Man zapped by trooper

[ClorideRUS]

This isn't going to change anyone's mind but I thought you all might be interested.

RUS






Man zapped by trooper upset over online threats


SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- A man who posted a video of a Utah trooper shocking him with a Taser is asking people to "have some common decency" and stop making online threats against the officer.

"I wish people would realize and think about this: Trooper Gardner is a real person, he's got a real family. Real lives are being affected," Jared Massey said.

Trooper Jon Gardner of the Utah Highway Patrol subdued Massey with a Taser when the motorist walked away and refused to sign a speeding ticket on Sept. 14 on U.S. 40 near Vernal.

Massey obtained a video of the incident and posted it on YouTube. In response, the UHP has received thousands of phone calls and e-mails, many of them critical of the trooper. There also have been online threats against Gardner.

"I think mostly it's people blowing off steam, and that's fine," said Sgt. Jeff Nigbur, a UHP spokesman. "But you can't say you're going to endanger somebody's life."

Nigbur said there is no evidence that the trooper's life is in danger. Massey wants the online threats to stop.

"I wish people would have some common decency every once in awhile," he said Monday. "When I posted the video it wasn't to vilify the guy, demean him or destroy him, and that's one of the things I hate about this."

The UHP still is investigating the incident and won't say whether Gardner's use of the Taser was appropriate.

Tasers use compressed nitrogen to fire two barbed darts that can penetrate clothing to deliver a 50,000-volt shock to immobilize people.

---

 

[proutdoors]

I am glad he is stepping up and asking people to act more responsible, that speaks well of him, just as you said RUS. My one question, he said he didn't put the footage on Youtube "wasn't to vilify the guy, demean him or destroy him", so why did he put it out there?

PRO

 

[manny15]

I saw it on CNN....

 

[overton]

RUS

I don't know about you, and probably not, but I haven't done anything to get the taser. After all the talk about tasing and shooting here at MM I'm for sure going to behave myself.

Ransom

 

[overton]

>I am glad he is stepping
>up and asking people to
>act more responsible, that speaks
>well of him, just as
>you said RUS. My one
>question, he said he didn't
>put the footage on Youtube
>"wasn't to vilify the guy,
>demean him or destroy him",
>so why did he put
>it out there?
>
>PRO

PRO

He was telling everyone this is what happens when you act like a moron.

Ransom

 

[ClorideRUS]

PRO ... good question, I don't know why he would put it on you tube unless he some how thought it was going to help his case.

Ransom ... I sure as hell ain't going to give Bessy anymore crap about his stinking diesel ... he's got one of them 120,000 volt jobs.

RUS

 

[RELH]

I got a funny feeling that the young man who put the tape on Youtube may have been threaten with a civil lawsuit and is now trying to cover his butt. If that video was one that was made with a UHP dash video, the only way the guy could have gotten a copy of it was though his defense attorney on a "motion of discovery". It is oblivious he is trying to sway public opinion to get out of the charges. It just may have the reverse effect and backfire on him if pressure is bought to bear by the police agency for the D.A. to take it all the way to a criminal trial for convictions. We will have to wait and see what is the outcome.
RELH

 

[gilamonster8]

He sould be zapped again for putin it on utube then to say he didnt do it to harm the guy. 3 zaps 120k

 

[MortgageMan]

Maybe the guy feels like he did nothing wrong and wants the public to agree with him. Obviously there is a difference of opinion on this issue and this guy wanted to show his side.

 

[RELH]

Do you really buy his statement about he did not do it to vilify or demean the trooper? He is hoping to get out of the charges, and I really think he made a big mistake by making it public the way he did. He has now forced the D.A. and the state police into going all out to convict him for PR reasons and to nullify any possible lawsuit.
It will be brought up in any trial now as what his reason was for placing it on Youtube and the results were threats against the officer that made that officer's family fearful. The jury may not like that part at all and it will cost him some points with the jury.

