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Here is the body cam video from my illegal detainment in Pueblo, CO along with the settlement reached.

 

Settlement – https://drive.google.com/file/d/0ByFa…

Policy Redline – https://drive.google.com/file/d/0ByFa…

Check – https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CaDr…

 

Original Body Cam Video – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZ0wY…

My Body Cam Video – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KgFC0…

My Livestream – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_2ZM…

 

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This is how ALL other audit videos should look like. The video, the complaint & the outcome of the incident. Great work. 👍

Well done sir! A very thorough job. I may have missed it, but was any disciplinary action taken? My biggest disappointment with disciplinary action, in the rare event that any takes place, is that it focusses solely on the bad cop – it never includes the other cops stood around who, by training, should recognise that the cop is wrong & step in. To me, they are equally guilty by being complicit in his actions. Indeed, if it were the other way round, any of your attending colleagues would no doubt be arrested for conspiracy. Perhaps a small issue in the grand scheme of things, but it really boils my piss.

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That supervisor was an outstanding Leo. Rare in this age.

This is how Auditors should act, at no time did he purposely antagonize the Police Officers and he complied with their orders (he did everything right) – The Auditor has my respect in this instance. I applaud the Supervisor for recognizing the law and respecting the Auditor’s rights, acting like a gentlemen the whole time.

The sad part is the taxpayers pay for their mistakes.

“We didn’t do anything wrong…..here’s your 41 Grand.”

this should be a training video for every PD and law enforcement in this country! when will they learn?

>> When it’s taken from their paychecks instead of the taxpayers

Beautifulllllll…..more valuable than the Cash is the POLICY CHANGE…..well done Bro….thanks for your Patriotic Service…im a new Sub.

Finally….someone who ignores the cop

I’d like to compliment the supervisor for knowing the law. Immediately he schooled the cop who arrested you. But he also handled it professionally. Another example that there are good and knowledgeable officers on out there. That makes me happy!

Congrats… it’s great to see that Leo’s are held accountable and that policies need to be changed. It would better great to take a few of these wins and present them to other city councils in that area or state to see if they can encourage a policy review for other depts and their training on how to handle public videography.

The fact the police all over the globe truly believe that the buildings for public interest, made with tax payer money, are privately owned by the government as if it’s a military installation is like believing in Santa Claus.

THIS is what we need to see more of! No violence, illegal detainment, and final settlement. Thankyou for sharing, especially policy changes. Knowledge is EVERYTHING!!!!

Congratulations on the settlement. This is Police 101. Reasonable Articulable Suspision. He didn’t have charge the first and still cuffed and detained you. They had this loss coming.

Great job Sir. I enjoy this type of video and information. You held your cool. I have seen quite a few videos that kind of disturb me, where the Auditor try’s to antagonize those who have stopped them. Congratulations on the video and you were settlement.

You more than deserve it this win. Good job to the supervisor for being so honest up front. He is the kind of officer we need. This money is a lesson to the town for the rest of us taxpayers rights also. Education. Thank you

It would have been nice if the police depts would do away with department POLICIES and follow constitutional law instead.

Was that dumb cop saying “and I’m fine with that” to the supervisor in reference to picture taking? if he’s fine with that, why did he get physical, then proceed to shackle the man? Did he realize he screwed up while talking to the superior and say that in an attempt to downplay what he did and seem less hostile? How is it possible for a cop to be unaware of so-called auditors?

My 2 cents: holding a camera, having an internet presence, or being an activist shouldn’t matter. Police must stop detaining citizens illegally during their fishing trips. I’m very happy this auditor has made a change but do we all have to live stream our daily activity to ensure police won’t violate our rights?

Supervisor recognized you, knew exactly what you were doing and what your YouTube handle was. It would have been nice if he’d shared his knowledge with the rest of his department before it cost the Pueblo taxpayers $41,000.00.

When you see videos of this type, you really begin to understand the long term damage the 911 hijackers have done.

The changes in the policy itself makes this a big win…good job my man!

