Citizen issues parking ticket to cop
Megan says: "In Portland, OR a private citizen issued a parking ticket totaling $540 to a police officer who illegally parked in front of a Chinese restaurant while picking up his takeout. Turn about seems to be fair play!"
"If he had acknowledged and corrected his error, we could have avoided this whole thing," says [Eric] Bryant. "But instead, he kept watching basketball and told me he wasn't doing anything wrong."LinkNow, using ORS 153.058, Bryant—as a private citizen—has initiated violation proceedings against Officer Stensgaard. Bryant alleges Stensgaard was in violation of state statutes on illegal parking, illegal stopping, obeying parking restrictions on state highways, and illegal operation of an emergency vehicle or ambulance—the violations carry fines totaling $540.
Officer Stensgaard has received a Multnomah County summons to appear in traffic court on May 23. Meanwhile Bryant denies he is just stirring up trouble.
"Citizens should be concerned that he used his status as an officer of the law as justification for breaking the law," he says.
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This could be the start of something beautiful :)
This guy's a hero.
But I also suspect he is now going to be a world of hurt.
He's probably going to have to move to a new town...
#1 ..in Oregan at least.
How is the SanSai Japanese Grill "a Chinese restaurant"?
I hope he doesn't plan on getting let off with a warning next time he's pulled over officer Isengard in that town.
Who will guard the guards?
Also, I live in/around Houston, TX, how can I write cops
here a ticket? Thanks.
just promise me video
This is so awesome.
He's looking to get royally messed with by the cops in his town though.
Success!
was there a retired cop around to call eric bryant an asshole? and where's the video??
Now let's just hope somebody can penalize the fat woman who parked in front of a hydrant in the video of a few posts ago.
Kewl. I knew there was a reason I carried a camera all the time.
I wonder if anyone bothered asking the traffic violating cop if he was 'just stirring up trouble' as well.
i have a new hero! many blessings to you, mr bryant! too bad that the oregon cops are probably gonna make your life a living hell, seattle's a nice place tho...
#11, Just send an email to the department with a link to the youtube video... that'll get all three of them in trouble...
slap on the wrist/reprimand from judge methinks
In New York there are so many illegally parked cops that there's a whole web site devoted to them.
http://nyc.uncivilservants.org/
Sadly, it will probably get dismissed on a technicality.
I'm annoyed as the next guy when I see a police officer run a red light for no apparent reason, and I'm ready to agree with this guy in principle, but from the description of the actual incident it seem like a case of overreaction on the citizen's part.
Based on what's in the article, a police officer parked illegally in front of a restaurant in order to come in and pick up his takeout order. A patron sitting in the restaurant confronted him about the parking, and was upset when the police officer didn't apologize or immediately go out to move his car. After the officer left with his food, the citizen decided to issue him at least four separate citations for the same incident. There's no evidence that the parked car was any kind of safety hazard (i.e., blocking a hydrant), and there are no specific details in the story to indicate how long the entire incident actually took.
I'd say that if the judge lets this police officer off with (at most) a slap on the wrist it would be entirely appropriate.
People seem to think he's going to catch a lot of hell for taking this stand. Maybe he will, but it'd be a lot easier to take this kind of stand if he wasn't the only one doing it.
Next time you see a cop misbehaving, document it! Once you document it, take it to the media and/or courts. If this happened more than once in a blue moon, it wouldn't be such an intimidating and risky thing to do for people like this guy.
Basically, we shouldn't dwell on how much of an exceptional hero he is for martyring himself for our rights, we should find out how we can join in!
Breaking the law is not one of the perks that comes with being a public servant. If anything, cops should be held to HIGHER standards of conduct than everyone else.
And Picking up lunch isn't the same as responding to a call in any way, shape, or form.
Bureaucracy leaves open holes for people to abuse the system. We lack unity and consensus over how society should operate.
The Portland Mercury appears to have pulled the story. But searching for the officer's name comes up with another charming story - Naked Justice -
Cyclist Fights Criminal Charges in which (presumably) the same officer is the passenger in a car used to assault a naked cyclist, after which, predictably, the cyclist is arrested.
#18--Yeah, the 'Old Boys Club' technicality.
4 weeks paid leave or something for the Cop?
Hmmmmmmmmm. First the article disappears. Next, Mr. Bryant decides to go swimming while carrying his favorite anchor. Case closed, say the cops.
Now we have almost omni-present cameras, and the internet, I think it's really important to use these to push back against... well, against authority.
"The Man" now has cctv and linked databases.
"We" now have a video camera in every cellphone, and the ability to turn any misbehaviour by a public servant into a cause celebre.
GAME ON!!!!
