After one of our members was harassed by law enforcement in Anthony, New Mexico, (on the NM/TX border) we filed an open records request for the initial call to police, body cam footage, and reports associated with the encounter.
This is another example of police officers not respecting the rights of citizens. Too many in law enforcement believe that it is their duty to lecture citizens on when and where they can exercise a right instead of simply doing their jobs to "serve and protect."
We don't share this video beat up on cops. Hopefully, they can use this as a learning tool and notice that their actions won't go unnoticed. Our goal is to have law enforcement agencies view these videos and recognize what was done wrong so they can avoid these mistakes in the future.
The main reason for sharing it is to educate the public and Texas law enforcement that seem to be confused about what Terry v Ohio really says. Unfortunately, too many cops think it simply means they can stop and frisk anyone for any reason or for no other reason than they get a call. This couldn't be further from the truth.
Granted, law enforcement is not required to know every bit of case law that comes out of the state, federal and Supreme Courts. However, if they are going to quote case law, they need to quote it accurately instead of trying to trick citizens with false information. Citizens must also read for themselves the Terry v Ohio decision and commit it to memory, especially if you're open carrying. This way you can competently respond to statements like those made by a chief law enforcement officer.
You can read the case here: [ Ссылка ]
