We want to believe in the goodness of America. If you have seen the video of the police traffic stop of 2nd Lieutenant Caron Nazario, it’s very difficult to believe that this is America, at all. One of the involved officers has been fired. The Lieutenant is suing. That’s not even a good start.
According to the time stamp on the police body cam, the traffic stop began December 5, 2020 at 6:35 p.m., in Windsor, Virginia. Close to the Atlantic Ocean, in December, it’s full dark. Lt. Nazario is driving his recently purchased Chevy Tahoe home. Several outlets reported the medical corps officer was going home after a drill weekend, but he had his dog in the car, so that’s a question.
A Windsor, Virginia police officer hits his lights to Nazario over for having tinted windows and no back license tag, although the temporary paper tag is visible through the window. A second officer shows up to assist with the traffic stop. Nazario makes the wise decision to drive to a well-lit BP gas station for one minute and 40 seconds. Vice.com reported:
Still, the cops claimed in a report Nazario was “eluding police,” had a dark window tint, and lacked plates, so officers treated the incident as a “felony traffic stop,” or a traffic stop they believed to be risky. One of the officers admitted later that they knew why Nazario had pulled into the BP—it happened all the time, and was a maneuver often used by people of color, according to the lawsuit.
Excuse me, I can think of four reasons to take a minute to pull into a well lit area that any person of any color or lack of color would do well to consider:
1. It protects the police officers from being hit by traffic.
2. Ensure that it really is the police pulling you over.
3. Ensure the stop is legitimate.
4. A well-lit area means cameras, just in case the police body cams aren’t working.
My late U.S. Marines Sergeant father taught me those things when I started driving. Why would the police think this is a “maneuver” used by people of color?
Both Daniel Crocker and Joe Gutierrez, the police officers, are very aggressive from the jump. They give him conflicting orders, “Keep both hands out of the window.” and “Get out of the car.”. As Gutierrez switches from his gun to his taser, he tells Nazario that he should be scared because he is “about to ride the lightening”. Gutierrez then pepper sprays the Lieutenant in the face three times.
We are only hearing about this bad stop now, four months later, because Nazario filed suit against the officers for violating the Fourth and Fifth Amendments of the Constitution.
Here is the video and I am begging you to watch it, especially if you are in law enforcement:
Some of the commentary from people who should know better is gobsmacking:
Remember that Virginia is the state of Governor Ralph “Black Face” Northam.
Footage of the incident has drawn widespread condemnation, including from Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, who called it “disturbing.” He said he was “directing the Virginia State Police to conduct an independent investigation.”
“Our Commonwealth has done important work on police reform,” Northam said on Twitter Sunday, “but we must keep working to ensure that Virginians are safe during interactions with police, the enforcement of laws is fair and equitable and people are held accountable.”
I wouldn’t trust that cockwomble to investigate his breakfast oatmeal.
Greg Kelly, of Newsmax, is the son of former NYC top cop Ray Kelly and a former Marine (Yes, I know, there is no such thing as a former Marine) himself had the crust to Tweet:
Troublemaker Lt Nazario should be KICKED OUT of the military. His Stupid Actions and unwillingness to comply with very Basic (and legal) instructions from POLICE mean he’s INCAPABLE OF EVER LEADING TROOPS. He’s gonna get people killed unnecessarily. OUT of the @USArmy! pic.twitter.com/8x1qnB6g0s
— Greg Kelly (@gregkellyusa) April 11, 2021
Because his tag was visible, there was no probable cause to stop Nazario. Quite frankly, if I were a black man, I would be hesitant to get out of my vehicle. Today, we found out that in the stop in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, the cop mistook her sidearm for her taser.
Greg Kelly sent another Tweet:
One more little “tidbit” —the Bad Lieutenant Nazario had a loaded GUN on the floor of the car. In the front seat. By his Leg. Something the CORRUPT folks in the Media won’t say for some “reason” pic.twitter.com/xOZgjI8yO5
— Greg Kelly (@gregkellyusa) April 11, 2021
His gun may have been by his leg, but he never got a chance to say anything to the cops beyond “This is fucked up”. The gun may have been secured by his leg and that’s perfectly legal in Virginia.
Today, the town of Windsor fired Joe Gutierrez, the second responding officer. That’s a good start. Maybe a little training would help. I have never been in this situation, but when I lived in Connecticut, the two times I was stopped by police, I was threatened for calling the officer “Sir”. I was raised that way and I cannot stop.
We back the blue at Victory Girls, but a bad stop should be called a bad stop. If I am way out in left field here, I would be interested in hearing from our readers.
Featured Image: Police Officer Body Cam via Twitter/Cropped/Widely Distributed/Public Domain
Hate_me says: I don’t know. I would like to see a dash cam and any other evidence before making any judgement.
