Storm Chaser arrested

[LordJ]

Wow, someone has got a chip on their shoulder...?

http://www.kwes.com/global/story.asp?s=8286980

 

[emd001]

wow. that makes no sense for him to be arrested. maybe the cop was rejected as a storm chaser earlier in life?

 

[zguy1243]

sounds like the officer was "Flexin" a little bit.

 

[redhelmet13]

Hey kids of the sixties - Barney Fife lives.!!! Sheeesh. They have video of the incident - get it to CNN, FOX and so on... Some really bad publicity for that City and the "Officer" is in order.

 

[WX5JCH]

Big difference between a storm "chaser" and a storm "spotter".

God, you should see the tour buses out here taking tourists on a 'chase'. Hogwash!

If I had my way chasers should be arrested for interference with an officer's duties. Spotters on the other hand should (and do) get medals for saving lives. (See May 3rd 1999 Oklahoma tornado).
Just my opinion after 32 years in the business. Not intended to cause a flamer.

 

[crayon]

You should see the circus that follows KOCO's FAST units around sometimes ...

 

[af5rn]

Just my opinion after 32 years in the business. Not intended to cause a flamer.

What "business" are you referring to?

And how many times in your thirty-two years have you seen a chaser actually interfere with a police officer? Numbers? Examples? News article links?

 

[dbestfirefighter]

Humm violation of civil rights, wrongful imprisonment. Since several witnesses were there stating that the violation of the law was not valid. One could argue that Vic Mackey commited perjury. Hope Crane county has a good DA

 

[rdale]

Big difference between a storm "chaser" and a storm "spotter".

I know - if we could get more spotters to recognize basic storm structure, like most chasers do, there's be less sheriffnadoes being reported...

God, you should see the tour buses out here taking tourists on a 'chase'.

I think it's great. In other parts of the country, they have people that take tourist on whitewater rafting, or rock climbing, etc. Glad to see people making money off a passion!

If I had my way chasers should be arrested for interference with an officer's duties.

What? Chasers did a GREAT job on the May 3 '99 OKC tornado. I'm not sure if you're familiar with that event, but I have no doubt there would have been more deaths has chasers nto been on the storm. I'm curious how they've interfered with your duties?

 

[SAR923]

Sorry, but you guys are wrong. This person was out there engaging in a hobby. He had no official position to be parked on the side of the road. The deputy does have an offical position. Whether you like it or not, he's in control of the road and right of way. If he tells you to move, get back in your vehicle and move. You have no right to engage in a roadside argument whether his actions are right - that's for another time. If you choose to not obey a lawful order, even if you don't like it or agree with it, you can be arrested. This guy was and he now has his chance to make his case in court. That's the logical consequence of trying to play roadside lawyer.

 

[jleverin]

Even though the deputy was being a bit severe, the spotter should have paid attention and moved out of the area. It's not good idea to dis a cop when he tells you to get lost. Even though the guy may not have been blocking the road, he was a volunteer and not doing an official job. Maybe the deputy had had some bad experiences with weather people causing problems in the past and didn't like skywarn types(lets face it there are some people that take that stuff WAY too seriously) and DO get in the way. Weather wackers give up all a bad rap, I would have said "no problem" and moved off down the road to a different spot. Cops these days seem more and more heavyhanded with people, not great idea to piss them off....

 

[SAR923]

I looked at the "raw" video again, which is obviously edited to show only the deputy making the arrest. I would like to see what happened before he made the decision to make the arrest. It sounds like he told this guy to move and he refused. When he apparently told the deputy he was providing this great service to the NWS and refused to move, he apparently started to walk back toward the van. He had verbally told the deputy he was refusing his lawful order. The deputy then made the decision to arrest. As the deputy said when he was placing him in custody "When I tell you to move, you move". That's how things work in the real world.

