Can someone explain to me how a racial profiling expert got it so wrong..

[Peacetrain]

No wonder they are having problems with racial profiling, if that is their expert. If he understood what generations of African Americans have had to deal with, the guilty till proven innocent syndrome.. and here is an older African American man, who is being rousted in his own home. He should have just said I am sorry and backed out of there,

If he thought the man was not Prof. Gates, but someone who had a ginned up set of ID's (He produced 2 of them) he could easily have checked from the police unit.

I am going to even give the police office some room in that since Prof. Gates neighbor was the one that called, he might have some questions on the issue.

But arresting him (even if he did go ballistic verbally, who wouldn't.. I would hate to think how I would jump ugly with someone who did that to me) was handling the situation STUPIDLY..

[uponit7771]

1. AMEN!!!!! K people...just be patient...keep posting the facts

[Indydem]

2. What was he supposed to do?

I really want to know what this officer was supposed to do when Gates chases him out onto the porch, berates him, and raves at him for profiling and whatever else.

He was creating a scene and drawing a crowd, in public. If he would have stayed inside and yelled, then it wouldn't have mattered, but once he left his home, he created a public disturbance and made himself vulnerable to arrest.

I'm not saying this was handled properly by the officer from the start, but once Gates started being beligerent and yelling at the officer, there was little options he had left.

[vaberella]

6. Gates showed ID, it ends there. It was proof enough that was his house.

The cop needs to get off the property.

[IdaBriggs]

8. a) Provide his name and badge number as requested.

b) Apologize for the inconenience.
c) Leave, after apologizing some more.

[Indydem]

10. Police report and winesses say he DID provide his name...

But Gates would not stop shouting over him, claiming he was a racist,

[Howardx]

14. police report my ass

thats worthless.

[truedelphi]

39. If someone enters your house, I think that you have the right to shout at them

We are losing more and more of our rights.

The police were offered some valid ID.

Now yes, normally a police person expects to have cooperation.

But think about it - you are in your home. Maybe you are not in a good mood. Maybe you are a diabetic and your blood sugar is running a bit low. Maybe you have a mental disorder that flares up when stressed.

A policeman, unsummoned and unexpected, arrives in your house at that moment.

He wants to arrest you (WTF? Arrest me for being in my own home?)

You start shouting. It is not the correct behavior, and lordie knows, Miss Manners would be displeased. But again, you are in your own house.

And the thing is, over and over in this nation, the police are running amok. In Novato Calif, a person known to suffer from mental illness leaves his home and begins screaming while standing on top of a neighbor's car and swinging a broom.

The neighbor summons the cops. They come, and they immediately SHOOT the man.

The neighbor tells reporters, "I own a gun, If I wanted him dead, I could have killed him myself and saved them the trouble."

We need to have law enforcement agents who are trained to deal with people who are less than normal and respectful. In any other civilized nation, that sort of training is imperative.

[musicblind]

68. The police report was written by the officer and chances are he was lying or at the very least

reporting a half truth. As for the shouting ... didn't know shouting on your property was a crime. Oh, wait, it's not.

[Peacetrain]

9. Bullhockey.. how was Gates supposed to know this guys was the genuine article police officer

That road goes both ways.

[Indydem]

13. He was in uniform, showed abadge and identified himself? What exactly was he supposed to do?

[Peacetrain]

17. Seriously.. apologize, back out, and check the ID from the unit.

As far as the uniform and car.. the Boston Strangler wore a police uniform.. the hillside murderers in California drove a police car..

[Indydem]

21. And when the 7 other officers showed up?

He tried to leave after he was provided with the ID. Gates escalated the incident by yelling and berating the officer, calling him a racist and creating a scene.

[Peacetrain]

25. Walk away from it.. Once someone is that incensed, and this is an

innocent citizen.. standing there and engaging is not going to work.. Demanding respect from someone who feels totally violated, is not going to work.

Disengage.

[Indydem]

28. So it's 100% completely the cop's fault.

Gates bears no responsibility for escalating the situation and refusing to control himself when warned he was becoming disorderly.

