Point of view is critical to assessing eyewitness testimony, all the more when a camera makes eyewitnesses of us all.
This point has been made here before, and now comes another excellent example. It is the nature of our arrogant species to say, “I saw the whole thing. If what you say happened had actually occurred, I would have seen it. I didn’t see it. Ergo, it didn’t happen.”
It’s all too easy to for us to forget that from our angle, our POV, what someone else saw may have been blocked from our own line of sight, or simply ignored because we weren’t looking for it (inattentional blindness).
In this case, the POV of the patrol car dashcam leads us “witnesses via video” to see “OMG! A trigger happy jackbooted thug pointing his gun at an innocent citizen for no reason!”
But the POV of the officer’s bodycam shows us what HE saw…and now we realize that his swift draw of his service Glock may well have prevented the officer and/or the motorist being shot.
Watch and learn. It’s the sort of lesson all of us who constitute the vast Jury of Public Opinion cannot review too often…and it can impact peace officer and armed citizen alike.
Or view it here: https://youtu.be/Gu0wMBJn-r8
As one who has been critical of a “very few” police involved shooting incidents in the news recently, I still believe that 99+% of LEOs act lawfully, responsibly and with sound judgment. I am insulted that the creator of this video would assume someone like me might automatically condemn the police officer based merely on that dash cam video.
Based on overwhelming statistics of lawful and reasonable police actions in regard to civilian interactions, I would have believed the suspect driver most likely gave reason for the officer to draw his service weapon. When the body cam video would be made public, with the suspect reaching and the exposed firearm, I would have thought to myself, “I thought so”.
Only, if and when, the officer’s body cam showed no reaching, and only if no weapon was found, I then “might” be critical of the officer, and yet I fully admit the suspicious behavior of the driver prior to contact with the officer may also have been a green light to draw his weapon, perhaps based on his agencies established procedure guidance.
Well done officer!
Lots of blather in the news media lately concerning Black Lives Matter and supposed endemic police racism and misconduct.
Meanwhile across the river from my hometown of Portland, Oregon, new police officer applicants in the State of Washington are way down. Can you guess why?
2 comments: All the body cams I’ve seen face outward from the chest, if the officer has their head turned, the camera isn’t going to get any footage. The other comment is from the Force Science Institute: the officer didn’t get to call time out and review the footage before acting, so slow motion replays shouldn’t be permitted in either the court room or deciding upon possible charges.
This Officer did an excellent job of controlling this situation. First of all the suspect put the Officer into a bad location by pulling up right next to the gas pumps limiting the Officers area of safety.
A gun on the seat and leaning over towards said weapon ? Hell Yes the Officer would have been justified in shooting the suspect had the suspect not complied and actually got his hands on the weapon.
This Officer truly handled this very tense situation with the utmost professionalism and should be commended.
This stop could have ended tragically with either man losing their lives had it been handled differently.
Well done Officer !!
Excellent post Mas !!
I thought this video displayed precisely what makes an excellent officer, professionalism combined with the ability to control a situation. Good work
Also , what I observed is a person FOLLOWING the instructions given by the officer, even though the driver had to know he was going to be charged with several violations pertaining to warrents and drugs and gun/knife charges– he still complied .
Most of the time , that does not happen and it escalates the situation.
The driver surely help not getting shot or at least being taken down by tazer or worst.
I don’t know about the rest of the folks who watched this video, but, as soon as the person in the pickup did NOT stop, the hair on the back of my neck just stood straight up! Then, after he DID stop, it sure looked to me like Mr. Pickup was doing a bit of “housecleaning” on his seat. A couple red flags – gee, do ya think? I cannot even begin to thank LEO for doing what they do – every damn day!
Where in THE hell would we be withOUT those blue lives that matter soooooo much? I don’t even want to think about that.
Officer Wheeler – great job!
Only comment is regards the printed comments at the end. It says that officers only have a split second to take action but “IT IS ALWAYS THE RESULT OF YOUR ACTIONS”…hmmm. I guess all the f’ups that I saw when I spent my brief time in LE were a dream then. LEO are always right.
Great teaching tool, Mas.
A fine example of why every interaction needs body cam presence to cover activities of Officer and suspect. ALWAYS. Very well handled, clear instruction and not allowing a loss of control by gameplaying suspect.
Great video. Commendable performance by the cop. I’d love to know what he found out about the gang-tatted driver when he ran his license…
And yeah: shows how impossible it is to judge the rightness or wrongness of someone’s conduct ‘from afar’.
It’s a human tendency we all need to be constantly fighting. It’s how our minds work: we’re hard-wired to quickly come to a conclusion.
Thinking about our evolutionary history– our thousands of years as hunter-gatherers in a world of large carnivores– it makes perfect sense. When faced by a large shape moving through the brush ahead of you, your mind needed to be able to QUICKLY figure out just what it was…
But that same tendency to quickly decide can also lead us to jump to conclusions. And each of us is likely to jump to the conclusion we’re primed to expect.
