YouTube cop Philip Nace pulled off the street as second video surfaces

MOST PHILLY COPS do it right. One shift after another, they put their lives on the line for people they don't know. They lock up the bad guys and try to make it home to their families in one piece.
Some officers turn into bad guys themselves. They've lost their badges amid allegations of assault, theft, rape, fraud and drug dealing. At least 68 city cops have been charged with crimes since March 2009.
But Officer Philip Nace - the YouTube sensation who has developed an international reputation as the angriest cop in the City of Brotherly Love - is perhaps the first Philly lawman to get benched for what a police spokesman described simply as "idiotic behavior."

Lt. John Stanford said yesterday that Nace has been pulled off the street amid an expanding Internal Affairs probe sparked by viral videos out of North Philly's 25th District, where the 46-year-old cop patrolled with an iron fist and a foul mouth.

"Nace is nasty," said Louis Goode, 55, who has lived on the corner of Park Avenue and Auburn Street for 30 years. "It's like he wakes up on the wrong side of the bed every morning."
Goode lives on the same corner where Nace was recently recorded knocking down a basketball hoop and telling the guys with the ball to "have a good day" as he drives away in a police van. "Jesus loves you," Nace's partner yells out the window.
It apparently wasn't the first time Nace toppled the $450 adjustable hoop, which is now broken.
"He comes out here and harasses people all the time. . . . Nace is a bully," said the 21-year-old who shot the video. He asked that his name not be printed because he's afraid Nace would retaliate. He said Nace had previously banged his head against a truck.

Internal Affairs investigators were on the corner yesterday, interviewing the man who shot the video and taking a photo of the basketball setup. Lt. Dan Bartlett of Internal Affairs confirmed that they were working the Nace case.
Last week, the Daily News reported that Nace was under investigation after he appeared in a YouTube stop-and-frisk video that featured him berating two pedestrians, telling one man he would "split your wig open" and calling the other a "f---ing dirty ass."
"We don't want you here, anyway. All you do is weaken the f---ing country," Nace says in the video. "How do I weaken the country? By working?" the man asked. "No, freeloading," Nace said. When the man said he's a server at a country club, Nace responded, "Serving weed?"
Neither man was charged with a crime, police confirmed yesterday. Both were released following Nace's profanity-laced tirade.
"We can assure the public that he is off the street. What you see in those two videos is certainly not what we teach," Stanford said of Nace. "It takes away from all the good things we've been doing as a department. Our crime numbers are down, but all of that is overshadowed when you have someone conduct themselves like this."
A police source said Nace, an officer since 2006, has been placed in the Differential Police Response Unit, a disciplinary unit where officers who are under investigation are often assigned.
The first Nace video went viral and has received widespread media coverage. Portions of the 16-minute clip were featured this week on ABC World News, drawing more attention to the controversial stop-and-frisk policy championed by Mayor Nutter. The American Civil Liberties Union says many of the stops are made without reasonable suspicion that a crime has been committed.
Stanford said he hopes Nace's behavior won't affect the department's ability to solicit crime-solving tips from residents.
"We've made some valiant efforts to build better relationships with all communities in this city. This definitely puts a strain on that," Stanford said. "But this is one individual. Don't let this individual put it in your mind that this is how officers act. The vast majority of officers give the residents of this city 110 percent."
David Rosenberger, an exterior remodeler who works on Section 8 houses in Nace's district, said he now looks for the numbers on passing police cruisers, knowing that Nace's car could mean trouble.
"You're dealing with a freaking a--hole," Rosenberger said. "He is a prick, man."
Rosenberger, 30, of Lafayette Hill, said he's had run-ins with Nace and his partner, including a recent stop in which they accused him of trying to buy drugs near a property he was working on. He said Nace threatened him, saying that "the dealers and the addicts aren't the only ones that will rob and beat you" as he was driving away. Rosenberger said Nace's partner threatened to crack him over the head with his baton.
"If I see the number on the car, I know if I'm getting harassed or not," Rosenberger said. "I'm sick of it."
Nace's Internal Affairs file includes a 2011 complaint by a driver who said Nace gave him a ticket and verbally abused him after the driver honked his horn to let Nace know he was about to hit him. When the driver went to district headquarters to file a complaint about the road rage, Nace allegedly pulled up and said, "I do not give a f---," and began laughing, according to the complaint. Nace denied the allegations, and the complaint was not sustained.
Nace was also named with other officers in a 2010 complaint that alleged physical and verbal abuse, but the complainant didn't cooperate in the investigation.
The videos have sparked outrage on YouTube, Twitter and other websites. Nace's home address has been posted online. Some viewers have issued threats. Nace could not be reached for comment yesterday.
Stanford said the investigation would determine what disciplinary action would be taken and whether Nace would be transferred to another district.
"It's not something that's going to be tolerated," Stanford said. "The fact that a second video was brought to our attention, there are obviously some issues here."