As a piece of civic activism this is all well and good, but I have to say that the punishment doesn't fit the crime here. Even in the most park-o-fascist places I've lived in, what the officer did would have gotten a $50 "stopped in a no stop zone" ticket, which is where this guy should have drawn the line.
I like the idea of policing the police, but there's more justice in showing some discretion than in trying to violate him for every conceivable law on the books. It's bad mojo when prosecutors lard on charges just to make a point, whether they're ordinary citizens or not.
Although I appreciate the fact that cops should obey the laws just like everyone else, this is carrying it too far. I don't think Mr. Bryant has the public's best interest in mind. I think he simply saw an opportunity to stick it to the man and took it.
If a cop had given someone a $540 ticket for parking illegally many of us would be writing about how cops should have better things to do than harass people over petty matters.
@ Semiotix:
I disagree. Big cities take great pride in enforcing parking violations. About time they got a taste of their own medicine. Even if the cop gets off completely, this establishes a precedent... no one is above the law.
http://ratemycop.com/
Some of you guys are pretty short sighted. For those of you who drive, how many of you obey all the laws all the time. You have never double parked just to drop off some mail, grab take out, or be a douche bag. This guy was just trying to eat lunch. Hating on cops is pretty naive, and too easy to do to get much props for. He is paid to keep the peace, issue annoying tickets, perhaps confiscate your pot, and risk his life every day. If this had been a fire engine or an ambulance do you think this little shit disturber would have caused a fuss.
For those of you who don't drive, when was the last time you blew a stop sign on your damn fixe and no one cared.
Get off the lynch train, not all cops suck. Some do, but some hacking, liberal, tree-huggers bug too.
Devils Advocate
@ Craphappy:
You seem to be implying that because other people break the law and occasionally get away with it, cops should be allowed to get away with it every time. That strikes me as indefensibly shortsighted.
If anything, cops should be held to a higher standard than the citizenry they're paid to protect and serve. Period. I agree that cops have dangerous jobs, but so do lion tamers and electricians. In cities like New York and Chicago, or even Portland, parking tickets are handed out like religious pamphlets.
More money is made in a single year off of booted cars than you or I will ever see in our entire lives, and much of those funds are misappropriated, or else utterly wasted on policies and programs that the average citizen doesn't give the first damn about. Get real.
#23 posted by Tagishsimon is very correct that this cop has major issues.
What the story in the Mercury did not mention is that off-duty Portland Police Officer Chadd Stensgaard was the passenger of a Jeep Liberty driven by what appeared to be a lady friend of his.
She hit Reverend Phil Sano with her SUV while he was trying to protect a group of cyclists going through an intersection. Stensgaard then got out of the SUV and started punching Reverend Phil Sano and threw him to the ground. As soon as the cops showed up they let Stensgaard swap with the female driver (without giving her a sobriety test) and arrested Sano.
We tried to show the sergeant on the scene cell phone video footage of Stensgaard being the aggressor... in typical Portland fashion the sergeant threatened to arrest us and would not give us his business card.
All charges were dropped by the Portland DA against Reverend Phil Sano.
Yeh.. how's that working out for ya?
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing, nothing really... I just feel as though I need something stronger."
So this Stensgaard double parks, attacks naked people, covers up for drunk drivers, lies when giving evidence, files false charges and abuses his office as well as intimidates the public?
An open question to the Portland Police Department:
Is this what you look for in your staff? Just wondering. Are you ALL like that? Is there anyone on the PR department of the Portland PD that would care to rely? I understand millions read this blog,surely you would like to give the "official Story" Otherwise,how could you possible keep any respect at all?
@30,
I think you missed my point. I'm perfectly fine with the idea of parking tickets, and of cities issuing them, and of this citizen issuing one to this cop. A minor ticket for what sounds like a minor infraction, just like the kind you'd get in a big city. If this cop was parked halfway up the curb in a handicapped spot facing the wrong way, then yeah, I could see more tickets.
But no, I don't think it's a great idea for this guy to cite the officer for $540 worth of tickets given what he did, any more than I'd think it was a great idea for a police officer to arrest me every time I did 62 in a 55 zone, which they could legally do (at least in my present jurisdiction).
$540 seems like a pretty normal state-sponsored blackmail demand. Even if the cop doesn't end up paying, the case highlights government traffic and parking extortion.
Craphappy,
Try to avoid using 'tree-huggers' unless you're commenting in a thread about human-elm fetish pics.
In this case, if it's true the guy was watching basketball and there was no law enforcement reason for him not to obey the law, then he needs to be treated EXACTLY as you or I would be treated for breaking the law. How often do you think he parks like that?
There are bad cops, and there are great cops who sometimes screw up. Point is, EVERYONE should be accountable -- you, me, even cops. The law is our check and balance against abuses, however small or large, by anyone.
