The state police internal affairs division is reviewing a video that surfaced recently that appears to show several troopers discussing what charges to levy against a man who was protesting a DUI enforcement checkpoint near Park Road in West Hartford last year.
Michael Picard, 27, of East Hartford, was charged with creating a public disturbance and reckless use of the highway for the Sept. 11 incident in which a trooper can be heard saying on a recording of the encounter, "We gotta cover our asses."
Picard told The Courant Thursday that he was standing near a state police DUI enforcement checkpoint near the on-ramp to I-84 on Park Road at about 7 p.m. holding a sign that read "Cops ahead. Keep calm and remain silent." He said he also had a handgun visible in a holster on his waist because Connecticut is an open-carry state and he had a valid permit for the gun.
He posted several videos of the encounter to his YouTube page on Monday that appear to show several troopers discussing the legality of Picard's actions and trying to decide what charges to levy against him. Picard identifies three of the officers he encountered in the video.
The video begins with a trooper telling Picard that it is illegal to record the troopers. Picard tells the trooper that he is on public property and the trooper responds that he is on "state property."
Picard said he has protested DUI checkpoints in the past because he disagrees with their effectiveness and said they are a cost to taxpayers. In the video, he describes himself as someone who "advocates for freedom whenever and wherever."
"Want me to punch a number on this? We gotta cover our asses," one of the troopers is heard at one point during the video, although none of the officers are visible for portions of the video because Picard said one of the troopers took his camera from him and didn't realize it was still recording.
"Let's give him something," another voice on the tape is heard saying.
Picard said he was standing near the checkpoint for about an hour with a friend when a patrol car approached him from the area of the checkpoint and a trooper took his camera and his gun.
On the tape, a trooper is heard saying, "Somebody just said that one of you guys had a gun on him."
Picard said he was violating no laws by standing near the checkpoint with his sign and that he was legally permitted to have the gun visible and on his waist. He said police searched both him and his friend.
"They searched us and I asked, 'What reasonable suspicion do you have? They said you have a gun. And I said, 'that's not illegal.' They said it's unconcealed. I said, 'that's not illegal either.' "
Picard said police detained him for about 40 minutes as they checked to see if his gun permit was valid before issuing him a citation and returning his camera and handgun. He said he was never placed in handcuffs but a trooper stood near him at all times.
On the tape, one of the troopers is heard saying it is legal to do what Picard was doing. Another voice says, "I think we do simple trespass, we do reckless use of the highway and creating a public disturbance."
Another voice then says, "and then we claim, um, in backup we had multiple people, um, they didn't want to stay and give us a statement, so we took our own course of action."
State police said Thursday they planned to forward the video to its professional standards internal affairs division for review.
"We hold our Troopers to the highest standard, and now that this video has come to our attention we will forward it to Professional Standards (IA) for review," Trooper Kelly Grant said in an email Thursday.
Andrew Matthews, president of the Connecticut State Police Union, said Thursday afternoon he watched the shorter, edited version of Picard's video and said that although he could not discuss specifics because of the internal investigation, the union was standing behind the troopers involved.
"We support what our troopers did," Matthews said. "We respect and understand that people have the right to be in a public place and take photographs or video tape our troopers."
Matthews said that although there is "always room for education and improvement" he asked that the public reserve judgment of the video until all the facts are known.
"What makes our job more difficult is when people try and provoke law enforcement into doing something that isn't necessary," Matthews said.
Picard said he was issued a $178 ticket, but that when he went to court earlier this month a prosecutor offered to nullify the charges if he paid a $25 fine. He said he refused and wants the charges dropped outright or he plans to try the case in court.
Picard said he has protested about six DUI checkpoints in the past year or so. He was charged with reckless use of the highway for a similar run-in at a state police DUI checkpoint on Jennings Road in Hartford.
Picard said he does not protest the checkpoints to antagonize law enforcement officials but because he disagrees with their effectiveness and to exercise his constitutional rights.
"It's not really a hobby," Picard said. "It is just something that I do feel passionately about because I advocate for freedom. Stopping everyone based on no reasonable suspicions on the off chance that you might find one or two drunk drivers isn't freedom."
http://ift.tt/eA8V8J State Police caught on film making up charges for a protestor to "cover their asses". via top scoring links : news http://ift.tt/1nVlNcm
George and Nancie Barnes (Photos provided by the Watertown Police Dept.)