[Dallas] NFL player's police saga at Plano hospital captured on dash cam

Has this been mentioned?

Texans' Moats accepts apology from Dallas officer

link: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/6349555.html

DALLAS — An NFL player said Monday he accepts the apology offered by a Dallas police officer who stopped him with a drawn gun in a hospital parking lot while his mother-in-law was dying inside.

Houston Texans running back Ryan Moats said on ABC’s “Good Morning America” that he hopes Officer Robert Powell was sincere in his apology.

Powell stopped Moats’ SUV outside Baylor Regional Medical Center in suburban Plano on March 18 after the vehicle rolled through a red light. Moats’ wife, Tamishia, and other relatives were also in the car.

The officer pulled out his gun and threatened Moats with jail as the player pleaded to be allowed to go inside the hospital. Moats’ mother-in-law died before he got there while Powell write Moats a ticket and lectured him.

Powell, who has been placed on paid leave pending an investigation, issued a statement Friday through his attorneys.

“I wish to publicly and sincerely apologize to the Moats family, my colleagues in the Dallas Police Department, and to all those who have been rightfully angered by my actions on March 18, 2009. After stopping Mr. Moats’ vehicle, I showed poor judgment and insensitivity to Mr. Moats and his family by my words and actions,” Powell’s statement said.

Tamishia Moats said she’d like to hear the apology personally, but that she, too, would definitely accept it.

Later Monday morning, Ryan and Tamishia issued a statement through the Texans.

“The Moats family would like to thank the public for all their support and for expressing their condolences during this difficult time,” the statement read. “We will now be focusing on our family and healing during this time of grievance.”

According to video from a dashboard camera inside the officer’s vehicle, Tamishia Moats and another woman disregarded Powell’s order to get back inside their vehicle, and they rushed into the hospital. She was by the side of her mother, 45-year-old Jonetta Collinsworth, when she died a short time later from breast cancer.

Powell yelled at Tamishia Moats to stay in the SUV.

“Excuse me, my mom is dying,” Tamishia Moats said. “Do you understand?”

Ryan Moats later said the officer pointed his gun at his wife and then at him.

He explained that he waited until there was no traffic before continuing through the red light. When Powell asked for proof of insurance, Moats grew more agitated and told the officer to go find it.

 

I was watching a local D/FW report on this where a Senator and former police chief were interviewed about Officer Powell's actions. The Senator was the one who pushed for, and got, video cameras installed in cop cars in TX via legislation and funding.

They both said Officer Powell is basically a useless cop now because any time he has to testify at a criminal case...the defense can show this video tape to discredit him and his testimony. Specifically, they said his words "I can screw you" basically will always follow him on any case he is involved in.

So, I wish Officer Powell good luck with that. Besides all the outrage of him preventing the guy from seeing his dying mother-in-law, I find those are the words that really piss me off coming from a cop. No cop should ever say that even if it is true. I guess he forgot his words and actions were being recorded.

 

I have had generally poor luck with power-trip cops over the years, but I do try to give them the benefit of the doubt in high-profile incidents.

I can see both sides of the story from Moats wanting to get to the hospital, and Powell being upset for having to follow him.

However, Powell's actions on tape royally pissed me off. The line "I can screw you over" and "I'll throw your ass in jail" were out of line for the situation, especially after Powell knew what was going on. He sounds like a vindictive ass and has no business having any sort of power over citizens and should be fired.

If I was on trial or contesting a ticket with Powell as an officer testifying against me, I would definitely bring that tape up. Sounds like others have thought of this as well. If the guy is compromised from effectively doing his job in the future in addition to the whole prick factor, just cut him loose.

 

For 20 seconds.

When the Dallas Police Department tells the public repeatedly only to stop in well-lit, public areas, officers should expect to have to spend half a minute before someone pulls over (and, I mention it again, but when you're following a car that's quite obviously in a rush to get to an EMERGENCY ROOM maybe the first thing you do is ask if there's an emergency).

 

I can relate to the guy that got pulled over, having made one of those frantic drives to a hospital to see a loved one on the verge of death. I didn't run a red light, but I went at least 100MPH down Loop 610, from I-45 in Southeast Houston to the Medical Center at around 2am on a weeknight. I got there in time. It was one of the worst nights of my life.

 

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090401/ap_on_re_us/fbn_nfl_player_stopped

The cop resigns...

 

Yay!! Got what was coming.

 

isn't that his job??

 

good, hopefully noone hires him now

 

I'm sure HPD has a cruiser waiting for him.

 

i bet they gave him the option of a decent resignation package to leave...versus just firing him. i seriously doubt he walks away with nothing.

 

Surfguy -

Based on listening to the Ticket last night up here in Dallas - they were interviewing the tv reporter who had the officer on this week. The tv reporter stated that he works very closely with the DPD. Last night, he stated that what would probably happen was that the officer would resign or get fired to make an example of but then after all the publicity died down the officer would be rehired and assigned to a different position in the force away from the public. The tv reporter stated that it is very difficult to lose a civil service job unless a crime was actually committed. Even though the officer did not use common sense he didn't committ any crime according to the tv reporter. This is how the tv reporter has seen things in the past play out. Take it for what it is worth.

 

A friend of mine in Dallas said a similar thing
He even forward a case where a guy was charged with sex with a minor .. .
was fired. . .and rehired . . .

I think it was the same particular department

Rocket River

 

If they do rehire him, it's because they have incredibly low standards and don't mind employing criminals and civil rights violators.

The more that comes out, the more proof that he just wasn't a very good police officer.

Story in the Dallas Morning News today talking about how he pulled over a guy for speeding. Asked him why he was speeding, the man said "no hurry, sir" and Powell got snippy and said "Try Again. Don't lie." The man says "I didn't mean to be hurrying, sir." and Powell says "You're lying". The irony of Powell's insistence that someone was lying would not be fully felt until later, of course.

He then goes on to interrogate the driver, asking him why he would possibly dare to drive south on the Tollway, etc.

He returns to his cruiser and complains to another officer that the driver is giving him "a bunch of bull" (as if it somehow matters that the driver was driving south on the Tollway when he was eventually returning to Denton, which is North and can be reached by going north on the Tollway and then taking surface streets to 380 and then 380 to Denton. Apparently, there's some unwritten law that says you have to take the shortest possible route to where you're going. No sightseeing. No driving around) He then said to the other officer "I don't smell any alcohol, but I'll probably pull him out and test him anyway". The man refused the breathalyzer but did a field sobriety test and passed. Powell arrested him anyway.

Get to a hearing regarding the case, Powell gets on the stand, takes the oath to tell the truth and then lies out his ass by saying he had probable cause for the arrest because he smelled alcohol on the man's breath. The defense then played the dashcam tape of him telling another officer that he DIDN'T smell any alcohol.

Charges dropped because of Officer Powell committing perjury (which is a crime). Not to mention that an arrest without probable cause is likely a civil rights violation.

Instead of being rehired, this officer should be under Federal investigation.