Student Taserd for not having ID

[DEATHMASTER]

I suppose the most common sense thing that the student didn't do was leave right away, none of this would've happend otherwise.

 

[BabyHeadCrab]

As some of you know, I have been a police officer for almost 10 years. I carry a TASER, and have for over a year. In order to be able to carry the TASER, I had to be TASE'd. It sucked. Bad. Real bad. In the time I've carried it, I've never had to use it, because most times when people see the red dot, they know exactly what comes next and they generally comply. Plus I made detective soon after I got the TASER and have much less confrontational contacts with citizens now.

Anyway, I watched the video, and I saw nothing which seemed excessive or uncalled for. Most departments, mine included, have a Use of Force Continuum. What this does is give guidelines for appropriate levels of force in response to levels of resistance. The first level of force on ours is officer presence. The mere presence of an officer in uniform is often enough to defuse a potentially hostile situation. The next level is verbal persuasion. These officers can plainly be heard giving verbal warnings to the subject several times before the first deployment of the TASER. They can be heard giving verbal warnings prior to each additional TASING as well. The next level, for us anyway, is either OC (pepper spray) or TASING. Which you use depends on the circumstances. This level of force corresponds with verbal resistance. This subject can plainly be heard yelling and verbally resisting the officers. From there it goes to hands on, various levels of joint manipulations, impact weapons and finally deadly force. The thing to remember is that you do not have to go through each step of the continuum, and the use of force must cease once the subject is under control and compliant. Just because a subject is handcuffed does not mean he is under control. I know of one instance where a handcuffed subject escaped, stole a van and led our officers on a high speed chase, all while still handcuffed. He was able to drive at speeds of over 100mph and at one point called his mom on a cell phone which had been left in the van, while handcuffed and driving like an idiot.

I don't know for sure, but the impression I got from watching this video was that this kid was intentionally challenging the Patriot Act requirement that ID be shown, and he even yellls about it. He was protesting, in effect. He has a right to protest. He does not, however, have ANY right to resist the police. He succeeded in making the big scene he apparently intended to make, but I can almost guarantee you that he will not have the satisfaction of seeing the officers disciplined, nor will any Federal lawsuit he files stand up. The judge will look at the video and throw it out right off the bat. I have been sued in Fedral court myself once for alleged excessive force, and it was thrown out when the suspect admitted in his criminal trial that he lied about the use of force in order to have a bargaining chip to try to broker a deal with the prosecution, i.e. "Hey I'll drop this lawsuit if you give me 5 years instead of the 30 I'm looking at." He ended up getting 30......

As for the, "Why can't 3 big burly officers handle him without having to resort to the use of a weapon," argument, well, would you rather have 3 big burly officers beating the shit out of him, causing potentially permanent harm to him as well as risking injury themselves, or one officer TASING him, causing no injury other than the probes lodging in his skin?

You don't have to beat somebody to carry them outside of a building. That said your post was a great read and I appreciate it.

 

[Ennui]

In response to Hapless: Good post. I don't think the point of contention is the legality of the actions of the police officers, nor is it whether or not the kid was being an asshole and resisting arrest - most of us are just pissed off because it seems like him being tasered repeatedly was unnecessary. The kid was being pretty stupid, because he was resisting arrest and making a scene, but I don't think inflicting repeated intense pain on someone just because they won't stand up is really acceptable. This guy was not dangerous and was not really even potentially dangerous (although I understand that in most situations, police officers must assume they are), and there is no way you can justify anything beyond that first zap.

That "use of force" continuum you speak of is another interesting point. Verbally resisting officers can lead to "impact weapons and finally deadly force." Does that mean that if someone is not excited about their arrest (I use that phrase dryly) and they're making a fuss like this fellow, they can be SHOT if they refuse to cooperate, after a substantial period of time and warnings and stuff?

 

[sinkoman]

The first time seemed semi justified. Granted, you could allways just grab him the kid and throw him out, but still, he was refusing to cooperate. Excessive force, but still semi-justified

The second time was unwarranted. They just tazed him, and then when he's on the ground still recovering, they tell him to stand up. I'd still be thinking about what the **** just happened too if I was that kid, too stunned to stand. Then BZZAPOWND!

