Cop Caught On Dash Cam: "I'll Blow A Hole Through Your Fucking Head"

"PRBot II" (prbot2)
07/27/2015 at 15:08 • Filed to: traffic stops, boston, dash cam

Boston, MA — A 25-year-old software designer named Mike was driving in an unfamiliar area when he mistakenly turned the wrong way onto a one way road. Unfortunately for him, Boston’s finest was there to see it, and the resulting traffic stop was incredibly alarming.

Detective Stephen Lebert assured Mike he was in good hands:

“You’re lucky I’m a cop, because I’d be beating the fuckin’ piss outta you right now.”

Don’t we all wish we were as lucky as Mike?

Here’s the account from the almost-ventilated motorist himself:

Driving home today I got lost and made a wrong turn. In an unfamiliar area I drove slowly but made the mistake of not seeing a poorly marked one way. I stopped midway through entering it when I realized I screwed up and fortunately there were no close calls or potential accidents. Only a single oncoming car (not the medford cop/detective in the video, he was on the other side) that had fully stopped before the road seeing my stupid mistake. After I stopped and realized it was too late I just continued out of the way and back onto the correct road in front of me. This man starts tailgating me and puts his high beams on in his Red Chevy Silverado pick up truck. He then yells how I’m an asshole and that he is going to hurt me, and well the rest is in the video.

The date is incorrect as my dashcam apparently was set wrong. I very rarely ever need to pull videos off of it over the period of time I’ve owned it and just didn’t notice the date mistake. The time however is right.

I also never gave my address to him, he found it by running my plates/license so him saying I’m not registered is false. I have had that info updated since I moved.

To say the cop overreacted would be putting it lightly. But this isn’t right. Granted, police officers work an incredibly stressful job. They have to deal with the worst people on a daily basis. If that’s not enough, many in the media try to paint them as racists. But, no matter how many professional cops do a commendable job, there will always be a few bad eggs.

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DISCUSSION (60)

For Sweden > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 15:10

That hair though

StingrayJake > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 15:11

Cops are fun!

PRBot II > For Sweden
07/27/2015 at 15:12

I know, he looks like he could work for Gawker Media.

EL_ULY > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 15:12

It’ always a 25-year-old software designer named Mike, fuckin ALWAYS!

ttyymmnn > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 15:13

You aren’t seizing shit, Officer Friendly. I would have requested an uniformed officer.

For Sweden > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 15:13

He looks like he would resign from Gawker Media over Ethics in Tabloid Journalism

PRBot II > ttyymmnn
07/27/2015 at 15:14

Video that uploads straight to cloud is priceless.

Party-vi > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 15:14

Question - can cops pull you over if they’re off duty, plain clothes and in a POV?

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > EL_ULY
07/27/2015 at 15:15

#NotAllMikes

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 15:18

WTF is wrong with the police in the US? No wonder you’ve got issues over there.

jkm7680 > Party-vi
07/27/2015 at 15:22

Wasn’t even a POV. I didn’t see any lights.

Berang > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 15:22

So when is Gawker going to post about this one?

PRBot II > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
07/27/2015 at 15:22

This is just an extreme case. I’ve been pulled over several times in America, and it’s never been anything like this.

Party-vi > jkm7680
07/27/2015 at 15:24

POV - Privately Owned Vehicle. I’ve been in the same situation multiple times where someone flashes a badge and yells/points at me to pull over, but they’re in a private vehicle and they have no uniform. Each time I keep on driving and they eventually take another exit or give up following me.

BReLp7dzHM3ytYsE > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
07/27/2015 at 15:25

Exactly what TTV said. It's only the extreme cases that are publicized so often. After all, since when is a normal traffic stop newsworthy?

PRBot II > Berang
07/27/2015 at 15:25

Hopefully Jalopnik picks up the story.

Patrick Nichols > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 15:26

$10 says Jalopnik puts an article on the FP tomorrow and gives the h/t to WBZ with no mention of Oppo...

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 15:26

I get that, but how on earth can people like that even become a cop? THAT’s my question. Don’t you run some sort of psych profile on people before they are allowed to be a cop?

jkm7680 > Party-vi
07/27/2015 at 15:27

Huh, just call them “Personal vehicles” around here.

I’ve never been told to pull over by a civilian, but local cops are allowed to outfit lights and sirens for emergency use only and special events, that sort of thing. Still don’t think they are legally obligated to pull people over with it anyways.

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > BReLp7dzHM3ytYsE
07/27/2015 at 15:29

The thing is, I don’t understand how someone like that even end up as a cop.. is it just “oh, he likes to shout and he’s a big guy, he can be a cop” over there? No background check? No psych profile? Sure the motorist made a mistake, but the way that cop behaved.. man.. he’s not fit to be a cop, he’ll end up shooting an innocent kid some day.

