Who's stupid now?

[del]

Obama is right... Is that even possible?

I remember when Obama said he didn't have all the facts, but the cops acted 'stupidly'. Well alrighty then!

Listen mister, if Obama can ascertain the constitutionality of a law without even reading it, he can surely decide whether a cop is acted stupidly without knowing the facts of the case.

Like Bush cutting his vacation short to fly back to DC to sign a bill for a brain dead woman in Florida?

psssst, bush isn't prez any more, shamus, and obama has picked up right where he left off.

 

[del]

Thanks for proving my point. He yelled at the cop after his identity and right of residence was determined.

I think I'll send Crowley an extra large box of tissues.

neither crowley nor anyone else is whining, besides you, i mean.

 

[del]

There is a difference between something that is lawful, and something that is right. Departmental procedures allow cops to use flimsy excuses for arresting people who do not like them, that is perfectly legal, and might even fit a lopsided definition of proper, but it is wrong. The police and sheriffs who arrrested Harriet Tubman for violating the fugitive slave act also followed proper procedure, but they were still wrong.

What prejudices am I proving by insisting that cops do not have the right to arrest people who are not breaking an illegal law?

You said the officer acted like a macho prick...That's conjecture on your part.

No, it is an expert opinion. I know a lot of macho pricks, and Crowley acted just like them.

were you on the porch, oh aptly named one? otherwise, you don't know shit (again)

 

[Ravi]

Link? (disorderly charges get dropped ALL the time)


They had no intention of taking him to trial...He left them with no choice but to remove him from the scene in order to diffuse his disorderly conduct...And it worked, didn't it? They were all playing kissy face on the White house lawn the following week pretending like race had anything to do with it.

He did none of the things you listed. And it isn't up to me to prove he did. Presumption of innocence and all that.

He yelled at the cop after his identity was verified.

no, he repeatedly accused the cop of being a racist both before and after he (gates) had identified himself. as i recall, his exact words were "why, because i'm a black man in america?" the usual idiots, sharpton et al, were quick to accuse him of racial bias as well. gates did his drama queen bit (there are 1.000.000 black men in jail in america and yesterday i was one of them) and ogletree wrote a book about it, even though as the study i linked to proves, an independent 3rd party found no proof of racial profiling by the CPD.

the person who called in to the police and later changed her story, IIRC, works for harvard. hmmmm, no way she was pressured i bet.

all in all, pretty amusing stuff.












and stupid

Sorry to here you were in jail yesterday.

Asking the cop if he was being racist isn't disorderly conduct, imo.

 

[Foxfyre]

The Sequence of Events according to the 9/11 recording and Dispatcher's recording which recorded the whole thing except for #1 below:

1. Gates returned home from a trip after dark and couldn't get his front door open. He enlisted the help of his driver to help.

2. A neighbor observed what appeared to be two men attempting to break in Gate's front door on a darkened porch. She called 9/11 to report it but made no mention of the race of the two men.

3. The driver had left and Gates was inside when the Cambridge Police arrived. Gates answered the door and said he was Professor Gates.

4. Officer Crowley explained that they had received a call of a possible burglary and could he see Gates' ID to verify residency. Gates replied: "Why? Because I'm a black man in America?"

5. Officer Crowley again asks to see the ID. Gates initially refused but eventually did show his Harvard ID card. (Gates would say later that he provided numerous proofs of ID, but the Police Dept. and recording don't back that up.)

6. Gates also became belligerant and verbally abusive repeatedly demanding Crowley show his ID. At that point Crowley said he was leaving and if Gates wanted to continue the conversation to step outside.

7. Gates replied "Ya, I'll speak with your mama outside" and did step outside and continued to berate Officer Crowley.

8. Officer Crowley informed Gates that he was becoming disorderly and to cease and desist. When Gates did not cease and desist, Officer Crowley informed Gates that he was under arrest.

9. Gates was held for four hours and released. Upon recommendation of the City of Cambridge and the PD, charges were dropped five days later. Officer Crowley's superiors reported that Crowley followed standard police procedure every step of the way and was not in error.

According to police officers currently in my family and among my friends, Crowley followed standard police procedure.

It was mandatory that he verify Gates' identity rather than leave a burglar pretender in the house.

It was mandatory that he ask Gates to step outside to verify that a burglar was not holding him hostage.

The only racist issue in this whole scenario might be whether the charges of disorderly conduct would have been dropped if Gates had been white.

