“I could blast you right in the mouth. I tell you what I should have done. As soon as I saw your gun, I should have taken two steps back, pulled my Glock 40, and just put 10 bullets in your ass and let you drop. And I wouldn’t have lost any sleep. I am so close to caving in your God damn head. It’s how fucking cops get killed.”
-Officer Daniel Harless, Canton Ohio Police Dept
Video Shows Psycho Cop Threaten Murder During Arrest
Fox News
21 July 2011
An Ohio police officer is being widely criticized for a threatening rant caught on his dashboard camera during a recent arrest.
The June 8, 2011 video, which was obtained by a gun rights group [OhioCCW.org], shows a Canton police officer grow irate after he indicates that the driver of a stopped vehicle waited too long to inform him of his concealed gun, even though he had a proper permit to carry it.
“I could blast you right in the mouth,” the officer said. “I am so close to caving in your God damn head.”
“It’s how fucking cops get killed.”
Once inside the police car, the officer continues the rant, saying, “I tell you what I should have done. As soon as I saw your gun, I should have taken two steps back, pulled my Glock 40, and just put 10 bullets in your ass and let you drop. And I wouldn’t have lost any sleep.”
The Canton Repository identified the police officer as Daniel Harless and reported that he was placed on administrative leave in June, and has most recently been on sick leave. The department is investigating the incident.
Approaching a car is one of the more stressful tasks a police officer can perform. Some states, like Ohio, have laws that mandate prompt notification of a concealed carry permit when stopped by police.
In this case, the driver William Bartlett, who had the permit for a month, appears to make attempts in the video at telling the police officer about his weapon, but is cut off by the arresting officer, his lawyer said.
He was arrested and charged with both a traffic violation and failure to notify a police officer about a concealed weapon, two misdemeanors, Timothy Bellew, his lawyer, said. He was released the same night.
Bellew provided Ohioans For Concealed Carry, a group in which he’s a member, with the video of the arrest because he said that it vindicates his client.
“You see on at least two occasions my client tries to inform the cops about his concealed weapon, but get’s cut off,” he said. “And then he goes off very unprofessionally.”
Chris Harben, the compliance coordinator for Ohioans For Concealed Carry, said the group has many members in law enforcement and none said the cop handled the situation correctly.
Canton Police Chief Dean McKimm was also critical of the actions seen in the video.
“I think it’s important for citizens to understand that the behavior demonstrated on the video is wholly unacceptable, and it violates many of our rules, our regulations and standards we demand of our officers,” McKimm said, according to The Repository.
Cops aren't driven insane by citizens with guns, cops are driven insane by making a career out of robbing people at gunpoint.
The cop heard round the world: Ohio incident puts law in crosshairs
Not only is a Canton, Ohio police officer under increasing fire this morning for his profanity-laden outburst at an armed citizen that now has gun rights activists from Toledo to Tacoma furious, the Buckeye State law that requires citizens to notify cops if they are armed is also being partly blamed for what happened during a video encounter that has streaked around the world over the past 24 hours.
The incident, discussed by this column yesterday, ignited a firestorm on the Northwest Firearms and WaGuns forums, plus Open Carry.org, GunRightsMedia and The High Road, with sentiment decidedly against the cop, and sympathetic toward the armed citizen, now identified as William Bartlett. This 17-minute video has set public relations back about 50 years between Canton police and the firearms community.
A prime example of this setback is a column by Robert Flynn appearing on Gather today. Flynn observes:
"While most police officers respect a person's right to carry a concealed weapon, there are some who just refuse to accept it. Concealed carry is the law in Ohio and police officers must come to accept it. Most seem to be able to face this situation without losing their composure, but officer Harless's reaction is indicative of a larger societal problem. Some in our society just refuse to accept that guns are legal and necessary…
Officer Harless's actions seem to show the dangers that can come about when police refuse to respect a citizen's right to carry a concealed weapon. The driver could have easily believed that officer Harless meant him harm, at which point violence could have ensued.
If someone is going to threaten to arbitrarily kill American citizens, is this not what the right to self-protection is all about? Many see the right to bear arms as the founding father's way to make sure that the ordinary citizen always had the ability to resist a tyrannical government. And is not a police officer arbitrarily threatening to kill ordinary citizens the ultimate example of tyranny?"
Bad enough for Canton Police Chief Dean McKimm and the now-off-the-streets cop, Daniel Harless that the video rant is big news on local Ohio television, here, here and here, but the story also made national news on Fox. So far, Harless appears to be remaining silent; something he probably should have done on the night of June 8 when he and a partner pulled up behind the parked car in which Bartlett was seated behind the wheel. It has not been clear exactly what Bartlett was doing that night, parked at the curb, with two other people, but on the video, while he is being threatened with felony arrest and summary execution, he displays a considerable amount of grace under fire.
But what about this Ohio requirement to immediately notify a police officer if you are legally armed? In Bartlett’s case, the video shows him apparently trying to do that at least twice, only to be ignored or told to “shut up” by Harless. Bartlett can be seen holding both his driver’s license and his concealed pistol permit, trying to inform Harless of his gun without opening his mouth.
Ohioans for a Concealed Carry say the officer was way out of line.
The advocacy group also says the state's law is a problem.
"The notification law fails everybody," says Philip Mulivor, a coordinator of the group.
