Why did the same government agency waste money fighting this as legal all the way to the Supreme Court? While the trooper made an unlawful arrest due to the First Amendment, his employer/the state backed him up on it. Pay the state back? They were the ones to push the issue. Flipping the bird or other gestures are not always free speech but they are when targeted against the government.
@@tvc1848 Because the taxpayers pay for the lawyers too, and they don't care about the money, and I guess they believe that the victim will run out of time or money before the state does.
Let us not forget that a judgement against a government agency is a monetary loss for the taxpayers of that state or town. I think cops would be much more careful if that money came out of their pensions!
It's supposed to so the victim actually receives compensation and the community, rightly upset, makes sure the cop that caused the damage stops being a cop. Unfortunately we don't have communities anymore and the damage gets hidden by the insurance policy.
I remember when those cops were prosecuted for violating Abdul Louima's civil rights in NY. The news of the ruling was announced and I could see one of the ladies outside my office celebrating. She comes in and tells me about the ruling and the first thing I said to her was "you know the tax payers are paying for that, right?" Her: Oh.
Right. But if you break the law your court case with be a few months later. There is absolutely no reason it should take 6 years just for the tax payers to get punished for this idiotic cops actions.
@@Gratefuldeadgriffin --In a 1983 case, as this was, legal fees are awarded by the Court. --He was represented by ACLU. --Attorney fees were 75000. I have no doubt they earned it.
A cop gets flipped the bird, and they arrest the person. That's a First Amendment violation, AND evidence of an ego that does NOT belong in a police department.
I teach this in the police academy. It is very clear, freedom of speech against the government is allowed…. within limits. Making threats, disrupting a courtroom, etc., are not free speech but certainly flipping off a cop is. Disorderly Conduct charges are valid but not against the police.
@@ColtonRMagby What is weird about it? Disorderly Conduct laws don’t stop people from criticizing the government but those same laws can be filed if directed at a private citizen. To yell profanity at the police is protected. Go into a shopping mall and start causing a disturbance in public by yelling profanity (what the US Supreme Court calls “fighting words”) and those same comments can be a crime.
@@peterhineinlegen4672 Unfortunately, admission of wrongdoing is usually something cops, along with businesses and other government agencies are adamantly opposed to.
@@brianbagnall3029 $175,000 but your point holds. And don't forget whatever settlement the person in Michigan got paid. And the thousands of others in similar rights violation cases. The protests of 2020 have reached in excess of a billion dollars for rights violations. My question is why isn't the DOJ charging these cops under 18US241 and 18US242. Makes no sense to burden the tax payers with footing these bills just to let the cops off to go do it again.
Many officers do set their ego aside. My cousin was a Maryland State Police for 20 years and he had numerous slurs thrown at him by various people and he never lashed out at them because of it.
Cops know that anything is legal, or illegal, that they can get you to believe. This culture of lying to people all the time, and having people lie to you all the time may be a major reason we get some of the law enforcment people we do, up to an including DAs and the Attorney General of the United States.
VSP is the worst. As a Vermonter I remember a time when our troopers weren't so offended. Now as a paramedic we can't even get them to help. They are utterly useless to law-abiding citizens.
As a fellow Vermonter, you're completely correct. I listen to local VSP dispatch (they aren't bright enough to have encrypted comms) and all they do is run plates all night.
they don't care if it's legal or not . the whole arrest , jail , stress , bond , lawyers , stress , court dates , time off work to go to court and more stress is the punishment.
@clbcl5 that's true but if you keep doing it weekly, you won't have to wait for 6 years between each win. Start now, do it every week, and in 6 years, the wins will consistently stream in without the long wait between. All of them will roll in weekly in theory after the initial 6 years, so long as you work hard to be arrested each week. Still have to have a good work ethic to maximize your income potential, as in most career choices.
I agree. I have my own horror stories involving cops needlessly injuring and traumatizing me when I was NOT under arrest and I had just called them for moral support. I was also charged once with my aggressor's crime because the cops couldn't be bothered to check the CCTV cameras to see if she was lying which she was. I got my charges dropped because there wasn't enough evidence. The trauma this caused me will take longer than 6 years to heal from. I'll probably never get justice and I was way more beat up by cops than most people. Especially an innocent person. No warrant.
It isn't only the cops, it's their supervisors and city and state management. It always starts at the top. If their supervisors weren't corrupt and/or lazy and if the city/state management wasn't corrupt or lazy, there wouldn't be a problem.
It seems the courts have found that qualified immunity is unconstitutional. With zero legal obligation to serve and protect while benefiting from qualified immunity we get an occupying Force of under educated bullies. We need reform, higher standards and better educated public servants.
@@msromike123 Law enforcement comprises a heavily armored group that has been militarized. They number upward of 900,000 nationally. I would call that an occupying force.
If you want better educated public servants, pay us to stay in our jobs. I make 40k/year in my position at a state legislature. When I give up on sticking to believing in the mission and finally take any private equivalent position, I’ll immediately make $80-120k. Got another offer for a position this week. To have highly qualified public servants, we need to pay them adequately.
