As I’ve asserted for decades, bad cops are not a case of a few bad apples. It’s a systemic problem, perfectly illustrated by the “Tesla Exoneration”.
As you know, there is an epidemic of very bad drivers. Kevin Finley found himself stuck behind a driver that shouldn’t be on the road. Yes, I’m being harsh, but it’s a fact – if you cannot negotiate moderately difficult traffic situations, then you should not be on the road.
Kevin, being a competent driver became more and more frustrated with the incompetent driver in front of him who kept missing opportunities to complete the left turn and exit the intersection. Who hasn’t been in this frustrating situation, stuck behind some moron who clearly lacks the skill to be on the road? Kevin, like most of us got mad and decided to go around the incompetent driver instead of being stuck behind said moron until there was no oncoming traffic.
After Kevin went around the moron he didn’t notice that a very bad cop was also at the intersection in an unmarked vehicle, but his Tesla’s surveillance system did. After Kevin was in his garage the idiotic police officer pulls up to his garage door with siren and lights on. Kevin opens the door to investigate the siren and is confronted by a very bad cop pointing his gun at him and ordering him to get on the ground. Kevin, like any intelligent person would, asks “why?” Bad cop just keeps screaming at him, so Kevin complies and allows the bad cop to handcuff him.
Now, because this idiot has pulled his gun, his supervisor and a few other moronic colleagues show up. Kevin then makes the mistake of talking to the POS Cops. And I understand the “it’s just a misunderstanding” instinct. Unlike me, he’s a sheltered upper middle class guy who thinks cops are the good guys. He found out the hard way, THEY ARE NOT! He didn’t understand that was he was dealing with an imbecile who’s always in “might is right & cover your ass” mode. He doesn’t know that most cops have no idea what they’re doing and operate on an “US vs. Them” attitude.
How else can you explain Officer Eric Schwarz’s conduct and unfathomable stupidity? According to Google, “Following Kevin Finley’s acquittal, Winter Springs Police Chief Matt Tracht publicly defended the officer’s actions. In a media interview, the Chief stated that vehicle stops carry a high amount of uncertainty, and that when combined with what the officer perceived as erratic driving, it naturally increased the tension of the stop.” “They” defended his actions. In what world were his actions reasonable? Kevin was guilty of a VERY minor traffic infraction. A non-moronic “good” cop with real work to do would have probably just ignored the minor infraction.
Also, please acknowledge how dishonest Officer Eric Schwarz was, as he is on body camera trying to invent a justification for his over-reaction. In order to cover his incompetent ass, he charges Kevin with felony eluding. He thought he’d get away with it because he was too stupid to understand that Kevin’s Tesla is a surveillance vehicle. Then, as I’ve stated over and over, a very bad prosecutor takes this nonsense to trial. Think about the prosecutorial arrogance it took to waste 2 years of Kevin’s life on this nonsense – for it to be rejected by the Judge a few minutes after watching the Tesla’s video? Then think about what would have happened to Kevin if he didn’t have that exonerating video and you can finally understand what happened to me.
It gets more sinister when you ask Google why Schwarz wasn’t found to have commited perjury “Sua sponte” but the Judge, “While the footage definitively proved that Finley could not see the officer and was not fleeing, the Winter Springs Police Department has framed the incident as a high-tension misunderstanding caused by “erratic driving” rather than intentional perjury by the officer. Because malicious intent is incredibly difficult to prove under internal policy, the department has treated the false accusations as a misinterpretation of a vehicle stop rather than a deliberate lie”. I think reasonable people can agree, Schwarz is a bad cop and a liar.