I can’t see a dealer plate in the window (it may be there, but between the tint and camera angle, I can’t say the stop was wrong).
As far as escalation after the stop, there’s a point when the one officer attempts to open the door and it appears the lieutenant inhibits that with his elbow. His mannerisms aren’t entirely compliant.
After they get him out of the vehicle, he still seems resistant to restraint.
I’m not denying the reality that some cops go too far, but I can’t say I see it here with the evidence provided.
A different camera angle may entirely invalidate the stop, but I don’t see anything damning the cops after the stop. The LT’s behavior at that point tells me I don’t ever want to serve with him in a situation where lives depend on his leadership; I read elsewhere that he’s a medical officer, if correct, that means I wouldn’t serve with him anywhere.
NTSOG says: I watched the video of this event some days ago before it became ‘political’. I don’t know if the ‘stop’ was legitimate or not, but I found the actions, including speech, of the soldier highly manipulative and uncooperative from a behavioural perspective. He was given multiple, clear instructions that were within [as I understand it] reasonable Police procedure. He kept trying to distract the officers who stopped him by making numerous statements and requests that were irrelevant at the moment as he was under legitimate Police scrutiny and direction. His manner was apparently polite, but that did not mean he was not disobeying the immediate directions given him by very patient Police: one can be extremely disobedient and resistant while behaving [superficially] in a polite manner. Distraction is a common ploy used by those trying to manipulate and who are disobeying authority. He could have terminated this ‘event’ anytime he wanted by politely following instructions, but he prolonged it until the Police had had enough. [In fact his behaviour was like that of ‘sovereign citizens’ who spout ‘legalese’ of their own making at Police in the hope that the Police will go away or will become irritated and lose self-control.] The young soldier was being subtly offensive and provocative in my estimation. He escalated the situation and suffered the natural consequence of his disobedience.
GWB says: First issue is exiting the vehicle with guns drawn. They’re primed for some violence. They think they’re gonna get some bad-a** drug dealer or pimp and get a big collar.
“Put your hands out the window and turn the vehicle off!”
Ummm, how?! Yes, it’s a silly reversal of things that a regular person could figure out – but not someone being faced with guns and yelling cops.
And most people have never opened their car doors from inside by reaching out and pulling the outside handle. Commanding them to do so without some precise directions is bad.
And, yes, I have a BIG PROBLEM with “You received our order, OBEY IT!” I tend to react poorly to that sort of thing. Mind you, they’re legally correct. But it’s not a good way to get compliance, IMO.
“Fixing to ride the lightning, son” is a thoroughly inappropriate thing to say. Period. At that point the cop has become an aggressor (psychologically speaking) and in any situation that didn’t involve a cop would destroy any claim to legitimate use of force at that point. At the point you say “I’m gonna kick your ass” to someone with whom you are involved in verbal altercation, you become the instigator.
“Yeah, you should be [in fear].” sigh Yep, that one is also problematic.
Also, you can hear how high the adrenaline is in the one cop as he’s telling the guy in 3-word bursts that he’s going to arrest him. He is unlikely to make any decisions that don’t involve force at this point.
Also at the point where the one officer is telling him he’s under arrest, the young cop puts his support hand down, maybe in his pocket. After he returns it to the pistol, he relaxes his stance completely. He knows at that point there is no threat from this guy other than BS. He appears to be looking at the other officer as if to say, “Are we really going to do this? Are we really going there?”
And then, yep, the younger officer intervenes and goes up to actually open the door. He doesn’t want this to become a shooting, and I think he sees the other officer going over the edge.
Pepper spray seems a little… pointless? Not necessary? I don’t think it’s going to subdue him in a way that will actually get him out of the car. But the one cop is just pissed now and attempting to get submission above all else.
Once they get him out of the car, I’m all for a violent takedown to get him face first on the pavement.
Having said all of that….
Yeah, the dude is totally wrong for not getting out of the car when the officers demanded it. It immediately put him in the position of escalating. As NTSOG and Hate_me state, he is at fault in this. He broke at least one of Chris Rock’s Rules For NOT Getting Shot By A Cop.
Of course, I can also see his reluctance, based on the fact the cops came out of their vehicles like he had led them on a high-speed chase after an armed robbery.
Now, in any lawsuit, they’re going to play this for the jury, unedited. And the Lieutenant is going to lose at that moment (unless he manages to get a jury thoroughly uninterested in justice and the law).
GWB says: To see more of the incident, go watch “Officer Tatum” take it apart. (Warning: it is a half hour video.)
I had not seen the video from the lieutenant’s own phone. It makes him look even worse – conniving, even. It also includes the perspective of both officers’ body cam.
I don’t agree with everything he has to say, but I think he has a lot of good analysis.
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