I get it now.

Thank you.

[uponit7771]

31. No, no human is perfect but Gates wasn't deserving of the arrest....PERIOD.

[Peacetrain]

35. My advice to you.. disengage from the debate with me..

Because Gates has the right to become loud and angry. If the officer had relied on what he is supposed to teach, he would have understood that, instead of letting his ego get in the way. And I am not moving on that.

[Indydem]

38. See you don't even know what I'm arguing...

I have no doubt the police officer's ego was involved, but not nearly so much as Gate's.

His first remark to the police officer, when asked if he could speak to him was (according to the officer) "Why, because I am a black man in America?"

Gates started the escalation of this. His first reaction was accusing the officer of racism.

I don't doubt the officer sought to save face infront of the public and his fellow officers. I have no doubt he handled the situation in a ham handed way.

What I argue is that the actions were not borne from racism, as everyone on this thread seems to claim. Instead, they were borne from the ego and actions of Gates against a public servant, of excellent repute, trying to do his job.

[tblue37]

49. As I said in another post, I think you are right that the cop himself was probably not arresting

Gates because of racism. In fact, as we have often seen in videos posted here on DU, cops will often do the same thing to white men--and even white women--once the citizen starts yelling at them or even if he or she fails to show what the cops consider to be appropriate deference to the cops' power and authority.

Clearly Gates' response was largely based on reactions that come from a history of dealing with racial profiling, and I also think the initial suspicion of the neighbor was probably based on the fact that the 2 men she saw were Black, but I doubt the cop was doing what he did because of Gates' race.

It used to be that white middle class or affluent people did not have to deal with police officers abusing their civil rights and overstepping their authority, so they had little understanding of or sympathy for what minorites have had to deal with. But in today's America, anyone can be faced with cops out of control. For minorities, of course, that has been the reality since forever.

[Indydem]

52. I agree completely with your post.

I am pleased to find someone who looks at the situation with a meter of logic and recognizes other factors at play besides racism.

[alcibiades_mystery]

53. Gates was off the hook, but the cop was unprofessional

It's the police officers JOB to de-escalate situations. The problem is that police officers often forget that you can most effectively de-escalate a situation by FUCKING LEAVING. And this was a perfect case. The cop let his temper get the best of him, and completely botched HIS JOB.

[Indydem]

56. What do you use to make that argument?

No one claims the officer yelled at Gates.

No one claims the officer man handled, or treated Gates poorly.

No one claims that he was insulted or bullied.

If anyone lost their temper and got Irate it was Gates. All evidence, including Gate's own interview with The Root seem to indicate the officer was calm and tried to control the situation and Gates kept excalating it.

[alcibiades_mystery]

57. The fact that the officer did not immediately leave the scene

is evidence enough.

That would be the professional thing to do. Instead, he behaved as an "egomaniac," to use your words from below. Which is to say, unprofessionally. I don't fail students who disrespect me. I grade their work. That's how a professional behaves.

[uponit7771]

26. SOOOO!?!?!!?! Officer got his feelings hurt, that means he arrest folk?!

[Indydem]

29. You are legally barred from harassing a police officer. More so in public view. n/t

[uponit7771]

32. Unn, I haven't read anything that looked like harrasment. If you have any links could you post them?

[Indydem]

34. Police Report

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2009/0723092gates1.html

[vaberella]

44. Is this the original? Because there's two.

I'm supposed to believe a police report that says Mr. Gates a world renowned professor said, 'Ya, I'll talk to your mama outside." You've to be fuckin' kidding me.

[tblue37]

42. A cop does *not* have to continue in a pissing contest with an irate citizen,

especially when that citizen has been inconvenienced in his own home, through no fault of his own, and is justifiably upset about it. If the cop had simply left, even with Gates yelling at him, it would have all been over. But he just couldn't stand being yelled at. cops get very pissed off when people are not "properly" deferential to them. (Middle-aged people with a certain level of wealth and status also get pissed off when not treated deferentially--and I am sure that had something to do with Gate's anger--but he was, after all, in his own home.