Oh penis pie

EDIT: LOL @ Ennui saying same thing before me D:

 

[15357]

Cool.


Disobediece to law enforcement with electric weapons is not something that you'd want to do, as shown in HL2.

 

[sinkoman]

Cool.

Are you just trying to fit into this little "pet of the totalitarian state" image that the boardmembers have created for you?

Because I know that you're really not like that D:

EDIT: Damnt, too lazy to include your filthy edit.

 

[15357]

I was talking about the tazers..... I mean to say, our police don't get tazers... or even guns for that matter..

 

[63]

I was talking about the tazers..... I mean to say, our police don't get tazers... or even guns for that matter..

Or pants.

 

[sinkoman]

I was talking about the tazers..... I mean to say, our police don't get tazers... or even guns for that matter..

Really?

Wow, NK actually doesn't sound all that bad.

 

[15357]

-_-;;

http://img157.imageshack.us/img157/9022/3075ut9.jpg

Look at the belt, there is only a baton and radio.



Come to think of it, the only police I've ever seen with guns were a) In the US or b) were MPs guarding the subways.

 

[XIII]

what an asshole...**ker police

 

[sinkoman]

what an asshole...**ker police

I don't get you.

You think it's bad that the cops taser some kid repeatedly for being dirsruptive...

But you feel remorse for some guy who gets 90 in prison for raping and murdering a random civilian.

 

[XIII]

I don't get you.

You think it's bad that the cops taser some kid repeatedly for being dirsruptive...

But you feel remorse for some guy who gets 90 in prison for raping and murdering a random civilian.

i didnt know he murdered the girlz...all i knew was a soldier sentenced to prison for 90 years for umm raping..which imo isnt that bad...its just my opinion+
i have no intention to start a flame war..

if this really bothers you..i here apology

 

[sinkoman]

i didnt know he murdered the girlz...all i knew was a soldier sentenced to prison for 90 years for umm raping..which imo isnt that bad...its just my opinion+
i have no intention to start a flame war..

if this really bothers you..i here apology

Well, it is your oppinion so there's no reason to start flaming. No reason to appologize either.

But really, that's still fairly ludicrouse to think that rape isn't that bad.

I guess it doesn't warrant 90 in prison though. That what you meant?

 

[MiccyNarc]

umm raping..which imo isnt that bad...its just my opinion+

I've never wanted to dismember anyone more than I do right now.

Please kill yourself and rid the planet of your stupidity.

 

[EVIL]

tasered? lol.. what happened to the old bullet in the kneecaps?

cops are getting to soft

 

[CptStern]

As some of you know, I have been a police officer for almost 10 years. I carry a TASER, and have for over a year. In order to be able to carry the TASER, I had to be TASE'd. It sucked. Bad. Real bad. In the time I've carried it, I've never had to use it, because most times when people see the red dot, they know exactly what comes next and they generally comply. Plus I made detective soon after I got the TASER and have much less confrontational contacts with citizens now.

Anyway, I watched the video, and I saw nothing which seemed excessive or uncalled for. Most departments, mine included, have a Use of Force Continuum. What this does is give guidelines for appropriate levels of force in response to levels of resistance. The first level of force on ours is officer presence. The mere presence of an officer in uniform is often enough to defuse a potentially hostile situation. The next level is verbal persuasion. These officers can plainly be heard giving verbal warnings to the subject several times before the first deployment of the TASER. They can be heard giving verbal warnings prior to each additional TASING as well. The next level, for us anyway, is either OC (pepper spray) or TASING. Which you use depends on the circumstances. This level of force corresponds with verbal resistance. This subject can plainly be heard yelling and verbally resisting the officers. From there it goes to hands on, various levels of joint manipulations, impact weapons and finally deadly force. The thing to remember is that you do not have to go through each step of the continuum, and the use of force must cease once the subject is under control and compliant. Just because a subject is handcuffed does not mean he is under control. I know of one instance where a handcuffed subject escaped, stole a van and led our officers on a high speed chase, all while still handcuffed. He was able to drive at speeds of over 100mph and at one point called his mom on a cell phone which had been left in the van, while handcuffed and driving like an idiot.

