Ohio law requires concealed-carry permit holders to notify police of their status upon being stopped. Reasonable enough, and that’s probably why legal carrier William attempted multiple times to notify a Canton police officer of just that.
Only the officer didn’t want to hear about his concealed-carry permit…until he did. Then the officer literally threatened to summarily execute William for legally carrying the weapon.
William pulled his car to the side of the road to let out two passengers, but only the female occupant managed to exit before the police pulled up and began screaming at all three parties. “Stay in that car, I’m not going to mess around,” screamed one of the officers at the two people attempting to exit the vehicle. The driver and concealed handgun licensee, William, remained seated in his vehicle when an officer entered the rear of the vehicle.
William stated, “I have a concealed carry, and…” when he was abruptly told to shut up. Dash camera video footage shows the driver turning his head, and his voice can be heard, but the words are inaudible. A few minutes passed while the officer continued to berate the two passengers. He proceeded to the driver’s side and tries to open the door but is delayed by a seat belt. William states “I have a conceal…” and the officer demands that he better tell the truth or else! This interruption causes William to “tell the truth” and his attempt to notify is interrupted. William exited the vehicle with his driver’s license in the same hand as his concealed handgun license. He held it up for the officer to see, and the officer said, “Why are you having that?” This gave William the opportunity to say, “I have a CCW, and…” The officer then said, “Do you have a gun?” William answered yes, causing the officer to grab it from William’s waist.
At this point, William was handcuffed and put into the police cruiser. The officer then started to berate William, stating: “I should blast you in the mouth right now … I’m close to caving in your head.” and “you’re just a stupid human being!”
Video below.
Forgetting for a moment that William attempted multiple times to abide by the law and was shutdown by the officer each and every time…
Where does the officer get off threatening to summarily execute a citizen? Whatever he thinks he is, he’s not judge or jury. And since William was already handcuffed and restrained prior to the threat, the officer couldn’t think William posed a threat.
This is thuggish behavior, plain and simple. The cop is on a power trip and doesn’t seem to like that law-abiding citizens can also carry weapons. They’re infringing on his bad-assery. They’re threatening his superiority — a status that has been attained through permission to carry a gun and badge.
I’m not casting all cops in the same net. Please don’t misunderstand me. I’ve informed officers about my carrying a gun legally before, and almost all have been quite pleasant about it.
This cop, however, was on an unacceptable power trip — one that ended with his directly threatening the life of an unarmed, handcuffed and restrained citizen who was guilty of nothing more than legally carrying a weapon.
Remarkably, local officials are still trying to charge William with failure-to-inform. OhioCCW is raising funds for his legal defense. The officer is apparently still on the job.
21. July 2011 at 1:09 pm
I’ll start by saying I almost always side with the police, not this time…
This “pig” is way over the top – to the point I would think prosecution is in order. At no point did he ever -ever- listen to a word the guy was saying, until he was out of the car.
Then his assertion that he could have pulled his glock 40 and unloaded the clip and not lose any sleep over it – should warrant his dismissal from the force. We can ill afford to have representative and supposed protectors of the community even -thinking- something like that.
Just incredible.
21. July 2011 at 7:40 pm
I am former law enforcement and I too usually lean on the side of the police. However, because I too have worn a badge, few things piss me off more than a cop who disgraces his authority. It is jerks like this that make all cops look bad.
Why the heck would the cops not speak with the driver prior to doing anything? Why would they search an occupied vehicle? I don’t know Canton PD’s rules, but even common sense would dictate you get everyone out of the vehicle and secure them prior to doing a search. I think this cop realized he screwed up and tried to put the blame on the driver for not telling him when it was his duty to confront the driver. Granted, the driver does not appear to be the brightest guy, but it is the cop’s responsibility to do his job properly.
I do hope that this guy does not get punished and I am surprised that the state attorney is pursuing charges. Hopefully, charges will be dropped. However, this guy is going to be put through the ringer. I hate to see the cop lose his job, and I would like to chalk this up to him having a bad day. However, if this behavior is common of this officer, he needs to have his badge taken. I don’t care how bad of a day you are having, but when he threatened to murder the guy and indicate his partner would cover for him as a “good witness”, that crossed a line in my book. If I was the other officer, I probably would have been pissed off that another officer assumed I would lie for him. I think most officers feel this way too.
The number one reason cops end up dead while on the job is sloppy and lazy police work. That cop that was searching the back seat could have had his brains blown out if the driver was motivated to do so. And even though the driver would have been to blame, it would have happened because procedure was not followed. The car wasn’t going anywhere and ALL occupants should have been secured as stated above.
Anyway, I hope justice and common sense prevails.