 

[del]

He did none of the things you listed. And it isn't up to me to prove he did. Presumption of innocence and all that.

He yelled at the cop after his identity was verified.

no, he repeatedly accused the cop of being a racist both before and after he (gates) had identified himself. as i recall, his exact words were "why, because i'm a black man in america?" the usual idiots, sharpton et al, were quick to accuse him of racial bias as well. gates did his drama queen bit (there are 1.000.000 black men in jail in america and yesterday i was one of them) and ogletree wrote a book about it, even though as the study i linked to proves, an independent 3rd party found no proof of racial profiling by the CPD.

the person who called in to the police and later changed her story, IIRC, works for harvard. hmmmm, no way she was pressured i bet.

all in all, pretty amusing stuff.












and stupid

Sorry to here you were in jail yesterday.

Asking the cop if he was being racist isn't disorderly conduct, imo.

it's no big thing. after all the time i've done, a 24 hr bit is like water off a ducks back.

plus it was all you can drink night at the prune-o still.

 

[Care4all]

The Sequence of Events according to the 9/11 recording and Dispatcher's recording which recorded the whole thing except for #1 below:

1. Gates returned home from a trip after dark and couldn't get his front door open. He enlisted the help of his driver to help.

2. A neighbor observed what appeared to be two men attempting to break in Gate's front door on a darkened porch. She called 9/11 to report it but made no mention of the race of the two men.

3. The driver had left and Gates was inside when the Cambridge Police arrived. Gates answered the door and said he was Professor Gates.

4. Officer Crowley explained that they had received a call of a possible burglary and could he see Gates' ID to verify residency. Gates replied: "Why? Because I'm a black man in America?"

5. Officer Crowley again asks to see the ID. Gates initially refused but eventually did show his Harvard ID card. (Gates would say later that he provided numerous proofs of ID, but the Police Dept. and recording don't back that up.)

6. Gates also became belligerant and verbally abusive repeatedly demanding Crowley show his ID. At that point Crowley said he was leaving and if Gates wanted to continue the conversation to step outside.

7. Gates replied "Ya, I'll speak with your mama outside" and did step outside and continued to berate Officer Crowley.

8. Officer Crowley informed Gates that he was becoming disorderly and to cease and desist. When Gates did not cease and desist, Officer Crowley informed Gates that he was under arrest.

9. Gates was held for four hours and released. Upon recommendation of the City of Cambridge and the PD, charges were dropped five days later. Officer Crowley's superiors reported that Crowley followed standard police procedure every step of the way and was not in error.

According to police officers currently in my family and among my friends, Crowley followed standard police procedure.

It was mandatory that he verify Gates' identity rather than leave a burglar pretender in the house.

It was mandatory that he ask Gates to step outside to verify that a burglar was not holding him hostage.

The only racist issue in this whole scenario might be whether the charges of disorderly conduct would have been dropped if Gates had been white.

the police in your family are simply WRONG. Read the law and all case study involving disorderly conduct that i have given links for....

the civilian standbys had to be provoked to violence by the yelling of Gates to be disorderly conduct.... simple as that.

 

[Ravi]

I don't recall there being a recording of the so called yo mama comment.

Not that it matters...it still wasn't disorderly conduct.

 

[MikeK]

That's good to know.

I still think contempt of cop is bullshit. Especially in your own home when you are doing nothing wrong.

One who behaves abusively or uncooperatively toward a police officer who is conducting a legitimate investigation can be charged with interfering. As I recall, the officer in this incident was attempting to determine if Gates was in fact who he claimed to be.

The incident escalated to a personal conflict which ultimately ended with Obama demonstrating that he's not nearly as wise as he seems to think he is.

To the cop, Gates is an uppity ****** and to Gates the cop is a racist honky. But it's likely that under different circumstances neither of them would feel that way.

 

[Foxfyre]

The Sequence of Events according to the 9/11 recording and Dispatcher's recording which recorded the whole thing except for #1 below:

1. Gates returned home from a trip after dark and couldn't get his front door open. He enlisted the help of his driver to help.

2. A neighbor observed what appeared to be two men attempting to break in Gate's front door on a darkened porch. She called 9/11 to report it but made no mention of the race of the two men.

3. The driver had left and Gates was inside when the Cambridge Police arrived. Gates answered the door and said he was Professor Gates.

4. Officer Crowley explained that they had received a call of a possible burglary and could he see Gates' ID to verify residency. Gates replied: "Why? Because I'm a black man in America?"