I don't know for sure, but the impression I got from watching this video was that this kid was intentionally challenging the Patriot Act requirement that ID be shown, and he even yellls about it. He was protesting, in effect. He has a right to protest. He does not, however, have ANY right to resist the police. He succeeded in making the big scene he apparently intended to make, but I can almost guarantee you that he will not have the satisfaction of seeing the officers disciplined, nor will any Federal lawsuit he files stand up. The judge will look at the video and throw it out right off the bat. I have been sued in Fedral court myself once for alleged excessive force, and it was thrown out when the suspect admitted in his criminal trial that he lied about the use of force in order to have a bargaining chip to try to broker a deal with the prosecution, i.e. "Hey I'll drop this lawsuit if you give me 5 years instead of the 30 I'm looking at." He ended up getting 30......

As for the, "Why can't 3 big burly officers handle him without having to resort to the use of a weapon," argument, well, would you rather have 3 big burly officers beating the shit out of him, causing potentially permanent harm to him as well as risking injury themselves, or one officer TASING him, causing no injury other than the probes lodging in his skin?

he was on the ground ..after being tasered they could have jumped him and cuffed him. I've been in that situation but with someone who was violent and at no time did we ever have to use offensive force to subdue someone who's already on the ground.

btw I dont disagree with the initial taze, however the 3 that followed was excessive, he wasnt resisting anything ..ito me it looked like he was practicising passive resistance (when he's finally cuffed his body is limp) like what you see in some protests ..rarely in those situations do you see police tazering a suspect ..they just pick the person up and carry them away ...again there really isnt a lot to go on in defending either scenario

 

[SAJ]

I just watched the video and read the account of what happened, plus the rest of this thread, and Im amazed at how divisive it has been.
Part of me was appalled at the officers actions and other part of me was "ho hum, a middleclass student gets his hand slapped by the police".
I mean, let's face it in terms of physical abuse, its not that serious, but it was the smug indifference with which they acted that really chilled me.

Something that I didnt expect was how this story has polarized people into the "omg, police/state brutality!" camp, and the "obey authority or you get what you deserve" camp (cards on table time, I find the latter camp a bit creepy tbh), I expected the debte to be much tamer.

Now, I don't want to be the one that plays the race card, but did anyone notice that the guy's name was Mostafa? Mostafa Tabatabainejad, an Iranian-American muslim? Did anyone read that he felt he was being racially profiled?
Now theres no way to assess the merits of the case at the moment but it does offer an interesting insight into how things might have gone down (and offer some explanation for the students attitude).

I dont want to paste the whole article but people may have trouble seeing it on the LA Times site(requires registration) ....

UCLA student stunned by Taser plans suit
By Stuart Silverstein, Times Staff Writer
November 17, 2006


The UCLA student stunned with a Taser by a campus police officer has hired a high-profile civil rights lawyer who plans to file a brutality lawsuit.

The videotaped incident, which occurred after the student refused requests to show his ID card to campus officers, triggered widespread debate on and off campus Thursday about whether use of the Taser was warranted. It was the third in a recent series of local incidents captured on video that raise questions about arrest tactics.

Attorney Stephen Yagman said he plans to file a federal civil rights lawsuit accusing the UCLA police of "brutal excessive force," as well as false arrest. The lawyer also provided the first public account of the Tuesday night incident at UCLA's Powell Library from the student, Mostafa Tabatabainejad, a 23-year-old senior.

He said that Tabatabainejad, when asked for his ID after 11 p.m. Tuesday, declined because he thought he was being singled out because of his Middle Eastern appearance. Yagman said Tabatabainejad is of Iranian descent but is a U.S.-born resident of Los Angeles.

The lawyer said Tabatabainejad eventually decided to leave the library but when an officer refused the student's request to take his hand off him, the student fell limp to the floor, again to avoid participating in what he considered a case of racial profiling. After police started firing the Taser, Tabatabainejad tried to "get the beating, the use of brutal force, to stop by shouting and causing people to watch. Generally, police don't want to do their dirties in front of a lot of witnesses."

He said Tabatabainejad was hit by the Taser five times and suffered "moderate to severe contusions" on his right side.

UCLA officials declined to respond directly to Yagman's statements, saying they still were conducting their internal investigation of the incident.

The university said earlier, however, that Tabatabainejad was asked for his ID as part of a routine nightly procedure to make sure that everyone using the library after 11 p.m. is a student or otherwise authorized to be there. Campus officials have said the long-standing policy was adopted to ensure students' safety.

