Don't Argue With A Cop
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Gary [email protected]
Just do what he asks you to do.
It's that simple.
For example, if he says, "Please step outside." Step outside. Don't start blowing him a bunch of crap it. Just step outside.
I am writing, of course, in reference to the arrest of renowned African-American scholar and Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr.
Seems the professor was on vacation. When he arrived back home in a nice neighborhood in Cambridge, Mass., he found his front door swollen shut.
He enlisted the help of his driver to pry open the door. As this was happening, someone - most likely a neighbor - called police to report a possible breaking and entering.
By the time Sgt. James Crowley of the Cambridge PD arrived, Gates was inside his home.
The series of events that ensued has sparked a national debate over racism and has dragged President Barack Obama in to the fray.
According to police reports and a media interview with the officer, Gates and Crowley met at the front door and Crowley asked Gates to show his identification. But instead of stepping outside, Gates told the officer, "Why, because I'm black?"
Gates, agitated, according to the police report, continued to accuse Crowley of racism, saying, "This is what happens to black men in America."
After repeated requests from Crowley to step outside to discuss the situation, the scholarly professor, according to the police report, said, "Ya, I'll speak with your mama outside."
Gates then came outside.
At that point, Sgt. Crowley warned the academic that he risked arrest if he didn't calm down.
Gates told the officer he had no idea who he was messing with.
The second arrest warning came with Crowley holding a set of handcuffs in his hands, which, Crowley told the media, "was something I really didn't want to do."
By now, the issue of identity had been established and the officer knew it was Gates' home and that he was not a suspect in a break-in. Nonetheless, Gates remained combative, agitated and unruly, according to the police report.
At that point, Crowley arrested the professor for disorderly conduct. He was booked, but the charge subsequently was dropped after all the hoo-ha.
"The professor at any time could have resolved the issue by quieting down and/or going back inside." Crowley said.
President Obama thrust himself into the mess during a Wednesday press conference when he said, "I don't know, not having been there and not seeing all the facts, what role race played in that. But I think it's fair to say, number one, any of us would be pretty angry; number two, that the Cambridge police acted stupidly in arresting somebody when there was already proof that they were in their own home; and, number three, what I think we know separate and apart from this incident is that there's a long history in this country of African-Americans and Latinos being stopped by law enforcement disproportionately. That's just a fact."
On Thursday, he reiterated his stance on the issue, "I think it was a pretty straightforward commentary that you probably don't need to handcuff a guy, a middle-aged man who uses a cane, who's in his own home," Mr Obama said. The president called Sgt Crowley an "outstanding police officer" but emphasized that "it doesn't make sense to arrest a guy in his own home if he's not causing a serious disturbance."
Frankly, I think it was kind of dumb for the president to put his 2 cents worth in. He got it right in the first part of his comments when he said he didn't know all the facts. Certainly, he's entitled to his opinion, but I think it would have been prudent to say withhold his opinion in this case.
Frankly, I can actually see both sides of this issue, but the bottom line is pretty simple to me: It's not really smart for anybody, regardless of race, to raise their voice or get cocky with a cop.
If you are innocent and have nothing to hide, just be polite and things will probably come out OK.
This is not to say that cops don't have egos and don't make mistakes, but if you get confrontational with a cop, it's likely not going to come out well no matter the facts at hand.
Of course, there have been incidents of racial profiling in this country. Of course there have been bad cops who have wrongfully preyed on innocent minority citizens.
And, to be sure, if Gates hadn't been one of the pre-eminent black scholars in America, he likely would have been fined for disorderly conduct and you and I never would have heard about this case.
Nonetheless, this case, in an upscale neighborhood in Cambridge, doesn't really impress me as an incident where the cop had it out for the black guy.
Initially, Crowley didn't know who Gates was. He was investigating two people breaking into a house. Even after he knew it was Gates' house, questions remained. Were there two bad guys inside that Gates didn't know about? Was this a domestic dispute? Did Gates' wife lock him out and did Gates enlist his buddy to help him break in?[[In-content Ad]]For the record, both black and white colleagues rushed to defend Crowley, saying he is an exemplary officer. In addition, Crowley has lectured on racial profiling at a police academy for five years.
Finally, if he had anything against black people, he didn't show it when he tried to save the life of Reggie Lewis in 1993.
Back then, Crowley was working security for Brandeis University, where the Boston Celtics held pre-season workouts. The 27-year-old Lewis was a star for the Celtics. On July 27, 1993, he had a heart attack during practice. Crowley performed mouth-to-mouth resuscitation in an unsuccessful attempt to save the dying Lewis.
This whole mess could have been cleared up quickly if the professor simply and calmly, stepped outside, showed identification and explained the situation.
And, to be sure, Crowley could have swallowed his pride and walked away.
But that's not the way it played out and, in the end, we have a top professor at a top academic school taken away in handcuffs and a whole new argument about the racial divide in America.
But to me, it boils down to a simple question: If Gates was a white guy, would he have been arrested for mouthing off to a cop?
