Cop caught on camera pushing disabled woman

Thank you for all the attention you have brought to this thread.

However, I feel it very important to single out the Offending Police Officer or Officers in any incident of brutality/misconduct and not all LEO in general.

In My Opinion, This Particular Story Is A Cut & Dry Incident Of Police Brutality & Moral Decay. But to claim that the entire Law Enforcement Community is full of Bad/Dirty officers damages credibility of verifiable incidents that can be shown to the masses.

Please be logical. If we are making statements that accuse every(this is a play on words) action made by the LEO as abuse/brutality/misconduct then when a piece of evidence that could help bring the truth to all is finally obtained then the media will state - Yet AGAIN, another complaint of Police Brutality Blah Blah Blah it is the 10000th complaint this year Blah Blah Blah. Some are claiming there is a video of the incident but we really are bored reporting on this Blah Blah Blah, NOW More importantly he have an exclusive video of the bottom of Michelle Obama's new $500 tennis shoes... Note: I stated MEDIA and not just MSM.

While I am sure there are very few who have had nothing but a wonderful experience every time they have dealt with LEOs. You must put into perspective some of the aggressive tactics that may be needed to control a situation from the true acts of brutality.

Please make an attempt(I didn't say you must and I did say PLEASE!!!) to keep your post and opinions directed towards the OP story and videos. This is a rare, current and allegedly true act of police brutality/misconduct caught on video that allows the viewer to decide what they are experiencing.

I work in this neighbourhood and it is a tragic example of what happens when an area and its residents get written off. Every social ill you can imagine concentrated in a small area.

I understand the policeman thought she was going for his gun, but it was the 'I own the sidewalk' attitude that forced a disabled woman to bump into him. If one of them had moved aside instead of trying to intimidate those around them, this could have been avoided.

This is not an area to have rookie policeman doing foot patrols. You need experienced beat cops with area specific training. An aggravating factor is probably that the VPD is a private city police force which pays less than the RCMP in neighbouring communities, meaning we don't exactly get the cream of the crop.

Anyone who thinks all cops are like the moron in the clip is a nutcase himself; Cops and EMS and folks in the service hold this place together, Canada and the US included.

You want to see how bad it would be without the thin blue line? Look to the narco-controlled regions of Mexico and the carnage and chaos there.

That said, I'd have put that idiot on his ass - he doesn't deserve the uniform.

Cops have a lousy job, a sometimes damned thankless one that can turn lethal in a split second - it's hard enough without some moron doing that. Check out the suicide and divorce rates for cops.

What part of "Serve and Protect" did he miss? Certainly any citizen deserves better, especially one who is disabled, and most especially a woman - yeah I'm stone-aged that way. And no I'm not a cop and never been one.

But I sure respect them.

[edit on 24-7-2010 by mydarkpassenger]

Why does this happen?

This man gives cops a bad name

I feel for the girl. She was trying to get out of the way.

I hope the cop gets fired!!

A little bit concerning here, hate to play the devil's advocate but:

The only possible way I could fathom this being in the officers right is, potentially, if she was really going for his gun. With that said, don't most law enforcement holsters come with a thumb break or some kind of simple locking mechanism so they can't just be snatched by someone?

Aren't you supposed to observe the threat and level it with your action accordingly?

If I was her attorney I see it as simple as this: cop walking down the street with 2 other cops. A woman half their size that is either a) disabled or b) severely messed up on drugs, walks between the officers and brushes against his belt.

Is it warranted that he literally shoves her with full force to the ground in an instant? NO. Did any of the officers walk say, 5 feet, to avoid her stumbling movements between and observe what is actually occuring? NO.

Seems to me poor training of 3 officers, how many more are out there?

Originally posted by Danbones
Try the cop for assault, if he is found guilty...
Sentence him to do the appropriate time in the appropriate facility. Televise the vid on the news to the inmates just before he arrives, and then televise the result to every cadet at the police academy.

This makes complete sense to me. We are all responsible for our actions and if we do wrong we should admit it and try at make ammends. If one does wrong and does not try to make good then they will never be good, so away with them I say.

Well said Danbones

reply to post by virgom129


I lived in Vancouver. I had similar treatment from the same police department when I approached a Policeman on the street. He threatened me. I am NOT surprised at this video. Canadian police are no better than American.

just ask yourself - why would someone join the police? To do good or enjoy the power?

Why were police created (Peace officer)? to keep peace and not to keep people in fear, especially the weak. The police officers today work for the wealthy to keep their interest - not for the average man.

I moved to Canada from the UK several years ago and have noticed how the cops over here are more aggressive. Evidence like this and many other cases just illustrate their policy of taser first, ask questions later. I know that there was no taser used in this case, but it still doesn't hide the fact that the cops here think they can do whatever they want. From relatives and friends, I hear that many of these cops are just high-school drop outs.

As a woman myself disabled by Multiple Sclerosis this pisses me the hell off! Police brutality is rampant, no matter where we live.

This is straight from the woman who was pushed down

"I was walking home and I reached my hand up because I was trying to get through … but the tall guy pushed me down because they thought I was grabbing their gun because I touched the belt," she said.

Read more: www.cbc.ca...

While I hat the way it was handled, and how the cops just walked away.... She says her self, that they thought she was grabbing for their gun.... And taking that into account...........

That said, if they thought she was trying to take their gun, why did they just walk away? You would think they would at least want to stick around, investigate and make a report......

[edit on 24-7-2010 by gimme_some_truth]

reply to post by gimme_some_truth


Excellent points.

When added to the puzzling way the offending police officer did not immediately ensure the security of his firearm and that most LEO style holsters include a Security Thumb Snap to prevent such happenings we are not left with many differing opinions.