UCLA also said that Tabatabainejad refused repeated requests by a community service officer and regular campus police to provide identification or to leave. UCLA said the police decided to use the Taser to incapacitate Tabatabainejad only after the student urged other library patrons to join his resistance.

Some witnesses disputed that account, saying that when campus police arrived, Tabatabainejad had begun to walk toward the door.

In a prepared statement released late Thursday, UCLA's interim chancellor, Norman Abrams, urged the public to "withhold judgment" while the campus police department investigates. "I, too, have watched the videos, and I do not believe that one can make a fair judgment regarding the matter from the videos alone. I am encouraged that a number of witnesses have come forward and are participating in the investigation."

Meanwhile, student activists were organizing a midday rally today to protest the incident, and the Southern California office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations called for an independent investigation.

The incident follows the recent announcement that four of the campus police department's nearly 60 full-time sworn officers had won so-called Taser Awards granted by the manufacturer of the device to "law enforcement officers who save a life in the line of duty through extraordinary use of the Taser." The award stemmed from an incident in which officers subdued a patient who allegedly threatened staff at the campus' Neuropsychiatric Hospital with metal scissors.

Jeff Young, assistant police chief, declined to indicate whether any of the honored officers were among the several involved in Tuesday's incident.




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[email protected]

 

[function9]

Now, I don't want to be the one that plays the race card, but did anyone notice that the guy's name was Mostafa? Mostafa Tabatabainejad, an Iranian-American muslim? Did anyone read that he felt he was being racially profiled?

Never thought of that. But is being dumbass really a race? That's what I got out of it. Some kid that thought rules didn't apply to him. From the schools I've been at, they take showing ID when requested to do so seriously. So no, I don't think race had much of anything to do with it. I bet being a dumbass sure did though.

He said that Tabatabainejad, when asked for his ID after 11 p.m. Tuesday, declined because he thought he was being singled out because of his Middle Eastern appearance. Yagman said Tabatabainejad is of Iranian descent but is a U.S.-born resident of Los Angeles.

Or maybe someone had a knack for singling out dumbasses. I've had to show my ID card numerous times and I'm as white as they come. I say it would be different if they tried to take him away first, but so far all that was initially asked was for him to present his ID card.

The lawyer said Tabatabainejad eventually decided to leave the library but when an officer refused the student's request to take his hand off him, the student fell limp to the floor, again to avoid participating in what he considered a case of racial profiling. After police started firing the Taser, Tabatabainejad tried to "get the beating, the use of brutal force, to stop by shouting and causing people to watch. Generally, police don't want to do their dirties in front of a lot of witnesses."

Sorry, you don't tell a law enforcement officer what to do. Especially when you're acting irrational. I'm not one to lay down to law enforcement blindly, but in this case I can't see any wrong doing on the officers involved part. Could they of handled it differently? Possibly, doesn't mean what action they took was wrong.

 

[Sulkdodds]

Hrm. Thinking similarly to SAJ at the moment. Especially on how creepy and/or ridiculous some people in this thread are being. Some of the arguments are downright mad.

What annoys me is that this is being generally left out:

and at one point officers told the gathered crowd to stand back and threatened to use a Taser on anyone who got too close.

Laila Gordy, a fourth-year economics student who was present in the library during the incident, said police officers threatened to shoot her with a Taser when she asked an officer for his name and his badge number.

In the UK, a police officer MUST identify himself and his station when doing this kind of thing. I presume it is similar in the US. What's going on here?

Proper opinion-post later.

 

[CptStern]

I just watched the video and read the account of what happened, plus the rest of this thread, and Im amazed at how divisive it has been.
Part of me was appalled at the officers actions and other part of me was "ho hum, a middleclass student gets his hand slapped by the police".
I mean, let's face it in terms of physical abuse, its not that serious, but it was the smug indifference with which they acted that really chilled me.

Something that I didnt expect was how this story has polarized people into the "omg, police/state brutality!" camp, and the "obey authority or you get what you deserve" camp (cards on table time, I find the latter camp a bit creepy tbh), I expected the debte to be much tamer.