As soon as Gates started yelling, the cop was all about "teaching him a lesson," not about bring the incident to a reasonable end for all concerned. I honestly think the cop would have done the same thing to a white man (or even a white woman) who had started yelling at him (though he should not have done that to any citizen under those circumstances), but I also think that if Gates had not been African American, he might have reacted less angrily, because he would not have had that whole history of racial profiling to deal with, along with all the reactions it must create for those who have had to deal with it their whole lives.

A cop doesn't have to respond just because someone is mad and yelling. Even if it has drawn a crowd, he still wouldn't have to respond. He could have just said, "I am sorry to have inconvenienced you, sir," and leave. But a lot of cops cannot bear to have their power and authority challenged like that.

[Indydem]

45. So, you touch on the real root of the issue...

Was Gates arrested because he was a black man, OR because he yelled at, berated, and insulted a uniformed officer?

I vote the latter, and that is why I refuse to indict this officer as a racist. An egomaniac, perhaps, but not a racist. And, as I see it, well within his jurisdiction to arrest Gates for public disturbance.

[tblue37]

55. Just because a cop *can* do something, that doesn't mean he

should do it. Considering all that was going on there, it was stupid of the cop to carry it further, and I think he did it only because he was pissed--and it had turned into a pissing contest. Since Gates had reason for being upset, the cop could have shown more empathy all through the situation.

Also, I think the fact that Gates was still on his own porch means that the cop was wrong to consider it a "public disturbance." If he had left, the "disturbance" would have quickly dissipated. Gates wasn't assaulting him (or anyone else); he was just yelling. It would have been so easy to defuse the situation, and it really bothers me that cops these days don't seem to consider de-escalation to be part of their job description.

[tblue37]

58. Re: yelling at a uniformed officer--this from bmaz at emptywheel:

http://emptywheel.firedoglake.com/2009/07/23/henry-louis-gates-contempt-of-cop/

But that, of course, is not what occurred. Instead, the officer seems to have become angered and bellegerent that Gates would be so forward as to demand his identification. At this point, little old Professor Gates, who walks with a cane, was in what is known in the criminal justice field as "contempt of cop".

The salient problem for the Cambridge Police Department is contempt of cop is simply not a crime, even if profanity is directed at the officer, a situation escalator not even present in Gates' case. In fact, there is a case I have argued with success many times, Duran v. City of Douglas, 904 F.2d 1372 (9th Cir. 1990) which, in an opinion written by now 9th Circuit Chief Judge Alex Kosinski, provides:

Duran's conduct is not totally irrelevant, however, as it suggests a possible motive for his detention, one upon which law enforcement officers may not legitimately rely. The Durans contend, and the district court held, that Aguilar stopped their car at least partly in retaliation for the insult he received from Duran. If true, this would constitute a serious First Amendment violation. "he First Amendment protects a significant amount of verbal criticism and challenge directed at police officers." Hill, 482 U.S. at 461, 107 S.Ct. at 2509. The freedom of individuals to oppose or challenge police action verbally without thereby risking arrest is one important characteristic by which we distinguish ourselves from a police state. Id. at 462-63, 107 S.Ct. at 2510. Thus, while police, no less than anyone else, may resent having obscene words and gestures directed at them, they may not exercise the awesome power at their disposal to punish individuals for conduct that is not merely lawful, but protected by the First Amendment.
...
No less well established is the principle that government officials in general, and police officers in particular, may not exercise their authority for personal motives, particularly in response to real or perceived slights to their dignity. Surely anyone who takes an oath of office knows--or should know--that much. See Hill, 482 U.S. at 462, 107 S.Ct. at 2510. Whether or not officer Aguilar was aware of the fine points of First Amendment law, to the extent he is found to have detained Duran as punishment for the latter's insults, we hold that he ought to have known that he was exercising his authority in violation of well-established constitutional rights.

