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RR: September 2003 #2 from Nick The Blader

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There are three intents in my "quest for justice."
First of all, I believe that the driver should be issued a citation.
He was grossly negligent in his driving and, no matter what the
circumstances, he hit someone else while on a road in an incident
that was both avoidable and his fault. This will be tough because
there are currently no statements from Chuck or any of the witnesses
on file due to the shoddy police work.

The second goal is that the officers who committed the acts of
misconduct (including not following due process in questioning all
parties, threatening an innocent citizen with arrest, and
unwillingness to surrender a badge number.) I would also like to
make aware the fact that other officers in the department went to
efforts to justify the actions. A direct quote from the 2nd precint
desk sergeant (whom I spoke with on friday night) was "Everyone else
has bad days, so we're allowed to have some too." There is NO EXCUSE
for unprofessionalism in a public servant force in ANY CIRCUMSTANCE.

Point of Clarification: The officer in question surrendered his badge
number, but then would not say it again when we wanted to check that
we had all numbers. Whether this is a crime or not I don't know.
Either way it is VERY unprofessional.

My final goal is that people take cyclists seriously.

I ride to and
from work (5-6 miles) every day. It is a part of my livlihood. I
have a car and CHOOSE not to use it. I wish for others to understand
that I am given the same rights on the road as they are despite my
vehicle being smaller and human powered. If I had my way we would
have more privelages, but I am realistic enough to let that dream go.
I have faith in justice, I hope there are others out there with me.

Thanks,
Nick (aka the rollerblader.)

P.S. The internal investigation will first be handled by the 2nd
precint inspector. I am making every effort to follow due process to
retain the integrity of our case. I will try to keep everyone posted
as to the progress of the grievance.

Mon, 27 Oct 2003 19:21:33 Update

Allright everyone, here's the official response from MPD regarding the officers' decorum the night of the september mass.

I still haven't gotten a chance to talk to someone about the explanation regarding the lack of a citation. In summary, the Lt. with whom I spoke said that for a misdemeanor, the police need to witness the event, someone needs to admit fault, or a citizen needs to make an arrest. This was also apparently the reason why none of the witnesses were questioned. In my opinion, that explanation makes the police department pretty worthless. If anyone can either confirm or deny that this is true, please offer your knowledge.

If you have a comment regarding the officer response, please contact me. I want to keep this as professional as possible. It's the only way we'll be able to build credibility if something like this happens again. As for what the officers said, here it is:

"I had a chance to look at the paperwork from the accident you referred to that occurred on 9-26-03 at 1st Avenue/2nd Street N.E. I spoke with the officers (in person) that responded to the scene. The officers you referred to, badge # 0283 and his partner, badge #4076, both recalled the incident clearly. You indicated to me that you wanted to know what their recollection of events was. You stated you had no problem with badge # 0283, but rather with his partner who I identified to be badge #4076. They were called back to the scene after they were advised that Mr. Dollar had a warrant and would be arrested. This is common to call for backup when an arrest is eminent. Both officers stated that the group of bicyclists were confrontational when Mr. Dollar was handcuffed and demanded to know why he was being arrested and why the driver of the vehicle involved was not under arrest. Both officers stated at this point the bicyclists moved forward towards them. At this time officer
#4076 made the statement to one of the bicyclists (I am assuming that was you, Nick) "do you want to go to jail too?" when that person demanded to know the facts. Both officers stated that you then asked for the badge number and that officer #4076 gave it to you, but that you didn't have anything to write it down with. When you got paper and pen you asked it again and he again gave it to you. I asked them if it was given to you in an intelligible manner and the partner of this officer said that he heard it both times. The officer in question stated he even let you get close enough to him to read his badge so that you could write the number down. These officers are very professional and have been on the job many years. They know the code of conduct expected of them and also the consequences should they choose to not follow it. They both admitted that the crowd was verbally aggressive, but that no arguments or fights ensued. They both did comment that the main point of
contention was why Mr. Dollar was arrested and not the driver of the other vehicle. I am confident that I explained this to you in detail and you were satisfied with my response.

Citizens have the right to ask for a badge number and we are required by policy to identify ourselves by that number. In this situation I feel that our policy was followed. It may not have been done quite as politely as we (or you) may have liked, but nonetheless, the requirement was satisfied. We do not have a policy requirement concerning attitude.

Neither officer denied that there was a question of your asking for the badge number, or had any difficulty recollecting the course of events. Both officers felt the situation was confrontational, although under control at all times.
I am hoping that this situation is considered resolved. The officers were talked to and your concerns were expressed. If you are not satisfied with my findings you can certainly pursue other alternatives. I would be happy to discuss those with you if you so desire. Please let me know your feelings on this matter.
I hope I have been of some assistance."
Lt. Tami Aker

For those of you who got this far, what do you think? I have a couple of contentions with their statement, but am waiting to hear what others say to see if we all have the same comments.

Later,

Nick