Now, I don't want to be the one that plays the race card, but did anyone notice that the guy's name was Mostafa? Mostafa Tabatabainejad, an Iranian-American muslim? Did anyone read that he felt he was being racially profiled?
Now theres no way to assess the merits of the case at the moment but it does offer an interesting insight into how things might have gone down (and offer some explanation for the students attitude).

I dont want to paste the whole article but people may have trouble seeing it on the LA Times site(requires registration) ....

thanks for posting that bit of info ..clearly there's more than meets the eye ..hopefully we'll see some sort of resolution

 

[Absinthe]

I have to agree with the very few others that said this guy got what he deserved.

What "very few"? You guys are quite possibly in the majority in this topic.

 

[Absinthe]

raping..which imo isnt that bad...

...

 

[SAJ]

Never thought of that. But is being dumbass really a race? That's what I got out of it. Some kid that thought rules didn't apply to him. From the schools I've been at, they take showing ID when requested to do so seriously. So no, I don't think race had much of anything to do with it. I bet being a dumbass sure did though.

Fair enough, I'm not saying that that's how it went down, but that the information about his race and how he felt he was being treated was worth bringing up. It's the first time that we have an alternative to the "student acting up out of pure stupidity" viewpoint.

Consider this; if you were the only person in the library who was challenged to produce their ID, and if you looked around and saw that you were the only one who looked "middle eastern" might you feel somewhat singled out.
And if so, might you consider the request for ID less than reasonable?
That's one way of looking at it anyway.

The other thing about this for me was the context of the library.
I mean do cops have an intuitive fear of "book-smarts" or something? Were they concerned that the suspect was a hardened user of library materials and was well versed in the use fiction and non-fiction in hand-to-hand debating?
Seriously though, even though they have a duty to safeguard all students, they must have been aware that all they were dealing with was (at worst) an unruly coed.

 

[zleppelin]

Again, the title of the thread is misleading. This incident happened not because the student did not have an ID on him, but because he refused to show his ID. Last time I checked, cops were allowed to stop civilians and ask for identification. I guess that law does not apply in this case since the guy was of Persian descent.

 

[Mutley]

Again, the title of the thread is misleading. This incident happened not because the student did not have an ID on him, but because he refused to show his ID. Last time I checked, cops were allowed to stop civilians and ask for identification. I guess that law does not apply in this case since the guy was of Persian descent.

Read the article, the cops didn't stop him for ID.

 

[Solaris]

Again, the title of the thread is misleading. This incident happened not because the student did not have an ID on him, but because he refused to show his ID. Last time I checked, cops were allowed to stop civilians and ask for identification. I guess that law does not apply in this case since the guy was of Persian descent.

I do not agree with that law, and it appears, as many people have predicted, law-abiding citizens now face a:

'Show me ID or I will Tazer you'

Situation.

 

[zleppelin]

Read the article, the cops didn't stop him for ID.

One would imagine that Tabatabainejad started the argument after he was asked for his ID:

Tabatabainejad, 23, was shocked Tuesday night after arguing with a campus police officer who was conducting a routine check of student IDs at the University of California, Los Angeles Powell Library computer lab. Yagman said his client declined to show his school ID because he thought he was being targeted for his appearance.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/200611/ap_on_re_us/student_stunned

Something that I didnt expect was how this story has polarized people into the "omg, police/state brutality!" camp, and the "obey authority or you get what you deserve" camp (cards on table time, I find the latter camp a bit creepy tbh), I expected the debte to be much tamer.

It probably means that us, the ones on the latter camp, are fascists. By the way, some people here think that getting tasered amounts to brutality. I don't know if that's the case, because I have never been tasered, but judging by these videos, that appears not to be the case:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACUjnJBHIZc&NR
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWFBp34zS6E&mode=related&search=
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jycsQe1F-sE&mode=related&search=

It's fascists vs. anarchists

 

[CptStern]

you know knghenry it's not surprising you'd support what is fundamentally electrocution ..but this isnt the "therapeutic" kind you're used to

 

[Absinthe]

I don't know if that's the case, because I have never been tasered, but judging by these videos, that appears not to be the case:

A taser can drop a person for up to fifteen minutes. Your videos demonstrate nothing.