Sounds pretty much on point doesn't it? It is. The City of Cambridge, Sergeant Crowley, and the other individual officers actively participating in the wrongful arrest of Professor Henry Louis Gates are in a world of hurt legally. They may want to rethink the company line of no official apology.

UPDATE: Via Rayne's link to DKos in comments, and the Boston Globe, the Statement of Facts from the official police report in the Gates arrest:

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 behalf of Gates served no legitimate purpose and caused citizens passing by this location to stop and take notice while appearing surprised and alarmed.

Signed: Sgt. James Crowley

And therein lies the problem for Sergeant Crowley and the Cambridge PD. It was a patently illegal and insufficient arrest from the start. Gates is arrested for disturbing the peace - of Sergeant Crowley. See the words "directed at a uniformed officer"? This is the epitome of contempt of cop, and that is an illegal and unconstitutional arrest. What is not contained in the statement of facts is any reference to an identifiable citizen/member of the public being disturbed. None whatsoever. This is precisely the type of conduct castigated historically by courts as generally described in Duran v. City of Douglas.The salient problem for the Cambridge Police Department is contempt of cop is simply not a crime, even if profanity is directed at the officer, a situation escalator not even present in Gates' case. In fact, there is a case I have argued with success many times, Duran v. City of Douglas, 904 F.2d 1372 (9th Cir. 1990) which, in an opinion written by now 9th Circuit Chief Judge Alex Kosinski, provides:

Duran's conduct is not totally irrelevant, however, as it suggests a possible motive for his detention, one upon which law enforcement officers may not legitimately rely. The Durans contend, and the district court held, that Aguilar stopped their car at least partly in retaliation for the insult he received from Duran. If true, this would constitute a serious First Amendment violation. "he First Amendment protects a significant amount of verbal criticism and challenge directed at police officers." Hill, 482 U.S. at 461, 107 S.Ct. at 2509. The freedom of individuals to oppose or challenge police action verbally without thereby risking arrest is one important characteristic by which we distinguish ourselves from a police state. Id. at 462-63, 107 S.Ct. at 2510. Thus, while police, no less than anyone else, may resent having obscene words and gestures directed at them, they may not exercise the awesome power at their disposal to punish individuals for conduct that is not merely lawful, but protected by the First Amendment.
...
No less well established is the principle that government officials in general, and police officers in particular, may not exercise their authority for personal motives, particularly in response to real or perceived slights to their dignity. Surely anyone who takes an oath of office knows--or should know--that much. See Hill, 482 U.S. at 462, 107 S.Ct. at 2510. Whether or not officer Aguilar was aware of the fine points of First Amendment law, to the extent he is found to have detained Duran as punishment for the latter's insults, we hold that he ought to have known that he was exercising his authority in violation of well-established constitutional rights.

More at link:
http://emptywheel.firedoglake.com/2009/07/23/henry-louis-gates-contempt-of-cop/

[alcibiades_mystery]

54. Big Dick Syndrome

Unprofessional behavior.

[we can do it]

47. Get the Fuck Out of the Man's Home and Apologize On the Way Out

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

11. Apologize profusely and then leave.

You know- serve and protect.

It's not just for whtie people.

[lib2DaBone]

15. The Cop should have walked away.

As long as Gates was still on his porch.. he was 'on' his property. By Law, you can not "Disturb" a law officers peace .. he is a public servant. It takes 3 or more people assembled to create a disturbance... and I doubt if a jury would rule that Mr. Gates was creating a disturbance on his own porch in the middle of the day after he had complied with all lawful orders.

[rhett o rick]

18. Sounds like he has grounds for false arrest. nm

[Indydem]

24. It was more of a "stoop" I guess, not really a porch.

A group of at least 7 people had gathered, thus exceeding your count of 3.

[yodermon]

22. um the officer just could have fucking left

[lumberjack_jeff]

23. Tazered him. No... shot him, then tazered him. Then sent him to Gitmo.

Oh wait, that would have been grossly disproportionate, wouldn't it?

a) the officer invited Gates onto the porch so that he could have some lame justification for arresting him for being an asshole.
b) simply being belligerent, even at an officer is no crime.

