Posted on 08/29/2014 7:10:25 AM PDT by TurboZamboni
St. Paul police responded Thursday to criticism over officers' interaction with a man, including police use of a Taser, saying a video doesn't tell the whole story.
Chris Lollie, 28, said he was sitting on a chair in a downtown skyway Jan. 31 when a security guard told him it was a private area and he couldn't be there. No signs were posted saying it was private, Lollie said. The guard called police.
Lollie, of St. Paul, told an officer he was heading to pick up his children and didn't have to identify himself because he had done nothing wrong.
On the cellphone video that Lollie took, he can be heard saying, "The problem is I'm black, that's the problem. No, it really is, because I didn't do anything wrong.
WARNING: This video includes expletives.
Lollie said an officer later put his hands around his throat and ripped his jacket open. Another officer used a Taser on him, Lollie said.
Police wrote in a report that Lollie was "actively resisting by attempting to pull his arm away" and "began to forcefully try to shove past us as he was pulling away from us." An officer pushed Lollie against a wall to try to control him and Lollie accused the officer of trying to choke him, the report said.
"Several times I attempted to force his hands behind his back but was unable to overcome his active resistance," the report said. When Lollie's "resistance was becoming uncontrollable," an officer used a Taser on him, the report said.
Lollie was charged with three misdemeanors -- trespassing, disorderly conduct and obstructing legal process. All counts were dismissed July 31. Lollie said his attorney went to court with surveillance video from the skyway and witness statements.
(Excerpt) Read more at twincities.com ...
A black man who is responsible for his children? Ha! I can understand why the police tapered that lying b*stard.
Always remember being an ass to someone doing a thankless job brings more pee on yourself.
/johnny
Morons.
guy is sitting in an unmarked area and the guard tries to roust him. he stands his ground - he is not doing anything wrong -and the guard calls police. if this article is true, then he was busted for being black in public.
and i an a big supporter of the police.
Haven't been there for decades, but remember being very impressed by the skyways downtown on my last visit.
As I understand it, the skyways run between privately-owned buildings and are themselves considered part of those buildings. The public is generally allowed access while the buildings are open, but they're still private property and owners retain the right to ask people to move on instead of loitering.
On a separate note, I remember being part of a Republican "cheering" section that was ordered to move to a separate, farther area during a speech given by Al Gore and Joe Lieberman at a public park in La Crosse, Wisc. in 2000. Nobody was planning on throwing things at the candidates, but they moved our group much further away anyway. Nobody in our group protested, we just did what the cops told us to do.
Black had nothing to do with it.
He did not respect the rent-a-cop’s AUTHORITAH!!
“guy is sitting in an unmarked area and the guard tries to roust him. he stands his ground”
It doesn’t have to be marked. Marking supposedly prevents entry. An owner or their representative giving you notice you are on private property, combined with a chance to leave, satisfies the law in most states.
ie,,,”a guy is sitting on my unmarked back porch and I try to roust him by informing him he is on private property, and must leave immediately. He stands his ground,,,”
See?
There a many, many black men who are responsible for their children. Do not paint an entire race for the actions of some! That IS racist.
I don’t care what skin color you are. No one should be subject to police search without probable cause that a crime is being committed and a warrant. The only exception should be imminent danger, i.e. the person actively committing violence against the police or other citizens. A black man minding his own business who is not a threat to anyone else? Get a warrant.
He was told it was private property and to move on. If it were me I would move. This guy felt entitled that he can stay but I have to move?
His rotten attitude was also on display when not showing ID to police. This could be a setup by him to get a lawyer and sue in Obama’s America.
But the Minneapolis skyways have never been public. They are owned by the buildings they connect. They are private walkways.
Get a warrant? This was private property, not public. No warrant needed to tell him to move on.
but it wasn’t private property. it was in a public skyway. apparently a rest area where people can sit down, as on a park bench.
private walkways - for public use.
Its private property, not city
“Black had nothing to do with it.
He did not respect the rent-a-cop’s AUTHORITAH!!”
Unfortunately, being Black did most likely have everything to do with it! I don’t like Blacks doing illegal stuff, but this kind of “police action” simply reinforces the problem we have with integrating Blacks into our society. The fact is that they get FKed with by the cops far too often and it only makes trying to fix the problems more difficult. It’s not hard to see why they want the cop’s head in Ferguson even if what he did was completely within the law.
Except that he was sitting in front of his kid's preschool, they were there, his arrest and tazering was witnessed by a member of the preschool staff, and her statement to the police was also a reason for the charges to be dropped.
The only thing that was bogus in all of this were the original charges.
I don't like anyone doing illegal stuff regardless if they are black or white or, in this case, blue.
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