@ Semiotix:
My apologies for a hasty reply. Still, I think you're missing my point, which is that the heaviest allowable penalties should be applicable, because of the simple fact that cops should be held to a higher standard.
Some cops are more lenient than others, God bless 'em, but even those officers should be subject to scrutiny and ridicule when they break the law. Practically every day, I see cops break the law with impunity and the kind of smugness expected of a fourth grade bully. None of that really matters, though. If we are too lenient, where is their incentive to behave?
The city of Portland is pretty much outstanding in almost all of their functions. The one glaring exception is the Portland Police Bureau (PPB).
It is unfortunate, but I guess there HAS to be a bad apple...
Article is down. Here is the
Google Cache
Also, what do you think the penalty would be if the average citizen refused to move his vehicle and continued to watch basketball?
I'm guessing arrest, or a $540 fine at best.
Selective enforcement. The legal system calls it unconstitutional. Police call it "professional courtesy."
This is a joke. The cop should pay his ticket like anybody else and get on with life. Considering that he's been known to cover for friends who are driving drunk, and also known for roughing up the CLERGY?
I'm betting he doesn't learn his lesson.
Lets be frank.
I'm no cop lover but. . .
I think a cop should be able to double park to get lunch. As long as he/she isn't causing a traffic jam what skin off your back is it. It's called common sense people. If more of us utilized it the world would be way more chill.
Bznow
Takeshi,
Fair enough. I don't think anyone else would have gotten a $540 fine for the violation(s) described in the article; that's why I had a problem with this approach in the first place. If Portland really is handing down $540 in tickets or threatening arrest every time someone parks in a no-parking zone, then I think he should get the same treatment. But I doubt it.
and is it not written that some may not even look at a bridle without warranting a kick where others may steal the horse entire - and be cheered for it yet?
I'm a tree-hugging liberal, I'm leaning towards supporting the cop.
There is a lot more I would like to know. Is this an area where parking regulations are aggressively enforced? Was someone blocked by the cop when he was double parked?
We have a trend in this country where lots of doinky little security professional and rent-a-cop and TSA minion and who all else seem to have taken leave of their senses and harass people for the stupidest of reasons. Yes we have cops harassing people for the most idiotic things, but it is still the exception, not the rule.
I'd be cheering if the cop was getting nailed for messing with someone's civil rights. The parking deal just seems peevish and crappy to me. I'm thinking the citizen who issued the "ticket" is the kind of guy who make a wretched security guard or police officer.
I'm sorry, but I just don't care if a cop double parks or even runs a red light in a non-emergency situation, provided he or she isn't driving dangerously.
When cops harass citizens, then I go through the roof. But the deal here sounds weird. Yeah, the citizen had the right to confront the cop in the bar, but it sounds like he really had his pecker up when he did it.
Okay, okay, it is hard to extrapolate exactly what happened. We're all projecting our issues on to the situation.
But me, I'm just glad that citizen is NOT a cop.
well, eric ... we'll see ya at the impound lot, my friend.
Oh, and the guy is a lawyer. Perfect.
but Pipenta,my dove of peace and knowledge, did you not read about the cop's nude cyclist assaulting fetish?
@ Pipenta:
Running a red light in a non-emergency situation is driving dangerously.
Officer Stensgard is already a bit of a known Portland villain for his involvement in the rev phil case
oooh! nice naked Justice lady poster....glavin!
Fantastic!
Article is back up, the merc probably got "boinged"
here:
http://www.portlandmercury.com/portland/Content?oid=753233&category=22101
Jeepers! I just go out hiking for a few hours and find the wasp nest pinata party in full.. er.. swing. Couldn't you wait for me to get in from the woods before uncorking the eveining's bottle of spleen and indignation?
Craphappy:
1) Define "naive" and explain how "hating on cops" is an example of someone fitting that definition.
2) The problem is not really with cops acting like normal folks, the problem is with cops violating the laws they enforce and getting away with it.
Now you say "How many of you guys....", but your epic FAIL lies in the fact that what you should have said was "How many of you double park, etc, and expect to get away with it?" Of course the answer to that is "Only those BB users who also happen to be cops. The rest of us do not expect to get away with it."
Takuan,
I missed that naked cyclist deal. I was wrong, wrong, wrongo. But the guy doesn't need a ticket, he needs another job, like lighthouse keeper, on some island, just him and his "lady friend".
- Pip, (less peace dove than wet hen)
Takeshi,
No, running a red light is NOT always dangerous driving. Have you never been stopped by a light in the wee hours, when there is no traffic on the road which has the green signal? Illegal does not automatically equal dangerous any more than it means immoral. It just means illegal.