Over fifty years ago, when I used to drive street legal hot rods on the street, the local cops would pull me over. They would go over the whole car, waste my time, make sure my state inspection sticker was up-to-date, and everything was legal. When they couldn't find anything that they could cite me for, I'd get a ticket for "following too closely." After the third time of this in two months, I went to court and fought it. I had witnesses, and the people in front of me were friends of mine.The people behind me were friends of mine. We were on the way to the drive-in. They were my witnesses. The judge threw it out. That cop ended up getting thrown off the force because he pulled over and sexually harassed someone who turned out to be that judges daughter. KARMA
@mustbetrue1602 You must be a cop or an ex cop to think like this. This was in a small south florida Redneck town. The cop was a douchebag and harassed everybody. You weren't there, and you didn't live with it and have to deal with it. Not all cops are bad , but this one was. After the third ticket, the judge threw it out. Also, the douchebag cop sexually harassed the judge's daughter when he pulled her over one night. We didn't have cameras back then.But if we did, I would love to be able to show you the footage.
@@mustbetrue1602Because cops or security are *never* wrong? If that cop has the narrative in his mind that any kid driving a car like that “needs to learn his place,” that’s abuse of power. In the dark ages, when I was in high school CB Radio was the craze. Our local CB community used to have “Coffee Breaks “ at a local eatery with a large parking lot. A lot of us got rides with older CBers or our parents. There was also a group of motorcyclists that came the same night of the week. We took up fewer spaces, and were inside yakking and buying food. The cyclists rarely came in, except for beer (yep, they sold that). They’d be doing burnouts in the parking lot, nearly running others over, and getting loud. Guess who “Security” was always busting on? They come up to a table of 26 years old and scream at us for not buying food (the table was filled with our food) and being too rowdy. Why didn’t they do anything about the bikers? 1) They made a lot of money on that beer 2) as one county cop once told us, they Security knew WE weren’t going to shove them, and they could push us around. After a few months of this, they lost the business of every CBer for 50 miles. The bikers were there years later, but others stopped going Friday nights since the atmosphere seemed scary. By the time I was out of college, they’d finally gotten up the nerve to trespass the bikers. Who weren’t all causing problems, but hey.
Yes sadly so. Once you know this its hard to not see it. Knowing what triggers them is helpful in diffusing and encounter. You have to be very careful with this type of individual. Do not fear them but know what your up agaisnt ..be smart and dont get baited by them. Thanks for the response. 😊@ScooterFXRS
A Pennsylvania state trooper thought it was a good idea to cite me through the mail for disorderly conduct and fighting with first responders. At the magistrates hearing that I requested, the magistrate in front of a fairly large audience Explained the first amendment to the constitution to not only one Pennsylvania state trooper, but two of them. Somehow, they managed to lose the in car camera video they said they had. Imagine how humiliating getting caught lying at a magistrates hearing where these Pennsylvania state troopers see the magistrate on a regular basis probably at least weekly. I handled it Pro se. The gift that they gave me was that recently that Pennsylvania state trooper was arrested for domestic abuse and is awaiting trial. I warned his captain at the barracks, this guy is easily triggered and he’s going to be in trouble in the future.
@@Auguur Just in the last year and a half or Pennsylvania, state troopers have been discharged for various reasons starting with child pornography, kidnapping, a former girlfriend, domestic abuse, and beating a man who required extensive reconstructive surgery and threatened the man with burning his house down if he told anyone. Two chief of police fired from their jobs, one for arranging drug transfers and the other one for trafficking humans. 18 miles apart from where I live… there’s plenty more, but I’ll stop.
This incident is horrifying! That it has taken four years to resolve is equally horrifying! This cop ought to be fired and prevented from ever working in law enforcement again. And he should have had any qualified immunity revoked and be held personally liable for damages. These kind of events seem to happen even more frequently in recent years. And cops continue to violate our rights even on camera!
Wasn't fired. They were allowed to retire. So not only did they cost tax payers on the settlement, they are now taking a pension from tax payer dollars too.
The government is targeting and torturing people in the privacy of their own homes and stalking in public. Why is this attorney NOT addressing these horrible crimes ?!
I have seen the video, it shows how self important that that state police officer thought he was. The video was from the state police dash camera. It had full audio. Lack Luster is the channel, if I remember it correctly. If the local jurisdiction still have decency laws on the books, they are actually void and unenforceable. A case in Louisiana had 2 cops trying to do that, the DA told them “No” and explained it. The cops still filed it and it was eventually thrown out by the state Supreme Court.
Audit the Audit had this video on about three days ago, complete with the video dashcam. You know, if I could buy that cop for how important he really is and sell him for how important he THINKS he is, I wouldn't need to play the lottery, I would be set for life.
I was arrested in MS for flipping off a cop, spent the weekend in jail. Charge was public use of profanity. Judge dismissed the charges Monday morning.
Every day I'm reminded of how I was too qualified to be a cop A few weeks ago, it was by finding the guy my hometown hired instead of me, in jail again on felony gun charges, yet again, after getting caught on his way to assault someone, again.
I saw this incident on Audit the Audit two or three days ago and was left thinking a) that cop needs his credentials revoked b) he also needed to be thrown under the jail and c) why was the court case not done yet? I'm glad it has been settled and settled in the driver's favor.
Vermont State Police stated that Trooper Riggen retired from the force on May 31. That was before the settlement was made.😮 This happened back in 2018 my thinking is. The state dragged their heels until the trooper was able to get full retirement.
When I was a kid, a cop stopped our school bus because he said somebody flipped him off. He pulled the kid off the bus and spoke to him for several minutes. Then the kid got back on the bus and we went on our way. I have no idea what the eventual outcome for anyone involved was, but it definitely discourage all of us for expressing those kind of feelings while on our bus towards police officers in the future.
