Hmm, I wonder what the penalty is for filing a false police report in that jurisdiction.
Let’s see… Violation of 4th amendment rights, filing a false report against an innocent citizen, uttering threats, and (possibly) the very same traffic infraction that the officer accused the photographer of.
A hat trick, at least. Way to go, Devore!
What, you don’t think it’s reasonable to assume that the man took a picture of himself yelling obscenities at a cop while performing an illegal u-turn? I take pictures of myself doing that every day! You can tell I’m yelling obscenities, too, because my camera makes little word balloons on all of the pictures with the relevant text automatically included.
And don’t forget libel and defamation.
Here’s a photo of the officer.
…destroying evidence…
You know…like maybe he needed his ass kicked or his face rearranged. I think it’s splendid that the police are out there looking after our needs.
Hmm. A not-to-bright officer who engages in exceedingly petty power trips? I think he looks more like this.
This sounds just like good old Buford T. Justice. :eek:
Those comments make me think of this guy.
It’s an imperfect system, but it does strike fear in the hearts of people who commit civil, not criminal, wrongs. Litigation costs significant amounts of money, and lots of people wouldn’t make that investment if all they could get out of it was the “actual damages.” In this case, the actual damages wouldn’t even approach the cost of the attorney, so the plaintiff would back off. The cop would never face any sanction bigger than the 1-day suspension, and probably not even that, because without lots of money at stake the press would be more likely to jump on that and the department would be less inclined to do anything about it at all.
Really? You oughta get a guy like my guy.
That aside, I do think that this is a pretty blatant abuse of power, and hope that Mr Bell is succesful in his case. Particularly since the confrontation was caught on videotape with a freakin’ audio track.
I would love to hear a reporter interview the Chief of Police and the DA and ask why criminal charges were not filed/considered.
And why in his report did the officer write, “f_ _k”? Seriously, it is a police report. If the guy said “fuck”, why not write “fuck”?
Because this is Hudson, Ohio. Where people love their kids and don’t cuss, and make a lot of money.
I live in the bitter working-class town next door 
As a Cold War vet, who grew up hearing about the evils of having to have ‘papers’ to go around the country I find the whole reasoning behind the idea of a national ID to be horrifying. Beyond the potential for abuse by officious fucks as rjung suggests, I wonder if it’s the first step to having to get gov’t permission to move, or travel between states? I think it’s unlikely, but back 1986 I remember being told that the US gov’t would never be able to get a national ID, either.
Bolding mine. I couldn’t agree more. A national ID card is, in my opinion, an open invitation for abuse. Imagine being jailed because you chose to grow a mustache and the photo on your ID shows you without one. Could you change your haircolor? Or shave the mustache you originally had? I believe it would just bring us one step closer to a police state.
I work there too 
Damn you, beat me to it
In some cities, the police have “To protect and TO SERVE” written on their vehicles. Clearly, the officer wanted to see if the guy wanted a cup of coffee, a newspaper, or a pair of slippers.