Posted on 07/27/2004 5:19:31 AM PDT by Doctor Wu
Two Arrested, Pepper Sprayed Over Phone Call In Movie Theater
POSTED: 6:16 am EDT July 27, 2004
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- A college student who took a cell phone call from her mother in a movie theater was pepper sprayed by an officer and charged with disorderly conduct, along with her boyfriend.
Warronnica Harris, 23, was at the Muvico theater at BayWalk Saturday night, watching the opening credits to Catwoman when her cell phone rang.
"It was my mom calling me," Harris said. "It was a family emergency."
Harris said she spoke so quietly that her mother couldn't hear her. Then Officer John Douglas shone a flashlight in her eyes.
He asked Harris and her boyfriend, Terrell "KC" Tolson, 25, to leave. He pushed Harris in the hallway, then pepper sprayed both of them in the lobby, the couple said. Neither Harris nor Tolson has a criminal record.
Police denied their account, saying Harris refused to end her cell phone conversation, yelled at Douglas and refused to leave the theater. Her boyfriend also refused to leave and threatened the officer, police said.
Witnesses said the pair did nothing wrong.
Marcia Gray, a 49-year-old Tampa accountant, was in the lobby when the couple were pepper sprayed.
"The man turned and asked the officer why he was making them leave and the cop just maced him in the face," Gray said. "They weren't yelling or touching him. The man bent over and the girl asked why he maced her boyfriend. Then the cop maced her, and she dropped her soda."
Welcome to FR.
I'm betting it was a rentacop who did this instead of an actual police officer. He probably just bought the pepper spray and wanted to see how effective it was.
"Warronnica" Harrris
I sense another FR "odd names" thread coming on.
I suspect there's more to the story about ol' Terrell and Warronica.
She should have turned her cell phone off but people become much too outraged over a ringing phone. Somebody better not spray me with mace for such a minor infraction.
She was speaking quietly about a "family emergency" but the cop managed to hear her over the loud movie. Sure.
You betcha. She should have gotten her ass up out of the chair and exited the theater to talk with mommy. I'd have pepper sprayed her and then followed it up with a ASP baton dance on her grill! Cell phones in the hands of idiots are as lethal as a voting lever in the hands of an old geezer in Miami, Floriduh!
Ah, just reread the article found where the "police" have commented on the case. Their claims have to be that of the officer involved if there were on other police officers at the incident.
Sounds like the cops got it right this time. Definitely an interesting way to end that sort of thing.
Were the perps pointing their fingers in a threatening manner?
Maybe they need to electronically shield theaters in a 'Farady cage' because it has gotten to be an epidemic.
BUMP
Warronica? - what posesses some parents...
The name is sufficient reason to be maced.. hehe ;-)
Mom a fan of Warren Harding and Monica Lewinsky?
If the Protest Warriors don't have a mascot yet, they should find one and name it Warronica.
"She was speaking quietly about a "family emergency" but the cop managed to hear her over the loud movie. Sure."
Plus - it was a "family emergency" - so why were they refusing to leave?
Annoying? Yes.
But is it worth macing them?
What's next a SWAT team for smoking in public?
If it was a family emergency, how come she wasn't on her way out the door anyway?
If it wasn't important enough to require her presence, then it wasn't an emergency.
Here, let me fix that title.
"Police use non-lethal force to remove resisting tresspassers, after theater owner exercises private property rights to exclude patron for causing disturbance."
I know. Not as sexy as the original.
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