 

[zleppelin]

"According to the many sources, a shock of half a second duration will cause intense pain and muscle contractions startling most people greatly. Two to three seconds will often cause the subject to become dazed and drop to the ground, and over three seconds will usually completely disorient and drop an attacker for at least several minutes and possibly for up to fifteen minutes."

I don't know where you got that information from, but if you watch the first video again, you can see that the guy didn't look disoriented after being tasered for about 5 seconds.

 

[kirovman]

Isn't taser just another word for "love"?

 

[Mechagodzilla]

From there it goes to hands on, various levels of joint manipulations, impact weapons and finally deadly force.

I agree.
If he continued screaming in pain, they should have shot him.

I think it's pretty obvious here that none of this was warranted, when the guy was using passive resistance.
People in this thread are bringing up piss-poor justifications. Mainly: "being tasered isn't that bad" and "he deserved it for lack of respect."

Being punched in the face isn't that bad either.
Can I punch you in the face?
I mean, all you'll get is maybe a black eye and a cut lip. Don't be a pussy.
I've watched hundreds of videos on Youtube of people being punched in the face and then walking around again only seconds later.

And what, you don't want me to punch you in the face? Don't you respect my generous offer?!
Why, I ought to punch you in the face for being so disrespectful!
That utterly harmless act that doesn't do anything and is frankly utterly worthless as an incapacitating weapon is the perfect way to inflict extreme punishment for your beligerence.
I'll punch you in the face again and again, until you admit that punching you in the face is okay.

 

[Razor]

It is absolutely disgusting that 2 supposed police officers could not control a single student without the use of such force, the worst that should of come of it was him being restrained, led out the door and then released, any further problems, he would be arrested. Yes, the student was being disruptive by not leaving immediately and causing problems, but unless he was violently lashing out or posing a physical threat to himself or the people around him, the police officers had no requirement to use such force.

Anyone who is a police officer should be trained to be able to restrained and lead a person out of a building by only using one hand, i can do it easy and that is after 30minutes of self defence classes with the airforce.

 

[Hapless]

That "use of force" continuum you speak of is another interesting point. Verbally resisting officers can lead to "impact weapons and finally deadly force." Does that mean that if someone is not excited about their arrest (I use that phrase dryly) and they're making a fuss like this fellow, they can be SHOT if they refuse to cooperate, after a substantial period of time and warnings and stuff?

You misunderstand what I said. The general rule with use of force is that the level of force should be one level higher than the level of resistance. Under no circumstances would verbal resistance result in deadly force. Unless of course you were holding a gun, pointing it at me and telling me you aren't going to put it down.:E

 

[function9]

What "very few"? You guys are quite possibly in the majority in this topic.

Strange, I see more people complaining about the police.

Consider this; if you were the only person in the library who was challenged to produce their ID, and if you looked around and saw that you were the only one who looked "middle eastern" might you feel somewhat singled out.
And if so, might you consider the request for ID less than reasonable?
That's one way of looking at it anyway.

They have not yet stated whether or not he was the only person in the entire library that was asked for ID. But I can say from experience they do random checks like that, it's not anything new or anything a student (a senior one at that) shouldn't be well aware of. And from the video, you can clearly see several others in the crowd that looked "middle eastern". He certainly wasn't the only minority in the building at the time.

The other thing about this for me was the context of the library.
I mean do cops have an intuitive fear of "book-smarts" or something? Were they concerned that the suspect was a hardened user of library materials and was well versed in the use fiction and non-fiction in hand-to-hand debating?
Seriously though, even though they have a duty to safeguard all students, they must have been aware that all they were dealing with was (at worst) an unruly coed.

Like I said before, at least around here, campus security/police and surrounding police departments take security seriously. If you can't or do not want to show proof that you are a student there and belong there, well you'll be treated as such. There is too much liability to have someone not associated with the school in any way in their facilities without some kind of premission. The police also don't know what this individual is capable of or why he's refusing to show valid student ID. Usually when someone is being an asshat about something simple, they're hiding something.

It is absolutely disgusting that 2 supposed police officers could not control a single student without the use of such force, the worst that should of come of it was him being restrained, led out the door and then released, any further problems, he would be arrested. Yes, the student was being disruptive by not leaving immediately and causing problems, but unless he was violently lashing out or posing a physical threat to himself or the people around him, the police officers had no requirement to use such force.

