I see Harper's behaviour as totally normal - in the beginning. he was not being unreasonable in any way, shape or form IMO...
i think part of the problem is a function of custom. in this country, if i'm pulled over, i have to keep my hands visible and open the driver's side window. getting out of the car without being asked to is considered threatening behavior. in such an instance, the officer has the right to assume that he is in danger and can act accordingly.
in this case, it appears the person kept walking toward the officer despite being asked to stop. his hands were pocketed and could have concealed anything. the officer was entitled to act with reasonable force to protect himself...in this case using a taser and not deadly force.
You are a lawyer, you know better than that.
If you are pulled over your only legal obligation is provide license, proof of insurance, and registration of the vehicle. Custom has no legally binding force on anyone.
I used to have a car where the driver's window would not go down. I got stopped in that car once, and I opened the door. The police officer did not view that as threatening, nor did he demand I close the door, and he did not pull a weapon on me and threaten me with violence.
This was a small town cop with a chip on his shoulder. The guy had every legal right to get out of his car, and stay put of it. He also had every legal right to know why he was stopped.
I do not understand why you, who claim to be a liberal, always take the side of the government. This cop did not act professionally, did not respond to a completely legitimate question, and then used excessive force by repeatedly tasering the man.
By the way, Just because Tasers are less deadly than nuclear bombs, that does not mean the do not kill. Once the guy took his hands out of his pockets, and backup arrived, any need to use a Taser in self defense obviously no longer existed. Yet they still used one.
Repeatedly.
Over and over again, with the repeated justification of "Stop resisting."
Only an authoritarian asshole could watch that video and claim that the police were not wrong.