I had seen the original video but not this followup – holy shit their policy before Red-Lines was completely a violation of rights – I feel bad for officers that had such poor guidance to follow.

Seizure policy is horrible, it has a carve out to allow police to seize recordings without a warrant, by stating that they must secure a warrant within 72 hours of the seizure which already happened WITHOUT a warrant.

Most of these videos I have seen, YOU (the First Amendment auditor) expect to be treated with the utmost respect but you treat the officers like dirt. This auditor, when approached in what I would consider to be a non-confrontational manner by the officer and greeted in a non-aggressive way, instead of answering a simple question which would probably have resulted in the officer talking to you for a brief period of time, you turned your back and began walking away. Your reaction was that of somebody who may have been committing a crime or considering committing a crime, which would understandably raise certain suspicions in the officers mind. A simple “I am taking some pictures” response may have been enough to send the officer on his way without further incident. In my opinion, YOU were the one who escalated the situation to what it became. Was handcuffing you wrong? It was an over reaction but I believe your being courteous may have gone a long way to preventing that.

It’s fair that they would reach a settlement, though – can’t detain someone when there’s been no report of a crime nor any reason to suspect one, and it’s pretty blatant that there hasn’t been. Cops can stop you for questioning but they can’t really detain you or stop you from leaving when there’s no lawful reason to do so.

Nice job. However, that would be considered and arrest under the law and court precedent. Not a simple detainment. People need to research this and understand it. Hope that helps.

It must be mentioned that when the senior officer arrived, and listened to the vacuous explanation given to him by the arresting officer, as to why an innocent citizen was In cuffs, he seemed well aware of the 1st amendment auditing community and there “strike force”, which makes me wonder why the hell he hadn’t taught the officers under his command to leave auditors alone. That shows that his leadership is poor, and that he underestimated the impact an auditor could have on his department, both financially and in terms of negative publicity, if they illegally detained citizens. The arresting officer, like the majority of cops in the US, had an IQ that would struggle to reach room temperature in a heatwave. He is the kind of cop who would be struck dumb if you asked him to name the top five authors of the books he’s read in recent years. Or if you asked him to name a county beginning with a U. He enforces his emotions and ego not the laws , which he forgot about half an hour after he graduated from the academy. The only way to officially win in the battle to return America to “ THE LAND OF THE FREE “ is to make law enforcement pay in hard cash and to force them to rewrite there policy out of shame. You achieved this and more, which is as rare as rocking horse shit. I congratulate you for all the people fighting to maintain there rights under the law and bill of rights. “ Make America free again”

I live in Pueblo and recently they have been using excessive force way beyond what it ever was

The supervisor knew who you were immediately. He is probably a long time subscriber. Makes you wonder how many cops around the country trying to do the right thing look for videos like this.

There is only one thing I would want to see added to the list of changes: “Any officer who sees a fellow officer violating these rules MUST IMMEDIATELY release the subject, or face the same consequences (suspension up to termination) as the offending officer”. This will prevent instances such as 1:55 “Can you tell this officer to take his hands off me and to uncuff me?” “No, I don’t want to tell him anything”.

The $ is OK but the policy changes are as they should be. Congrats.

Good for you!!!! The monetary portion is just to hit the pockets a little so they don’t do it to someone else. what’s HuGE is the policy update. Must feel nice to have this completed

Making the constitution respected. Thank you sir

im working with Texas lawmakers to have all police officers have their own personal liability insurance policy

Wow.. that was a fast payout. I can’t say that I wouldn’t take the money.. but by u accepting the settlement, the party responsible faces NO legal consequences for their actions. You probably could have got charges pressed against him and filed a civil suit had u not settled. Either way, maybe this department learned a valued lesson. Nice work 👍

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Good follow through. The cops probably would have paid more for some consulting firm and studies to CONSIDER those changes had you not filed suit. Maybe you actually saved them money! 😇

“I got one in custody here”..what did he do? “Take a picture in public”…do these guys not understand how ridiculous this is? Beyond ridiculous..

