Officer Punches Teen: MERGED

[ctsketch]

SO your saying the cop went to far?

I think he has a problem with LEOs

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[ErnieNWillis]

I think he has a problem with LEOs

If so, he'll have a tuff time fitting in here. I hope thats not the case.

[2ndAmend]

Did anyone else notice that in her rap sheet every offence was her first offence. hahahahaha

[ErnieNWillis]

Did anyone else notice that in her rap sheet every offence was her first offence. hahahahaha

The system obviously failed these young ladies. This incident would not have happened if they were locked up for their priors like they should have been.

[2ndAmend]

^^^Yep^^^

[TheGreatGonzo]

one of the reasons police carry those telescoping batons they like to beat their suspects...

Great logical reasoning. You carry a gun, so you must like to shoot people....

[MSteve]

I am sure the officer will say it was a "justified beating"

one of the reasons police carry those telescoping batons they like to beat their suspects...

those telescoping batons are useless to begin with when the police have pepper spray and a stun gun that wont do permement damage to the suspects ,whether its justified or not.

Did you even watch the video. The officer had TWO people with their hands on him willfully and forcefully resisting arrest. He threw ONE punch to protect himself. The officer showed the restraint of a saint. It took a civilian bystander to pull the second person off of him.

And, if you don't want to be "permanently damaged" by an officer, don't resist arrest. For that matter, don't break the law in the first place.

[paaiyan]

And, if you don't want to be "permanently damaged" by an officer, don't resist arrest. For that matter, don't break the law in the first place.

Emphasis mine, and agreed! Don't want to be treated like a dirtbag? Don't BE a dirtbag! Whoda thunkit?

It's all part of the force continuum. Officer presence, spoken word, empty hand techniques.... Does just being there and giving instructions not work? Officers move on to open hand techniques like grabs, restraints and soft takedowns. If that doesn't work and the officer has to defend himself, striking comes into play. Empty hand still, which is what this officer employed.

If I was being assaulted by two people like that I'd have started throwing punches, elbows, and some hard takedowns. I think he exercised great restraint.

[ErnieNWillis]

Emphasis mine, and agreed! Don't want to be treated like a dirtbag? Don't BE a dirtbag! Whoda thunkit?

It's all part of the force continuum. Officer presence, spoken word, empty hand techniques.... Does just being there and giving instructions not work? Officers move on to open hand techniques like grabs, restraints and soft takedowns. If that doesn't work and the officer has to defend himself, striking comes into play. Empty hand still, which is what this officer employed.

If I was being assaulted by two people like that I'd have started throwing punches, elbows, and some hard takedowns. I think he exercised great restraint.

I think the officer showed restraint. It could have turned out a lot worse for the thuggett!

[nutz4utwo]

She obviously hit and shoved the officer, what do they expect him to do? Bring her some flowers?

Why is there no public outcry on her and her friends behavior?

Dumb media making a story outta nothin'

[Ksthumper]

A Seattle Times news article provides an in-depth report about the actions and includes comments from the African-American community.

Seattle police to review tactics, officer's conduct after videotaped punch

As reported by the Seattle Times, the two young 'ladies' had previous contact with authorities. These were not innocent little cherubs. If the crowd had become involved, this could have turned very ugly for a single Officer.

The incident occurred about 3 p.m. Monday near Franklin High, where staff and the school district's central office had requested increased police monitoring because they were concerned about the number of students jaywalking.

According to police, Walsh, working in a patrol car, saw several people jaywalking on Martin Luther King Jr. Way South, just south of Rainier Avenue South, despite a nearby pedestrian overpass.

Walsh tried to stop a group of females when one woman, later identified as Levias, began walking away, according to an incident report.

During the incident, a hostile crowd of onlookers gathered and appeared to be cheering Levias and Rosenthal, the police report said.


Rosenthal [the female struck by the Officer] was charged in November with second-degree robbery. According to prosecutors, she punched a 15-year-old boy in the face while she and a group of youths were on their way to a rave in South Seattle last Aug. 28. The boy told police that his cellphone and $20 were stolen in the incident. A 14-year-old boy told police that he was punched in the head and his hat was stolen.

Authorities say the case was dismissed when the boys refused to testify.

In April 2008, Rosenthal was charged with third-degree theft after she allegedly stole a minivan in Tukwila, prosecutors said. Kent police said she used a screwdriver to break the ignition and start the vehicle.

The charge was later amended to theft of a motor vehicle. Rosenthal was given a deferred disposition — charges would be dropped if she stayed out of trouble — because it was a first-time offense, said Ian Goodhew, deputy chief of staff for Prosecuting Attorney Dan Satterberg.

Levias [the female struggling with the Officer] was charged in February 2009 with third-degree assault after she allegedly pushed a King County sheriff's deputy down.

According to charging documents, on Feb. 3, 2009, deputies were called to the Ruth Dykeman Children's Center, a Burien center for troubled girls, in response to a report that Levias was being abusive toward staff. When Levias was confronted by Deputy Amy Zarelli, she pushed the female deputy, causing her to fall, charging papers said.

Levias was given a deferred disposition because it was a first-time offense, Goodhew said.

[NIS350ZTT]

What's funny is this is all over jaywalking. It all started when he stopped them for jaywalking and the 19yo proceeded to walk away (ignoring the LEO). And it's also said that they were all saying expletives and being rude to the cop.

He might've just let them go with a warning if they would've kept their mouths shut.

I prefer reading LE news stories from here: Threatened Officer Defends Himself Against Unruly Teen - PoliceLink

[mprp]

Officer is 1 on 1.......girls make it 2 on 1......officer makes it 1 on 1 again. Don't see a problem here.

I don't know what is with the clueless woman in the interview that is trying to make this about race and jaywalking but her logic has "anti" written all over her.

I started reading quite a few of the posts and it looks like the comments in there are mostly on the side of the officer. I was scared to look at first.

By the way, anyone want to make a bet when Jesse Jackson and crew will show up in Seattle?

[grady]

As reported by the Seattle Times, the two young 'ladies' had previous contact with authorities. These were not innocent little cherubs.

Not surprising. That fits with their actions.

Those females need an attitude adjustment. A major one.

I hope they receive it in either fines, jail time, or both. Fuggetabout probation.

Anyway, that's what I'd give them if I was king of the world.

[Guantes]

In many cases a citation or arrest (misd) is at the "discretion of the officer". Other than those intentionally looking for trouble or an "incident", I have never understood the benefit of being antagonistic with the officer from the beginning?