Cops detain a man for … standing on a sidewalk

Yes, this story is every bit as ridiculous as the title makes it sound, even moreso since it happened in Kingston, Canada (no, not all asshole cops are in America, ya know). Scott Shannon, a longtime Dispatches reader, was preparing to leave his home with a few friends to head to another friend’s place when he had a distinctly unpleasant encounter with some rather impatient cops.

My main issue starts here. On Saturday we had some friends come over to our house. I had consumed three or four standard drinks over the course of six hours. By any standards I was not intoxicated. We were preparing to leave and head to another home, approximately ten people were standing on the porch. I was on the sidewalk with two or three other individuals right in front of my home preparing to leave, waiting on one person to grab something from inside. This is when the incident occurred. A Kingston police officer was driving down our street and demanded, from his car that we get off the sidewalk. We respond that we were leaving momentarily. They stop and get out of their vehicle very quickly and aggressively. One of the officers was standing approximately six inches from my face and repeats again, very aggressively, to get off the sidewalk. I was very much intimidated and somewhat fearful. I held my ground and repeated that I was on public property and was allowed to use the sidewalk.

I realized at this point that I was most likely going to be arrested but my anger at the audacity of police officers to harass citizens for using public property in a lawful manner trumped my desire to remain free that night.

At this point I was informed I was under arrest for breach of the peace. The entire ordeal took around ten seconds from when the officer exited his vehicle to having handcuffs placed on me. I was civil, polite but firm. I was standing up for the peaceful use of public property and lawful assembly. They were abrasive, rude and antagonistic. I tried to start debate over the use of public property and was arrested. They mentioned that because there was over three people in the area that it was considered unlawful assembly.

Scott goes on to explain just how and why he and his friends weren’t infringing any known laws or rules at all, and rightfully so. It may be understandable that the cops may have been in a bad mood already (you can glean some background info from Scott’s source post, wherein he describes the tension between cops and university students of late), but that doesn’t make their actions any less brutish, stupid, and illegal.

Thankfully, Scott was released the next day, no charge, no nothing. Though, frankly, this is little consolation, considering he shouldn’t have been forced to spend the night in jail anyway.

How does Scott feel about all this?

I am angry. Very fucking angry.

As you should be. (Just had to quote that. Not often enough you see such rightful anger in such few words.)

(via Dispatches from the Culture Wars)
Technorati tags: police · cops · Kingston · Canada · Scott Shannon