# Professor Skip Gates arrested in front of his own home; claims racism from Cambridge police **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [July 21, 2009, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/professor-skip-gates-arrested-in-front-of-his-own-home-claims-racism-from-cambridge-police/503709 "2009-07-21T02:20:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 15
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/professor-skip-gates-arrested-in-front-of-his-own-home-claims-racism-from-cambridge-police/503709/281 "2009-08-04T03:40:45Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Discipline is good for citizens, it keeps them peaceable and orderly. That is why we empower police officers, at their discretion, to apply such punishments as they deem fit, in circumstances they deem appropriate. And if the charges are dropped, we conclude that the police are being merciful, and not that the case is a crock o’ shit from the git-go. > > Got that about right, have I? Holy jesus fuck, **Magiver** worries me. It turns my stomach to hear someone support something as insidious as that. Godwin’s law be damned. ---
**Author:** ![Rubystreak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Rubystreak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rubystreak)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/professor-skip-gates-arrested-in-front-of-his-own-home-claims-racism-from-cambridge-police/503709/282 "2009-08-04T04:28:22Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > I think it’s a good analogy to the situation. Gates acted like a child and got sent to the Principle’s office. He learned what happened when he disturbed the peace. It was a teaching moment. Are the police supposed to be doling out punishments and teaching people lessons? I thought that was for the court system. The police are supposed to ascertain if you committed a crime, and if you did, start your process through the legal system, where a jury of your peers will decide if you deserve punishment. You really want to give the police a lot more power than the criminal justice system thinks they should have. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/professor-skip-gates-arrested-in-front-of-his-own-home-claims-racism-from-cambridge-police/503709/283 "2009-08-04T05:07:20Z")
**Magiver** apparently feels the rule of law doesn’t apply so long as “he had it coming”. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 11:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/professor-skip-gates-arrested-in-front-of-his-own-home-claims-racism-from-cambridge-police/503709/284 "2009-08-04T11:04:12Z")
Has [this](http://xkcd.com/617/) made an appearance in the thread yet? ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/professor-skip-gates-arrested-in-front-of-his-own-home-claims-racism-from-cambridge-police/503709/285 "2009-08-04T15:20:46Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > I think it’s a good analogy to the situation. Gates acted like a child and got sent to the Principle’s office. He learned what happened when he disturbed the peace. It was a teaching moment. 1.) Teachers are tasked with teaching children. Police officers are not tasked with teaching adult citizens. 2.) Teachers have more power over their students than police have over adult citizens. 3.) Adult citizens on their own properties have many more rights than children on school property. 4.) A child being confrontational with a teacher in a classroom is probably breaking the rules of the school and disrupting other students. The teacher leaving is not an option for ending the confrontation, because it is the teacher’s classroom, not the student’s. An adult citizen being confrontational with a police officer on that citizen’s property is disturbing no one but the officer, and the confrontation will cease as soon as the officer leaves when they no longer have a legitimate reason to be there. > [@Omniscient](#): > > Has [this](http://xkcd.com/617/) made an appearance in the thread yet? Oh xkcd, you truly do have a strip for every occasion. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/professor-skip-gates-arrested-in-front-of-his-own-home-claims-racism-from-cambridge-police/503709/286 "2009-08-04T16:08:25Z")
> [@Rubystreak](#): > > Are the police supposed to be doling out punishments and teaching people lessons? I thought that was for the court system. The police are supposed to ascertain if you committed a crime, and if you did, start your process through the legal system, where a jury of your peers will decide if you deserve punishment. You really want to give the police a lot more power than the criminal justice system thinks they should have. Police have discretion as to how far up the pipeline they wish to send you when you’ve broken the law. I’m sure Gates was warned before the cuffs came out and he chose to continue. Whether or not it was a teaching moment is up to Professor Gates. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/professor-skip-gates-arrested-in-front-of-his-own-home-claims-racism-from-cambridge-police/503709/287 "2009-08-04T16:12:12Z")
> [@Omniscient](#): > > **Magiver** apparently feels the rule of law doesn’t apply so long as “he had it coming”. According to the other officer there it was a good arrest. Apparently you feel that the law should be ignored if you think it’s wrong. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/professor-skip-gates-arrested-in-front-of-his-own-home-claims-racism-from-cambridge-police/503709/288 "2009-08-04T16:16:54Z")
Oh, so you have two cops saying it was legit! Well, that certainly settles that! I thought it was just one saying it, but it turns out it was two! Wow! ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/professor-skip-gates-arrested-in-front-of-his-own-home-claims-racism-from-cambridge-police/503709/289 "2009-08-04T16:20:59Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > According to the other officer there it was a good arrest. Apparently you feel that the law should be ignored if you think it’s wrong. The other officer is not a judge either. He is part of a group (policemen) who would naturally like to see their powers expanded almost infiinitely. There is a legal framework that is supposed to constrain them. No matter how you torture it, there is no way to construe this as a legal arrest. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/professor-skip-gates-arrested-in-front-of-his-own-home-claims-racism-from-cambridge-police/503709/290 "2009-08-04T16:46:06Z")
> [@Mighty\_Mouse](#): > > No matter how you torture it, there is no way to construe this as a legal arrest. Then no doubt Gates would prevail if he sued for false arrest, and the Cambridge Police Department would be falling all over themselves to settle the matter. :rolleyes: I’ll grant that the courts would have the final say here. You’re a judge on what court? ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/professor-skip-gates-arrested-in-front-of-his-own-home-claims-racism-from-cambridge-police/503709/291 "2009-08-04T17:56:41Z")
> [@Gary\_T](#): > > Then no doubt Gates would prevail if he sued for false arrest, and the Cambridge Police Department would be falling all over themselves to settle the matter. :rolleyes: > > I’ll grant that the courts would have the final say here. You’re a judge on what court? Your premise is very much in doubt, juries are notorious for believing the cops over just about anybody. If Mr. Gates consults an attorney the answer he is most likely to get is: you’ll spend a ton of money, probably lose, and even if you win all you’ll get for it is the undying enmity of any police officer you ever meet. Further, disturbing the peace is a charge with a perfectly marvelous amount of wiggle room built in, along with disorderly conduct. Go ahead, prove you weren’t disorderly. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/professor-skip-gates-arrested-in-front-of-his-own-home-claims-racism-from-cambridge-police/503709/292 "2009-08-04T18:31:15Z")
> [@Gary\_T](#): > > Then no doubt Gates would prevail if he sued for false arrest, and the Cambridge Police Department would be falling all over themselves to settle the matter. :rolleyes: > > I’ll grant that the courts would have the final say here. You’re a judge on what court? I am not a judge, of course. But I am a disinterested person, which is more than you can say about the policeman. And as a matter of practicality I doubt that there would be much point in a lawsuit. What are the damages that Prof Gates would get compared witht the costs, even if he were to prevail. His chances of prevailing would be slim anyway, because I bet the public is very much on the police side. I think public opinion is quite wrong in this case, but I am under no illusion that I have it on my side. You have some reason to believe this would be bench trial for some reason, instead of a jury trial? Serious question. Not only am I not a judge, but I am not a lawyer either, but I would think that either Crowley or the Cambridge PD would insist on a jury trial. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/professor-skip-gates-arrested-in-front-of-his-own-home-claims-racism-from-cambridge-police/503709.md?page=14)