"Do you want to go through a $100,000 dollars of trouble?" Only someone that wasn't struggling living day to day...like a successful lawyer, wouldn't think a week in a jail cell was worth it. In fact, $100,000 would probably save my life.
Steve said one finger salute and it reminds me of the time we taught our Iraqi interpreter to do that to officers. This dude did it to Major General Gaskins in on Fallujah. 😂😂😂
About 20 years ago, I flipped off a cop in Washington, DC. And he arrested me for disorderly conduct!! And I was jailed for 4 hours. Are you telling me I could have gotten paid for that? Dammit!! Has the statute of limitations run out on that?
This is why I don't send any articles or videos to Steve anymore. He gets flooded w/ the same breaking news, thereby this channel actually becomes a news source for me!
Years ago, my mom, brother, and I were pulled over by an off duty cop in Atlanta. My mom was driving, waiting to turn right at a dangerous intersection that included a blind curve. The cop was behind us honking his horn repeatedly, which led my brother sitting in the back to flip him off. This led to the cop stopping us while he parked in the middle of the intersection to tell at us. The only resson i didnt pursue a complaint my mom was afraid of retaliation. I still regret not taking down the tag number and filing a complaint. It's fine to be angry at being flipped off. Stopping a whole intersection to yell at a family and make vaguee threats about bring armed not so much.
Thank you, Steve, for covering this! I was just watching another YT video covering this too. If you search YT for 'Man arrested for flipping off state trooper awarded settlement' it will also show the actual trooper's dashboard cam video of the original arrest. The police officer (trooper) seemed tyrannically arrogant and acted on his personal feelings.
I had some cop tailgate me for a mile, I gave him the bird, he pulled me over so he could show off his costume. After he finally left me alone I went and filed a report with his superior.
I’ve seen numerous filmed instances of this occurring that have appeared on YT (I think Audit the Audit covered at least one of them), to say nothing of those that were not filmed; one would think agencies would issue instructions to their officers that ‘contempt of cop’ is not a charge, but then it doesn’t come out of their budgets or pensions.
Why do these cases keep getting settled without any admission of wrongdoing or firing the offending officers. The only ones punished are the taxpayers, the city/state just shrugs and the officer keeps on working and violating other peoples rights up to their retirement.
Runaway power Trip due to qualified immunity, protection from repercussions for their actions due to the fact that taxpayers pay for their mistakes. Inflated egos due to badges, guns and the power of violence being given to them. I think that about covers it.
I know you often say it's not as simple as "I would happily go through this if I got X amount of money for it", but I think I would happily go through this one for 100K.
And that's the problem with settling out of court, the city doesn't accept culpability. It needs to go to trial, and all parties exposed....bigger payout... potentially.
I know that in some places, if you reject a settlement and go to trial and are awarded less than the settlement amount would have been, you owe the governments legal fees for the trial.
The more this nonsense happens the more convinced i am you should need to go to law school for at least a 2 year degree before you're allowed to be a police officer
The other 1st Amendment Auditor who goes by the name _Carolina Ft. Worth_ here on RUclips just got hospitalized for refusing to ID and clear the area. The male cop bounced her head off of the pavement knocking her out, broke several bones, including ribs, and her face has quite a few stitches. Wonder what that payout is going to cost taxpayers?
Yeah, she got there by resisting. I don’t have any respect for people that create chaos for profit. First amendment auditors are trying to walk right up to the line between legal and illegal and monetize the show.
@@JW-mb6tq creating chaos for profit is like our country and others indulging in perpetual proxy wars and global disinformation campaigns as a means to lubricate the machinations of war and keep pumping out new war machines, missiles, etc., and devising and implementing new ways to inflict death on untold millions while rewriting history. Sign me up for that at the end of the run-on sentence. 😄
Yet those same judges will not think twice to hold someone in contempt and lock them up. They are public officials, and, seemingly, the only ones that can't stand getting their feelings hurt.
I'm sure the comments section is going to quickly fill up about people whining about this man getting a $175k paycheck at the expense of the taxpayers. To all of those people: If you don't like it, elect a better police commissioner.
You know requiring a 4 year degree in the laws a police officer enforces ,and a minimum 85% passing grade would save taxpayers millions in law suit settlements.
What if he gives half the money to the cop? Would he and the cop be arrested for fraud? Now the cop gets arrested and has to pay for an attorney all over an arrest that should not have happened.
That trooper needs to be in jail for life. Battery, armed robbery, kidnapping, perjury and grand theft auto. The case law goes back to before that trooper was born and that is well established. He should not be allowed out of prison in his lifetime
How can cases like this even get to an appeals court in the first place? Why doesn't the first court that hears it throw out the Qualified Immunity? The higher court send a memo down to all the lower courts telling them something like, "Don't send us this crap. You KNOW the 1st Amendment is well established. If a cop violates it, he doesn't get Qualified Immunity for that." And the municipalities that have to pay out settlements like this should put a big poster on the inside of every LEO facility reminding them that they won't get it if they violate any of our Constitutional rights that have been well established for a long time.
In the 1960s, when I was in high school, this issue came up, and even back then the court held that flipping off a cop was not illegal. It's hard to believe that 60 years later police academies are not teaching their students this fact on day one. The police officer in charge of booking should have stopped this foolishness in its tracks. It's also hard to believe the the Vermont authorities didn't settle this case the day after it was filed. Are the lawyers employed by Vermont also incompetent? Apparently so.
