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Alex · 03-26-2009, 08:20 PM

Ok, watched the video.

I suspect the police is mostly apologizing because it was an NFL player.

If the police officer drew his weapon, I have no problem with that either as he was faced with a car that had refused to stop and then when it did four people appear to have immediately existed the car.

That said, I do not really see immediate belligerence from the driver to warrant the attitude of the patrolman once it was clear he was dealing with people who really were hurrying to the hospital (though obviously he still would not know if there truly was a situation worthy of any hurry, let alone one breaking the law). And also, if it is true that the driver was stopping at red lights before going through them (I couldn't tell from the video but that did seem to be true for stop signs once at the hospital) the I think that would be an indication that you're not dealing with anybody too deranged.

So, my renewed verdict:

1. The officer, I would say initially reacted appropriately but did not handle the situation in a manner likely to defuse matters once it was clear what was being dealt with.

2. The driver also did not do anything to help matters once things got going.

3. If the driver weren't an NFL player I don't think that any apology would have been offered.

4. The driver parked in a handicapped zone and seemed clear no passengers in the car warranted such a spot. So I hope he got a ticket for that.

5. It is kind of weird that the newspaper reporter in the linked article mentioned it was a well attended press conference when the apology was offered but the only media outlet mentioned was Inside Edition. Really?

6. Everybody seemed to have worked hard to make the situation worse than it was.

7. If Disneyphile punches a cop because her mother is dying, despite whatever sympathy I have about her situation she should be punished for it.

03-26-2009, 08:20 PM	#1
Alex . Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 13,354	Ok, watched the video. I suspect the police is mostly apologizing because it was an NFL player. If the police officer drew his weapon, I have no problem with that either as he was faced with a car that had refused to stop and then when it did four people appear to have immediately existed the car. That said, I do not really see immediate belligerence from the driver to warrant the attitude of the patrolman once it was clear he was dealing with people who really were hurrying to the hospital (though obviously he still would not know if there truly was a situation worthy of any hurry, let alone one breaking the law). And also, if it is true that the driver was stopping at red lights before going through them (I couldn't tell from the video but that did seem to be true for stop signs once at the hospital) the I think that would be an indication that you're not dealing with anybody too deranged. So, my renewed verdict: 1. The officer, I would say initially reacted appropriately but did not handle the situation in a manner likely to defuse matters once it was clear what was being dealt with. 2. The driver also did not do anything to help matters once things got going. 3. If the driver weren't an NFL player I don't think that any apology would have been offered. 4. The driver parked in a handicapped zone and seemed clear no passengers in the car warranted such a spot. So I hope he got a ticket for that. 5. It is kind of weird that the newspaper reporter in the linked article mentioned it was a well attended press conference when the apology was offered but the only media outlet mentioned was Inside Edition. Really? 6. Everybody seemed to have worked hard to make the situation worse than it was. 7. If Disneyphile punches a cop because her mother is dying, despite whatever sympathy I have about her situation she should be punished for it.
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