5. Officer Crowley again asks to see the ID. Gates initially refused but eventually did show his Harvard ID card. (Gates would say later that he provided numerous proofs of ID, but the Police Dept. and recording don't back that up.)

6. Gates also became belligerant and verbally abusive repeatedly demanding Crowley show his ID. At that point Crowley said he was leaving and if Gates wanted to continue the conversation to step outside.

7. Gates replied "Ya, I'll speak with your mama outside" and did step outside and continued to berate Officer Crowley.

8. Officer Crowley informed Gates that he was becoming disorderly and to cease and desist. When Gates did not cease and desist, Officer Crowley informed Gates that he was under arrest.

9. Gates was held for four hours and released. Upon recommendation of the City of Cambridge and the PD, charges were dropped five days later. Officer Crowley's superiors reported that Crowley followed standard police procedure every step of the way and was not in error.

According to police officers currently in my family and among my friends, Crowley followed standard police procedure.

It was mandatory that he verify Gates' identity rather than leave a burglar pretender in the house.

It was mandatory that he ask Gates to step outside to verify that a burglar was not holding him hostage.

The only racist issue in this whole scenario might be whether the charges of disorderly conduct would have been dropped if Gates had been white.

the police in your family are simply WRONG. Read the law and all case study involving disorderly conduct that i have given links for....

the civilian standbys had to be provoked to violence by the yelling of Gates to be disorderly conduct.... simple as that.

Sorry, but they aren't wrong since they HAVE arrested people for disorderly conduct in just such situations and the charges stuck in court. You may be confusing disorderly conduct with disturbing the peace which is a somewhat different thing.

 

[Quantum Windbag]

The Sequence of Events according to the 9/11 recording and Dispatcher's recording which recorded the whole thing except for #1 below:

1. Gates returned home from a trip after dark and couldn't get his front door open. He enlisted the help of his driver to help.

2. A neighbor observed what appeared to be two men attempting to break in Gate's front door on a darkened porch. She called 9/11 to report it but made no mention of the race of the two men.

3. The driver had left and Gates was inside when the Cambridge Police arrived. Gates answered the door and said he was Professor Gates.

4. Officer Crowley explained that they had received a call of a possible burglary and could he see Gates' ID to verify residency. Gates replied: "Why? Because I'm a black man in America?"

5. Officer Crowley again asks to see the ID. Gates initially refused but eventually did show his Harvard ID card. (Gates would say later that he provided numerous proofs of ID, but the Police Dept. and recording don't back that up.)

6. Gates also became belligerant and verbally abusive repeatedly demanding Crowley show his ID. At that point Crowley said he was leaving and if Gates wanted to continue the conversation to step outside.

7. Gates replied "Ya, I'll speak with your mama outside" and did step outside and continued to berate Officer Crowley.

8. Officer Crowley informed Gates that he was becoming disorderly and to cease and desist. When Gates did not cease and desist, Officer Crowley informed Gates that he was under arrest.

9. Gates was held for four hours and released. Upon recommendation of the City of Cambridge and the PD, charges were dropped five days later. Officer Crowley's superiors reported that Crowley followed standard police procedure every step of the way and was not in error.

According to police officers currently in my family and among my friends, Crowley followed standard police procedure.

It was mandatory that he verify Gates' identity rather than leave a burglar pretender in the house.

It was mandatory that he ask Gates to step outside to verify that a burglar was not holding him hostage.

The only racist issue in this whole scenario might be whether the charges of disorderly conduct would have been dropped if Gates had been white.

First, it was not a neighbor who called, it was someone who was passing through the neighborhood and saw Gates on the porch wearing a backpack, with another man, When asked if she could identify the race of the men she replied she was unsure, and initially thought they were Hispanic. You should vet your facts a little better, instead of relying on initial media reports.

The police officers in your family and among your friends are defending Crowley because he is a cop.

If it had been mandatory to have Gates step outside so that Crowley could be sure he was not being held hostage he would have asked him to step outside. Instead, he told Gates he was leaving, and that if Gates wanted to continue the conversation he could do so outside. This shows that he was irritated by Gates attitude, and wanted to get him outside where he could charge him with disorderly conduct.

This is why I say Crowley did not follow proper procedure, because proper procedure would have had him apologize to the rightful resident of the house, and explain that he was only trying to do his job. By inviting Gates outside he was acting like a macho prick and escalating the situation. This directly contradicts a police officers training to take the source of a disturbance away, he made the disturbance worse by bringing the source outside.

