilty of a federal offense punishable by ten years in prison and/or a $10,000 fine. By any stretch of the imagination, this is a felony-level offense. Most states have some sort of law, common, case or statutory, that permits a citizen's arrest upon witnessing the commission of a felony. If either officer so much as touched their sidearm as a threatening gesture to enforce the arrest, (or actually drew it) the federal offense jumps from felony to capital crime, punishable by a $100,000 fine and/or life without parole or execution.

Given the way citizen's arrest works, you don't actually have to try to place an officer in restraints, you merely must inform them they are now under arrest. From that point, the law is absolutely the same as when an officer makes an arrest when it comes to resisting, escape or deadly force.

I'd love to see that scenario play out. Odds are, anyone attempting a citizen's arrest of a cop will end up in jail, charged with assaulting police, resisting arrest, and anything else the cops can think of. But I'd love to see the judge's face when he learns that the "arresting officer" is actually guilty of resisting arrest too, not to mention escape from custody.

It'll only stop when the cities start losing MILLIONS of dollars in lawsuits. Their insurance premiums will go through the roof or they won't be able to get insurance at all. It has to hit the city in the pocket book or it'll never change.

American photojournalists need to watch the documentary "Burma VJ" and see how clever and courageously video recording can be done.

Well, the police should be congratulated on contributing to his retirement fund... As Rusty said, sue the crap out of these towns and cities and this nonsense will stop, nothing else will end it, money talks.