So the cops should've stood there and waited for him to maybe harm someone? Ok. From the beginning of the video you could hear the guy being irrational, no reason to let it escalate to physical attacks. I think he lost his chance to leave peacefully when he did not comply with the library attendants request to leave and the police had to be called to remove him. Yeah, sure he was just getting up to leave, after how many minutes of ignoring their earlier request(s)?

i can do it easy and that is after 30minutes of self defence classes with the airforce.

Yes and I just learned how to disable someone's pancreas by pinching them on the arm. Only took me 5 minutes to learn so look out. :upstare:

I'm sure police go through training. But training and reality hardly ever look or playout the same.

 

[Hapless]

It is absolutely disgusting that 2 supposed police officers could not control a single student without the use of such force, the worst that should of come of it was him being restrained, led out the door and then released, any further problems, he would be arrested. Yes, the student was being disruptive by not leaving immediately and causing problems, but unless he was violently lashing out or posing a physical threat to himself or the people around him, the police officers had no requirement to use such force.

Anyone who is a police officer should be trained to be able to restrained and lead a person out of a building by only using one hand, i can do it easy and that is after 30minutes of self defence classes with the airforce.

:dozey:

 

[function9]

:dozey:

Glad I wasn't the only one.

 

[Hapless]

I agree.
If he continued screaming in pain, they should have shot him.

I think it's pretty obvious here that none of this was warranted, when the guy was using passive resistance.
People in this thread are bringing up piss-poor justifications. Mainly: "being tasered isn't that bad" and "he deserved it for lack of respect."

Being punched in the face isn't that bad either.
Can I punch you in the face?
I mean, all you'll get is maybe a black eye and a cut lip. Don't be a pussy.
I've watched hundreds of videos on Youtube of people being punched in the face and then walking around again only seconds later.

And what, you don't want me to punch you in the face? Don't you respect my generous offer?!
Why, I ought to punch you in the face for being so disrespectful!
That utterly harmless act that doesn't do anything and is frankly utterly worthless as an incapacitating weapon is the perfect way to inflict extreme punishment for your beligerence.
I'll punch you in the face again and again, until you admit that punching you in the face is okay.

How was none of this warranted? It is unlawful to resist the police, whether passively, aggressively or verbally. The police are authorized by law to use that force which is necessary to effect an arrest or bring someone under control. Contrary to what Absinthe says, TASER's do not affect you for 15 minutes, blah blah blah, once the juice is let off, the effect is gone. I know this because I HAVE BEEN TASE'd! I personally know over 100 other officers who have been TASE'd. Guess what....they all report the same thing I experienced. It sucks ass for the 5 seconds the juice is on, but once it's over, it's over. The simple fact of the matter is, there are several people on this board who believe the police should never use force on anyone for any reason, and those same people have no clue what it's like to try to get someone to do something they really, really don't want to do, such as go to jail. It is a fact that those departments which have gone to TASER's report a dramatic decline in both officer and suspect injuries resulting from resistance situations.

 

[Krynn72]

you know knghenry it's not surprising you'd support what is fundamentally electrocution ..but this isnt the "therapeutic" kind you're used to

Nor is it the fatal kind you're used to. Your arguement is irrelevant because a TASER only incapacitates somebody for a couple seconds after the trigger is released.

Another thing a lot of people dont realize is that the police are in a college building surrounded by multiple dozens of people who were very pissed and probably threatening. This might explain why they may threaten to taser other students if they didnt stay back. If I was one of 3 officers in a VERY riled up crowed of college kids... I wouldnt take my chances by letting one of them close to me either.

The repeated tazerings are justified by the fact that the kid was still resisting arrest even after being handcuffed. Just because the kid is in handcuffs doesnt mean he is completely immobile and harmless. The kid was being irrational and could very well have kicked or bit the officers when they go to pick him up. I once was with some people who were playing a prank on a friend and they lifted up the guy by his hands and feet. The guy obviously wasnt in a mood for pranks, and he started kicking so they would let go. One of his feet broke the grasp of the other guy, and he kicked the dude in the face, breaking his jaw.

Now imaging this case where the guy being picked up is probably going to jail (as opposed to having a prank pulled on him), and is very very angry at the officer (as opposed to him being a friend). Do you not see any danger for the police there?