Fairfax County Police Watch: Why even bother reporting this?

Fairfax County Police Watch: Why even bother reporting this?: Fairfax County officer fatally shoots man during fight at homeless shelter. The gun happy Fairfax County police shot and killed another...

ACLU says arrest of Flint Anonymous activist is unconstitutional

FLINT, MI -- An attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan said Flint police officers appear to have violated the constitutional rights of an outspoken Flint political activist when they arrested him outside of his Carriage Town home.
Adam Gerics was arrested Sept. 27 by a Flint police officer outside of his home on Stone Street near University Avenue as he videotaped and shouted profanity at a Flint police officer who was talking to one of Gerics' neighbors.
The video shows a Flint police officer arresting Gerics after Gerics questions why the officer and a neighbor are walking by the front of his house. Gerics said he and the neighbor have had an ongoing dispute and the neighbor has since gotten a personal protection order against him.
"From the video I viewed, it appears that the Flint police officers violated the videographer's constitutional rights," said Michael J. Steinberg, legal director for the Michigan ACLU.
The video of the arrest has been viewed more than 57,000 times since it was posted Thursday, Oct. 3, on the video sharing site Live Leak.
Gerics operates a medical marijuana compassion club, claims membership in the Flint chapter of Anonymous -- an activist group that has protested everything from government surveillance to genetically modified food -- and has been a vocal opponent of many decisions made during the state takeover of the city.
"I have the right to film whoever I want walking up the street whether they are a cop or not," Gerics said.
The ACLU agrees.
"It is well established that Americans have the right to verbally oppose or challenge the actions of police officers, even if they do so using foul language," Steinberg said. "Additionally, the courts have held that individuals have a First Amendment right to videotape police officers' actions in public."

COPS ACCUSED OF FORCING WOMAN TO DELETE VIDEO

A man in Crawford County, Mich., was arrested and charged with felony assault with a deadly weapon on Sunday after he called authorities about a trespassing suspect on his property, his wife tells TheBlaze. There are also serious allegations being made about officers demanding that video footage of the incident — taken by the man’s wife — be deleted.
Thomas Donald, a military veteran, was reportedly out hunting with his 11-year-old son and armed with an “unloaded” single-shot .410-gauge shotgun (his son chose to use a crossbow instead) when he confronted a man riding a dirt bike on his 10 acres of land. The man and his son then reportedly escorted the trespasser to the front of his property and told his wife, Heather, to call the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to file a “recreational trespass.”
What happened when the Crawford County Sheriff’s Department arrived shocked them both, though Sheriff Kirk Wakefield tells TheBlaze quite a different story.
In an exclusive interview with TheBlaze, Heather Donald recounted what happened from the couple’s perspective. Her husband, Thomas, declined to speak with us on the advice of his attorney and due to the charges against him. His attorney also declined an interview request.

THE INCIDENT
When officers with the Crawford County Sheriff’s Department arrived on the scene, Heather says her husband held up the “open shotgun” with his left hand while holding the shell in his right hand to indicate the weapon was not loaded and assure officers he was not a threat.
The officers apparently didn’t see it that way. And while Heather later would start recording the incident, it should be noted that there is no footage available to show the moment deputies confronted Donald.
One of the deputies, identified by Heather as Shawn Schnoor, “fumbled” with his pistol and trained it on Donald, ordering him to get on the ground. Heather told TheBlaze it took her husband longer than the officer wanted because he has a badly injured back but he moved as fast as he could. Donald was handcuffed before police made their way to talk to the trespassing suspect.

Realizing how quickly the situation had gotten out of control, Heather said she began filming the scene on her cellphone camera.
In the video provided to TheBlaze, Heather can be heard asking why her husband is being arrested.
“Because we pulled up and he had a handgun — or excuse me, a rifle,” one of the deputies says, before being corrected by Donald. “A shotgun.”
Crawford County Sheriff Wakefield told TheBlaze that detaining the man was the correct thing to do because he had a gun and they didn’t know “who was who” at that point.
The deputy makes no mention of an alleged assault in the short video while explaining why they had detained him. Under Michigan law, openly carrying firearms is legal, except at certain locations — and being on your own private property isn’t one of them.
When asked if they would take the handcuffs off, he replies: “Not right now. He’s under — for our protection.” Heather said the deputy seemed to abruptly stop short of declaring her husband was “under arrest.”
Moments before the short 36-second video ends, another officer tells Heather she “can” stop filming. When she refuses, he informs her they need to take the cellphone as “evidence” and they move to take it from her.