Steve, The best response I ever made , and was let go ( I had some indoor growing equipment that I was being accused of growing prohibited plants, which did not exist) I said something to the effect that if our County D.A. was dressed to the 9's or 10's and was standing on the street corner. Would you arrest her for being a prostitute? They didn't steal my stuff.😂😂😂
I saw the video. The guy was cooperative and polite. It was the cop who escalated the situation. It happened in 2018! Why does it take 6 years to resolve?
This is getting ridiculous!! The money needs to start coming out the cops pocket!!!
Wage garnishment
Yep , taxpayers keep paying
it seems like the trooper should pay the state back.
Why did the same government agency waste money fighting this as legal all the way to the Supreme Court?
While the trooper made an unlawful arrest due to the First Amendment, his employer/the state backed him up on it.
Pay the state back? They were the ones to push the issue.
Flipping the bird or other gestures are not always free speech but they are when targeted against the government.
@@tvc1848 Because the taxpayers pay for the lawyers too, and they don't care about the money, and I guess they believe that the victim will run out of time or money before the state does.
Let us not forget that a judgement against a government agency is a monetary loss for the taxpayers of that state or town. I think cops would be much more careful if that money came out of their pensions!
It's supposed to so the victim actually receives compensation and the community, rightly upset, makes sure the cop that caused the damage stops being a cop.
Unfortunately we don't have communities anymore and the damage gets hidden by the insurance policy.
Was thinking the same thing. Everyone involved with charging people with fake/false charges should be the ones paying...NOT the taxpayers.
I remember when those cops were prosecuted for violating Abdul Louima's civil rights in NY. The news of the ruling was announced and I could see one of the ladies outside my office celebrating. She comes in and tells me about the ruling and the first thing I said to her was "you know the tax payers are paying for that, right?"
Her: Oh.
In the majority of cases they pay a flat rate of insurance and it's the insurance company who pays for litigation loses
As long as the cops have 30 days to come up with the money. Their pension withdrawal would take longer than that.
The biggest problem is the 6 year timeline to justice.
Right. But if you break the law your court case with be a few months later. There is absolutely no reason it should take 6 years just for the tax payers to get punished for this idiotic cops actions.
@@skillethead15 Yes! Punish the taxpayers who hired him immediately!
And lawyer got 75 percent
@@Gratefuldeadgriffin --In a 1983 case, as this was, legal fees are awarded by the Court.
--He was represented by ACLU.
--Attorney fees were 75000. I have no doubt they earned it.
A cop gets flipped the bird, and they arrest the person. That's a First Amendment violation, AND evidence of an ego that does NOT belong in a police department.
It is also a fourth amendment violation. Any officer doing this sort of thing should never be allowed to work in a governmental position again.
I teach this in the police academy. It is very clear, freedom of speech against the government is allowed…. within limits. Making threats, disrupting a courtroom, etc., are not free speech but certainly flipping off a cop is.
Disorderly Conduct charges are valid but not against the police.
Exactly!
@@tvc1848 Weird technicalities.
@@ColtonRMagby
What is weird about it?
Disorderly Conduct laws don’t stop people from criticizing the government but those same laws can be filed if directed at a private citizen.
To yell profanity at the police is protected. Go into a shopping mall and start causing a disturbance in public by yelling profanity (what the US Supreme Court calls “fighting words”) and those same comments can be a crime.
The police will never ever ever never "Admit wrong doing".
I would insist on it in any settlement.
$100,000 of OUR money so THEY don't have to admit wrongdoing. Makes sense to me. 😵💫
@@peterhineinlegen4672
Unfortunately, admission of wrongdoing is usually something cops, along with businesses and other government agencies are adamantly opposed to.
Smell like Tryanny
@@brianbagnall3029 $175,000 but your point holds. And don't forget whatever settlement the person in Michigan got paid. And the thousands of others in similar rights violation cases. The protests of 2020 have reached in excess of a billion dollars for rights violations. My question is why isn't the DOJ charging these cops under 18US241 and 18US242. Makes no sense to burden the tax payers with footing these bills just to let the cops off to go do it again.
Officers, don’t let our tax dollars get in the way of your ego.
A officer is someone that respect your and his constitution rights.this trooper a cop.not a officer
Many officers do set their ego aside. My cousin was a Maryland State Police for 20 years and he had numerous slurs thrown at him by various people and he never lashed out at them because of it.
Take it out their benefits
They don’t care, they will never care as long as they never pay for their crimes.
Cops know that anything is legal, or illegal, that they can get you to believe. This culture of lying to people all the time, and having people lie to you all the time may be a major reason we get some of the law enforcment people we do, up to an including DAs and the Attorney General of the United States.
VSP is the worst. As a Vermonter I remember a time when our troopers weren't so offended. Now as a paramedic we can't even get them to help. They are utterly useless to law-abiding citizens.
As a fellow Vermonter, you're completely correct. I listen to local VSP dispatch (they aren't bright enough to have encrypted comms) and all they do is run plates all night.
Guess making the Super Troopers movie modeled after them wasn't an accident
they don't care if it's legal or not . the whole arrest , jail , stress , bond , lawyers , stress , court dates , time off work to go to court and more stress is the punishment.
“The process is the punishment”
You know what? A person could make a good living just flipping off cops.
Tax free!
Yeah, I could get a killer kitchen and bath remodel. 😒😄😄
If you can live 6 years before being paid.
