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“An American football star has accused police in Las Vegas of racially profiling him after a video emerged of him being pinned to the ground and handcuffed,” standard.co.uk reports (video below.) “Michael Bennett, a Seattle Seahawks defensive lineman who has won the Super Bowl, said he was arrested after fleeing a nightclub with several hundred other members of the public following what people thought were gunshots.” In a statement posted on Twitter . . .

Bennett wrote that he feared he would die, saying: “As I laid on the ground, complying with his commands not to move, (the officer) placed his gun near my head and warned me that if I moved he would ‘blow my f***** head off’.”

The video released by the LVPD shows Mr. Bennett being cuffed, and his claims of racism have been disputed. The threat was issued before the video begins — theoretically.

Meanwhile, the allegation brings to mind the quote — famously uttered by General James Mattis — “Be polite, be professional, but have a plan to kill everybody you meet.”

I reckon (armed) police officers should be unfailingly polite, even as they threaten the use of force, or apply it. Anything less invites escalation. Alternatively, bad guys need street talk to pay attention.

We report, you deride.

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37 COMMENTS

  1. Haven’t checked in on this website lately and … just as I thought Farago’s obsession with attacking law enforcement continues.

    • Yes, it’s completely unreasonable that he would suggest police officers shouldn’t curse at people while performing their duties. That shows he’s a cop-hater.

      Sure.

    • And by “attacking law enforcement”, you mean not treating them as though they enjoyed a sort of “No Dogs or Chinese Allowed” legal extraterritoriality?

      If the cop fanbois had their way, this entire country would be Shanghai circa 1940, the cops would be the Imperial Japanese Army, and the rest of us Chinese, stepping off the sidewalk and bowing when they swagger by.

    • Last I checked, I didn’t need any laws enforced, thank you very much.

      If cops could really enforce the law then they would be able to actually prevent murders and thefts, not just show up after the fact to investigate.

      Private parties can do everything a cop can. If we need judicial assistance then we’ll take the offending party to court.

      I don’t need to be pulled over for going X MPH in my car, my daughter doesn’t need to be given a citation for selling lemonade without a business permit, I don’t need armed agents coming to my house to see if my gun has a barrel length less than X inches or a piece of metal tubing…

      If you believe in law enforcement then you believe in the monopoly of power concentrated into a few hands. That’s fine but then don’t bitch when they come to take you way because you’re actually a felon and didn’t know it. “Ignorance of the law is no excuse.”

  3. Please do not move Mr. Bennett…..for your safety as well as mine, should you make unauthorized moves that appear to me to be provocative, I will have to separate your well shaped and race baiting head from your neck region. Your cooperation in not doing anything that would make me have to do that would be very much appreciated. Do you understand my commands as I have explained to you Mr. Bennett? Thank you for using the Las Vegas Metro PD sir! Have a nice day….after you post bail. 😏

  4. In my (admittedly less confrontational) interactions with the LV Metro they have been unfailingly polite and helpful.

    When the back doors of my truck came open and I dropped 50 (empty) beer kegs in the intersection they assisted in reloading the truck and as I waited for the expected ticket the officer said, “Shit happens – have a nice day.”

    When I went to Henderson police to register my pistols (used to have to do that) the officer was friendly and asked about each on, especially the S&W 686.

    And last week when I went to the doctor the business next door had just been robbed. Eight Metro PD were milling about, one putting up crime scene tape. I went over to him and said that I was going in to the doctor and could not take my pistol, but I didn’t want to draw it and put it in my truck and maybe alarm the numerous police nearby. He smiled, said “go ahead, it’s cool”, and we both went about our business.

    Pretty sure if you don’t fuck with these guys you’re not gonna have an issue.

    • “Pretty sure if you don’t fuck with these guys you’re not gonna have an issue.”

      Feel free to tell everyone how Margie Carranza, Emma Hernandez and David Perdue “fucked with” the LAPD and Torrance PD.

      For extra credit, tell everyone how Akai Gurley and Karolyna Obrycka “fucked with” the NYPD and Chicago PD respectively.

    • I’m sure the SS, Stasi and Khmer Rouge could be easy going and polite as well. Doesn’t mean I think they are helpful in any way or needed.

      I could say, “well at least that gentleman was kind and polite as he and his comrades held me down and took me from behind.” I guess that makes all the difference huh?

  5. when you are hiding from the cops during a shooting –then make a run for the doors like a criminal…then jump a wall to hide behind while being yelled at

    Your a criminal and will be treated as such till we get to the station!

    • Or when you run and hide when there’s a shooting, with 200 other people, and you get taken down, handcuffed, a gun pointed at your head, then later let you out when they find out your a semi famous, semi rich, athlete.

      And then the union president sends a letter to the commissioner of the business you work for, to complain that you had the temerity to call them on said handcuffing, and flagging, etc.

      • You’re right, Rick. The police should never detain anyone that hides from them at a violent crime scene and then runs from them. There is nothing suspicious about hiding from the police or running away when they tell you not to.

        As a matter of fact, they should probably have started detaining the people that were people that were not hiding and listening to their commands. Makes sense.

        Sense just isn’t common any more.

      • I know little about this incident, so a few questions come to mind…
        How many other people were detained?
        What made this one person stand out to police enough to make this action necessary, even if others did something to make them targets of police action?
        Am I supposed to believe that the police simply randomly pick people out of a group of 200 for their attention?
        Was this person one of a small minority who happened to be black, and therefore a target of racist cops?

