Surprise Police Chief Piña recorded an internal message video for his police officers about a week after the arrest. In it, he defiantly and irrationally claims that there was no First Amendment violation. He also has another officer, who gained valuable experience in First Amendment (and other) violations, while working at the Phoenix Police Department, give the officers advice on how to respond to encounters with so-called First Amendment Auditors.
Here’s the first video I did on this.
Cops in Little Rock, Arkansas harass a veteran holding a cardboard sign that reads, “God Bless Our Homeless Vets.” The veteran happens to be Jeff Gray, a YouTuber and legendary First Amendment activist. Like moths to the flame….
Here’s the 8th Circuit case discussed in the video.
Rodgers v. Bryant, 942 F.3d 451 (8th Cir. 2019)
Here is Jeff Gray’s Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@HONORYOUROATH/
UPDATE on the crazy vigilante bicyclist of Park City, Utah that I did a video on last week.
Road construction workers are facing felony assault and kidnapping charges after claiming they were the ones assaulted by a mystery driver. Even though the workers told the responding officers they believed the perpetrator was drunk, they let him drive away without a DUI investigation. It’s a secret case sealed by the courts, and authorities won’t say the name of that driver. As it turns out, the mystery driver was an off-duty police officer. Ten days after the incident, the workers were scheduled to have a TV news interview about the assault by the mystery off-duty cop. But instead, police officers arrested them prior to the interview.
Media report here.
This is the intersection where the incident occurred:
This is the actual photo of the off-duty cop’s car in the construction zone:
UPDATE to the case where my video made the TV news in Idaho. The cop, former Meridian Police Officer Bradley Chambers, who disappeared, has now surfaced at another agency. Also, I now have all the police bodycam footage from the incident. The footage corroborates much of what we already knew. But it also raises new questions.
Here’s my first blog post on this incident with the prior videos and details.
In Park City, Utah, a 73 year old bicyclist named Gary Peacock followed a 22 year old driver into a park. Claiming the young driver drove “too close” to him, as Peacock was riding his bike in the road, Peacock forcibly held the young man in his car, refusing to allow him to leave, as he called the police. The 22 year old, Pierce Kempton, uploaded the video to social media and it went viral. I spoke with him and got the full story.
Here’s the citation that was issued to Pierce:
This is the Utah statute that Pierce was initially charged with:
Here’s Pierce’s website, with links to his social media.
UPDATE 10/20/24 – Bodycam Released!
In Phoenix, Arizona, cops were called by a Circle K gas station in reference to a white man they wanted trespassed from their store. When they arrived, the white man pointed across the street to a black man, claiming that the man was the actual culprit. Just taking his word for it, Phoenix officers Ben Harris and Kyle Sue violently attacked the black man. His name is Tyron McAlpin. He’s completely deaf and has cerebral palsy.
Officers Harris and Sue took him to the ground, punched him in the head at least 10 times and tased him at least 4 times, all the while shouting commands that he was unable to comprehend.
Media report here.
RAW Footage from Ben Harris’ bodycam:
Raw surveillance footage:
The Supreme Court has made clear that “one of the most precious of the liberties safeguarded by the Bill of Rights” is the sacred promise to every American, enshrined in the First Amendment, that citizens enjoy the freedom to complain about their leaders. Lozman v. Riviera Beach, 585 U.S. 87, 101 (2018). But the city of Surprise, Arizona and its mayor, Skip Hall, broke that promise, arresting Plaintiff Rebekah Massie in front of her 10-year-old daughter for criticizing a public official at a city council meeting.
The complaint:
UPDATE October 24, 2024:
Surprise Police Chief Piña recorded an internal message video for his police officers about a week after the arrest. In it, he defiantly and irrationally claims that there was no First Amendment violation. He also has another officer, who gained valuable experience in First Amendment (and other) violations, while working at the Phoenix Police Department, give the officers advice on how to respond to encounters with so-called First Amendment Auditors.
On August 13, 2024, Anchorage police responded to a 911 call involving Easter Leafa, who was reported to have threatened her sister with a knife. What followed was a series of events that ended with Officer Alexander Roman discharging his weapon, leading to Easter’s death. The State of Alaska’s Department of Law, after reviewing the case, concluded that the officer’s actions were legally justified. But does the newly released bodycam footage contradict the report?
Full Report from the State of Alaska Department of Law:
Here’s the 9th Circuit opinion in Calonge v. City of San Jose, 22-16495 (9th Cir. Jun 07, 2024) that was discussed the video:
Here’s a link to all the released bodycam videos.
This involves the Moweaqua Police Department and happened in Macon County, Illinois. This man was being investigated for allegedly making a threat on social media. Police officers showed up at his door without a warrant. They asked to speak with him. He was apparently lawfully armed at the time. He invited them in. Once inside, they wanted to disarm him. Not being agreeable, he asked them to leave. They refused. It all went downhill from there. This all could have been easily avoided.
Original full video, with explanation, is here.