 

[Foxfyre]

The Sequence of Events according to the 9/11 recording and Dispatcher's recording which recorded the whole thing except for #1 below:

1. Gates returned home from a trip after dark and couldn't get his front door open. He enlisted the help of his driver to help.

2. A neighbor observed what appeared to be two men attempting to break in Gate's front door on a darkened porch. She called 9/11 to report it but made no mention of the race of the two men.

3. The driver had left and Gates was inside when the Cambridge Police arrived. Gates answered the door and said he was Professor Gates.

4. Officer Crowley explained that they had received a call of a possible burglary and could he see Gates' ID to verify residency. Gates replied: "Why? Because I'm a black man in America?"

5. Officer Crowley again asks to see the ID. Gates initially refused but eventually did show his Harvard ID card. (Gates would say later that he provided numerous proofs of ID, but the Police Dept. and recording don't back that up.)

6. Gates also became belligerant and verbally abusive repeatedly demanding Crowley show his ID. At that point Crowley said he was leaving and if Gates wanted to continue the conversation to step outside.

7. Gates replied "Ya, I'll speak with your mama outside" and did step outside and continued to berate Officer Crowley.

8. Officer Crowley informed Gates that he was becoming disorderly and to cease and desist. When Gates did not cease and desist, Officer Crowley informed Gates that he was under arrest.

9. Gates was held for four hours and released. Upon recommendation of the City of Cambridge and the PD, charges were dropped five days later. Officer Crowley's superiors reported that Crowley followed standard police procedure every step of the way and was not in error.

According to police officers currently in my family and among my friends, Crowley followed standard police procedure.

It was mandatory that he verify Gates' identity rather than leave a burglar pretender in the house.

It was mandatory that he ask Gates to step outside to verify that a burglar was not holding him hostage.

The only racist issue in this whole scenario might be whether the charges of disorderly conduct would have been dropped if Gates had been white.

First, it was not a neighbor who called, it was someone who was passing through the neighborhood and saw Gates on the porch wearing a backpack, with another man, When asked if she could identify the race of the men she replied she was unsure, and initially thought they were Hispanic. You should vet your facts a little better, instead of relying on initial media reports.

The police officers in your family and among your friends are defending Crowley because he is a cop.

If it had been mandatory to have Gates step outside so that Crowley could be sure he was not being held hostage he would have asked him to step outside. Instead, he told Gates he was leaving, and that if Gates wanted to continue the conversation he could do so outside. This shows that he was irritated by Gates attitude, and wanted to get him outside where he could charge him with disorderly conduct.

This is why I say Crowley did not follow proper procedure, because proper procedure would have had him apologize to the rightful resident of the house, and explain that he was only trying to do his job. By inviting Gates outside he was acting like a macho prick and escalating the situation. This directly contradicts a police officers training to take the source of a disturbance away, he made the disturbance worse by bringing the source outside.

I was not relying on media reports. I was relying on the 911 and dispatcher recordings. And Whalen was not 'just passing through the neighborhood' - she worked 100 yards from Gates' home. You have no basis whatsoever to evaluate what my relatives and friends say about anything. Had Crowley behaved badly, they would have said so as they have no use for police officers that they work with or anywhere else who behave badly. Had Gates appeared calm and unagitated in any way, it would not have been mandatory to invite him to step outside. The fact that he was not calm and unagitated made it mandatory. There was no way to know whether he was just being a prick or was in fact in distress.

One wonders why you are so quick to evaluate Officer Crowley's mental state when you have no basis to go on other than what looks very much like prejudice and a bit of erroneous information of your own. Got too many speeding tickets?

Also, the next time you are doing just doing your job as you have been trained to do it, and some idiot decides to accuse you of all kinds of malfeasance because you're doing it, maybe you might understand how a police officer does get a bit irritated in that kind of situation.

 

[ConHog]

That's good to know.

I still think contempt of cop is bullshit. Especially in your own home when you are doing nothing wrong.

So then you would be ok with me spitting on Obama if he came to my house?

 

[Ravi]

The Sequence of Events according to the 9/11 recording and Dispatcher's recording which recorded the whole thing except for #1 below:

1. Gates returned home from a trip after dark and couldn't get his front door open. He enlisted the help of his driver to help.