I think i'll start that job today. lol
@clbcl5 that's true but if you keep doing it weekly, you won't have to wait for 6 years between each win. Start now, do it every week, and in 6 years, the wins will consistently stream in without the long wait between. All of them will roll in weekly in theory after the initial 6 years, so long as you work hard to be arrested each week. Still have to have a good work ethic to maximize your income potential, as in most career choices.
I saw the body camera of the officer on this a few days ago. Thank goodness for Body Cameras. They don’t lie. Clear case of civil rights violation.
Not that anything will happen to this despot. Still has a badge and just shrugged it off. Cost him nothing. It never does.
6 years to get justice ⚖️ is ridiculous
The victim got compensated. Justice would be holding the offending party accountable. That didn't happen.
That in itself is a crime. Justice delayed is justice denied.
It took so long because they don't want to let go of arresting the public for 1st amendment practice
I agree. I have my own horror stories involving cops needlessly injuring and traumatizing me when I was NOT under arrest and I had just called them for moral support. I was also charged once with my aggressor's crime because the cops couldn't be bothered to check the CCTV cameras to see if she was lying which she was. I got my charges dropped because there wasn't enough evidence. The trauma this caused me will take longer than 6 years to heal from. I'll probably never get justice and I was way more beat up by cops than most people. Especially an innocent person. No warrant.
They realized this wasn't going to go away so they finally put it through the courts and paid the man is my take away as to why it took so long
now the taxpayers should sue the trooper to get their money back as it was a misconduct during the course of his job.
SUBROGATION!
Until QI is revoked, that lawsuit will never happen.
The cop will either get fired or suspended without pay.
@@buckeyenative1365
In this case the officer was denied qualified immunity.
He broke a clearly established case law and was therefore not protected.
Being a "taxpayer" gives no standing in such a matter.
After accidentally cutting a driver off, I heard a pastor telling the story said, "He gave me the finger of disdain".
I've heard Latin: digitus impudicus
I don't know Latin, so I won't vouch for accuracy.
I also swear by Quando omni flunkus moritati.
@@freethebirds3578 I had to look that up, that's funny 😄
That 100 thousand should have come from the cop. The rest of the millions the man was owed should have come from the department.
Until law enforcement is personally held accountable these type of cases will continue.
If an arrest is completely without probable cause then it should be considered a kidnapping.
Seems like the officer should be accountable for the restitution, not the citizens of Vermont.
@@phookadude then they claim qualified immunity
Be careful when talking about police reform. The two party system doesn’t like that.
@@technodrone313they can claim anything they want. They also bleed like everyone else and a dead cop can’t claim anything.
Is it just me, or are cops getting dumber every day 🤔
Or just feeling more entitled with each passing day.
The courts removed the requirment for honor and responsibility so all the men who require that of themselves and others no longer want the job.
It isn't only the cops, it's their supervisors and city and state management. It always starts at the top. If their supervisors weren't corrupt and/or lazy and if the city/state management wasn't corrupt or lazy, there wouldn't be a problem.
The cop got the taxpayers to pay for disability benefits and retirement.
Not sure the word is "dumber"
Naw it's just the public getting smarter and wiser and the police are stagnant by ego and pride with glee
This “ancient gesture of insult”! Best euphemism I’ve heard this week!
It seems the courts have found that qualified immunity is unconstitutional. With zero legal obligation to serve and protect while benefiting from qualified immunity we get an occupying Force of under educated bullies. We need reform, higher standards and better educated public servants.
Occupying force? It might be a lot of things, but not that LOL. Tyranny is probably a better term.
@@msromike123 It more than qualifies as the standing army we've been warned about.
@@msromike123 Law enforcement comprises a heavily armored group that has been militarized. They number upward of 900,000 nationally. I would call that an occupying force.
@@msromike123you do not consider police an occupying force?
Call in shots fired, cop down and see how a non occupying force reacts.
If you want better educated public servants, pay us to stay in our jobs.
I make 40k/year in my position at a state legislature. When I give up on sticking to believing in the mission and finally take any private equivalent position, I’ll immediately make $80-120k. Got another offer for a position this week.
To have highly qualified public servants, we need to pay them adequately.
Over fifty years ago, when I used to drive street legal hot rods on the street, the local cops would pull me over. They would go over the whole car, waste my time, make sure my state inspection sticker was up-to-date, and everything was legal. When they couldn't find anything that they could cite me for, I'd get a ticket for "following too closely." After the third time of this in two months, I went to court and fought it. I had witnesses, and the people in front of me were friends of mine.The people behind me were friends of mine. We were on the way to the drive-in. They were my witnesses. The judge threw it out. That cop ended up getting thrown off the force because he pulled over and sexually harassed someone who turned out to be that judges daughter. KARMA
@mustbetrue1602 You must be a cop or an ex cop to think like this. This was in a small south florida Redneck town. The cop was a douchebag and harassed everybody. You weren't there, and you didn't live with it and have to deal with it. Not all cops are bad , but this one was. After the third ticket, the judge threw it out. Also, the douchebag cop sexually harassed the
judge's daughter when he pulled her over one night. We didn't have cameras back then.But if we did, I would love to be able to show you the footage.