“No you won’t!” Donald can be heard shouting, while still in handcuffs on the grass.
“Yep. Ma’am you’re going to be under–” one of the officers says before the video cuts off. Heather told TheBlaze the last word of that sentence was “arrest.”
Heather says she turned to walk away from the officers, but put the cellphone on the railing of her front porch after she was threatened with obstruction of justice charges. The deputies then allegedly confiscated the phone temporarily, but returned it to her before they left.
“They never told me why they needed my phone for evidence,” she added.
Blaze editor Jason Howerton discussed this story with Editor in Chief Scott Baker on today’s BlazeCast:
Heather told TheBlaze the officers later ordered her to delete the video footage she captured of the arrest. She said she complied.
However, the couple was able to recover the deleted video using recovery software, she says. The command to delete allegation has not been proven true, and Sheriff Wakefield could not confirm or deny the report because the deputies in question were not in the office and available for questioning.
If the officer took the phone for evidence, it was likely to see if any footage of the alleged assault was recorded, he claimed. The sheriff also said he doesn’t believe his deputies ordered Heather to delete it.
Heather provided the following screenshots that allegedly show the recovery software used to retrieve the video in question:

Ready when you are

Vindicated Cop-Photographer Sues City

by Thomas MacMillan

It’s one of two lawsuits his attorneys plan to file, both featuring cops, cameras, and internal affairs probes that found supervising officers at fault.
Luna (pictured) announced his lawsuit Wednesday afternoon on the steps of the federal courthouse on Church Street, the latest step in a saga that led to the rebuke of an assistant chief, a new police policy, and statewide debate on citizens’ rights.
With the help of attorneys Diane Polan and Max Simmons, Luna is suing the city, the police department, former Police Chief Frank Limon, former Assistant Police Chief Ariel Melendez and other cops. Luna claims the cops falsely arrested him, illegally seized his property, and violated his First Amendment rights when they arrested him and confiscated his iPhone on Sept. 25, 2010, a story first reported by the Independent.
Attorney Polan announced that she’s also planning to sue the city on behalf of Jennifer Gondola, a woman who, like Luna, was arrested while filming cops. In both cases, internal police probes found cops at fault.
Gondola was arrested while capturing footage that drew the attention of the FBI, showing a man’s neck being stepped on by police during an arrest. The case against Gondola was dismissed. The sergeant who arrested her and stepped on the man’s neck was suspended for 15 days following an internal affairs probe.
Asked Tuesday afternoon about Luna’s suit, city Corporation Counsel Victor Bolden responded:  “The city will review the lawsuit and respond accordingly at the appropriate time.”
 “We have to pay attention to this,” said Luna, a 29-year-old medical interpreter who lives in Wallingford. He said the case has “big repercussions not only in New Haven but on a national level.”
Polan noted that Melendez, who retired from the force with several complaints pending against him, collects a pension of over $120,000 per year.
Polan said Luna is asking for punitive damages of $500,000, plus a declaratory judgment that it is unlawful to arrest people filming cops. The New Haven police department is not training its cops to follow the law, Polan said.
“We have the right as citizens to record police because they are public servants,” Luna said.
Early in the morning of Sept. 25, 2010, Luna was riding his bike on Crown Street when he came across some cops arresting three people near the corner of College Street. Luna pulled out his iPhone and began filming the action.
It is not illegal to record police action in public places, as long as the photographer does not interfere with cops.

NYPD Officer Charged With Lying on Arrest Report

In an extraordinarily rare occurrence, an NYPD officer has been charged for lying on an arrest report after arresting a New York Times photographer for taking pictures of him arresting someone else. But it’s pretty clear he isn’t the only one involved in the situation who was lying.

The officer, Michael Ackermann, 30, claimed that the photographer interfered with an arrest last year of a teenage girl by repeatedly discharging his camera’s flash in Officer Ackermann’s face. But the officer’s account unraveled after the office of Robert T. Johnson, the Bronx district attorney, examined photographic evidence and determined that the photographer, Robert Stolarik, did not use a flash and did not have one on his camera at the time. Prosecutors added that no other officers or civilian witnesses reported seeing a flash…

Mr. Stolarik, who has worked for The Times for more than a decade, was working with two Times reporters on Aug. 4, 2012, when he began taking pictures of a brewing street fight at McClellan Street and Sheridan Avenue in the Bronx.

When an officer told Mr. Stolarik to stop taking pictures of a girl being arrested, he identified himself as a Times journalist and continued taking pictures. Another officer grabbed his camera and slammed it into his face, Mr. Stolarik said at the time. As he asked for their badge numbers, the officers took his cameras and pulled him to the ground.

The Police Department said in a statement that officers had given “numerous lawful orders” for both the crowd and Mr. Stolarik to move back, but that he tried to push forward and “inadvertently” struck an officer in the face with his camera. The police said that Mr. Stolarik “violently resisted being handcuffed,” leading to an officer’s hand being cut.

Charges against Stolarik for resisting arrest were dropped immediately because there was no evidence for it at all. This is par for the course, though, the cops engage in misconduct, arrest someone who was doing nothing wrong, then lie about it and claim that they were resisting an arrest that should never have taken place. The other officers almost certainly should be facing discipline as well.