2. A neighbor observed what appeared to be two men attempting to break in Gate's front door on a darkened porch. She called 9/11 to report it but made no mention of the race of the two men.

3. The driver had left and Gates was inside when the Cambridge Police arrived. Gates answered the door and said he was Professor Gates.

4. Officer Crowley explained that they had received a call of a possible burglary and could he see Gates' ID to verify residency. Gates replied: "Why? Because I'm a black man in America?"

5. Officer Crowley again asks to see the ID. Gates initially refused but eventually did show his Harvard ID card. (Gates would say later that he provided numerous proofs of ID, but the Police Dept. and recording don't back that up.)

6. Gates also became belligerant and verbally abusive repeatedly demanding Crowley show his ID. At that point Crowley said he was leaving and if Gates wanted to continue the conversation to step outside.

7. Gates replied "Ya, I'll speak with your mama outside" and did step outside and continued to berate Officer Crowley.

8. Officer Crowley informed Gates that he was becoming disorderly and to cease and desist. When Gates did not cease and desist, Officer Crowley informed Gates that he was under arrest.

9. Gates was held for four hours and released. Upon recommendation of the City of Cambridge and the PD, charges were dropped five days later. Officer Crowley's superiors reported that Crowley followed standard police procedure every step of the way and was not in error.

According to police officers currently in my family and among my friends, Crowley followed standard police procedure.

It was mandatory that he verify Gates' identity rather than leave a burglar pretender in the house.

It was mandatory that he ask Gates to step outside to verify that a burglar was not holding him hostage.

The only racist issue in this whole scenario might be whether the charges of disorderly conduct would have been dropped if Gates had been white.

First, it was not a neighbor who called, it was someone who was passing through the neighborhood and saw Gates on the porch wearing a backpack, with another man, When asked if she could identify the race of the men she replied she was unsure, and initially thought they were Hispanic. You should vet your facts a little better, instead of relying on initial media reports.

The police officers in your family and among your friends are defending Crowley because he is a cop.

If it had been mandatory to have Gates step outside so that Crowley could be sure he was not being held hostage he would have asked him to step outside. Instead, he told Gates he was leaving, and that if Gates wanted to continue the conversation he could do so outside. This shows that he was irritated by Gates attitude, and wanted to get him outside where he could charge him with disorderly conduct.

This is why I say Crowley did not follow proper procedure, because proper procedure would have had him apologize to the rightful resident of the house, and explain that he was only trying to do his job. By inviting Gates outside he was acting like a macho prick and escalating the situation. This directly contradicts a police officers training to take the source of a disturbance away, he made the disturbance worse by bringing the source outside.

I was not relying on media reports. I was relying on the 911 and dispatcher recordings. And Whalen was not 'just passing through the neighborhood' - she worked 100 yards from Gates' home. You have no basis whatsoever to evaluate what my relatives and friends say about anything. Had Crowley behaved badly, they would have said so as they have no use for police officers that they work with or anywhere else who behave badly. Had Gates appeared calm and unagitated in any way, it would not have been mandatory to invite him to step outside. The fact that he was not calm and unagitated made it mandatory. There was no way to know whether he was just being a prick or was in fact in distress.

One wonders why you are so quick to evaluate Officer Crowley's mental state when you have no basis to go on other than what looks very much like prejudice and a bit of erroneous information of your own. Got too many speeding tickets?

Also, the next time you are doing just doing your job as you have been trained to do it, and some idiot decides to accuse you of all kinds of malfeasance because you're doing it, maybe you might understand how a police officer does get a bit irritated in that kind of situation.

And yet there is no recording of the yo mama comment.

 

[Care4all]

I'm sorry...the STORY makes no sense....If gates was "tumultuous" inside the house, then Crowley DID THE WRONG THING by telling him to come outside with him, if he still wanted to see Crowley's ID....

Crowley lured him OUTSIDE, in to the public where the public could have been HARMED by this 'tumultuous' man....

Crowley messed up...this can NOT be protocol....imho.

the STORY stinks to high heaven.

And of course those that are in Law enforcement would take Crowley's side....this is how it works. Both of my uncles are cops, I love them dearly, but they would die for one of their fellow officers before nailing them on anything minor.

I don't think the luring outside on crowley's part is something MAJOR....he was irritated by the Gates yelling, and race calling. and he might have had a very long day on the job and just had enough....the charges were JUSTFULLY dropped against Gates.....but I still contend that luring a supposed tumultuous man outside in to the public was NOT protocol and not a wise decision on his part.