        • He ran and hid from the supposed shooter, in the street behind a barrier, not from the police. There were many other patrons hiding in the same place. There was no shooter, and since there was no shooter, and no description of said not shooter, detaining the large black man using the “fitting the description” excuse doesn’t work. Plus as soon as they found out he was a famous athlete, they let him go, since NFL players have never been known to have an issue in Vegas, PacMan Jones is still paying for one, 12 years later.

          Then the ridiculous letter to Goodell.

  6. i always use the phrase “don’t move or i’ll blow your feckin’ head off” as a sort of neutral, unracially charged statement.
    i might tack “sally” on if it’s a femwee or my stepsister.

  8. …and again we only get video of the end of things. Something tells me he was detained not because of his race, but his behavior at the scene. Rather than just complying and rolling with things till a chaotic situation got sorted out, male ego kicks in and let’s try playing the race card for some attention.

    Sorry this bullcrap racism game is getting really old. Next spoiled attention seeker athlete please.

    • From another story….

      “Near the end of the video you can see Michael Bennett, crouching behind a slot machine inside the casino, appearing to hide from police. When the police approached him because he appeared suspicious hiding there, he jumped up and ran away from them, refusing commands to stop, leaping a wall, and attempting to escape from them before being caught and detained.”

      Yeah that’s a really good way to get yourself detained, tased or maybe even a dose of hot lead and a complimentary Darwin Award nomination. Good freaking grief, what an idiot. I can understand a black man being apprehensive about the police in that situation, but here is a life extending Pro Tip: Just freaking stop when told to stop and comply from there.

  9. All those people with cellphones and not ONE person caught the police holding a gun to his head? I call BS. I guess the NFL isn’t paying enough so he “wanna get payd” for dat chit

  10. I’ll wait for the trial, when all the evidence comes out. As an NFL player he has the money to hire the best lawyers.

  11. “I reckon (armed) police officers should be unfailingly polite, even as they threaten the use of force, or apply it. Anything less invites escalation. Alternatively, bad guys need street talk to pay attention.”

    This seems like an example of the latter. These policemen heard gunshots, saw a person running, believe he may be involved (and thusly armed), ordered him to lay on the ground, and them saw that he had the physical build of an athlete, which is more than we can say for most of the public, let alone most law enforcement officers. I don’t think there is a problem with them telling him not to move or they will blow his head off; it removes any doubt that they are acknowledging his physical strength, and they will do what they have to do to apprehend him. It is similar to little dogs that have a larger dog enter there yard. They don’t start off by calmly walking over to the other dog to investigate. They come with all the sound and ferocity they can muster, because they must present themselves as a threat against an opponent that is much larger and much more capable.

  12. Not much video evidence to go on.

    I agree that police should be polite and professional. The politeness goes away somewhat when dealing with felony suspects. Please and thank you when facing a carjacker, knife wielder, etc. just sounds silly.

  13. I think there are some scenarios where a cop should be super aggressive and very rude in order to (possibly) overwhelm a person who can be a threat to life. Some people/criminals think if you are polite they can take advantage of you because politeness is weakness in their eyes. They need to know that there will be no games and you will not hesitate to “blow their head off” if they reach for a weapon. Hopefully, words will work and no shots will need to be fired.

  14. I have no idea what the cops did here and don’t really care.

    Michael Bennet is a complete thug. He’s been arrested for swindling his girlfriends parents and was sent to the joint for wire fraud. When he was with the Bucs here in Tampa his behavior off the field was pretty atrocious.

  15. I have difficulty at my work sometimes with coworkers accepting suggestions from me. I work with two man crews and we are supposed to both be responsible for safety and efficiency. I don’t get to choose who I work with so a lot of times there is different races working the same job. Some people will not accept suggestions or ideas I feel based on the color of my skin. So I can see where officers must be forceful in their instructions. I get the sense in my situations the co-worker is resistant to my suggestions because they would be complying with someone who is trying to take dominion over them. That’s not what I’m intending to do. I just have a job to do and am trying to do it as safe and efficient as possible. The other worker would rather raw hide himself to death than take a little suggestion and make a task easier on themselves. Quit trying to be the man who broke a thousand chains and just take a little direction.

  16. Dude. Your suggestion that police be polite when applying force illustrates that you’ve probably never been in a serious violent confrontation. Politeness goes out the window. I usually don’t even remember what I said after aggravated situations conclude. Get real.

  18. This video constitutes no proof of anything, other than that the big bad ball player is a little p**** b****. Whining and crying and desperately pleading his case? Seriously?

    First, it’s pointless. 5-0 is going to handcuff everyone they can in order to stabilize the situation. Then they can begin questioning people to sort out witnesses from victims from suspects and determine what happened. The highest priority in the midst of that chaos is to quell the chaos. Shouting your protestations only prolongs and exacerbates the chaos.

    Second, you forfeit all claim to cool when you hysterically plead like that. Not to mention risking freaking cops out and perhaps getting hurt. Shut your mouth, settle down, and get it together. Know that you’re going to walk, but it’s going to be a long and F’d up night. You’ll be back at home in your mansion with your Canadian goose down pillows, your Egyptian cotton sheets, and a vicuna throw in case your pampered rear catches a chill in the night, in no time.

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