Republican Senator Tim Scott Says He’s Been Pulled Over 7 Times By Police In 1 Year

He’s a well respected Conservative Republican Senator...Anti Obamacare...all the conservative bells and whistles...

"In the course of one year, I've been stopped seven times by law enforcement," Scott said.
"Not four, not five, not six, but seven times in one year as an elected official."

Holding up two fingers, Scott said there were times when he was pulled over that he was speeding.

"But the vast majority of the time I was pulled over for nothing more than driving a new car in the wrong neighborhood or some other reason just as trivial," he said.

[He describes a time when he was followed by a police officer after Grocery shopping, riding his butt from the parking lot all the way home, he took four left turns]

"Finally, I took a fourth left coming into my apartment complex and then the blue lights went on. The officer approached the car and said that I did not -- I did not use my turn signal on the fourth turn," Scott said. "Do you really think that somehow I forgot to use my turn signal on the fourth turn?"

Another time Scott says he was pulled over by an officer who accused him of stealing the car he was driving. The senator recounted how his brother, who was a high-ranking enlisted man in the Army, was accused of the same thing when he was driving home one day in a Volvo.

Scott also described the plight of a former staffer who sold his "nice car" because he was so "tired of being targeted" by suspicious police.

"Imagine the frustration, the irritation, the sense of loss of dignity that accompanies each of those stops, even here on Capitol Hill," Scott said.

In his speech, Scott also praised police and the dangerous work they do.

"There is never, ever an acceptable reason to harm a member of our law enforcement community," he said.

At the end of his speech, Scott pleaded with Americans who don't face racism not to ignore the plight of those who do.

"Recognize that just because you do not feel the pain, the anguish of another, does not mean it does not exist. To ignore their struggles, our struggles, does not make them disappear. It simply leaves you blind and the American family very vulnerable," he said.

CNN Link




He also describes being singled out and stopped and questioned by Capitol Hill Security while entering the building...despite his pin denoting his status as representative...

I would contend that pretending that profiling is not an issue is not really an option in the debate.

The laws of probability are real...and the more often African Americans are pulled over for driving while black...more opportunity for something to go wrong with the interaction...more shootings that can't be rationalized.

a reply to: Indigo5

I was gonna ask-- oh yah, he's black. A famous physicist chimes in...

www.abovetopsecret.com...

originally posted by: intrptr
a reply to: Indigo5

I was gonna ask-- oh yah, he's black.

I'd be interested in how often Paul Ryan is pulled over in DC and accused of stealing the car he is driving.

a reply to: Indigo5

I'm a bit confused as to whether OP is saying Tim Scott has been targeted because he is black, or because he is Anti-Obamacare? Either way it sounds like total BS and this man should not have to put up with is (except for times when he's been speeding or breaking the law)

originally posted by: FamCore
a reply to: Indigo5

I'm a bit confused as to whether OP is saying Tim Scott has been targeted because he is black, or because he is Anti-Obamacare? Either way it sounds like total BS and this man should not have to put up with is (except for times when he's been speeding or breaking the law)

Apologies...I cite his conservative status up front to head off anyone looking to dismiss what he has to say as partisan.

He is the lone conservative African American in the Senate...it took a lot of courage to be public about how he has been treated by law enforcement while in DC.

originally posted by: Indigo5

originally posted by: intrptr
a reply to: Indigo5

I was gonna ask-- oh yah, he's black.

I'd be interested in how often Paul Ryan is pulled over in DC and accused of stealing the car he is driving.

Or how often he is followed all the way home to be told he didn't use his signal "on that last turn".

Not profiling at all.

Seems Black lives mater more to authorities than others in that regard. He's driving while black in an expensive car, must be a gangsta thug rapper...

a reply to: Indigo5

White people in expensive cars in the wrong neighbourhood get stopped all the time as well.
You just dont see them on TV and newspapers claiming racism over it all the time.

i have an idea for hiring of cops!

elected officers

you designate zones by population density

you can sign up to protect the neighborhood you live in... therefore you are familiar with the area, and care about the area

the higher population density, the more police assigned. vice versa

that way, each area has a cop from that area, its an elected official so if the cop is a racist bigot then its the voting public who is to blame. this way we can properly vet officers, and you wont have corrupt agencies and racist agencies anymore

I've had cops follow me leaving a place of business.

I've had cops tail gating me for no apparent reason.

I've had cops stop me to ask me questions.

I'm white in a predominately white neighborhood.

Hasn't everyone had these experiences?

The only difference is I was not stopped or pulled over.

white people are profiled too. i was pulled over multiple times because i was driving a fast car, and i used to wear my baseball cap sideways, because it helped to cover my baldness.

during the stop, i would take my hat off, the cop would approach the window, see im a fat bald white guy, and let me go. 9 out of 10 times with a warning... 1 out of ten with a ticket or further questioning/dogs

a reply to: Annee

thats because blacks just assume that white people never get tickets, never get pulled over, never get arrested.

goto traffic court, most of the people, if not the majority are white... unless you live in the inner city.