If Gates was not tumultuous then he wasn't disorderly....and disorderly has to include, that his actions were going to cause the public some physical risk....and it is kinda hard to see gates being any kind of threat to the public, being that he was an old man using a cane to even walk??? please....

it was a mistake by crowley to do what he did....imo

He also aggravated Gates by NOT showing Gates his massachusetts police ID card, which gates asked for...

BY LAW in massachusetts, crowley was required to SHOW HIM his police ID and crowley did not do such inside the house of Gates...he said to Gates, according to the police report, to come outside with him IF HE WANTED him to give Police ID to him....he lured him outside for information he should have according to law, given him inside the house when it was requested the first time.

Also, by law, you or anyone, is NOT required to show your ID to any police, even if the police request it....you are only required by Law to give the cop your name etc...so Gates not immediately providing ID was NO CRIME....not even required by law for him to do such....from what I have read?

 

[Valerie]

First, it was not a neighbor who called, it was someone who was passing through the neighborhood and saw Gates on the porch wearing a backpack, with another man, When asked if she could identify the race of the men she replied she was unsure, and initially thought they were Hispanic. You should vet your facts a little better, instead of relying on initial media reports.

The police officers in your family and among your friends are defending Crowley because he is a cop.

If it had been mandatory to have Gates step outside so that Crowley could be sure he was not being held hostage he would have asked him to step outside. Instead, he told Gates he was leaving, and that if Gates wanted to continue the conversation he could do so outside. This shows that he was irritated by Gates attitude, and wanted to get him outside where he could charge him with disorderly conduct.

This is why I say Crowley did not follow proper procedure, because proper procedure would have had him apologize to the rightful resident of the house, and explain that he was only trying to do his job. By inviting Gates outside he was acting like a macho prick and escalating the situation. This directly contradicts a police officers training to take the source of a disturbance away, he made the disturbance worse by bringing the source outside.

I was not relying on media reports. I was relying on the 911 and dispatcher recordings. And Whalen was not 'just passing through the neighborhood' - she worked 100 yards from Gates' home. You have no basis whatsoever to evaluate what my relatives and friends say about anything. Had Crowley behaved badly, they would have said so as they have no use for police officers that they work with or anywhere else who behave badly. Had Gates appeared calm and unagitated in any way, it would not have been mandatory to invite him to step outside. The fact that he was not calm and unagitated made it mandatory. There was no way to know whether he was just being a prick or was in fact in distress.

One wonders why you are so quick to evaluate Officer Crowley's mental state when you have no basis to go on other than what looks very much like prejudice and a bit of erroneous information of your own. Got too many speeding tickets?

Also, the next time you are doing just doing your job as you have been trained to do it, and some idiot decides to accuse you of all kinds of malfeasance because you're doing it, maybe you might understand how a police officer does get a bit irritated in that kind of situation.

And yet there is no recording of the yo mama comment.

It's in the police report and was witnessed by others.



Henry Louis Gates, Jr. Police Report - July 23, 2009

 

[Ravi]

Yes, but Foxfire was claiming all her information came from 911 tapes.

I supposed that comment all by itself was threatening enough to arrest someone over.

 

[Valerie]

On Thursday July 16, 2009, Henry Gates, Jr. - -, of Ware Street, Cambridge, MA) was placed under arrest at Ware Street, after being observed exhibiting loud and tumultuous behavior, in a public place, directed at a uniformed police officer who was present investigating a report of a crime in progress. These actions on the behalf of Gates served no legitimate purpose and caused citizens passing by this location to stop and take notice while appearing surprised and alarmed.

...When I arrived at Ware Street I radioed ECC and asked that they have the caller meet me at the front door to this residence. I was told that the caller was already outside. As I was getting this information, I climbed the porch stairs toward the front door. As [reached the door, a female voice called out to me. I looked in the direction of the voice and observed a white female, later identified {} who was standing on the sidewalk in front of the residence, held a wireless telephone in her hand arid told me that it was she who called. She went on to tell me that she observed what appeared to be two black males with backpacks on the porch of• Ware Street. She told me that her suspicions were aroused when she observed one of the men wedging his shoulder into the door as if he was trying to force entry. Since I was the only police officer on location and had my back to the front door as I spoke with her, I asked that she wait for other responding officers while I investigated further.

