ronniethebear Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 Footage of University Police Department using excessive force on a student asking a question of Senator Kerry. The student's name is Andrew Meyers and he was arrested on September 17, 2007 for disturbing a public educational function and resisting arrest. The police did not inform him that he was under arrest and did not mirandize him while detaining him and electro-shocking him with a taser. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benchwarmer Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 He was also hand cuffed while they tazered him. that's really fucked up right there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronniethebear Posted September 20, 2007 Author Share Posted September 20, 2007 No shit. Police state ftw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cadetapplesauce Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 fuck those guys, man. he seemed like a smart guy with legitimate questions. they had no reason to do that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottheisel Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 I'm not sure which side I take on this. On one hand, the kid was totally trying to cause a scene and stir shit up. I don't know who it was who signaled the police to intervene (it certainly wasn't John Kerry), but dude should've been smarter with what he was saying. He's billed himself before as a "performance artist," so it's pretty obvious his sole goal was to disrupt this Q&A. On the other, it makes me physically ill that in an auditorium full of people, not only did they clap when he was originally detained by police, not a single person stood up for his rights as both an American and a human (although Kerry did make a few remarks to try and restore order). How could hundreds of people just sit by and watch someone who ostensibly didn't break any law be held like that? As for the Tazering -- you resist arrest, they will do whatever they can to bring you down. He was struggling and trying to incite a riot by constantly yelling at the crowd, and had the crowd reacted, it would have been a threat to the police officers' lives. The dude continued to make a scene even after being handcuffed, and that is what happens when you won't go calmly. I really, really want to know who it was who told the police to intervene -- or if the police did it on their own. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benchwarmer Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 yea, there totally is a lot more to the story, the dude barged into the hall after the doors had been shut (and no one was supposed to enter after that), but also, if you watch the video, you can hear some people yelling at the cops to stop. the whole thing is pretty messed up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cadetapplesauce Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 ok i read a little bit more about it, and i think i take back what i said about the guy seeming smart and/or having legit questions. a lot like what scott said, the dude would pride himself on making scenes like these, so i don't know whether to feel sorry for him or to not feel bad at all, as if he deserved it. the guy also had a "lighthearted" demeanor and was laughing after the arrest. i wouldn't know who to believe. anyway, two of those cops are on paid leave. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oakland Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 He was showboating and it blew up in his face. Cops often go overboard of course and it's totally shitty when they do, but I only have a problem with them tazering him. Dragging him out of there was the right thing to do under the circumstances. You can't have nutty obviously agitated people taking over political speeches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sgoodcore Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 As Jon Stewart so eloquently put it, "the police were guilty of excessive force and the student was guilty of excessive douche-baggery." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronniethebear Posted September 20, 2007 Author Share Posted September 20, 2007 REGARDLESS, we're still "protected" under the Constitution. It's called freedom of speech, look it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tommytumult Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 "You have the right to free speech as long as you're not dumb enough to actually try it." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xfedaykinx Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 bullshit like this makes me so fucking pissed off. no one is willing to tackle taboo issues up front and the second this kid mentions that kerry actually won the election and that *gasp* there was black disenfranchisement on the day of the election everyone's feathers get all ruffled up and they try to take him down. kid should have been able to stand there to receive his response and then if he derails the forum should be taken out. they cut his mic before he was even done talking. fucking bullshit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steventangent Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 There are multiple videos out there in which you can see the event organizers cutting him off. They are probably the ones who told the police to intervene. I do believe that originally, they were only going to take him out of the place, probably scold him, tell him not to come back, and send him on his way. Then he decided to physically resist, which is a dumb idea in any situation (99.9~% of the time, resisting arrest will only land you in more trouble and the court won't view it as justified anyway). If he'd have not being carrying on like an asshole, they might have heard John Kerry saying that he wanted to answer the questions and everything might have calmed down. This kid escalated the situation, there is no question about it. It's never, ever, EVER a good idea to escalate any situation with the police. The police didn't necessarily have to mirandize him. You only have to be mirandized upon questioning or being put into custody. The tasering was where the police crossed the line. I, for one, don't believe police should be allowed to even carry tasers at all. As big a douchebag as this kid was, I think holding someone down in handcuffs and giving them an electrical shock is just fucked up no matter how you slice it. As far as his rights, it's obvious he doesn't know them, and even more obvious he has NO idea how to handle encounters with police: 1st - He does have the right to speak and to participate in a peaceable assembly. However, he did plead for help against the police, which may be why they told him he was being arrested for attempting to incite a riot. 5th - or, the 'shut the fuck up amendment'. 