Mulivor says Ohio should follow the lead of some other states and require officers to ask if there is a legal gun in the car, rather than requiring the driver to say it first.
Here in Washington State, there is no such requirement. Smart cops, state troopers and sheriff’s deputies approach everyone as if they are armed. That’s probably a good assumption, considering that there are more than 370,000 Evergreen State citizens who are licensed to carry, and in the case of Open Carry activists, lawmen can tell at a glance if they are packing.
And what if they are? As Open Carry activists have found in various jurisdictions, depending upon the individual policeman, encounters can range from good to not so good. It is all a matter of attitude, which, in the case of Canton cop Harless, seems to have started out bad and gone downhill from there.
Only a few states require armed citizens to notify an officer if they are armed.
Why should they? Gun rights activists believe that if an armed citizen is minding his own business and not creating a disturbance, what he’s carrying, concealed or openly, is nobody else’s business. There is a quirk in this state's law that has created problems:
(1) It shall be unlawful for any person to carry, exhibit, display, or draw any firearm, dagger, sword, knife or other cutting or stabbing instrument, club, or any other weapon apparently capable of producing bodily harm, in a manner, under circumstances, and at a time and place that either manifests an intent to intimidate another or that warrants alarm for the safety of other persons.
However, that quirk is not insurmountable, and a state court of appeals ruling appears to narrow it considerably. The ruling, unfortunately, remains unpublished. The case is State v. Casad, and this is what the State Court of Appeals, Division II said:
We note that, in connection with this case, several individuals have commented that they would find it strange, maybe shocking, to see a man carrying a gun down the street in broad daylight. Casad’s appellate counsel conceded that she would personally react with shock, but she emphasized that an individual’s lack of comfort with firearms does not equate to reasonable alarm. We agree. It is not unlawful for a person to responsibly walk down the street with a visible firearm, even if this action would shock some people. (emphasis added)
Harless is now on “administrative leave” and he also reportedly went on sick leave earlier this week. Gun owners reacting to the video say he should be fired and prosecuted. Canton Chief McKimm has promised a full investigation, but many gun owners predict that he will get a “slap on the hand” followed by some additional training, and a return to duty. As retired Cincinnati Police Lt. Harry Thomas, who has offered to be an expert witness for the defense if Bartlett – now charged with a misdemeanor traffic infraction and failure to notify a police officer about his concealed handgun – is ultimately prosecuted, that video will follow Harless. It could run him right out of a job.
The question among angry gun rights activists today: How many more like Harless are still out there, not yet captured on video?
See also:
Concealed Carry Laws posted by Ohio Attorney General
Handgun Concealed Carry Laws in Tennessee
Handgun Open Carry Laws in Tennessee
Tennessee Attorney General Opinion on Handgun Open Carry
Handgun Concealed Carry Laws in North Carolina
Handgun Open Carry Laws in North Carolina
A Dallas police officer is on administrative leave after authorities said she fired off her gun while off-duty in a squad car with at least one on-duty officer.
The call came in at around 11:30 p.m. Wednesday night, which was when police rushed to the scene at Abrams Road and Gaston Avenue and found three officers at the scene.
Police said the incident happened after Kelly Beemer, an off-duty officer who police said had a few drinks, had gotten into a squad car of an on-duty police officer. Beemer allegedly pulled out her service weapon from her holster and fired the gun into the floorboard. Sources said she was belligerent at the time. Part of the incident was captured on audio tape from a dash cam camera.
"You need to stop this [expletive] now," Beemer can be heard saying on the tape before a gun fires.
"Oh [expletive], Kelly please drop the gun," an officer in the car said. "Kelly, drop the gun."
Prior to the incident, video from the dash cam showed two officers holding a stumbling Beemer up by her arms as they walked her towards the squad car. Throughout the drive, authorities said Beemer cried and acted belligerent, believing she was under arrest.
Sources said the on-duty officer driving the squad car was originally called to the bar where Beemer and other officers had been drinking. Prior to being picked up, Beemer was allegedly offered rides from other officers at the bar, and at one point ran and hid from officers, sources said.
Commanders were called to the scene, but did not arrest Beemer at the time, saying she was too drunk to be interviewed. It wasn't until they viewed the tape that they decided to arrest and charge Beemer.
"We are disappointed in her behavior there," said First Asst. Chief Charles Cato, Dallas Police Department. "I know I receive calls from friends, relatives who had a little too much to drink and needed a ride home, and all the people I've dealt with in that situation were just grateful that someone was willing to come out and pick them up. And so, in Officer Beemer's conduct, that was certainly a discredit to herself and to the people that were trying to help her. She put them in a really bad situation."
No officers were injured in the incident.
Beemer was arrested Thursday and charged with firing a weapon inside the city limits. If convicted, Beemer will lose her peace officer's license. Meanwhile, she has been stripped of her weapon and badge until the investigation is complete. Two other officers are on restrictive duty as police investigate their role in the incident.
COP.
2. to steal; filch. 3. to buy (narcotics). 4. cop out, a. to avoid one's responsibility, the fulfillment of a promise, etc.; renege; back out. 5. cop a plea, a. to plead guilty or confess in return for receiving a lighter sentence. b. to plead guilty to a lesser charge; plea-bargain."
-Random House Unabridged Dictionary