@@mustbetrue1602Because cops or security are *never* wrong? If that cop has the narrative in his mind that any kid driving a car like that “needs to learn his place,” that’s abuse of power. In the dark ages, when I was in high school CB Radio was the craze. Our local CB community used to have “Coffee Breaks “ at a local eatery with a large parking lot. A lot of us got rides with older CBers or our parents. There was also a group of motorcyclists that came the same night of the week. We took up fewer spaces, and were inside yakking and buying food. The cyclists rarely came in, except for beer (yep, they sold that). They’d be doing burnouts in the parking lot, nearly running others over, and getting loud. Guess who “Security” was always busting on? They come up to a table of 26 years old and scream at us for not buying food (the table was filled with our food) and being too rowdy. Why didn’t they do anything about the bikers? 1) They made a lot of money on that beer 2) as one county cop once told us, they Security knew WE weren’t going to shove them, and they could push us around. After a few months of this, they lost the business of every CBer for 50 miles. The bikers were there years later, but others stopped going Friday nights since the atmosphere seemed scary. By the time I was out of college, they’d finally gotten up the nerve to trespass the bikers. Who weren’t all causing problems, but hey.
Should say “16 year olds”
Wow😮
@@mustbetrue1602you said you bet, so you don't know the facts and defending someone and situation that you know nothing about.
Repeal qualified immunity, force all leos to carry their own insurance (not the City) and require those same leos to have a degree in civil liberties.
When I saw this on the news this morning, I knew Steve would have something to say.
Cops need to lose their "You will respect mah authoritah" ego driven mind set.
Look up narcissist it will explain a lot as to why they won't. It's a dangerous personality trait coupled with a position of authority.
@@kathrynleaser5093 Your correct, which is what draws those type of people to that job.
Yes sadly so. Once you know this its hard to not see it. Knowing what triggers them is helpful in diffusing and encounter. You have to be very careful with this type of individual. Do not fear them but know what your up agaisnt ..be smart and dont get baited by them. Thanks for the response. 😊@ScooterFXRS
A Pennsylvania state trooper thought it was a good idea to cite me through the mail for disorderly conduct and fighting with first responders. At the magistrates hearing that I requested, the magistrate in front of a fairly large audience Explained the first amendment to the constitution to not only one Pennsylvania state trooper, but two of them. Somehow, they managed to lose the in car camera video they said they had. Imagine how humiliating getting caught lying at a magistrates hearing where these Pennsylvania state troopers see the magistrate on a regular basis probably at least weekly. I handled it Pro se. The gift that they gave me was that recently that Pennsylvania state trooper was arrested for domestic abuse and is awaiting trial. I warned his captain at the barracks, this guy is easily triggered and he’s going to be in trouble in the future.
Once a cop, always a criminal.
@@Auguur
Just in the last year and a half or Pennsylvania, state troopers have been discharged for various reasons starting with child pornography, kidnapping, a former girlfriend, domestic abuse, and beating a man who required extensive reconstructive surgery and threatened the man with burning his house down if he told anyone. Two chief of police fired from their jobs, one for arranging drug transfers and the other one for trafficking humans. 18 miles apart from where I live… there’s plenty more, but I’ll stop.
What troop was he out of?
@@kathrynleaser5093
Troop A Greensburg, Pennsylvania. “ Derry Pennsylvania state trooper arrested for domestic violence.“
Thank you for the reply. Crazy how things go down. Take care😊@@yt650
The police have investigated themselves and found they did nothing wrong!😢. Same old B.S.!!!
If it’s a first violation should be disqualification of qualified immunity
back in 2018, lawsuit filed in 2021, settled in 2024. Justice moving at a glacial pace. Gotta love it.
Ben once again hiding in the dark, on top of MCL books over Steve's right shoulder
Good eyes. I totally missed it.
@@BenLeitch Well it's night here, and my night vision is pretty good(with my glasses on)😉
This incident is horrifying! That it has taken four years to resolve is equally horrifying! This cop ought to be fired and prevented from ever working in law enforcement again. And he should have had any qualified immunity revoked and be held personally liable for damages. These kind of events seem to happen even more frequently in recent years. And cops continue to violate our rights even on camera!
Wasn't fired. They were allowed to retire. So not only did they cost tax payers on the settlement, they are now taking a pension from tax payer dollars too.
The government is targeting and torturing people in the privacy of their own homes and stalking in public.
Why is this attorney NOT addressing these horrible crimes ?!
Since when is flipping off a cop illegal? WOW.
It can be deemed disorderly conduct.
the cop told the guy to stop doing that right meow
"Needs to respect everyone's 1st amendments rights even when offensive or insulting" wish everyone was held to this standard.
I have seen the video, it shows how self important that that state police officer thought he was. The video was from the state police dash camera. It had full audio. Lack Luster is the channel, if I remember it correctly.
If the local jurisdiction still have decency laws on the books, they are actually void and unenforceable. A case in Louisiana had 2 cops trying to do that, the DA told them “No” and explained it. The cops still filed it and it was eventually thrown out by the state Supreme Court.
Audit the Audit had this video on about three days ago, complete with the video dashcam. You know, if I could buy that cop for how important he really is and sell him for how important he THINKS he is, I wouldn't need to play the lottery, I would be set for life.
@@ki5aok I think both channels had it, but I might be wrong. It might also appeared on “Civil Rights Lawyer”, it’s making the rounds.
I was arrested in MS for flipping off a cop, spent the weekend in jail. Charge was public use of profanity. Judge dismissed the charges Monday morning.
yeah, but you went to jail.
so you lost
Did you sue?
the police totally won.
you did two days jail.
I see that RUclips is not posting my reply. Not at all surprising.
I did not sue. I was in my 20's and my attitude needed an adjustment. Consequences people, consequences.
Could the tax payers file a class action against the officer for being liable for the damages he caused?
