A federal appeals court reversed itself Friday and dismissed a lawsuit by a Southern California man who was Tasered by a police officer after being stopped for not wearing a seat belt.
The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco had initially ruled in Carl Bryan’s case in December, saying police must have reasons to believe a suspect is dangerous before firing a Taser and can’t use the weapon merely because the person is disobeying orders or acting erratically.
The court reaffirmed that conclusion Friday, setting legal standards for excessive-force suits against police who use stun guns in the Ninth Circuit’s jurisdiction of California and eight other Western states.
But the three-judge panel also said – contrary to its previous decision – that the laws governing Tasers were unclear at the time of the incident and the officer would not necessarily have known that he was violating Bryan’s rights.
You know how they always say that ignorance of the law is no excuse? Well apparently it is an excuse for cops.
Thank heavens that Tasers are non-lethal, I mean that people don’t die from them.
Oh wait.
I wonder if the esteemed judges tried out a taser shot to see how harmless they are?
What should we all expect. Most cops are dangerous idiots who have no business wearing the badge, and most lawmakers are no better. After a morning of kiddie fiddling they also like to fiddle and abuse the legal system as well.
That’s not “Police State News Bulletin.” It’s “Bad Cop, Bad Cop, Whatcha Gonnna Do…”
“You know how they always say that ignorance of the law is no excuse? Well apparently it is an excuse for cops.”
“But the three-judge panel also said – contrary to its previous decision – that the laws governing Tasers were unclear at the time of the incident and the officer would not necessarily have known that he was violating Bryan’s rights.”
Ignorance of the law was not an excuse. The officer knew the law but what the law said was ambiguous at the time the driver was tasered. That situation has since been corrected.
Yes, the police “should” act very differently than they do. But they don’t.
In the course of your emotional and intellectual life do YOU separate these two models of reality, and if you do, which do you act on?
And thats why if you are rational, you follow the belligerent hormone drenched shrieked commands of a 120 pound fat ass female cop because if you don’t, reality will not be your friend.
Heh, heh. Yes, reality will not be your friend.
“Wearing only boxer shorts and tennis shoes, and upset for forgetting to fasten his seat belt, Bryan swore at himself as he stepped out of the car, and was shouting gibberish and banging his thighs as he stood 15 to 25 feet away from Officer Brian MacPherson, the court said”
Assuming this article is presented as a way to exonerate this guy, I smell fail.
It’s a good thing this fellow was not driving his car near the Vancouver BC airport
Who knows what would have occurred ?
#6–poxxo==given we post almost exactly the same sentiment, why the hate?
Heh, heh. You should actually feel sorry for me and provide emotional support. But why not kick a man when he is down, eh? Yes, why not do that?
Probably a christian, so, nevermind.
How could a cop NOT know this was excessive?
I’m just wondering what passes for brains. Tazer is a step above shooting, but, not by much. What exactly was the cop thinking?
Or not….
apparently the author of the article can’t tell the difference between a taser and a stun gun.
pet peeve:
stun guns are not tasers and vice versa.
decades later i still find myself explaining this to people. why is it so difficult to understand the difference between the two?
from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electroshock_weapon
“A Taser is an electroshock weapon that can stun a targeted subject from a distance by firing electrodes on the end of long thin wires.”
A stun gun does not do that. It is an electroshock weapon that isn’t designed to shock from a distance.
to add to the confusion, certain tasers may contain a stun gun built in as an added feature. but, functionality-wise they are different.
Given that this is the 9th Circuit, who knows what the end result will be. This court gets overturned lots.
# 9 diane said, on June 19th, 2010 at 8:14 pm
“How could a cop NOT know this was excessive?
I’m just wondering what passes for brains. Tazer is a step above shooting, but, not by much. What exactly was the cop thinking?
Or not….”
Probably a no brain christian cop, not capable of thinking for himself.
“The officer “could have made a reasonable mistake of law regarding the constitutionality of the Taser use,” Judge Kim Wardlaw said in the 3-0 ruling Friday. U.S. Supreme Court decisions allow suits against police only for violating “clearly established” rights.”
Does this mean NO citizens rights at all? It certainly looks that way.
What happens when you taser a person with a pacemaker?
Smart persons dont want this job, as they know what is entailed and many of the problems.
So, who do we hire?
NOT the ghost busters..
we hire the person who Wants it or needs a job.
not the MOST intelligent person.
