09-18-2007, 02:29 PM
The situation escalated when cooler heads should have prevailed. First, once it was clear his question was going to be an attack on Kerry, he still should have been allowed to finish asking the question without interference by the police. By interfering the police effectively escalated the situation rather than subdued it. His question was one that could have been dealt with civilly with a response (or a no comment) by Senator Kerry.
Second, once it was clear he was being arrested, he should not have resisted. All he had to do is to physically comply, verbally declare he was being arrested unfairly and wants others to witness it. The fact that he physically resisted is a rather clear sign he was looking to make a scene, to provoke the officers into worse action.
With that said, I've personally witnessed a situation similar to this that was dealt with in a much better manner by the police. When it was clear he was resisting arrest, one officer calmly took the verbal lead. Explained why he was being taken into custody, and why he must be restrained. When he continued to yell, they put his arms behind his back and pushed him out the door (presumably to be cuffed and put into the back of a cruiser).
In the case of the UF student, I'm uncertain why the police didn't take similar action - remove the problem student from the audience with clear verbal explanation and swift physical action.
The whole situation is rather absurd.
Cheers,
Munk
Second, once it was clear he was being arrested, he should not have resisted. All he had to do is to physically comply, verbally declare he was being arrested unfairly and wants others to witness it. The fact that he physically resisted is a rather clear sign he was looking to make a scene, to provoke the officers into worse action.
With that said, I've personally witnessed a situation similar to this that was dealt with in a much better manner by the police. When it was clear he was resisting arrest, one officer calmly took the verbal lead. Explained why he was being taken into custody, and why he must be restrained. When he continued to yell, they put his arms behind his back and pushed him out the door (presumably to be cuffed and put into the back of a cruiser).
In the case of the UF student, I'm uncertain why the police didn't take similar action - remove the problem student from the audience with clear verbal explanation and swift physical action.
The whole situation is rather absurd.
Cheers,
Munk