Posted on 05/18/2022 9:59:21 AM PDT by algore
A dirt bike rider is fighting for his life after he was tasered by a police officer while pumping gas at a Florida gas station, causing the pump to explode and him to be 'cooked alive' in a giant fireball, his attorneys say.
An internal investigation is currently underway over the Osceola County Sheriff's' handling of the incident.
Meanwhile Barretto, who was reportedly targeted because he attended a banned motorbike enthusiast event that was broken up by cops, is set to be put in a medically induced coma as he undergoes more intense treatment
The department recently adopted a zero-tolerance policy forbidding such rallies, lawyers for Barretto say. They are demanding the state take over the investigation and hold the officers involved accountable. The deputy has yet to be named.
The department has refused to provide body camera footage and incident reports chronicling the incident.
Video shows Barretto pumping gas into his motorbike outside the Orange County Wawa where the explosion would eventually occur, after he had stopped to get gas following the rally in Osceola County.
The footage the shows the unidentified officer deploy his Taser at Barretto, who was on the ground at the time. The shot then sets off a chain reaction causing the gas pump Barretto had been at to explode.
Police refused to turn over footage of the incident from the officers' body-cameras, and have yet to identify the deputies involved, pending an internal investigation.
Lawyers for Barretto are demanding the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and US Department of Justice take over the probe, and begin an investigation into the protocols, practices, policies, and procedures of the Sheriff’s Office.
Barretto was not armed
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
These guys targeted a rider AFTER the fact of attending an "illegal" event.
"THERE'S one, Fred . . . GIT "IM . . ." !
Even if it is, it's pretty dumb to taze someone pumping gasoline.
Osceola County Sheriff’s deputy
Video shows Barretto pumping gas into his motorbike outside the Orange County Wawa
Was the cop in hot pursuit when he crossed the county line? Otherwise out of his jurisdiction.
NOT if he comes out an demands accountability right now.
I don't think he is going to side with the police on something like this.
75% third-degree, if true, carries a very high mortality.
Osceola County sheriff is elected by the county residents and is a DEMOCRAT.
So it will be hard for the nut cases to blame those mean old conservative republicans like the governor.
Yeah “The Gas pump exploded” makes absolutely no sense.
Only an idiot would not question that line. I believe an idiot wrote it. It makes much more sense that gas got spread all over and was touched off by the taser.
[Two young male cops I met recently didn’t know if their patrol car was a V-8 or 6 cylinder. Surprised?]
They’re probably forbidden to do anything maintenance-wise to it besides add fuel, coolant, and top off the monkey.
“What the hell is justification for running up and tackling someone who is no immediate threat to anyone as best as it appears.”
He’s a scofflaw and rides his motorcycle illegally sometimes! Certainly that deserves the death penalty. He might even jaywalk from time to time. Society is saved from this scofflaw now. Left unchecked, his career of crime might have expanded to leaving gum under picnic tables.
“Unarmed man, already on the ground, and the cop still needed to use his cattle prod.”
A lot of stupidity all around on this story but it likely started with someone resisting arrest. That is usually what happens. Had this idiot not fought the police and obeyed simple instructions he wouldn’t be in the hospital.
Had the police had an IQ above 80 then maybe they would have not burned the guy alive. The cops will likely get a death sentence via prison.
So probably everyone dies in this story. Have a nice day.
Naturally, the Osceola County Sheriff’s Department will investigate itself and find their deputies did nothing wrong.
After all, Barretto wasn’t black.
Nothing, other than being promoted will happen to the Deputy. The “investigation” will clear him. The Department will promote him. He has nothing to fear from the Law.
“75% third-degree, if true, carries a very high mortality.”
Yeah, that’s a tough one to overcome. The infection rate is off the charts.
Coming soon to Florida police academies - mandatory attendance at showings of “Zoolander” (followed by a pop quiz).
Well like I said in other posts, Daily Mail does tend to sensationalize, but it is hard pressed to understand what justified the cops initial run up an tackling of the man in the first place...
Context is key, and as we all know pictures and video can look really bad depending on how its presented... however, on its surface I am finding it very difficult to understand the run up an tackle of the man, let alone the following scuffle and taser discharge in an area that clearly is full of gas and fumes due purely to your actions of tackling the man and his bike.
It certainly appears to be a cop run amok, we will see if the body or other information ad context that changes the situation... I admit I am hard pressed based on what I see here to believe that context is going to justify this cops behavior, but you never know.
“What the hell is justification for running up and tackling someone who is no immediate threat to anyone as best as it appears.”
Same justification for attacking a 77 year old demented guy and causing a brain hemorrhage which killed him =>
https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/4061325/posts
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PeF8yJ_5HXo
No.
The area around a gas dispenser is a Class 1 Division 2 hazardous area, meaning explosive gases and vapors may be present but no continuously. That’s why there are warnings about not having ignition devices in that area. Once enough gasoline was spilled to create a vapor that exceeded the Lower Explosive Limit, boom happened. The LEL for gas is 1.2% and the UEL is 7.1%, meaning it’s too rich to explode. The video doesn’t show enough detail to know what was the ignition source, for instance what if they guy was smoking at the same time? Unlikely but this is called “jumping to conclusions” in the absence of facts and data.
I will make a guess.
I have been a witness to cops chasing bikes.
I will never forget one that came down off an internet access at maybe 100 MPH, could have been even faster, just as I was passing the merge lane
He was out of sight so quick....unreal.
The bike sounded like an airplane up close.
The cops were so far behind him that several patrol cars were just milling around looking for him. Watched the news for days to see if they caught him or if he got creamed.
So in this case in FL, my guess.
Guy outran the cop. Cop not even close. Cop gets on a clear stretch of road and realizes the guy is not ahead of him.
Bike rider thinks he got away and is about out of gas so he intends to get a quick refuel and depart. Cop doubles back and sees him
Cop’s Adrenalin is up to his eyebrows, sees the bike, charges the guy before he can jump on the bike and disappear again...so pumped up his brain is not sorting it all out.
Excuse for the cop? Absolutely not. If a cop can’t think under pressure, he is the wrong guy for the job. The very least that should happen to him is that he gets fired and the bike jockey collects, or his family collects, about 10 million bucks, since the lawyer will end up with 1/3 to 1/2 of the money.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.