But I found it hard to believe that some white guy asking what's going on would cause this reactionWhy? This is what American cops do: escalate, escalate, escalate. It's the only way they think they can control a situation.
we should all be demanding that all active duty police wear a camera that records their entire shift […] Only the corrupt members of law enforcement could argue against this. They have no reasonable expectation of privacy on the jobThis seems like a good idea. When it comes up, though, an argument against it is that the people who are interacting with the police have some expectation of privacy, and being put on the community-access COPS channel violates this. Even though I suspect much of this sentiment is astroturfed, it is an issue to consider.
"Peter, a Canadian citizen, was on his way back to Canada after helping a friend move house to Nebraska over the weekend. He was stopped at the border crossing at Port Huron, Michigan by U.S. border police for a search of his rental vehicle."I've been across the US/Canada border at least 10 times in the last couple of years and on your way into Canada you are screened by Canadian authorities and on your way into the US you are screened by US authorities.
Port Huron police Capt. Jim Jones would not provide the Times Herald with a copy of a police report about the incident Friday. But, he read the police report to a reporter.Note that the Port Huron cop read a police report made to them, but it appears that they are reporting the border guards' claims and that they were not there. Or is there any good reason to believe that Port Huron cops would be anywhere near U.S. Customs?
Jones said Watts was crossing into Michigan from Point Edward when he was selected at random for a secondary Customs inspection. Watts exited his vehicle “angrily” and border officers began checking the black sport utility vehicle he was driving, Jones said.
Border officers ordered Watts back into the vehicle, and when he refused, officers attempted to handcuff him, Jones said. At that point, Watts began to resist and pull away from the officers “and became aggressive toward officers,” Jones said.
Jones said a border officer used pepper spray to subdue Watts. Jones said Watts “choked” an officer during the struggle.
You tell 'em that you're going to Kroger to buy a spiral-sliced ham 'cause they don't sell 'em in Canada and you're all set.Not quite as colorful.
I got a detail wrong in the account I gave below of Peter Watts' incarceration in the post below. I had understood that he had been released from custody in Port Huron, wearing nothing but jeans and a denim shirt, during a snowstorm - then walked across the bridge to Canada.So he didn't have a coat or car, but he also didn't have to walk across the bridge.
In fact, officials in Port Huron did transport him back to Canada before leaving him there, coat-less and without a vehicle, in a winter storm.
Just learned this fact after talking with Peter again. I've sent the correction off to John Scalzi and Cory Doctorow. I have also posted it here.
I’m at the point now where I can’t talk a whole lot about ongoing proceedings. I am seeing a few common misrepresentations making the rounds, though, that I’d like to set straight:posted by nooneyouknow at 7:50 PM on December 11, 2009 [3 favorites]
* Some are concluding that, when I was “dumped across the border in shirtsleeves”, I had to walk across the Blue Water Bridge in a snowstorm without my coat. No. The bridge is on the US side of the border, which they had to drive me across to dump me on the other side of; and Canadian Customs was on that other side. This was no Starlight Cruise; I was not exposed to the weather unprotected for an inordinately long time. Still. It’s winter. And they have my coat.
* Others have warned me to delete my previous post, lest the bad guys seize upon it and twist it to their own dark purposes. Having had erroneous quotes attributed to me in the past, I know this is good advice (which is why I won’t be commenting in too much detail upon some of the arcane blow-by-blows of the case in question). But my lawyer vetted that post before I put it up; I stand behind it.
* Thanks to whoever posted the link to the Times-Herald story. I have three comments about the allegations therein. Firstly, the story claims that I was entering the US, not leaving it: this is empirically false. Secondly, I find it interesting that these guys characterise “pulling away” as “aggressive” behavior; I myself would regard it as a retreat. And thirdly, I did not “choke” anyone. I state this categorically. And having been told that cameras were in fact on site, I look forward to seeing the footage they provide.
You tell 'em that you're going to Kroger to buy a spiral-sliced ham 'cause they don't sell 'em in Canada and you're all set.Not quite as colorful."
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posted by blixco at 2:20 PM on December 11, 2009 [1 favorite]