There are these things called stop signs. They're admittedly low tech. But used properly, they work a treat.
A friend of mine loves hassling cops for this kind of stuff. He made a video when he caught some cops in Hollywood parked the wrong way and sriving the wrong way on a four lane road.
http://www.metacafe.com/watch/1003956/holywood_cops_park_illegally/
Hey, police are people too!
So they should obey the laws.
That this represents an overreaction is irrelevant. Anything a citizen does to make life miserable for the pigs without himself violating the law is totally righteous.
@ Pipenta:
"There are these things called stop signs. They're admittedly low tech. But used properly, they work a treat."
Yes, my son, there are such things as stop signs, and they are NOT stop lights. I spoke too soon, however, when I said that running a red light is dangerous. What I meant to say is that running a red light is dangerous if you happen to be a dumb-ass cop who thinks it's a good idea to disobey traffic laws with impunity.
Your point is moot. The police should be held to a higher standard than the average citizen. You might think it's okay for the cops to do whatever they want, but you're flat wrong.
I used to get pissed when I saw cops double-park or park in red zones thinking that they were flouting the laws which non-police had to obey. But then someone explained to me that cops are allowed that leeway so their cars are as close to them as possible in case they get an emergency call. Made me see it from the public safety point of view. The one or two minutes that a cop would have to run to get to their legally parked car is that much more time they are delayed from responding to a potentially life-threatening situation.
Takehashi,
Patronize me youngster, and I'll matronize you right back.
I've no patience with the every-cop-is-bad-and-we-need-to-come-down-on-them-harder school and just as little for the cops-are-risking-their-lives-so-they-should-get-a-free pass school (An attitude described by a friend who is a lawyer who specializes in going after rotten cops, as the "If you aren't in blue, you're little people" school of thought.)
I don't think cops are allowed to do anything. That's not what I wrote. I'm just not going to get up on my high horse about minor traffic violations. I don't work myself into a lather when people violate them.
This might be a cultural thing. When I have lived in the northeast, I have noticed there are an awful lot more people who work themselves up about every little rule. And oh good crap, are there ever a lot of rules.
There's a thin-lipped puritan prudery that doesn't enhance the quality of life one little bit. Out in the west and down south, there seems to be less of it and people are a lot more relaxed, maybe even happier. It might be because they aren't sweating the details so much. Or hey, it might be all those guns. But I always figured that a good part of it was that there weren't so many damn lawyers.
Situations are nuanced. I would hope people would be able to manage a sophisticated response. When they don't, we getting those maddening situations like the kid who was expelled (or suspended or whatever) for sniffing a Sharpie in class.
Discretion is what is called for, especially from cops. It's not a bad thing for the rest of us either.
"The one or two minutes that a cop would have to run to get to their legally parked car is that much more time they are delayed from responding to a potentially life-threatening situation."
And about risk: the reason double parking and parking on both sides of residential streets is illegal is that in the event of a fire, fire trucks can't go down those streets.
So explain to me again how a cop double parking outside a Blimpy Burger is making the public safer?
Also: Isn't a cop off-duty when he or she is eating lunch? I honestly don't know. If not, maybe they should eat in their cars if there's so much risk of delay. I know, tat's not fair. Neither is not allowing them a luch break, if that's the case.
Per cops being held to a higher standard: no, they shouldn't.
They should be held to the same reasonable standard as the rest of us. I.e., obey the law in the same "we're not perfect but we are law-abiding citizens" way the rest of us do.
It's extremely heartening to me, though, to see that the concept of authority not being above the law is alive and well.
@ Pipenta:
"I don't think cops are allowed to do anything. That's not what I wrote."
Wrong.
"I'm sorry, but I just don't care if a cop double parks or even runs a red light..."
Those are your words. And don't try to give me the old "I'm your Grandma, so you'd better respect me" routine. It's presumptuous, and I'm not having it. I'm probably older than you, anyway. To me, your "point" is imbecilic and empty. So sorry.
"Situations are nuanced. I would hope people would be able to manage a sophisticated response."
Like running a red light when there is no need to do so? Personally, I don't give the first damn about whether there is any imminent danger... cops shouldn't be allowed to break the law. As someone who's worked with law enforcement, I have as much of a right to express that opinion as you do to attempt to accuse me of being part of some imagined "every-cop-is-bad" conspiracy. Deal with it.
@ Nick D:
"Per cops being held to a higher standard: no, they shouldn't."
Yes, they should.
"So explain to me again how a cop double parking outside a Blimpy Burger is making the public safer?"
That isn't the point. He broke the law, and should be held accountable, just as any other citizen would.
"[Cops] should be held to the same reasonable standard as the rest of us. "
Seems like you're thinking in circles.