PRBot II > Patrick Nichols
07/27/2015 at 15:30

But I Even Wrote The Headline In Title Case!

C’mon, Jalopnik... help a Viper out ;)

Patrick Nichols > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 15:35

They may even wait til wednesday so the date makes sense on the video to the FP trolls that can’t read

BReLp7dzHM3ytYsE > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
07/27/2015 at 15:36

Again, I think you’re generalizing here. Most cops over here are not like this. There’s a few bad apples in every profession; you can’t filter every single one out. Thankfully I haven’t had too much interaction with police, but the cops I have interacted with were very courteous and professional.

thebigbossyboss > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 15:43

Smallbear wants a modern Syclone, local Maple Leafs spammer > BReLp7dzHM3ytYsE
07/27/2015 at 15:43

Another thing: the more country to be policed, the more cops you have. The more cops you have, the more bad apples will slide through.

nermal > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 15:44

I’ll just leave this here....

Kinja'd!!!

BReLp7dzHM3ytYsE > Smallbear wants a modern Syclone, local Maple Leafs spammer
07/27/2015 at 15:44

Exactly. Increased sample size.

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > BReLp7dzHM3ytYsE
07/27/2015 at 15:44

Yes I’m generalizing, but still.. Someone like that should not be an officer..

BReLp7dzHM3ytYsE > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
07/27/2015 at 15:49

Look man, perception isn’t always reality. I’m sure y’all have some bad cops in Norway too. Just because all you see in national and world news is “white cop kills black teen in America” doesn’t mean that’s all cops do over here. For every bad cop, there are more than enough good ones. There’s tons of stories and videos out there of cops playing with neighborhood kids or helping a family change a tire on the side of the road. It's their job to protect and serve the populace. If they are doing their jobs, there's nothing newsworthy about it. If they're not, or if it looks like they're not, that's what gets all the publicity.

Svend > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 15:50

Bloody hell. Even when a guy does go down a one way the wrong way you phone for a police officer, an on duty in uniform police officer who can deal with the citation without all the macho steroid bravado of ‘I’ve got a badge, I can say or do what I want’. I suppose it’s good that he got out alive but this isn’t the wild west any more you shouldn’t have to be thankful for getting out alive after talking to a police officer or rather off duty detective.

Kinja'd!!!

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > Smallbear wants a modern Syclone, local Maple Leafs spammer
07/27/2015 at 15:51

True, but I’ve been pulled over by police in most of Europe (standard check ups and such) while driving a lorry, and I’ve NEVER met anyone like that. I met someone in Hungary that wanted a bribe though, but they did not act like that.

BReLp7dzHM3ytYsE > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 15:55

The real crime here was identifying that Titan as a Silverado

Snuze: Needs another Swede > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
07/27/2015 at 15:57

I have a few friends who are police officers in various capacities. I believe all of them had to undergo medical exams, psych exams, etc. I don’t know how rigorous it is, but it’s there.

But I’m not sure if there’s a mechanism in place for continued support/evaluation, and if not, that could be a problem. Because it’s very easy to imagine a guy like the detective above - he’s a pretty normal guy, makes the cut, gets through the Academy, that’s all fine and good, but it’s a high stress job, weird hours, etc. So after a few years on the force, that’s when problems are more likely to develop, or an existing problem more likely to be exposed.

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > BReLp7dzHM3ytYsE
07/27/2015 at 15:58

I’m not saying EVERY cop is bad mate :) I’m just wondering how that man became a cop.

I’d love to see more stories about cops doing cool stuff in the US, this video of an officer skateboarding is great.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hj3JLY…

I guess the difference is that our newspapers actually write about the cool stuff as well. The other day some kid (I think he was 4 years old) fell and hurt his knee, some cop came over and put a bandaid on it, that made the national news.

MarquetteLa > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 15:58

This isn’t this cop’s first on-camera foray. http://www.boston.com/news/local/mas…

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > Snuze: Needs another Swede
07/27/2015 at 16:00

Probably true, and I wish there was a better system for that, someone to talk to them, check up on them.

I have quite a few friends that are in the police myself, but up here it’s something different.

BReLp7dzHM3ytYsE > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
07/27/2015 at 16:03

Yeah man I get what you’re saying. I just feel compelled to defend good cops. This dude was being a dick though. I can’t see any excuse for what he did from the evidence provided, and can’t imagine an instance in which his course of action was justified.

But yeah. Good stuff that cops do over here mostly makes it onto Facebook via local news pages, where they go viral. I just wish there wasn't such an anti-cop mentality over here. They provide an essential service to law-abiding citizens like you and me. Sorry if I came off wrong

PRBot II > MarquetteLa
07/27/2015 at 16:05

Kinja'd!!!

Excellent, thank you!