No, but they should be able to
Every day I'm reminded of how I was too qualified to be a cop
A few weeks ago, it was by finding the guy my hometown hired instead of me, in jail again on felony gun charges, yet again, after getting caught on his way to assault someone, again.
😲
I saw this incident on Audit the Audit two or three days ago and was left thinking a) that cop needs his credentials revoked b) he also needed to be thrown under the jail and c) why was the court case not done yet? I'm glad it has been settled and settled in the driver's favor.
Steve, that’s where society has ground to a halt! Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should! So many people are right fighters and very stupid!
Vermont State Police stated that Trooper Riggen retired from the force on May 31.
That was before the settlement was made.😮
This happened back in 2018 my thinking is. The state dragged their heels until the trooper was able to get full retirement.
What shame,they really protect these damn tyrants!!!!!
When I was a kid, a cop stopped our school bus because he said somebody flipped him off. He pulled the kid off the bus and spoke to him for several minutes. Then the kid got back on the bus and we went on our way. I have no idea what the eventual outcome for anyone involved was, but it definitely discourage all of us for expressing those kind of feelings while on our bus towards police officers in the future.
Those ego driven tyrants can do just about anything,until they get challenged !!!!!!
"Do you want to go through a $100,000 dollars of trouble?" Only someone that wasn't struggling living day to day...like a successful lawyer, wouldn't think a week in a jail cell was worth it. In fact, $100,000 would probably save my life.
Steve said one finger salute and it reminds me of the time we taught our Iraqi interpreter to do that to officers. This dude did it to Major General Gaskins in on Fallujah. 😂😂😂
Violation of someone's rights has zero consequences for the perpetrators. Unless there's a penalty, they have no reason to change.
About 20 years ago, I flipped off a cop in Washington, DC. And he arrested me for disorderly conduct!! And I was jailed for 4 hours. Are you telling me I could have gotten paid for that? Dammit!! Has the statute of limitations run out on that?
This is why I don't send any articles or videos to Steve anymore. He gets flooded w/ the same breaking news, thereby this channel actually becomes a news source for me!
It's very apparent, the cop is very immature, child like. Flipping your finger? Yes your assholiness.
Years ago, my mom, brother, and I were pulled over by an off duty cop in Atlanta. My mom was driving, waiting to turn right at a dangerous intersection that included a blind curve. The cop was behind us honking his horn repeatedly, which led my brother sitting in the back to flip him off. This led to the cop stopping us while he parked in the middle of the intersection to tell at us. The only resson i didnt pursue a complaint my mom was afraid of retaliation. I still regret not taking down the tag number and filing a complaint. It's fine to be angry at being flipped off. Stopping a whole intersection to yell at a family and make vaguee threats about bring armed not so much.
Thank you, Steve, for covering this! I was just watching another YT video covering this too. If you search YT for 'Man arrested for flipping off state trooper awarded settlement' it will also show the actual trooper's dashboard cam video of the original arrest. The police officer (trooper) seemed tyrannically arrogant and acted on his personal feelings.
Somebody got their feelings hurt. 😕
... and cue the thousands of people flipping off cops looking for a quick payday.
Nah, most of us are doing it on principle, no payday needed.
Send this video to everyone you know.
They spend a few months to become an officer. Then the rest of their career learning “work arounds” to violate our rights.
I imagine the rules would be different for flipping off a judge in court.
You earn disrespect you get disrespect
❤️
Abolish Qualified Immunity immediately
Why are the offenders not charged and sued? End Qualified Immunity !
Lackluster has a vid on this as well. This is absolutely ridiculous! Thanks for covering it! Didn't know they can amend a ticket, thanks!
I had some cop tailgate me for a mile, I gave him the bird, he pulled me over so he could show off his costume. After he finally left me alone I went and filed a report with his superior.
Glad you could find someone to write it for you
75k to the legal aid? That's a 75% fee. Ouch! He should Sue them for gouging. 😂😂😂
GET RID OF QUALIFIED IMMUNITY!!!! This should have come out of this cop's own pocket.
I’ve seen numerous filmed instances of this occurring that have appeared on YT (I think Audit the Audit covered at least one of them), to say nothing of those that were not filmed; one would think agencies would issue instructions to their officers that ‘contempt of cop’ is not a charge, but then it doesn’t come out of their budgets or pensions.
My Dad was pulled over 50 years ago for flipping off a cop. He argued that he was using his hand signal indicating he was turning right. He got off.
i dont see why he wouldnt when the first amendment exists
Why do these cases keep getting settled without any admission of wrongdoing or firing the offending officers. The only ones punished are the taxpayers, the city/state just shrugs and the officer keeps on working and violating other peoples rights up to their retirement.
The stop for flipping is legit, the cop could have thought he wanted his attention.
It beggars belief that the police refuse to admit to wrongdoing even when the courts find against them. What is wrong with police in America?
Runaway power Trip due to qualified immunity, protection from repercussions for their actions due to the fact that taxpayers pay for their mistakes. Inflated egos due to badges, guns and the power of violence being given to them.
I think that about covers it.
I know you often say it's not as simple as "I would happily go through this if I got X amount of money for it", but I think I would happily go through this one for 100K.
There was never a reason for it to go to an appeal court in the firstvplace. It should have been denied right off the get-go.
I love your daily disposition. Keep up the great work.
And that's the problem with settling out of court, the city doesn't accept culpability. It needs to go to trial, and all parties exposed....bigger payout... potentially.
And that's the problem: "potentially." If they go to trial, they take the chance that the jury will award LESS than the city offers.
