Slashdot Mirror
Baton Bob Strikes Back Against Police That Coerced Facebook Post From Him
McGruber (1417641) writes "In June 2013, Atlanta police arrested costumed street performer "Baton Bob" during the middle of a street performance after Baton Bob was allegedly involved in a verbal altercation with mall security guards. Now, a year later, Baton Bob has filed a federal lawsuit accusing Atlanta police of violating his constitutional rights, assault, discrimination, privacy violations and identify theft. Atlanta Police allegedly forced Baton Bob to make a pro-police statement on his Facebook page before officers would allow Bob to be released on bond. According to the lawsuit: "At approximately 3:40 p.m., while Plaintiff sat handcuffed and without an attorney, he was told to dictate a public statement to Officer Davis, who then typed and posted the message to the Baton Bob Facebook account. The message read: 'First of all, the atl police officer that responded to the incident thru security has been very respectful and gracious to me even in handcuffs. So, the situation escalated from a complaint from a security officer in the area and for some reason she rolled up on me like she didn't know who I was and like I had not been there before. For them to call police to come to intervene was not necessary. So, out of it, because of my fury, the Atlanta police officer did not understand the elements of the situation, so he was trying to do his job, respectfully and arrested my ass!!!!!!!!! I'll be out tomorrow so look out for my show at 14th and Peachtree. So now I'm waiting to be transported so I can sign my own bond and get the hell out of here. I want to verify, that the Atlanta police was respectful to me considering the circumstances. See you when I see you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!' As promised, Plaintiff was then given a signature bond and released from jail."
Great post McGruber, thanks for selecting it timothy.
how does a mime have a "verbal altercation"?
Copyright (c) 1990 - 2014 Dice. All rights reserved. Use of this comment is subject to certain Terms and Conditions.
Comment removed based on user account deletion
Well, it was either post the pro-police statement or face indefinite detention in an imaginary glass box.
SJW's don't eliminate discrimination. They just expropriate it for themselves.
He looked at the police and gave him the finger?
Get free satoshi (Bitcoin) and Dogecoins
He's lucky they didn't kill him.
In our state the cops have killed people with their batons, tasers, pistols and assault rifles for less than this. Of course, every time this happens the cops get off scott free without even a reprimand and with full paid leave during the "investigation" into the "incident". Cops are killing citizens left and right. These are not isolated incidenses but a problem with police mentality. Kill first, ask questions later.
They are a public nuisance with the same rights we afford assholes like myself and yourself. No one, even a mime, can be coerced into a public statement like this...
This is a highly illegal method of reputation modelling by the Atlanta PD.
Comment removed based on user account deletion
Why the hell do you think they didn't do this? This is par for the course for news you hear every week from American police.
It seems to me that it would be easy to convince a jury that the Atlanta police actually did this -- the FB post is timestamped, as was the record generated when Baton Bob was actually released on bond.
Back in 2006, the Atlanta police executed a 92-year-old elderly woman, during a "botched" drug raid. They fired 39 shots at her, killing her with the 5 or 6 that hit her. After the shooting, one of the Atlanta officers planted marijuana at the house. Wikipedia: Kathryn Johnston shooting
Well, he dresses like a 12 year old girl, so I think it was him...
Peter predicted that you would "deliberately forget" creation 2000 years ago...
Had a friend who was arrested and there was a $15 filing fee.
They wouldn't make change.
They wouldn't accept $20's.
Seriously.
She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.
Actually, deep in the heart of Texas someone actually got released by a grand jury for shooting a cop who busted down their trailer home door unannounced on a no-knock warrant. Guy thought someone was attacking his pregnant wife and shot first.
First time I've seen anyone let off for killing a cop in self defense. Despite bootlickers like c6gunner, it's getting harder to find 12 angry men who assume the cops are always right and pure and can never make mistakes.
Hey, that story isn't all sad:
"Three officers were tried for manslaughter and other charges surrounding falsification and were sentenced to ten, six, and five years."
The entire narcotics department (that weren't in jail) was flushed with new hires replacing them and no-knock warrents are more restricted.
So far they're doing better than LA cops...
Oddly, if you read Dante, the deepest circle of Hell is reserved for those who dared to stand up against power: Brutus is there for assassinating Caesar and defending the liberty of the Republic, and Satan is there for disobeying God. Hell, like prison, is designed to reinforce authority.
Note the only claim that she fired first is by police, who were prosecuted for the act. They claim she fired after they announced themselves. For all we know, they never announced themselves, or while planting the marijuana, found a gun in a different room and fired one shot with it and planted it on her.
What amazes me is that after everything else is proven a lie, they still took the convicted criminal's words for the sequence of events.
Learn to love Alaska
Yeah, I hate to do this too, but the chronology of events seems to be:
*) Police cut off burglar bars, smash in door.
*) Police announce themselves, then enter.
*) Grandmother fires shot.
*) Police fire back.
"39 shots, five or six of which hit." Some of those hits were on each other, further cementing their reputation as Keystone Kops.