RELH

 

[ClorideRUS]

The guy already stated he got the dash cam video via the freedom of information act.

I think you're right RELH we're going have to wait to see how this plays out. I know I'll be watching.

RUS

 

[Crunchy]

The jury will probably never know he put it on youtube, and second I doubt this case will see a court room. A motion or two and a plea deal of some sort. Thats where my money is at.

 

[Hooked_on_Coues]

He will win a large settlement from the media attention prior to ever going to court.

He might be smarter than he acted in the video.

 

[proutdoors]

>He will win a large settlement
>from the media attention prior
>to ever going to court.
>
>
>He might be smarter than he
>acted in the video.

I think you are way off, I say he had a better chance of a settlement BEFORE releasing the footage. Now he comes across as a 'punk' and less sympathetic, whether he is or not.

PRO

 

[gilamonster8]

Investigators Say Trooper Who Tasered Driver During Utah Traffic Stop Acted 'Reasonably'
11-30-2007 6:03 PM
By BROCK VERGAKIS, Associated Press Writer

SALT LAKE CITY (Associated Press) -- A Utah trooper who used a Taser to subdue a stubborn motorist who was walking away from him during a traffic stop felt threatened and acted reasonably, state officials said Friday.

Trooper Jon Gardner remains on leave, primarily for his safety, after numerous anonymous threats were made against him, said Supt. Lance Davenport of the Utah Highway Patrol.

Gardner twice zapped Jared Massey with a Taser when the driver walked away and refused to sign a speeding ticket on Sept. 14. The incident was recorded on Gardner's dashboard camera. Massey filed a public-records request and posted the video on YouTube, which said it has been viewed more than 1 million times.

"We found that Trooper Gardner's actions were lawful and reasonable under the circumstances," Davenport said at a news conference, joined by Scott Duncan, commissioner of the UHP's parent agency, the Utah Department of Public Safety.

The investigation was conducted by officials in the Department of Public Safety, which oversees the highway patrol. The officials have asked the Utah attorney general's office to also review the case to determine if laws were broken.

Massey was not at the news conference and could not immediately be reached for comment.

The video showed Massey arguing about whether he was exceeding the speed limit on U.S. 40 in eastern Utah. Massey got out and walked to the rear of his vehicle. The trooper pulled out his Taser when the driver tried to return to his seat.

Massey shrieked, fell and said: "Officer, I really don't know what you're doing."

"Face down! Face down! Put your hands behind your back," Gardner said.

When Massey's wife emerged from the passenger side, the trooper ordered her to get back in _ "or you're going to jail, too." Moments later, when another officer arrived, one of them said, "Oh, he took a ride with the Taser."

Davenport said that comment was inappropriate.

Officials said Gardner could have issued the ticket without Massey's signature. The investigation found use of the Taser was justified because Massey had turned his back and put a hand near his pocket, Davenport said.

"For a law-enforcement officer, that is a very, very scary situation," he said.

Nonetheless, the trooper now realizes that other options were available, Davenport said.

The UHP has received thousands of phone calls and e-mails since the video was posted online, many of them critical of the trooper. There also have been online threats against Gardner.

"I think mostly it's people blowing off steam, and that's fine," Sgt. Jeff Nigbur, a UHP spokesman, said Friday before the investigation's conclusions were announced. "But you can't say you're going to endanger somebody's life."

He said there was no evidence that the trooper's life is in danger. Massey has pleaded for the online threats to stop.

Tasers use compressed nitrogen to fire two barbed darts that can penetrate clothing to deliver a 50,000-volt shock to immobilize people.


Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

 

[joesikora]

Do you think the man tasered know is saying to stop threats because of fear of legal action or reprisals from the police? Do you really have to sign your traffic ticket? Here in IL & MO, you dont have to. And is that reason effort to taser someone? Was the officer in danger? I have all the respect in the world for law enforcement. But yikes! I have several friends that are cops and they said the samr thing,that seems a little extreme.

Joe