No seat belt? – that’s a taserin’. Half naked? – taser that. Shouting gibberish and gesticulating wildly, that’s a double taserin’ and a prison cell cavity search.
is that cop wearing blush?
Tasered in the back from 20 feet?
You can never be too careful.
Question: I’ve been away from the States for several years and California for much longer. Last I heard they couldn’t stop you for no seat belt but only for another infraction. Has that changed?
So he wasn’t actually tasered for not wearing a seatbelt…another typical intentionally misleading headline from JCD.
He was tasered for acting like a crazy person. You can now argue about whether the cop should have done that, but let’s at least argue about the right things.
I dumped NA because of their refusal to actually find out the facts before jumping to conclusions, now I guess I’ve had enough of the blog too.
When you have made up your mind about a story before actually reading past the headline, you are not a journalist. You are a hack who gets 80% of your stories wrong and then chases down the rabbit holes based on an incomplete understanding of the situation.
Bye
#16, it may vary by state, but I know for sure that in Illinois they will use seatbelts as an excuse to stop you. Hell, they can claim that they thought you weren’t wearing it, or you pulled it on as you pulled to the roadside, then use it as an excuse to harass and search. But then, I am talking about the most corrupt state here.
I wish I had a dollar for every cop I have seen talking on his cell phone while driving!
#17 Don’t let the door hit you on the way out. What was the dude doing? Seems a bit unusual for a guy to get out of his car and start running around in circles. Would be nice to see the video.
In Wisconsin, (Gitmo Nation) they can now stop you just for not wearing a seatbelt. It seems like this incident is like kicking someone when they are down — simply not done in polite fights.
Treat the police like the mafia they are and you will be OK. Would you fuck with a wiseguy?
I noticed yesterday that a jury awarded more that $300,000 to a man that was tasered by police.
http://tinyurl.com/2f6hxdv
I thought, Wow, the courts do sometimes rule in favor of the victim in taser incidents. Then I noticed the victim in this case was another cop. Hmmmmm…….
On a related subject, being a cop in the U.S. has to be one of the worst jobs anyone can have. The horrific things you see almost on a daily basis combined with the possibility of getting killed on the next traffic stop or building search is insane. The vast majority of people are not qualified to do this job. Its no wonder that the people that end up being cops are (or become) somewhat “volatile”.
Surprisingly, it is legal for anyone to buy a tazer in Kalifornia. How’d the assholes let THAT slip by? And, they are priced starting at $20. Now really. If they are going to let the plebs have them, the least they can do is tax the shit out of them….and licence them, and limit the sales, and require lots of paperwork, and…you get the idea.
Buy yours this week.
Kimber makes a nice one for $300. Or, there are lots of effective models available for much less.
The court said the officer wouldn’t have known that he was violating the defendant’s rights.
Would he have not know that he was violating the defendant’s body?
zybch,
Most cops are decent people trying to make a difference.
However, some cops are cops because of their desire for power and dominance, and THESE are the bad guys in good guy clothing.
#26–SweenyTodd lives==”Most cops are decent people trying to make a difference.”==/// Tell me another one as you taser me in the back.
Where do you get this loopy idea that most of any group is one thing or the other? What does that come from? Take the general population. Make your generalization there. THEN allow that general population to choose what they want to do for a living. You’ll see an immediate difference in the groups from their own self selection. NOW–add in the Establishment selects dull witted applicants who will follow orders in order not to have the cops quit after 2-3 years from boredom or frustration. Did you consider that? Still want to say any silly thing that you wish were true?
Well then we can add in about 15 more real world that speak against your BS.
Police taser guy for not wearing seat belt?
Forgot the asterisk and fine print that said
cursing , pounding thighs and talking gibberish?
Yea right, it was just the seat belt.
We seem to have moved from the Police being the body which administers the Law and Statutes, to police being the body which also administers punishments, in other words are now legally able to acts as courts with a jury of one who is also the judge.
I thought that courts were jealous of their powers and authority. Contempt of the Court being regarded as a very serious offence. Is contempt of the police also now a serious offence?
This ‘getting away with it’ by the way is not only in the US. There are some very severe cases of it in the UK France and Germany – also unpunished.
Police in the UK are killing an increasing number on the roads every year whilst racing at totally unacceptable speeds, hardly any are brought to book over this. They’ve also copied the US sirens – which – by the way, are operated here at over 85 decibels (up to 120dB), also an offence against Health and Safety law in the UK and no, there is NO exclusion from the law for this.