If the storm chaser felt he was being treated unfairly, the proper route was to follow the deputy's order and then file a complaint. I can see no evidence the deputy's order was clearly unlawful and therefore he was obliged to follow the order or be arrested. We can't have an orderly society if everyone thinks they have the right to argue a peace officer's interpretation of the law on the side of the road. That can certainly be done in court once you're arrested but you'd better hope you understand the law and circumstances a lot better than that deputy did. Storm chasers, which I consider myself to be from time to time, are really good at understanding the weather. The vehicle and penal codes are much better understood by peace officers, which I also was for almost 30 years. Just do what you're told, even if you think the cop is being a jerk, and take it up with his superiors later...unless you want to be arrested and get some publicity. I'm not convinced that wasn't part of the motivation behind this video.

 

[mancow]

ahhh.. .he should have driven by....and let the guy film or watch or whatever.


What a stupid arrest.

 

[SAR923]

ahhh.. .he should have driven by....and let the guy film or watch or whatever.


What a stupid arrest.

Maybe if we could see the whole video, you may have some justification for your otherwise rash assumption. I know that when I told people to move, I usually had a good reason. They may not have wanted to move but they had two choices, and this guy made the wrong choice.

 

[XTS3000]

Sounds like the cop was just out on patrol and came across this storm spotter. Knowing cops on patrol samdon keep driving up and down the same street, I would have told the cop "OK" and turned the oposite direction watching for the cop to disappear in my rear window the parked again and continued storm spotting.

this arrest was uncalled for, while the cop was tied up on this arrest, 50 pounds of drugs probably passed through his jurisdiction. Oh well.....

 

[iMONITOR]

Maybe the Storm Chaser has cooler radios, antennas, and lights, than the cop?

 

[WX4JCW]

The Deputy needs a little reeducation
the stormchaser should have moved and filed a formal complaint (which probably would have went on deaf ears) with the sheriff

oh well such is law enforcement today

 

[rdale]

If he tells you to move, get back in your vehicle and move. You have no right to engage in a roadside argument whether his actions are right - that's for another time. If you choose to not obey a lawful order, even if you don't like it or agree with it, you can be arrested.

Uhhh, show me which law that says a cop can come up to you IN A PUBLIC REST STOP AREA and tell you to leave? There was no danger. Nothing was approaching them. If there was a tornado, wouldn't it be better to tell people to get inside to shelter instead of sending them back onto the road? And if people don't want to take shelter - there's no law that says you can force them.

 

[af5rn]

If the storm chaser felt he was being treated unfairly, the proper route was to follow the deputy's order and then file a complaint.

I would agree, but in theory only. Complaints against cops are futile -- regardless of their validity -- unless you're black. They have to literally kill somebody before civil rights violations are even considered against them. Their only "punishment" for abusing their authority or violating your rights is that their case gets dismissed by the DA. Big deal. They still go back and do it again. Because they can, and because they enjoy it.

I can see no evidence the deputy's order was clearly unlawful and therefore he was obliged to follow the order or be arrested.

I can see no evidence that the deputy's order was clearly lawful either. It was a REST STOP, for crying out loud. Rest stop = place to park. It wasn't a matter of the guy blocking the road, which would have been a law to be enforced. It was a simple matter of the cop thinking he can push people around for his own entertainment. They do the same thing to the news media all the time. And cops wonder why people don't respect them. :roll:

We can't have an orderly society if everyone thinks they have the right to argue a peace officer's interpretation of the law on the side of the road.

You're missing the root of the problem. The problem is not that people second guess peace officers' legal interpretations. The big problem is that peace officers' legal interpretations are so often incorrect that they need to be interpreted in the first place. If we had better educated, better trained, and frankly smarter cops with less attitude, there would be a lot less need for streetside debates.

Just do what you're told, even if you think the cop is being a jerk, and take it up with his superiors later...unless you want to be arrested and get some publicity. I'm not convinced that wasn't part of the motivation behind this video.

Agreed. As usual, throw a video camera into the mix, and people are empowered to act a fool. Nobody wants to be seen backing down on camera, including the cop. The cop was wrong, and no amount of complaining to his superiors is likely to change him. But, as justified as they may be legally, streetside debates are never productive or wise.

 

[mancow]

B.S.

I've youv'e ever been on the "inside" you know it's quite the opposite. It's a 24/7 headhunt to some degree.