For those unfortunate fools who accept the Black Lives Matter narrative, when they see a white cop interacting with a ‘minority’ person, they expect to see racism and injustice. When the cop draws his gun, it’s because he’s itching to kill.
Far from the truth… but as this video shows, our eyes only show us part of the picture, our brains fill in the rest…
Great post!
Mas,
A secondary benefit from having multiple points of view, especially on video, is that one can analyze the event to determine tactical mistakes and identify opportunities for enhanced training.
I wonder if any of the officers in this incident:
http://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2015/09/nypd-officers-fire-84-shots-at-suspect-miss-83-times
were wearing cameras. If so, the video should be carefully evaluated by the NYPD as clearly some errors (not to mention just bad shooting) were made.
Mas, Excellent post which clearly shows what the officer has to contend with. Gas pumps in close proximity to what he was doing. You will never know but that individual may have done that on purpose just to make it harder for the officer. A gun lying on the passenger seat and unknown amount of knives on the person’s body makes this stop all the more tricky. I noticed that he was not comprehending the officers’s orders very well. Might that have been because he was impaired by drugs. Would make good training piece of film.
The body cam does give another point of view but should not be taken as anything other than an extra piece of evidence to assist in the investigation. There are many other factors at the time which could influence an officer’s decision. It is a nice to have, not a deciding factor.
Excellent example of what others may not or never see. Depending on lighting, circumstances …, even the body camera may well miss what the officer sees.
The split second timing is huge. One very cool officer. With body cams becoming standard equipment, the second guessing will continue vs. the reality of “time”? An aid, there’s no panacea.
As a prior post suggests, recruitment will be a challenge. Right or wrong, MSM and BLM will capitalize. Interesting, given all that is expected is compliance with the officer’s request.
Nice blog.
Trinity is a really strange community. I believe they still only have 5 police officers and about as many judges and justice of the peace who won’t convict on drug related issues because that is one of the town’s main source of income. You could throw a rock and have a 50-50 chance of hitting a drug dealer. Its very a low income area and most of the residents (other than cattle and logging) work in the prison system or are former prisoners who have stayed in that area. This is also the Police Dept. where “Big Texas Heat” on CMT was filmed. (They have a sense of humor and the department definitely needed the money.) I worked in Trinity for 4 of the last 5 years of my teaching career. The Police Dept. and Sheriff’s department do a good job under difficult circumstances. The professionalism I saw on the tape is exactly what I would expect. I don’t know the officer in this case but Chief Jones and Sheriff Wallace are dedicated, professional LEO’s and run good departments in a rough area that is politically unmotivated to change the community.
Mas very good post on the shortcomings of POV. Scientific studies show how little actual eye witnesses get it right. The TV program Brain Games (I think that’s the one) on the National Geographic channel illustrates this very nicely with their experiments using folks off the street.
I have always believed that the camera in law enforcement is the best friend of the trained and professional LEO. I deplore that some PD’s say they cannot afford body cams, yet they roll out the latest armored car or SWAT vehicle that has practically no use in many small PD’s. I am also concerned that many LEOs during an arrest will not allow (unconstitutionally) onlookers to film them and the scene. If the camera always remembers the details why the concern over citizen filming? Many LEOs say that the person filming is interfering with an arrest even when that filming occurs from across the street.
The concern obviously is that the POV of the filming may not capture what the officer sees, but that is not a good reason for less transparency around LEO interactions. As technology reduces the size of digital film capture, I believe that the PDs that embrace a chest cam and head cam (and maybe a back cam) are providing themselves and the citizenry a valuable service. After all, without at least the body cam this POV video example would not have been possible.
It’s an imperfect world but smaller body cams and eventually 360 degree video will help. I was very impressed by Officer Wheeler’s handling of the situation without immediately going to DEFCON 1. That takes nerve and training (not to mention self confidence). I wish we had more like him.
Thanks for posting this.
I don’t think it gets much more professional than that. It’s a POV most of the public never sees, yet the cop potentially faces many times a day. For the officer to safely deescalate that immediate situation and maintain an even tempered, reasonably calm demeanor throughout the rest of the stop honors the entire profession. Sad thing is, there’s thousands of these dedicated men and women serving the public for every one that’s an incompetent jerk. In my opinion, public opinion is being manipulated to the point some people seem to believe otherwise, and people often see only what they believe.
That guy was incredibly STUPID. Yes the officer had justification for what he did.
The driver rummaging around like that with a gun in view AND within reach was asking for it.
The officer actually was restrained.
Good job by the officer, good job Mas for illustrating the point.
While the drivers failure to pull over “immediately” could be considered suspicious, consider this. With some fake cops out there pulling people over, would it not also be a reasonable possibility the driver wanted to be in a well lit spot?
And I agree, pulling so close to the pump wasn’t a good idea.
