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D.C. Policeman Accused of Pulling Gun to Quell Snowball Fight
Two D.C. police officers, on not in uniform, involved in the snowball fight controversy during a winter storm on Saturday. (Screen shot from home video of the incident.)
USA Today via YellowBrix
December 21, 2009
WASHINGTON, DC – A Washington, D.C. plainclothes police officer accused of pulling a gun after his car was pelted during a Twitter-inspired snowball fight in downtown Washington has been placed on desk duty pending an investigation, The Washington Post reports.
Police initially denied any weapon had been displayed until video footage and witnesses indicated otherwise.
The video footage shows that the unidentified officer drew his gun and exchanged angry words with the boisterous crowd after his Hummer was hit by one or two snowballs, the Post said.
The City Paper reports said the police department, after initially denying a weapon was involved, issued a press release saying it had “subsequently received additional images and statements that would seem to support the allegation that the off-duty member did pull a gun” and was now investigating the matter.
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The snowball fighters, mostly in their 20s and 30s, organized the “fight” at 14th and U street as a break from a huge snowstorm that had paralyzed the city this weekend.
Related: DC Chief Slams Officer Over Gun at Snowball Fight
The Post says 25-year-old Yousef Ali, a media and technology geek, spent 11 hours using Twitter and other social media to spread the word.
If the final investigation shows the officer pulled his weapon after being pelted with snowballs, D.C. Assistant Chief Pete Newsham, head of the investigative services bureau, said that “would not be a situation in which a member [of the force] would be justified,” The Post reports.
“We have to see what the entire circumstance was,” Newsham said Sunday. “But just a snowball fight, not in my mind. That doesn’t seem a situation where we would pull out a service weapon.”
Anonymous
over 3 years ago
Stupid.
Anonymous
over 3 years ago
Hold the phone here!!! That was the MOST BIASED reporting I have seen CNN, The Comunist News Network, didn't show the idiots screaming profanity at the officers or hitting the "man with a gun" with snowballs.
skascooter007
over 3 years ago
2010 Comments
Bad decision..
479
over 3 years ago
26 Comments
I love how there is an ad for police jobs in the DC area next to this article, there must be an opening coming up soon.
CAREBEAR911
over 3 years ago
192 Comments
Well, it's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year.
Robocop33
over 3 years ago
14344 Comments
Now looking at the video I was rather ticked off at the reporters. Certianly not unbiased reporting. It seems that there were literally hundreds of people involved and acting like a mob at everyone driving by. Maybe, and I say maybe, this undercover guy thought there was enough of a danger in the numbers and not knowing exactly what was going on placed his hand on a weapon. Did he actually pull it out? I don't know and the vedio does not show it. The only one who had a gun out of the holster and pointed at the ground was a uniformed officer who was responding to a man with a gun, which is appropriate.
Robocop33
over 3 years ago
14344 Comments
Stupid.
akeribear
over 3 years ago
2286 Comments
Not justified. He only stopped because of the type of vehicle he was driving. If it had been any other vehicle I think he would have laughed it off and kept driving.
mike
over 3 years ago
80 Comments
Leave it to CNN to misreport and take the anti-cop stance. I'm not saying what the detective did was right, but there was also a large group of people throwing snowballs at passing vehicles. As for CNN's reporting on how the crowd dispersed once the "guns came out"... well.. excellence in reporting there.
Mcdonnal
over 3 years ago
384 Comments
I did not pay much attention to the film clip on the news but I thought I did see a black man in civilian clothes with his hand on a pistol under his parka. I may be wrong. I did see a uniformed officer unholster his pistol and have it in his hand but he did not have it pointed at anyone and immediately reholstered. I am not going to judge the guy without having been there and privy to the whole event..
FireDad
over 3 years ago
7348 Comments
This was not justified.. The Officer should have kept his cool.. I know a lot of us LEOs and non-LEOs are under a lot of stress, but we still need to remember that we need to try and keep our cool..
mjones0089
over 3 years ago
408 Comments
I thought the run had to do with a man with a gun, according to which channel you watch. If thats the case I don't blame the officer for having his weapon ready. Snowball fight "NO", man with a gun "YES"
rhood
over 3 years ago
23592 Comments
Not justified.
ds212
over 3 years ago
1508 Comments
good grief, if this guy been in a Pinto, he would have kept going.