What he should have done is not arrest someone for a nonexistent crime.

[uponit7771]

27. +1!

[tblue37]

37. He was supposed to leave--and *should* have left the moment he

saw Gates' ID in the house--and he should have offered a polite, "Sorry, sir--have a nice evening" on the way out.

[we can do it]

46. He Was Supposed To Leave the Man Alone In His Home

yelling at someone in one's own home is not against the law, btw.

[Indydem]

48. Read, well anything, about the case. Gates was arrested on the front stoop.

After following the officer out of the home berating him.

Edited because the Shift key on this keyboard blows.

[PretzelWarrior]

51. fuck you. chased him out onto the porch? way to be a racist apologist.

[Indydem]

59. Yes, because I took the police officers statements and the interview with Gates and believed them!

Both of them state Gates followed the officer out onto the stoop (more appropriate term as there was no overhanging) and was arrested. I can provide links if you prefer, but the argument that Crowley was a racist has been pretty much defeated as far as I am concerned.

[Empowerer]

60. Leave?

[Hansel]

63. Leave. nt

[lib2DaBone]

3. What I still don't get......?

How can you arrest a guy in his own home when he has I.D. and everything checks out? No Cop can be that dumb?

Gates is only guilty of "Contempt of Cop". The cop , especially a Supervisor, should have walked away.

[vaberella]

7. This one was. n/t

[vaberella]

4. That's exactly it. Once Mr. Gates showed ID,

all the cop had to do was apologize and walk out. Instead the Po-Po went one step further and made a fuss which probably made Mr. Gates irate, which is understandable and then it went that one step further to arrest. When the ID was enough to stop everything in it's tracks. The cops are in the wrong and not Gates and I'm fuckin' tired of so many people defending the Po-Po.

I've seen too much of this shite around my way. Once a month we have sweeps in Harlem and LIC and basically any area with high Black/Hispanic community an they are arrested un-masse for fuckin' nothing. I live in Spanish Harlem, so sometimes it's twice a month.

[Howardx]

16. the fact that the charges were dropped

means the police were in the wrong.

[goclark]

19. Maybe they should have Madea weigh in

LOL

That would be great ~ he knocks me out when he creates his/her own justice about the Po Po!

love me some Tyler Perry

* Did you know he is taking all of those children from PA that could not get into the pool to Disney Land?

Go Tyler!

[uponit7771]

30. Medea and where the h**l is Rily at?!?! We need some real logic to weigh in

[kwassa]

40. If Madea's front door lock didn't work, she'd just get that chainsaw .....

and then what would happen?

[goclark]

65. Medea does not play! LOL nt

[vaberella]

43. That's pretty awesome. However Madea didn't coin, "Po-Po"

It's been around for ages---along with Pigs (but that's going too far).

[goclark]

67. Medea just has a special way of saying it

and following through that knocks me out!

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

5. Because he's an expert in racial profiling?

"Racial profiling" is a politically correct euphemism for racism.

[vaberella]

12. Ain't that the truth. Black male, 5'6"-6'5", approx. age- 14-78, weight: 130-220, bald or fade.

That's about the entire Black and a good portion of the Hispanic male community in this nation.

[uponit7771]

33. lol

[truedelphi]

41. And that black male is suspect if they are driving a ridiculously

Unfashionable used car, with scrapes and dents, or if they are driving a top of the line Ferrarai!

The black male who looks too poor is suspect, and so is the rich black guy.

[Starbucks Anarchist]

50. Dave Chappelle: "We're looking for a black man between 4'7" and 6'8"!"

:rofl:

[ecstatic]

20. Regular, non "experts" probably would have shot Gates dead

Has anyone else been noticing the reports of cops shooting unarmed civilians this week? :shrug:

[Hansel]

64. Yes, which is exactly why this high profile case should be

examined for how it escalated to this point.

We had one killed in Minnesota who was wearing a bathing suit. Shot 4 times although he was clearly unarmed.