The cuffing ociffer says “I’m fine with that” when the supervisor explained what was going on but yet apprehends and detains a man taking pictures from a public sidewalk and ignoring his unlawful commands. So he’s fine with nabbing a citizen and cuffing them for something he is “fine with” them doing. Any 8th grader can pass the test required for civil service, law enforcement and military employment. No useful intellectual skills required.

The funny part is that most of their ” new policy” is already covered under the 1st amendment. It was already legal to record from public places, so what makes anyone think this is going to change anything. They were violating the rights of people already, nothing will change with this piece of paper.

Perfect. I agree with the general purpose of police auditors, but I see too many being overly aggressive and rude just for the sake of a video. Very well done in this case.

This was pure ego. He didn’t like the fact that you ignored him so he put you in handcuffs, prioritizing his feelings over the law. These are the kind of cops that need to be weeded out. He unmasked himself as a tyrant when he told you that you weren’t in control Even though you hadn’t done anything to suggest you were or were about to commit a crime. How hard is it to learn the constitution And prioritize rights over personal feelings?

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I have said time and time again. And will say it till something is done about law enforcement today. In this day and age ( as the cops always say ) we no longer have police that protect and serve. We don’t even have law enforcement. What we have is ego tripping out of control bullies with guns and badges ,that use gestapo tactics on the public that pay them. The police are no longer professional officers. They are gang members out to get you . And they wonder why there is a disconnect with the police and the public.. Always record the police, you just may save a life.

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5:19 I love how Romero said he’s fine with what the auditor was doing. WTF?!!! Why cuff him then asshole? Is it because your authority got challenged and your feelings were hurt when he didn’t want to talk to you?

Why do police officers always react so aggressive when someone has a camera

If this comes from the insurance policy it may raise their premiums or they would just keep asking for more money or write more tickets. Another thing is if more people do this and take it to court the cops and judicial system would get bogged down so much they would ask for a raise or just stop harassing because it is not worth it. Good job filming keep them accountable.

I believe the $41,000 is paid by their insurance company, I would think that the insurance companies would take a closer look at why they pay out for false arrest so often, because they certainly do when someone gets a number of traffic tickets.

Although taxpayers pay these are still the most satisfying videos. Cops should have to pay at least a portion of all settlements even if its 5%.

i just wish the offending cop would pay a fraction of the settlement from his own pocket this would make all these cops think a little harder before putting their hands on people

What’s up with Colorado? this is the second time I have seen them payout $41,000 to an auditor who was illegally detained, why not all the other states, do they have outside insurance? if so how do we get all the other states to get insurance?

I bet they won’t make that mistake again. Blame the captain for that loss. He should of briefed his officers about 1st amendment auditors. The changes are exactly what these auditors are achieving and teaching us all the rights that we have as civilians when dealing with cops. Nice job.

Cops need to be put in their place big time. Some cops I know are ok. But a majority of them are not.

>> None are ok. So long as they stand there are watch it happen and do nothing to stop it, they are just as guilty.

The backup cop looks like he really doesn’t approve of his partner.

And there you have it , one of the reasons why taxpayers taxes are increased on a national basis or maybe I could be wrong.

>> Get the supreme court to repeal qualified immunity and the cops will be on the hook themselves

If that officer wasn’t wearing the body camera… IDK if the supervisor would’ve been so quick to let you go. Did no one else notice the supervisor look at the body camera (5:12)?

It sucks the supervisor knew who you were already, but it took a court settlement to change policy on how they address the public

The supervisor looked down to chick if the officer’s camera is on or not, then when he sow it on he decided to follow the rules

That’s stupid. The supervisor was very familiar with this first amendment audit movement and didn’t inform his officers about it.

Seems Colorado is among the easier states to get any settlement from wrongdoings by the police… Other states’ prosecutors would go bonkers and file any made up charges to get some kind of conviction. Oh,, plus shop for judges.