I believe he would have.
Just do what he asks you to do.
It's that simple.
For example, if he says, "Please step outside." Step outside. Don't start blowing him a bunch of crap it. Just step outside.
I am writing, of course, in reference to the arrest of renowned African-American scholar and Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr.
Seems the professor was on vacation. When he arrived back home in a nice neighborhood in Cambridge, Mass., he found his front door swollen shut.
He enlisted the help of his driver to pry open the door. As this was happening, someone - most likely a neighbor - called police to report a possible breaking and entering.
By the time Sgt. James Crowley of the Cambridge PD arrived, Gates was inside his home.
The series of events that ensued has sparked a national debate over racism and has dragged President Barack Obama in to the fray.
According to police reports and a media interview with the officer, Gates and Crowley met at the front door and Crowley asked Gates to show his identification. But instead of stepping outside, Gates told the officer, "Why, because I'm black?"
Gates, agitated, according to the police report, continued to accuse Crowley of racism, saying, "This is what happens to black men in America."
After repeated requests from Crowley to step outside to discuss the situation, the scholarly professor, according to the police report, said, "Ya, I'll speak with your mama outside."
Gates then came outside.
At that point, Sgt. Crowley warned the academic that he risked arrest if he didn't calm down.
Gates told the officer he had no idea who he was messing with.
The second arrest warning came with Crowley holding a set of handcuffs in his hands, which, Crowley told the media, "was something I really didn't want to do."
By now, the issue of identity had been established and the officer knew it was Gates' home and that he was not a suspect in a break-in. Nonetheless, Gates remained combative, agitated and unruly, according to the police report.
At that point, Crowley arrested the professor for disorderly conduct. He was booked, but the charge subsequently was dropped after all the hoo-ha.
"The professor at any time could have resolved the issue by quieting down and/or going back inside." Crowley said.
President Obama thrust himself into the mess during a Wednesday press conference when he said, "I don't know, not having been there and not seeing all the facts, what role race played in that. But I think it's fair to say, number one, any of us would be pretty angry; number two, that the Cambridge police acted stupidly in arresting somebody when there was already proof that they were in their own home; and, number three, what I think we know separate and apart from this incident is that there's a long history in this country of African-Americans and Latinos being stopped by law enforcement disproportionately. That's just a fact."
On Thursday, he reiterated his stance on the issue, "I think it was a pretty straightforward commentary that you probably don't need to handcuff a guy, a middle-aged man who uses a cane, who's in his own home," Mr Obama said. The president called Sgt Crowley an "outstanding police officer" but emphasized that "it doesn't make sense to arrest a guy in his own home if he's not causing a serious disturbance."
Frankly, I think it was kind of dumb for the president to put his 2 cents worth in. He got it right in the first part of his comments when he said he didn't know all the facts. Certainly, he's entitled to his opinion, but I think it would have been prudent to say withhold his opinion in this case.
Frankly, I can actually see both sides of this issue, but the bottom line is pretty simple to me: It's not really smart for anybody, regardless of race, to raise their voice or get cocky with a cop.
If you are innocent and have nothing to hide, just be polite and things will probably come out OK.
This is not to say that cops don't have egos and don't make mistakes, but if you get confrontational with a cop, it's likely not going to come out well no matter the facts at hand.
Of course, there have been incidents of racial profiling in this country. Of course there have been bad cops who have wrongfully preyed on innocent minority citizens.
And, to be sure, if Gates hadn't been one of the pre-eminent black scholars in America, he likely would have been fined for disorderly conduct and you and I never would have heard about this case.
Nonetheless, this case, in an upscale neighborhood in Cambridge, doesn't really impress me as an incident where the cop had it out for the black guy.
Initially, Crowley didn't know who Gates was. He was investigating two people breaking into a house. Even after he knew it was Gates' house, questions remained. Were there two bad guys inside that Gates didn't know about? Was this a domestic dispute? Did Gates' wife lock him out and did Gates enlist his buddy to help him break in?[[In-content Ad]]For the record, both black and white colleagues rushed to defend Crowley, saying he is an exemplary officer. In addition, Crowley has lectured on racial profiling at a police academy for five years.
Finally, if he had anything against black people, he didn't show it when he tried to save the life of Reggie Lewis in 1993.
Back then, Crowley was working security for Brandeis University, where the Boston Celtics held pre-season workouts. The 27-year-old Lewis was a star for the Celtics. On July 27, 1993, he had a heart attack during practice. Crowley performed mouth-to-mouth resuscitation in an unsuccessful attempt to save the dying Lewis.
This whole mess could have been cleared up quickly if the professor simply and calmly, stepped outside, showed identification and explained the situation.
And, to be sure, Crowley could have swallowed his pride and walked away.
But that's not the way it played out and, in the end, we have a top professor at a top academic school taken away in handcuffs and a whole new argument about the racial divide in America.
But to me, it boils down to a simple question: If Gates was a white guy, would he have been arrested for mouthing off to a cop?
I believe he would have.
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