[tblue37]

36. I think the cop started to get pissed from the start, because when he asked Gates to

step out on his porch, Gates said no. But Gates explained on CNN that he knew that as long as he stayed inside his house, he had certain rights, but that as soon as he stepped onto the porch, the cop would be able--and perhaps likely--to slap handcuffs on him without bothering to find out whether such an action was warranted. He also felt as though he could be in danger. Considering what happens all too frequently to African American men once cops put them in cuffs, his caution seems warranted--especially since the cop did slap handcuffs onto him when he stepped out onto the porch.

[4lbs]

61. A police officer arresting a person for acting rudely towards him? People really need to watch COPS

sometime.

The people on there act angrily and loudly towards officers often.

Now, it could likely be that because the cameras are on them, but on that show, the police officers rarely put the handcuffs on someone who yells at them. It's only if that person makes a threatening move towards the officer or another person that they'll be subdued.

[BlooInBloo]

62. I suspect a wise latina woman could have come to a better decision than this white man.

:P

[Karenina]

66. Because white people generally SUCK at IDing "the other."

Remember Vincent Chin? I do recall that volunteers for the 9/11 cleanup, bi-racial, Newyorican and others were harassed by white cops who ASSumed they were middle eastern. NEVER MIND that someone of middle eastern descent might just maybe possibly could be a red-blooded FUCKING AMERICAN!

My 8th grade class president made a beeline to me one Monday to discuss what had happened to him over the weekend. He was a serious sailor who took me out with, which is WHY on the SATs years later I was able to correctly define words such as "regatta, ketch, yawl, stern." (HOW COULD THOSE TESTS POSSIBLY BE BIASED??? ;-) ) Anyway he and our Heidi, his porcelain main squeeze were accosted by folks who thought, because of his very deep tan ( we always compared arms :rofl: ) he was BLACK!!! Near violence ensued.

When I think about profiling in my world citizen fantasy, I FIRST marvel at the incredible skills and exposure one would need to do it well.

I ask myself if the good Sergeant did not notice the luggage with flight tags, or perhaps family pictures on the walls once he had ILLEGALLY entered the premises, even Skip's level of comfort in the place, like he BELONGED THERE. What burglar would offer ID, EVEN IF he'd been "mouthy" at first? Epic FAIL. All he heard was the "paranoia" of an exhausted, elderly gentleman whose space was being invaded being directed at HIM. And

THAT

was what could NOT be tolerated. (Lemme take this UPPITY NEGRO down a peg. HOW DARE HE question my street creds!!! Hell, I tried to save REGGIE!) We ALL know that racist behaviour is a misdemeanor, while calling it out is a FELONY. Skip was scared by this guy's approach and events have proved him correct in his first instincts:

"I’m saying ‘You need to send someone to fix my lock.’ All of a sudden, there was a policeman on my porch. And I thought, ‘This is strange.’ So I went over to the front porch still holding the phone, and I said ‘Officer, can I help you?’ And he said, ‘Would you step outside onto the porch.’ And the way he said it, I knew he wasn’t canvassing for the police benevolent association. All the hairs stood up on the back of my neck, and I realized that I was in danger. And I said to him no, out of instinct. I said, ‘No, I will not.’

My lawyers later told me that that was a good move and had I walked out onto the porch he could have arrested me for breaking and entering. He said ‘I’m here to investigate a 911 call for breaking and entering into this house.’ And I said ‘That’s ridiculous because this happens to be my house. And I’m a Harvard professor.’ He says ‘Can you prove that you’re a Harvard professor?’ I said yes, I turned and closed the front door to the kitchen where I’d left my wallet, and I got out my Harvard ID and my Massachusetts driver’s license which includes my address and I handed them to him. And he’s ???sitting there looking at them.???

Now it’s clear that he had a narrative in his head: A black man was inside someone’s house, probably a white person’s house, and this black man had broken and entered, and this black man was me.

??? Did this man actually seat himself in Skip's kitchen? I await clarification since we're all parsing "minute by minute." :rofl: Shall we roll a doobie, brother? :smoke:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_GmuIHL_EM&feature=related