Full story here here and here
This incident occurred when Mostafa Tabatabainejad, a UCLA student, refused to show ID when he was using a campus computer lab. When he did not immediately leave, the University Police were called. According to one article:
“Tabatabainejad was walking with his backpack toward the door when he was approached by two UCPD officers, one of whom grabbed the student’s arm.“
Thats right, the cops attacked him as he was attempting to leave the premises. When Tabatabainejad told them to let go of him to cops tased him. Tabatabainejad then repeatedly shouted, “I’m not fighting you” and “I said I would leave”, but yet they kept on tasing. The police also told him, on more than one occasion, that if he did not stand up they would tase him again. And they did. Multiple times. If that is not the definition of assault and police brutality then I do not know what is.
The Daily Bruin also had this to say:
according to a study published in the Lancet Medical Journal in 2001, a charge of three to five seconds can result in immobilization for five to 15 minutes, which would mean that Tabatabainejad could have been physically unable to stand when the officers demanded that he do so.
The cops continued to demand that Tabatabainejad stand up when it is very likely that they knew it was not possible. These officers are put through training. They know how powerful these things are yet they continued to demand that Tabatabainejad stand up after tasing him for approximately 3-5 seconds. It seems like these sadistic bastards just wanted to keep tasing to make an example out of him. They wanted to put their power on display.
Towards the end of the video you can also hear a student asking the police for their badge numbers. At this point the officer threatened the student that he would tase him too. This cop is clearly threatening an innocent bystander and refusing to divulge his badge number. What has this country become? Since when can these overzealous, authoritarian assholes threaten witnesses?
I would also like to know where the student outcry is. At one point in this countries long and forgotten history these students would have stood up for the rights of their fellow student. I can see that this is not the case anymore. This just goes to show how strong of a hold the police-state has on us. When the youth of the country does not stand up for their rights, I am afraid that no one will.Towards the end of the video you can also hear a student asking the police for their badge numbers. At this point the officer threatened the student that he would tase him too. This cop is clearly threatening an innocent bystander and refusing to divulge his badge number. What has this country become? Since when can these overzealous, authoritarian assholes threaten witnesses?
This grotesque abuse of authority is a crystal clear example of what happens when you give power hungry fools authority over others. Power corrupts and that will always be the case. I just hope that every single person involved in this blatant disregard for civil liberties will be prosecuted and put in jail for assault. I doubt it will happen, but I am still free to dream.
These cops were out of line for tasing him but I think none of this would have happened if he had just stayed rational and calmly asked the police why they were detaining him. If they still detained him with no reason, and then tased him for not complying to their orders, then he could file suit against the cops.
Even though he did not act in a rational manner, this does not justify the force the cops used on him. The force used was surely wrong and I hope the cops are punished and fired for what they did.
My gut reaction to this video was that the bystanders should have not allowed the police officers to do this, but after reflection I realize this would have made the situation so much worse. I don’t think it is time for an uprising against the police until they blatantly violate individual rights and have no consequence to their action. I am sure justice will be served in this case.
I stumbled upon this website through a libertarian group. I am fascinated by the student reaction to the violence. I think that everyone was absolutely shell shocked by seeing the people who they have been told to trust abusing someone that they are meant to protect. I would like to think that I would act different in the situation, but I am sad to say that I believe my actions would mirror those of the UCLA students witnessing the beating.
Ugh – that is why we must not sucumb to Sharia law…life will be hell…do you have any follow up on this case, were the police punished/fired?
As far as I can tell the police department has brushed it off, saying that the intend to investigate. Some UCLA students staged a protest to demand an independent investigation on the UCLA police department, about 400 people showed up. They then marched to the police station and were met by officers in riot gear.
Tabatabainejad is suing, saying he was a victim of racial profiling.
This is utterly disgusting. The fact that we live in a place where A) something like this is allowed to happen, and B) actions such as these are actually tolerated by the majority of the population, is outrageous. We are not just “citizens of a nation”, we are not the property of our government, our freedoms are not and should not be limited to that title. Whether the constitution says it or not, EVERYONE has the right to speak or not speak, to stand or not stand, and to not show a “form of student identification” when there is absolutely NO good reason to do so. The police and the government are only human beings, just like everyone else,and yet they(the ones who abuse their positions) have scared the living hell out of people in order to control them and strip them of their personal rights. When people make the choice to not be afraid and to not stand for such atrocious acts of violence and prejudice, only then can we, as human beings, truly be free.
[...] Coming of the heels of the UCLA taser incident, Im really starting to get tired of this shit. [...]
Ok the police were out of line thats a given. However the student was also out of line. If he cooperated with the police this would have probably been avoided.