Most police officers are not educated enough to do there job properly. In this case I believe the city should pay for this mistake, not the officer. Money is the end all, so when you begin taking away $. The politicans start giving a damn. This means they will begin educating there officers and firing the officers who don’t give a damn. I really like this auditor, because he knows when to not talk.

Have you ever been to Pueblo? It is a run-down, dirty desert snakepit. So it is no surprise that the Pueblo cops use heavy-handed tactics.

So many will say you won a lot of money. So many have NO idea how much the attorney fees kept before you saw a single penny. They mostly believe that was all your to keep. But I am happy you stood up for your values and not for how little money you would POSSIBLY get. Stress eat up any money you made a long time back. So your fight was the real payment in my eyes.

Auditors are cancer, not experts on the law. They research specific laws and rehearse before they go out and bait police officers by doing something out of the ordinary and weird looking. If they’re lucky, they make a quick buck by doing it and potentially ruining someone’s career. It’s an officers job to know the law I agree, but they’re not lawyers. If something wrongful happens to you by a cop then take it to court, don’t bait a police officer it’s disgusting and pathetic. By the way, the money came from the tax payers, so drop the “we the people” act.

The officer with rank that didnt intervene should lose his rank

my rights have been violated for 30 year’s.. I’m going to start video recording every stop

If that supervisor knew the photographer was acting within his rights, why didn’t all the department know? Where was the training? Ignorant assholes is what they are. I hope this guy wins a huge lawsuit. [EDIT] I see that at the end they did win. Good for them! AND, there will be LESS of these kinds of stops in the future, which is a huge win.

In the Philippines, we don’t need SUPERVISOR to know what to do even our PO1 (POLICE OFFICER1) knows that he done nothing wrong. If Americans think that we have different law and policies, well guess what, we adopt from your own.

What irks me is how the ‘Corporal’ didnt know crap. Thats the scond cop that showed up and just assisted in the illegal detainment. In the Army, Corporal is one higher than a Private. I guess it holds true in the police dept.

Handcuffing someone is too nonchalant these days

Oh I remember this horse’s a$$.

Escalation, retaliation, lie, entrap, harass, cover up, plant evidence, murder, rape murder abuse and traffic children, blue wall of silence, extort, intimidate, violate, manipulate, fabricate, incarcerate. That’s how some police “protect and serve” in “this day and age”.

Amen

I don’t use attorney for this crap I represent myself and get all the Money

Very educational moment. I wonder if police would have meet a mute person. Because if I was mute the police would have a problem communicating. I wonder if this police officer meets a camera what he would do.

It was at 1:37 that Officer Romero knew he fucked up…btw this is the right way to respond ymto an illegal detainment don’t argue or get physical he can get you for disorderly conduct or assaulting a police officer

I get you have “rights”….but why????? Why are you taking pics – sole reason is to cause conflict /engage an officer so you can make some money?!? We live in a CRAZY, CRAZY world FULL of people who want to cause harm to others – who’s to say that you aren’t one of them?? I’m all about our rights as citizens – but what you were doing was just CREEPY AND SUSPICIOUS!!! Those PO’s could have been doing somethjng more meaningful that dealing with your skinny ass!! One of these days, you might need those officers – I hope they remember you and take their “sweet time” showing-up!!

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Have the cops heard of Google Earth?

Being arrested for what Google has already done.

Why are u messing with the Cops in pueblO? My advise is go home, legally enjoy the recreational weed you can buy. Enjoy the fact you can Smoke in your house and not worry about being arrested

You’ll sound smarter if you say detention not detainment.

>> Detention is locked up. Detainment is holding you for a so called investigation. 🇺🇸

He baited that cop. If he had ANY background on terrorism awareness then you wouldn’t do this shit. For all they knew you could of been planning a terrorist attack. Its pretty pathetic when you have ZERO knowledge on terrorist activities. Shame on that fool.

>> Thinking someone “might do something” doesnt give you the right to assault and kidnap them

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