Maybe the guy is just a careless driver that speeds too much and has that "elected official" attitude.

Profiling in this way is absolutely wrong. 'Driving while black' is not suspicious to me. I really don't get it. If the police have a description of a someone that has committed a crime ie robbery committed with description of car and perp ... different story. I can accept pulling someone over because they match the description of a specific suspect. Otherwise ... just no.

a reply to: Annee


hmmm...Not sure. He also describes filing into the Capitol Building with his colleagues and being singled out and pulled aside..

“The pin, I know. You, I don’t,” Scott recalled the officer saying with “a little attitude.” Scott said the tone of the encounter suggested that the officer believed he was impersonating a senator.

The South Carolina Republican said he received a call later that evening from a Capitol Police supervisor apologizing for the officer’s behavior. It was the third such call he has received from either the chief of the Capitol Police or a supervisor since joining the Senate in 2013, he said.

He also cites an African American on his staff

During his speech, Scott also shared the story of a former staffer of his who drove a Chrysler 300, “a nice car without any question, but not a Ferrari.” The staffer wound up selling that car out of frustration after being pulled over too often in Washington, D.C., “for absolutely no reason other than for driving a nice car.”

Pulled over 7 Times in one year?

a reply to: Indigo5

Thanks for clarifying that! Important issue and I'm glad he has the balls to speak up about these experiences. I hope something can change in my lifetime :/

originally posted by: Indigo5
a reply to: Annee


hmmm...Not sure. He also describes filing into the Capitol Building with his colleagues and being singled out and pulled aside..

“The pin, I know. You, I don’t,” Scott recalled the officer saying with “a little attitude.” Scott said the tone of the encounter suggested that the officer believed he was impersonating a senator.

The South Carolina Republican said he received a call later that evening from a Capitol Police supervisor apologizing for the officer’s behavior. It was the third such call he has received from either the chief of the Capitol Police or a supervisor since joining the Senate in 2013, he said.

He also cites an African American on his staff

During his speech, Scott also shared the story of a former staffer of his who drove a Chrysler 300, “a nice car without any question, but not a Ferrari.” The staffer wound up selling that car out of frustration after being pulled over too often in Washington, D.C., “for absolutely no reason other than for driving a nice car.”

Pulled over 7 Times in one year?

In an area of downtown Los Angeles, predominately black area, I've had cops drive up next to me motioning me to roll down my window.

They wanted to know why I was there, what I was doing.

It works both ways.

originally posted by: nobunaga
i have an idea for hiring of cops!

elected officers

you designate zones by population density

you can sign up to protect the neighborhood you live in... therefore you are familiar with the area, and care about the area

the higher population density, the more police assigned. vice versa

that way, each area has a cop from that area, its an elected official so if the cop is a racist bigot then its the voting public who is to blame. this way we can properly vet officers, and you wont have corrupt agencies and racist agencies anymore

That is the way it is supposed to be, using elected Sheriffs.

It still makes it tough in urban areas where blacks, browns, pinks and yellows all live in close proximity to each other (the way things should be).

The real answer.... Robocop!
Robocop can kill all of us!

His problem is that he's being targeted and "squeezed" by a political rival.

Within weeks of filing for the mayoral race in 1999, I too was singled out on multiple occasions. Whereas I had gone 25+ years without even being pulled over, upon filing to challenge a 20 year incumbent, I was pulled over three times in a 3 or 4 month period, all from cops hiding around the corner from my home. I was never cited for anything, but received "warnings" about improper signals, etc. After I lost the 2000 election, (47-53%) the harassment stopped completely. (FWIW, I was the GOP candidate)

Coincidence? I think not.

originally posted by: Annee

originally posted by: Indigo5
a reply to: Annee


hmmm...Not sure. He also describes filing into the Capitol Building with his colleagues and being singled out and pulled aside..

“The pin, I know. You, I don’t,” Scott recalled the officer saying with “a little attitude.” Scott said the tone of the encounter suggested that the officer believed he was impersonating a senator.

The South Carolina Republican said he received a call later that evening from a Capitol Police supervisor apologizing for the officer’s behavior. It was the third such call he has received from either the chief of the Capitol Police or a supervisor since joining the Senate in 2013, he said.

He also cites an African American on his staff

During his speech, Scott also shared the story of a former staffer of his who drove a Chrysler 300, “a nice car without any question, but not a Ferrari.” The staffer wound up selling that car out of frustration after being pulled over too often in Washington, D.C., “for absolutely no reason other than for driving a nice car.”

Pulled over 7 Times in one year?

In an area of downtown Los Angeles, predominately black area, I've had cops drive up next to me motioning me to roll down my window.

They wanted to know why I was there, what I was doing.

It works both ways.

White people in predominately black neighborhoods are usually suspected of being there to score drugs...I have had the same experience before and talked it out with cops for insight.

Do you think that is what a black man in white neighborhood (in this case the US Capitol) is suspected of?

a reply to: Indigo5
whatever.... learn how to drive.