Crossing the Line

Okay - first, let me say that I do NOT agree with the comments that were posted with this video on the YouTube page(s) ... I have seen it posted in lots of spots and can not believe how horrid the comments are on both sides of the issue.

Did the cop cross the line -- yeah probably

can I blame the cop for the situation he was in -- probably not

Did he over react - not from what I saw ... he was trying to put the cuffs on someone and someone else tried to interfere



If these girls had simply done as the officer had told them, even if it meant being cuffed for a bit ... while it would have been embarrassing, it would never have excalated to the point of the two of them being arrested.

If the officer had not been alone he probably wouldn't have felt quite as threatened by the crowd that was forming ... I don't care the color of the skin, if you start having a crowd form around you its scary as hell ....

You have to remember that all this started, supposeably, with the officer wanting to write the girls up for Jay Walking ... that's it ... a ticket. Maybe a $50 fine ... a misdermeanor that they could have talked down to community service .... 25 hours helping at your local church - working with kids learning to read - picking up garbage along the highway ... c'mon.

It also has to be said that it wasn't that long ago that a Seattle officer tried to break up a fight and he was jumped by the gathering crowd and was injured with life-crippling injuries which will last the rest of his life and cost him his career. So I'm sure that was going thru his head.

And remember that none of this video started taking place until after whatever incident took place that made of officer want to put the cuffs on -- and that is probably the most important part.

Without knowing what came first it is really hard to say if the officer totally over reacted. from what I saw, he kind of did, but I can understand why he did it ... he was in a no-win situation. If he did nothing he would have been taken to task for letting them go ... if he did anything he would have been blamed for 'picking' on them.

Had the girls simply followed the directions of the officer, none of this would have happened.

Just because a officer wants to put cuffs on you does not mean that you are going to be arrested -- sometimes they do it just to know that they are safe ... especially if they are alone.

Somewhere along the line, while people were teaching their kids to have their own voice and to stick up for their convictions - people forgot to teach them how to 'respect authority'.