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 ...
Florida man certainly has a lot going against him lately.
I’d say that’s a legitimate lawsuit.
This is a reason to ban all hot pursuits unless there is a potential for violence against innocents. Adrenaline can knock out the reasoning parts of the brain.
And this is why testing of the “external” combustion engine was a failure.
Unless you read the article...
“A State Fire Marshal report confirmed that the taser caused the gas station fire.”
75% 3rd degree?
I don’t want to sound pessimistic….
If gas fumes accumulated around a pump and were touched off then that still does not mean that the gas pump exploded. Because the pump itself would not explode under those circumstances. Words and details mean things. Real life is not Hollywood. There was a gas ignition or explosion. It was not from the pump itself. Very possible that the open gas tank on the bike explode though. combine that with spilled gas and That would be a bomb and fuse.
Hope the guy recovers. At least his face is not burned.
They need to add to the Taser manual: don’t use around gas pumps.
These days it doesnt really matter. No one is going to outrun a radio.
And no, cops don’t do anything to maintain their cars.
I think some Freepers think the world is Mayberry.
These days it doesnt really matter. No one is going to outrun a radio.
And no, cops don’t do anything to maintain their cars.
I think some Freepers think the world is Mayberry.
And how does this relate to DeSantis?
a State Fire Marshal analysis of the crime scene confirmed that the taser had in fact caused the fire.
Why? I can’t see DeSantis condoning something like this. Supporting the cops is one thing, but nobody is going to support an idiot cop like this.
This idiot cop should be prosecuted for criminally negligent homicide.
Did this man violate laws, or not?
Most of these outlaw motorcycle events are of the outlaw motorcyclists getting in the face of everyone else, showing how they can violate the law with impunity.
Got another
Now let’s see how many FReepers support the cop.
The issue is not the alleged legal violation but the excessive force used.
Because generally speaking, it’s not okay for agents of the state to turn citizens into a fireball for misdemeanors.
Then there is also the excessive collateral damage to property and the danger to the public itself caused by over-zealous actions of law enforcement.
A cigarette is not hot enough to cause gasoline to ignite, it’s a burning ember. I have demonstrated this numerous times by EXTINGUISHING a lit cigarette in a cup of gasoline.
Lighting the cigarette (open flame or spark) *IS* likely to create an issue though, and a Taser *IS* a spark, so there you are!
My dad and I used to joke about “signs for stupid people.” An example is the notice on gas pumps about not ingesting the contents. (“Aw, dang it; I was thirsty.”)
It looks like a notice to not use a Taser around gas pumps would fall under that category. And apparently, there are quite a few people who need that advice. 😏
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