6th - should have kept his mouth shut until he had counsel. Those were rights he forfeited, willingly. The following was taken away by force: 8th - a fine line, but if you ask me, tasering someone who is already in custody constitutes 'cruel punishment'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roadmonkey Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 hehehe the shut the fuck up amendment Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest scriptedrain Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 I'm about to do something I fear I will regret, but I have to speak my opinion: First of all, let's look at the basic structure of the event. John Kerry was there to field a question and answer. The key words are "question" and "answer." Someone goes up to the mic and asks a question to John Kerry and John Kerry replies back. Andrew Meyers didn't hold up his end of the deal of asking a question and letting Kerry answer. He wasn't there to have a tirade or even a discussion. He was there to pose, listen, and let the next person go. I don't understand what is so hard to grasp about this concept. Second of all, as someone has said, you don't resist arrest from the authorities. You just don't. Someone as educated as he tried to come across as should've known better. You can't just go into a public assembly and start shouting and causing a disturbance just because you're angry. It's the same reason you don't see this at your local mall or retail store. You also need to abide by the event's rules. Two beers is two beers, if you will. If they put you at the mic to ask a question and you don't, then the circumstances call for authoritative action. They asked him to stop multiple times and he refused. They tried to take him away from the situation the only way they could, were they just supposed to let him stand there and cause a riot? He was trying to put himself in a position of power by changing the rules and structure when all he was there for was to ask a question. Of course the taser was unnecessary due to the number and size of the people taking him away. However, they warned him that they had one and would use it if he wouldn't go quietly. It's not like a cop came out of nowhere and started tasing him. Yelling "help" and screaming at police is just dumb. - Jeff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xfedaykinx Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 he didnt even get to ask his question. theres nothing wrong with adding some factual background to preface a question. he didnt raise his voice until they tried to tell him to stop. kid didnt have a fucking chance from the get go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest scriptedrain Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 He didn't even get to ask his question? What do you call these: 1. How could you concede the election on the day?... 2. If you were so against Iran, how come you're not saying impeach Bush now?... 3. Were you a member of "Skull and Bones"?... That's 3 questions right there. He wasn't there to go off or "inform" the people. He was there to ask a question and have John Kerry answer it. How can you say he didn't have a chance??? - Jeff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xfedaykinx Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 regardless, i dont think he was given the chance to finish a complete thought and make his point. i also partly blame kerry for not stepping in on what is a blatant use of excessive force against this kids right to speak. im offended that he wasnt offended by what was going on there. he just continues to talk like nothing is going on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest scriptedrain Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 regardless, i dont think he was given the chance to finish a complete thought and make his point. The reason you think this is because you're looking at everything Andrew said as one thought. There were multiple thoughts and points that he made, he just kept going and going. He asked Kerry two complete questions (WITH background information and thoughts) without even letting him say anything in response. - Jeff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xfedaykinx Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 never heard of a mult-point question? you dont get a back and forth with these guys. you make all of your points and then they respond. kid never took a breath. i didnt think he said anything out of line. who gets kicked out of a forum for not following the rules? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest scriptedrain Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 never heard of a mult-point question? you dont get a back and forth with these guys. you make all of your points and then they respond. kid never took a breath. i didnt think he said anything out of line. who gets kicked out of a forum for not following the rules? He asked TWO multi-point questions. Watch the video again. The kid not stopping has NOTHING to do with the issue. I'm sure you or I could stand up and talk for 5 minutes, it doesn't mean that that's part of asking a question and hearing a response. He wasn't there to have a back and forth, he was there to ask and listen. - Jeff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xfedaykinx Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 so what is the issue here? im at a loss to understand how any of that was justified. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottheisel Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 He was also increasing the rate and volume of his speech -- obviously getting heated in what he was saying. It was also pretty obvious he had worked out what he was going to say beforehand (and was looking for a big cheer when he asked "Why did you concede?" which he didn't get) -- not to mention before he went to the mic, he handed his own video camera to a friend and told him to film him! He wasn't there to have an engaging discussion; he was there to make himself look smart and brash and daring and whatever the fuck else you need to make post-grads want to sleep with you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xfedaykinx Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 hah, thats all well and good, probably even accurate. but it still doesnt mean he should get the shit tazered out of him by a fucking bitch with a badge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottheisel Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 hah, thats all well and good, probably even accurate. but it still doesnt mean he should get the shit tazered out of him by a fucking bitch with a badge. Wow, dude. Wow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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