A few years ago, “Patterico” (Patrick Frey) posted a similar pair of videos. From one angle, it looks like a cop shooting an unarmed man in the back. From another angle, it is clear that the man has a gun and is turning to shoot.
Mas – are you aware that the youtu.be link is faked? The link text works if one copies and pastes it, but it’s actually an anchor for this link
https://www.wetransfer.com/downloads/11c37a1db6bf39dabd9b224deac9c8a420150905053845/c545b2
which is where you go on clicking it. Wetransfer.com seems to be a legitimate service, not a malware host or phishing site, but any disguised link makes me very suspicious.
The suspect’s apparent confusion suggests chemical involvement. If he was hoping that his pursuer would approach on the right side, and so provide a more convenient shot opportunity, it would not surprise me.
Through experience, I have come to believe that carrying a firearm exposed in a vehicle is largely a mistake, at least at the moment that an officer walks up during a stop. If the officer has made any prejudgements, however misconceived, about the threat level that you present, such mistaking you for a wanted felon, you could be in for an uncomfortable time. I often still wear a holster for immediate use upon emerging, and am always prepared to explain that I have firearms in the vehicle.
The shoulder on the highway barely looks wide enough for a vehicle. If that were me I would probably have done something similar and stop where the officer would be safer without his fanny hanging out in traffic. I once when stopped, drove far enough ahead onto a fire station apron that allowed plenty of room for the officer, I thought maybe he would appreciate it and just give me a warning, but it didn’t help as I still got the ticket. Good video
William, watch the video again – Officer Wheeler turns his lights on while he is turning around – they can be easily seen. I don’t recall “pretenders” utilizing light bars – usually just a magnetic cheapo quickly thrown on the roof. I’m sure law enforcement would agree that not stopping is a big red flag. The added “housecleaning” of the seat? An even BIGGER flag!
I agree with those who said that a bodycam is just another point of view and another useful tool in the box, but that the totality of the circumstances still cannot be fully known. It is getting pretty good, though.
This brings to mind the movie Vantage Point and a few others that have mined the POV thing to show how perspective can alter one’s perception of an event.
While a gun exposed in the seat is not a great idea, it is still legal. I have the habit of taking my gun off when I get in the vehicle and putting it in the passenger seat. I have a license to carry and wouldn’t appreciate staring down the Glock barrel of a cop who just doesn’t know.
Josh, I hear ya, but I’m strongly going to suggest you find a better place for your pistol.
First, panicky lightweight yuppies on the sidewalk are eventually going to see it and call you in as Man With A Gun.
Second, your hand going toward it (as in the video presented) will not be appreciated by a cop doing his job any more than you appreciate having a Glock pointed at your head.
Third, your need for that pistol to defend yourself may be preceded by a road rage incident or some other situation that requires violent maneuvering of your vehicle, at which time you pistol will disappear from your each. It happened to two of the FBI agents in the tragic Miami shootout with the suspects Platt and Matix on April 11, 1986, and has been an enduring lesson to us all, cop and lawfully armed citizen alike, ever since.
In Texas, the origin of this video, the Texas Motorist Protection Act mandates that the handgun “not” be in plain sight inside one’s vehicle. This will change on January 1, 2016 when the new Texas open carry law comes into effect, however, in my opinion the displayed firearm may still need to be maintained in a belt or shoulder holster.
Correction; I should have used the term handgun in place of firearm in my comment directly above.
Thanks Mas, just finished my copy of “Ayoob Files: The Book” found used at the mega-used book store in Portland. The staff said they’ve seen you there! Anyway as you already mentioned NEVER LEAVE YOUR PISTOL ON THE CARSEAT. Unless of course you are parked at the range and getting some ammo or other sundries out for it. 🙂 Nobody wants to be the next Agent Manauzzi!
Bama Drifer, sounds like there’s at least one shooter working at Powell’s. Whenever I’m in that city and have time, I hit that fabulous, vast bookstore.
Mas, William and Friends:
Regarding carrying a pistol in a vehicle-
Texas Penal Code 46.02(a-1)(1) states that is an ” offense” if the “handgun is in plain view”.
That portion of the statute applies to Non-CHL holders, who may carry a loaded pistol in a motor vehicle as long as the handgun is concealed – in a glove box, gun rug, console, pistol case. Kroger grocery bag, under a Winnie-the-Pooh blanket – all of these are legal.
What Mr. Doofus was doing, pistol lying out on the seat, is an offense.
AFTER 1 January 2016, A CHL holder open carrying must STILL do so IN A BELT OR SHOULDER HOLSTER. ONLY. It is STILL a violation to have a sidearm lying loose on the seat.
Regards
GKT
Redux :
In addition to keeping the pistol “hidden” from view, the person carrying the handgun in the car ( or boat) must also not be a member of a criminal street gang, not be otherwise prohibited from possessing a firearm and cannot be committing any offense other than a misdemeanor traffic or boating offense.
Regards
GKT
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