Maryland State P.O.'s Misconduct Raises Important question

[ELB]

Ran across some more details here. http://carlosmiller.com/2010/04/16/mary ... -with-gun/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The site linked certainly does not generally give the benefit of the doubt to police officers. However, it does bring up some details I was unaware of, such as the search of the biker's house by six cops, the detention of his mother and sister, that AFTER the cop saw the video on Youtube he not only came up with the wiretapping charge but added more traffic offenses to the search warrant, and the bit one: the judge who released him saying, "I have no idea why you are charged with this." Also the note that the wirtap law only applies to places where there is the expectation of privacy.

The biker should behave himself and not speed. But the plain clothes officer and his buddies look to be seriously out of control.

[flynbenny]

I think we all agree that the motorcyclist in question knew the stop was legit because he saw the marked unit behind him. The guy from the malibu was out of line, the biker was clearly stopped and was posing no threat to him.

But had the marked unit not been there Mr. Chevy Malibu would have looked like a 'bike jack' to me, no display of a badge, anyone can say "Maryland State Police". Had that been the case I would have taken off, most crooks and very few cops could hit a rapidly moving target.

I think the goverment in Maryland in this case completely overreacted, the rider made it worse by trying to expose the injustice the way he did, nothing makes the goverment bureaucrats more angry then when you very publicly stand up against them. I think the rider has an excellent case in court and I hope the prosecutors and cops involved are punished for their violation of the rider's rights.

Most of the LEO's I know are very aware that many citizens carry a firearm so they say make sure they verbally ID AND prominently hold up a badge when doing something off duty or plainclothes.

And FWIW, I believe Carlos Miller is a bit of a firebrand and some of the stuff on his blog is just 'basura', I totally believe that photography is protected by the first amendment and that ANYONE and EVERYONE in a public place has no reasonable expectation of privacy. Both of his arrests were wrong and the courts agreed. Photography on private property or within a dwelling is another subject for another day.

[Will938]

Given the circumstances I would believe I was staring at a police officer.

If there was no marked unit behind me and I hadn't knowingly violated any traffic laws, that guy would have been one with his door about the time his hand went behind his back.

As for whether or not the guy tried to hide his firearm, leaving that bit out of his report doesn't lend him any credence. And to tack on all that crap after being exposed as reckless, raiding his house and seizing people/property? That smacks of retaliation and intimidation to me.

[HankB]

The biker deserves a ticket and a lot of points against his license for speeding, reckless driving, etc.

The officer who made the stop is very, VERY lucky his lack of professionalism didn't get him killed in a case of "An unidentified man with a gun cut me off and came at me!"

The alleged subsequent actions of the Maryland LEOs, if proven true (bogus wiretapping charges, acting on a supposedly unsigned warrant, home invasion, taking property, holding people, etc.) ought to result in multiple firings and multiple criminal charges against the police officers involved.

I'm not seeing any good guys on either side here.

[Travis]

I can't believe he got out of the car like that, looks like the leo in his personal vehical was on a power trip to me. Being that there was a marked car behind the rider would have given me peace of mind. One of my main reasons I got my chl was because I ride a sport bike and i am very vulnerable on it. But like I said before the marked car coming up on your tail would have made me relax. If the marked car wasn't behind me and that situation happened, my bike would have been reved up to 11-12 thousand rpm and popped the clutch. As for the man with a gun that thinks his scrawny bottom could stop all 250 pounds of me an my 450 pound bike would have had a rude awakening. This is my opinion and nothing more. I respect the police for what they do day in and day out, but they need to realize just because they know they are a leo doesn't mean I know they are a leo and not some crazy guy with a gun waiting for there friend in the passenger seat to get out and *try* to take my bike from me.

[PappaGun]

I came across this story today and thought I would post it as a follow up to the OP.

I am glad I don't live in Maryland, amonst other places.

A felony, and possible 16 year sentence, for videotaping the police seems extreme to the point of being unconstitutional.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/TheLaw/videota ... d=11179076" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[jester]

Wow! It sounds like the MD thugs are taking First Amendment lessons from Kim Jong-il.

[Cobra Medic]

If you shoot criminals in Maryland, don't waste your time shooting them with a camera.

Here endeth the lesson.

[slowpoke]

I came across this story today and thought I would post it as a follow up to the OP.

I am glad I don't live in Maryland, amonst other places.

A felony, and possible 16 year sentence, for videotaping the police seems extreme to the point of being unconstitutional.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/TheLaw/videota ... d=11179076" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

My AVG anti virus blocked
this link,saying it is infected with virus JS/Redir. Be carefull

[chasfm11]

Wow! It sounds like the MD thugs are taking First Amendment lessons from Kim Jong-il.

Yep, that is the problem. Those intent on stealing our freedoms don't contain the theft to 2nd amendment related matters. The Bill of Rights started out as a package but is being taken apart piece by piece.

I do understand that there "may be" a safety issue in photographing LEOs. You might make a case for that in D.C. - maybe - but Maryland??? To me, it is just another situation like not being able to pump your own gas in NJ. They call that a "safety" issue to but everyone knows that isn't the reason. Some how 48 other States allow consumers to pump their own gas and I cannot remember ever seeing someone blowing up a gas station while doing that. So 49 other States don't have such no police photographing and I suspect the LEOs in Maryland aren't any safer than the rest of the country.

It would be interesting to present a bill to do away with the MD anti-police photographing and see who pushes back and why.

[davidtx]

A Harford County Circuit Court judge Monday dismissed wiretapping charges against Anthony Graber, a motorcyclist who was jailed briefly after he taped a Maryland state trooper who stopped him for speeding on I-95. Graber used a camera mounted on his helmet, then posted the video on YouTube.

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/story-la ... ed_ag.html

[dicion]

"Those of us who are public officials and are entrusted with the power of the state are ultimately accountable to the public. When we exercise that power in public fora, we should not expect our actions to be shielded from public observation. 'Sed quis custodiet ipsos cutodes' ("Who watches the watchmen?”)."

Can we send this judge a gift basket or something?

This Statement is just pure excellence. I'm glad that there are still some Judges out there that understand this!

[puma guy]

A Harford County Circuit Court judge Monday dismissed wiretapping charges against Anthony Graber, a motorcyclist who was jailed briefly after he taped a Maryland state trooper who stopped him for speeding on I-95. Graber used a camera mounted on his helmet, then posted the video on YouTube.

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/story-la ... ed_ag.html

Dangit! Does this mean I have to root for the ACLU?

[dicion]

A Harford County Circuit Court judge Monday dismissed wiretapping charges against Anthony Graber, a motorcyclist who was jailed briefly after he taped a Maryland state trooper who stopped him for speeding on I-95. Graber used a camera mounted on his helmet, then posted the video on YouTube.

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/story-la ... ed_ag.html

Dangit! Does this mean I have to root for the ACLU?

To me, and ACLU and the NRA are similar, in that, While I do not support every single thing they do, and I actually vehemently oppose somethings on rare occasion, I support them and their existence overall.
For example, I disagree with their view on Capital punishment and some of their actions regarding 'Racial Justice', but completely back their views on Free Speech, Religous Freedom, National Security, and Technology and Liberty.

IMO, Without them, we would have some much more serious problems than we do now.

[Hoi Polloi]

"Those of us who are public officials and are entrusted with the power of the state are ultimately accountable to the public. When we exercise that power in public fora, we should not expect our actions to be shielded from public observation. 'Sed quis custodiet ipsos cutodes' ("Who watches the watchmen?”)."

Can we send this judge a gift basket or something?

This Statement is just pure excellence. I'm glad that there are still some Judges out there that understand this!