Yes, but then there is FINALLY a record of the city and police losing.
I know that in some places, if you reject a settlement and go to trial and are awarded less than the settlement amount would have been, you owe the governments legal fees for the trial.
The more this nonsense happens the more convinced i am you should need to go to law school for at least a 2 year degree before you're allowed to be a police officer
it would be a good start but accountability is the real problem .
That's REQUIRED in the UK. Not sure about the rest of EU....
I just saw the related video on The Civil Rights Lawyer channel. The whole situation was nuts.
So anytime you get pulled over, flip the bird when pulling away you might just get lucky.....
Yea, but you'll only get paid 6 years later.
The other 1st Amendment Auditor who goes by the name _Carolina Ft. Worth_ here on RUclips just got hospitalized for refusing to ID and clear the area. The male cop bounced her head off of the pavement knocking her out, broke several bones, including ribs, and her face has quite a few stitches. Wonder what that payout is going to cost taxpayers?
Yeah, she got there by resisting. I don’t have any respect for people that create chaos for profit. First amendment auditors are trying to walk right up to the line between legal and illegal and monetize the show.
@@JW-mb6tq creating chaos for profit is like our country and others indulging in perpetual proxy wars and global disinformation campaigns as a means to lubricate the machinations of war and keep pumping out new war machines, missiles, etc., and devising and implementing new ways to inflict death on untold millions while rewriting history. Sign me up for that at the end of the run-on sentence. 😄
They need to start taking these judgements out of police pension funds, rather than just passing them on to the taxpayers....
Yet those same judges will not think twice to hold someone in contempt and lock them up.
They are public officials, and, seemingly, the only ones that can't stand getting their feelings hurt.
I'm sure the comments section is going to quickly fill up about people whining about this man getting a $175k paycheck at the expense of the taxpayers.
To all of those people: If you don't like it, elect a better police commissioner.
It's a much bigger problem than that. It is also hiring practices, training, and qualified immunity.
In the 90s flipping off cops was a arrestable offense in Illinois..They labeled it as "disorderly conduct" as the catch all arrest
I love to hear when little people win against the mighty badge.
*Pays settlement for something clearly unconstitutional*
“We admit no wrongdoing”
Children are less petty than that
You know requiring a 4 year degree in the laws a police officer enforces ,and a minimum 85% passing grade would save taxpayers millions in law suit settlements.
I saw this video footage, and if I remember correctly, Menard is a sergeant, which makes this case even more egregious.
Just as an aside, don’t flip off anyone in Florida, everyone has a gun.
Need to be careful that these 3rd party institutions that sue on behalf of someone aren't colluding to keep the compensation low.
Was the trooper disciplined?
Probably not
What if he gives half the money to the cop? Would he and the cop be arrested for fraud? Now the cop gets arrested and has to pay for an attorney all over an arrest that should not have happened.
Ignorance of the law is no excuse-especially if "you are" "the law", meaning law enforcement. Sheesh.
That trooper needs to be in jail for life. Battery, armed robbery, kidnapping, perjury and grand theft auto. The case law goes back to before that trooper was born and that is well established. He should not be allowed out of prison in his lifetime
Just because you can absolutely means you should. Thats why its called exercising your rights.
It was the judge that dismissed it. The DA actually added charges.
It all boils down to poor vetting, and poor training.
Qualified Immunity, Just doin' my job. Too bad the state had to pay, but I'm in the right.
That is exactly the disconnect. Paying large settlements should be enough for cops to realize that what they do to create a settlement is wrong.
@MrTrailerman2 I doubt the individual officers care at all. We need the police administration to pay, not the state. That would wake them up....maybe
Remember it's not a "hand signal" it's free speech.
Imagine if you sued everyone who flipped you off in life.
i smell a new passive income
Tax free!
How can it take this long…6 years ..insane
How can cases like this even get to an appeals court in the first place? Why doesn't the first court that hears it throw out the Qualified Immunity? The higher court send a memo down to all the lower courts telling them something like, "Don't send us this crap. You KNOW the 1st Amendment is well established. If a cop violates it, he doesn't get Qualified Immunity for that." And the municipalities that have to pay out settlements like this should put a big poster on the inside of every LEO facility reminding them that they won't get it if they violate any of our Constitutional rights that have been well established for a long time.
Zero personal consequences for violating rights.
In the 1960s, when I was in high school, this issue came up, and even back then the court held that flipping off a cop was not illegal. It's hard to believe that 60 years later police academies are not teaching their students this fact on day one. The police officer in charge of booking should have stopped this foolishness in its tracks. It's also hard to believe the the Vermont authorities didn't settle this case the day after it was filed. Are the lawyers employed by Vermont also incompetent? Apparently so.
Steve,
The best response I ever made , and was let go ( I had some indoor growing equipment that I was being accused of growing prohibited plants, which did not exist)
I said something to the effect that if our County D.A. was dressed to the 9's or 10's and was standing on the street corner. Would you arrest her for being a prostitute?
They didn't steal my stuff.😂😂😂
Man Gets $100K After Arrest For Flipping Off Cop, Then Pay His Lawyers $99,950 Bill.
I believe the settlement was 175 thousand 75,000 to the lawyers, which was ACLU.
One of the very few good things the ACLU does nowadays.
But they wont put ppl in jail for repeated robbery? 🤔 Definition of broken. I cant sugar coat it.
I saw the video. The guy was cooperative and polite. It was the cop who escalated the situation. It happened in 2018! Why does it take 6 years to resolve?