Look at that smile :)

Snuze: Needs another Swede > Svend
07/27/2015 at 16:05

Right - I wonder if there’s a procedure in place for this sort of thing? Around where I live, I have several friends who are police officers, and from what they have conveyed to me, it’s my understanding that they are told not to get involved in minor incidents if they are off duty, out of uniform, etc. Unless of course it presents a clear and immediate danger to them or the public. But for something like this, I think they might try to help out, but definitely shouldn’t be trying to write citations, etc.

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > BReLp7dzHM3ytYsE
07/27/2015 at 16:08

You SHOULD defend the good guys mate :) I’m not attacking them though, I chose to phrase it the way I did simply because not all off us here speak English as our native language. I figured it’d be down to semantics and understanding if I tried to elaborate.

That said, I did want to spark a debate as well.. and in the end I think we actually agree :)

SummerFun > Party-vi
07/27/2015 at 16:10

He’s a detective, they don’t drive cruisers. Their cars are outfitted with lights and sirens, they just aren’t as obvious.

Edit: nvm, the guy is driving a truck, so this isn’t the case. I wouldn’t pull over for a guy like that, seems dangerous.

Party-vi > SummerFun
07/27/2015 at 16:11

But still the same question applies - it’s his personal vehicle. Are you obligated to pull over or comply even though he’s not in uniform and has no police vehicle? If someone yells at me and get out of their car I’m booking it.

DrScientist > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 16:15

do we know when this actually happened?

Svend > Snuze: Needs another Swede
07/27/2015 at 16:16

He should of tried to help out in providing a location of the offender and possibly followed at a distance and stopped when the uniformed officer pulled over the offender and provide a witness statement and no more.

When a plain clothed guy (who could of been anyone) gets out of a car and starts shouting at you and then reaches into his pocket, then you see a police badge but he’s shouting that he should put a bullet in your head (or similar) that’s when you have to say the one shouting should take a step back and wait for a uniformed officer to arrive.

What's the bets he's done it before but nothing has been done as it's always been dealt with as he said she said and only now will a cursory investigation be done because there is video and audio evidence.

PRBot II > DrScientist
07/27/2015 at 16:18

The video was uploaded to YouTube yesterday, and probably filmed the day prior.

Textured Soy Protein > For Sweden
07/27/2015 at 16:24

Hair + Boston = part of me is enjoying the schadenfreude

(Cop was still totally out of line though.)

RockThrillz89 > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 16:29

And to think, I was nervous this weekend when I got pulled over. Ended up shooting the shit with the cop for a couple minutes, had a couple good laughs, got a warning and was on my way.

PRBot II > RockThrillz89
07/27/2015 at 16:32

That’s usually my experiences as well. Most cops are level-headed, thank God.

webmonkees > Party-vi
07/27/2015 at 16:38

In some states, you can (the right to*) call 911 and have a marked cruiser join the fun.

*careful, knowing more of your rights than the officer sometimes throws their script off, and the improv show isn’t as polished.

Ross Kraz > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 16:56

I picture Mark Wahlberg as the screaming cop. Way better.

SummerFun > Party-vi
07/27/2015 at 16:57

I would call 911 or drive to the nearest station. Especially in this situation. It’s one thing to be pulled over by an unmarked car, but definitely not pulling over for a random truck.

SummerFun > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 17:01

Really? The last time I was pulled over in the US I had two cops pointing guns at me (in the passenger seat) and the driver. We were driving 15 mph over the limit.

sm70- why not Duesenberg? > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 17:03

Holy shit. Not cool.

PRBot II > SummerFun
07/27/2015 at 17:05

That’s definitely not normal. Were they looking for suspects matching your description? Cops don’t just do that for speeders... which I can confirm as a chronic speeder.

SummerFun > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 17:06

Nope. Both of us were white men driving a car with Ontario plates. I figured they were just abusing any tiny bit of power they had. Like the detective in this video.

PRBot II > SummerFun
07/27/2015 at 17:12

Were you guys in Canada? Or did they give you their own special “Welcome to America” greeting?

In either case, that’s really odd.

SummerFun > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 17:19

We were in Michigan. So yeah, I guess that was their “Welcome to America” greeting....

PRBot II > SummerFun
07/27/2015 at 17:27

Oh, how lovely. Hope you guys enjoyed your stay! Don’t forget to recommend America to your friends.

Funktheduck > PRBot II
07/27/2015 at 22:54

Email or tweet one of the Jalopnik folk. I think that's about the only way you'll get recognized

PRBot II > Funktheduck
07/27/2015 at 23:19

I’ll bet they’ve already seen this. I’ve had a lot of posts shared to the FP over the years, and posting to Oppo is usually all that’s needed.

A lot of times, FP-worthy stuff doesn’t get shared. Sometimes stuff that I wouldn’t expect to be FP-worthy does get shared (like my birdshit post , lol).

As far as I can tell, they seem to use the South Park manatee method for selecting what to share and what not to share:

Kinja'd!!!