As I turned and faced the door, I could see an older black male standing in the foyer of {} Ware Street. I made this observation through the glass paned front door. As I stood in plain view of this man, later identified as Gates, I asked if he would step out onto the porch and speak with me. He replied “no I will not”. He then demanded to know who I was. I told him that I was “Sgt. Crowley from the Cambridge Police” and that I was “investigating a report of a break in progress” at the residence. While I was making this statement, Gates opened the front door and exclaimed “why, because I’m a black man in America?”. I then asked Gates if there was anyone else in the residence. While yelling, he told me that it was none of my business and accused me of being a racist police officer. I assured Gates that I was responding to a citizen’s call to the Cambridge Police and that the caller was outside as we spoke. Gates seemed to ignore me and picked up a cordless telephone and dialed an unknown telephone number. As he did so, I radioed on channel I that I was off in the residence with someone who appeared to be a resident but very uncooperative. I then overheard Gates asking the person on the other end of his telephone call to “get the chief’ and “whats the chiefs name?’. Gates was telling the person on the other end of the call that he was dealing with a racist police officer in his home. Gates then turned to me and told me that I had no idea who I was “messing” with and that I had not heard the last of it. While I was led to believe that Gates was lawfully in the residence, I was quite surprised and confused with the behavior he exhibited toward me. I asked Gates to provide me with photo identification so that I could verify that he resided at Ware Street and so that I could radio my findings to ECC. Gates initially refused, demanding that I show him identification but then did supply me with a Harvard University identification card. Upon learning that Gates was affiliated with Harvard, I radioed and requested the presence of the Harvard University Police.

With the Harvard University identification in hand, I radioed my findings to ECC on channel two and prepared to leave. Gates again asked for my name which I began to provide. Gates began to yell over my spoken words by accusing me of being a racist police officer and leveling threats that he wasn’t someone to mess with. At some point during this exchange, I became aware that Off. Carlos Figueroa was standing behind me. When Gates asked a third time for my name, I explained to him that I had provided it at his request two separate times. Gates continued to yell at me. I told Gates that I was leaving his residence and that if he had any other questions regarding the matter, I would speak with him outside of the residence.

As I began walking through the foyer toward the front door, I could hear Gates agai,n demanding my name. I again told Gates that I would speak with him outside. My reason for wanting to leave the residence was that Gates was yelling very loud and the acoustics of the kitchen and foyer were making it difficult for me to transmit pertinent information to ECC or other responding units. His reply was “ya, I’ll speak with your mama outside”. When I left the residence, I noted that there were several Cambridge and Harvard University police officers assembled on the sidewalk in front of the residence. Additionally, the caller, md at least seven unidentified passers-by were looking in the direction of Gates, who had followed me outside of the residence.

As I descended the stairs to the sidewalk, Gates continued to yell at me, accusing me of racial bias and continued to tell me that I had not heard the last of him. Due to the tumultuous manner Gates had exhibited in his residence as well as his continued tumultuous behavior outside the residence, in view of the public, I warned Gates that he was becoming disorderly. Gates ignored my warning and continued to yell, which drew the attention of both the police officers and citizens, who appeared surprised and alarmed by Gates’s outburst. For a second time I warned Gates to calm down while I withdrew my department issued handcuffs from their carrying case. Gates again ignored my warning and continued to yell at me. It was at this time that I informed Gates that he was under arrest. I then stepped up the stairs, onto the porch and attempted to place handcuffs on Gates. Gates initially resisted my attempt to handcuff him, yelling that he was “disabled” and would fall without his cane. After the handcuffs were property applied, Gates complained that they were too tight. I ordered Off. Ivey, who was among the responding officers, to handcuff Gates with his arms in front of him for his comfort while I secured a cane for Gates from within the residence. I then asked Gates if he would like an officer to take possession of his house key and secure his front door, which he left wide open. Gates told me that the door was un securable due to a previous break attempt at the residence. Shortly thereafter, a Harvard University maintenance person arrived on scene and appeared familiar with Gates. I asked Gates if he was comfortable with this Harvard University maintenance person securing his residence. He told me that he was.

Boston Globe Scrubs Henry Louis Gates Arrest Report From Website | NewsBusters.org

Jesus Christ! What an emotional doofus.

Totally!

 

[Ravi]

Yes, an elderly black man yelling at a cop on his own porch is so very, very threatening to the public.

 

[Ravi]

Since we've already beat this topic like a dead horse a year ago, I think I'd be acting stupidly if I wasted one more post on it at this point.