Poor Training, Poor Police Officer or a Combination of Both?

t

Originally posted by EyeHeartBigfoot
Poor Training, Poor Police Officer or a Combination of Both?

t

Poor police training AND poor management is how I see it. This cop shouldn't have been patrolling this area. VPD said that it's a special area that needs special training to function in. That AIN'T a guy that's been on the force barely a year.

reply to post by ~Lucidity


I disagree. The other two cops did what normal people do, they parted to the right to let her through. The guy who did the pushing actually looked like he moved to the right to remain in her path.

Secondly, her hand did not appear to brush anyones belt until she had already been pushed.

I didnt see "concern" on the part of the pusher. He looked defiant, and like he was defending his actions.


Just the way I saw the tape.

Originally posted by xynephadyn
As a woman myself disabled by Multiple Sclerosis this pisses me the hell off!

Police brutality is rampant, no matter where we live.

Do you mind if I ask what action you would take if you were the victim in this story? Contact media, file formal complaint, take legal action...?

I can not even phantom a guess as to what would go through the mind of any disabled person after an incident such as this.

I will try to mince my words carefully and in no way am attempting to show any disrespect to you or any disabled persons. Everybody must deal with the daily struggles of life but being disabled could add to those struggles. What kind of madness and carelessness could possibly be going through this Police Officer's mind to callously harm this woman? Seriously, where is the motivation? Is this action something he could brag about later with his buddies. Was he so amped up that any excuse to act out violently is considered fair game?

I have no proof that the victim was unharmed in this incident but she was able to get up and walk away. My main concern is the prevention of this Police Officer doing this or something worse again.

maybe she should have gone for his gun..

Originally posted by defcon5
The officer committed Battery on a civilian, and he is still on the job pending an investigation?

I believe there should be a principle of reciprocity as concerns police and this sort of thing.

What would happen to ME if I had just pushed a cop down and walked away? I am sure I'd get more than simple battery. Whatever could be filed in such a circumstance ought to be reciprocal - if a cop does it and has no cause to do so, the cop ought to get what I'D get in the same circumstance, not just simple battery.

Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way. I'm not sure how it works in Canada. Here, the cop is considered by the court system to be nearly infallible. That's because the judge and prosecutor's job security depends on the cops providing them criminals and testimony. If the cops don't like you as a judge or prosecutor, they can wreck your record in court, dooming you at re-election.

The cops are also allowed to investigate themselves, which is another blatant conflict of interest. And for the other politicians outside the judicial system, the cops have powerful, well funded (guess how) unions which make sure this multiple level of interest conflicts remains enshrined in law.

The only way it will go away here would be to create a new Justice branch that takes the investigation of police outside the normal judicial system and local politics right to the federal level, and discards the current IA function. The police unions will make sure that never occurs.

reply to post by Aaron_Justin

Just as likely a scenario as any others posed here...not that there are any.

Admit that none of you heard what he and she talked about.

Admit that she might not have appeared drugged or drunk.

She herself said she touched his belt or got near his gun.

Nothing I stated is any more or less outrageous than most of what's been said in the vast majority of the hateful, non-thinking, rush-to-judgment, visceral, emotional reactions on display here that don't contain a single bit of questioning and are lead by expectations of the worst.

Admit that if a cop gave a kid a lollipop you all would hate on the cop for it.

In addition? I covered some of my reasoning in a follow-up post. But thanks for playing.

reply to post by Illusionsaregrander

He might have been thinking about something or focused on something else. You can't see his eyes in the video. She may well have taken him by surprise or caught him off guard. Like you've never walked into a wall or bumped into someone on a sidewalk. Pfft. Just as likely as ANY other possibility.

I think a lot of the problem here is that you all are being sympathetic to her disability.

However, he had no way of knowing she was disabled and no way of knowing that she wasn't just a drunken or drug-crazed lunatic lurching or lunging at him. Sorry, but that's a fact.

She sorta kinda attempts to say that she was walking down the sidewalk saying, "Excuse me, excuse me, I'm disabled, I'm disabled" or something to that effect. Sorry but that doesn't sound right to me either. Again we don't hear that.

And again, you didn't hear what he and she discussed after he pushed her down. She quite likely may have said, I'm okay...don't worry about it, and then later had her mind changed for her.

[edit on 7/24/2010 by ~Lucidity]

Originally posted by ~Lucidity
I think a lot of the problem here is that you all are being sympathetic to her disability.

However, he had no way of knowing she was disabled and no way of knowing that she wasn't just a drunken or drug-crazed lunatic lurching or lunging at him. Sorry, but that's a fact.

She sorta kinda attempts to say that she was walking down the sidewalk saying, "Excuse me, excuse me, I'm disabled, I'm disabled" or something to that effect. Sorry but that doesn't sound right to me either. Again we don't hear that.

And again, you didn't hear what he and she discussed after he pushed her down. She quite likely may have said, I'm okay...don't worry about it, and then later had her mind changed for her.

[edit on 7/24/2010 by ~Lucidity]

That is just silly, it is completely obvious that she is disabled and even IF we give the cop the benefit of the doubt, he has demonstrated that he cannot be trusted walking the streets and is dangerously inept...of course I think he is simply stupid and aggressive.

And so at the end of the day, if she was O.K with being shoved to the ground then that makes everything all better? She doesn't have to say a damn thing its so obvious and its disgusting anyone would even try to defend the officer...just...gah!

further more, the disability is simply a nail in the coffin, no one should be assaulted for walking past a cop. Would you consider everyone's outrage sympathy if it was a body builder?

[edit on 24-7-2010 by SmokeandShadow]