Michigan Police Attack Citizen Fixing His Bicycle Chain

[XLFD]

A disturbing dash cam video from December 2013 shows a group of Dearborn police officers pouncing, then pounding, on a confused Lebanese man who was doing nothing more than standing on a residential street trying to fix his bicycle chain.  Probable cause and any kind of reasonable suspicion, was conveniently absent from this violent event.

 

The first Dearborn cop pulls up, steps out of the car and begins donning gloves – a usual indicator he is about to get physical- and asks whether he has any ID on him.  No reason is ever stated for why the officer stopped to question him or why he was under suspicion.  Baydoun was allegedly on his way home to his mother's from washing dishes where he works at.

Once the gloves are on the officer, again without explaining why, insists on patting Ali Baydoun down for weapons, even though he was not doing anything that would have given the cop a reasonable suspicion that he had or was about to commit a crime.  The pat down quickly becomes a beat down, as the officer escalates the situation and brings in a force to deal with what could have been much better handled

In this case, Baydoun was transported to a hospital for injuries sustained during the beating but was never taken to jail or charged with a crime or even cited for any bicycle infraction which they later use for their defense when the civil lawsuit gets filed.  Of course, the officers were never charged with a crime.

Below is a statement from the Dearborn Police Department, posted on Michigan Live:

DEARBORN, Mich. – A thorough Police Department review of an incident in December 2013 involving Ali Beydoun, who resisted police officers’ lawful instructions, resulting in the necessary use of force, showed the officers acted and reported the incident appropriately and according to approved department protocols.

A videotape of the incident, which occurred at 4:47 a.m. on December 7, 2013 shows a physical encounter that resulted from Mr. Beydoun resisting a pat down for weapons. However, what attracted the officer’s attention to this individual incident is not given on the video.

Mr. Beydoun was not dressed properly for the 20 degree weather that December morning. Despite riding his bicycle in the street, his bike did not have a light and he disregarded several stop signs.

Mr. Beydoun was on a bike at 4:47 a.m. in a neighborhood that has experienced auto thefts and break-ins. It is common for criminals to use a bike when traveling to an area to steal cars. Autos have been stolen in cold weather when owners start them, but leave them unattended to warm up.

Mr. Beydoun could not produce an I.D. when asked to do so by the officer, nor could he answer where he had come from. The officer then indicated that he was going to conduct a pat down for weapons. That is when Mr. Beydoun began to resist and pull away from the officer.

Mr. Beydoun did not appear to be injured following the incident. He was not arrested. Once the incident was under control, officers cared for the well-being of Mr. Beydoun by transporting him to Oakwood Hospital for suspected mental health issues. A family member was contacted.

The family member told police that despite his behavior during the incident and his lack of ability to clearly communicate with officers, he did not take medications, did not have a mental health diagnosis or have a known mental illness.

http://photographyisnotacrime.com/2014/05/08/michigan-cops-attack-m...

Apparently, not wearing a jacket in cold temperatures, not having a light on your bicycle, not producing an ID or consenting to a search on an unlawful demand is protocol for the Dearborn Police Force to kick your butt into submission. 

 

This is why police departments that do not correct these improper aggressions by their officers  need to be reorganized into a force that does.  Otherwise, they are only self-serving and acting contrary to law, not serving the public and enforcing the law.

 

Attorneys have recently filed a Civil Rights Complaint against the Police Department and plan to follow it up with a federal lawsuit alleging excessive force, false arrest and assault and battery.  Attorneys say, Baydoun (at the far right) is "mentally challenged" moved here from Lebanon six years ago and speaks broken English. .

[Willy]

Absolutely outrageous behavior by the police officer. The other officers were only responding to a call for assistance and did not know what had transpired. Police departments throughout the State have got to clean up their act because each incident such as this only reduces the public's trust for them. The officer had no business "frisking" the bike rider and it was a perfect example of causing a problem where none existed. I think the officer put on the gloves for "sanitary" protection while trying to frisk the rider and not for hitting the subject. Sorry Dearborn but your going to be paying thru the nose with this lawsuit if you don't Start training your officers to be more respectful of the citizens who pay your salaries.