Better not go jogging in Austin anymore...

[London]

Amanda Jo Stephen dragged away in handcuffs by cops for refusing to ID herself | Mail Online


Let me make this clear: In the state of Texas, YOU DO NOT HAVE TO GIVE YOUR NAME UNLESS YOU ARE UNDER ARREST. You can NOT be legally arrested for failing to give your name when you are being detained. You CAN be arrested for giving a false name while being detained. Those are the ONLY two situations Failure to Identify come into play.

"Sec. 38.02. FAILURE TO IDENTIFY. (a) A person commits an offense if he intentionally refuses to give his name, residence address, or date of birth to a peace officer who has lawfully arrested the person and requested the information.

(b) A person commits an offense if he intentionally gives a false or fictitious name, residence address, or date of birth to a peace officer who has:

(1) lawfully arrested the person;

(2) lawfully detained the person; or

(3) requested the information from a person that the peace officer has good cause to believe is a witness to a criminal offense."

PENAL CODE CHAPTER 38. OBSTRUCTING GOVERNMENTAL OPERATION

 

[Moonpie]

Good grief. What a train wreck.

Pretty safe to say APD has made a life-long "non-supporter" out of Ms. Stephen.

 

[deemus]

So you are saying if you are stopped for a traffic violation (jaywalking in her case) you don't have to give your DL?

 

[Moonpie]

So you are saying if you are stopped for a traffic violation (jaywalking in her case) you don't have to give your DL?

From what I gather you do not have to have ID if on foot unless you have been arrested.
If you are operating a motor vehicle you must provide ID if asked.

What a screwed up world. Seems you to have ID to cross the street yet don't need ID to vote.

 

[Mike1234567]

Ignorance has no badge. Badges are too often dispatched regardless of ignorance.

 

[Acera]

Ok, is it arrogance and/or lack of respect for the law, or is it a failure of their training with these officers that don't seem to know the law regarding requirements to identify???

 

[Mike1234567]

Ignorance... arrogance... often brothers in arms.

 

[deemus]

Didn't get the whole thing on video, so we can't be sure what happened prior to her sitting on the sidewalk. Seems a bit excessive to arrest her over that. I guess once you got her attention, did they have a conversation? The video doesn't capture it all, so its hard to form an opinion IMO. And even more excessive to see her arms raised so high (by the cop car).

Maybe they are just tired of a bunch of smart ass college kids. (I know I am)

 

[Charlie]

Maybe ........................... there is a problem with people wandering in the street in that area (causing traffic tie ups, etc.). So the cops are ticketing J-walkers. She's wearing earphones, doesn't hear him. He grabs her arm and she freaks out. He cuffs her. So far I see he has done nothing wrong (IMO). She throws a fit 'cause she doesn't like it (and stays in the cuffs). That's just one way to look at it.

 

[Moonpie]

Maybe ........................... there is a problem with people wandering in the street in that area (causing traffic tie ups, etc.). So the cops are ticketing J-walkers. She's wearing earphones, doesn't hear him. He grabs her arm and she freaks out. He cuffs her. So far I see he has done nothing wrong (IMO). She throws a fit 'cause she doesn't like it (and stays in the cuffs). That's just one way to look at it.

How would you react if you were moving along, minding your own business, thinking you were doing nothing wrong, and Officer Friendly grabs you from behind with the You WILL repex mah Ahhthorytie attitude?
Think you would mind?

 

[1rightguy]

How would you react if you were moving along, minding your own business, thinking you were doing nothing wrong, and Officer Friendly grabs you from behind with the You WILL repex mah Ahhthorytie attitude?
Think you would mind?

+ 1

 

[popo22]

If I am not mistaken the female committed a "class C" violation in front of the Officers and they were stopping her to answer for that violation (just as if it were a "traffic violation). If the Officer stops us for a "class C" traffic violation are we allowed to ignore the Officers investigation and ignore/not sign the citation? I believe that is considered "in custody" until we are released by signing the "promise to appear" (the citation) to answer to a judge.

I can assure you that she is under "constructive custody" pending the signage of the citation and if she refuses to ID and sign the citation she will be physically booked into jail. The citation is just a release pending her promise to appear.

 

[popo22]

Art. 11.21. [133] [181] [171] CONSTRUCTIVE CUSTODY. The
words "confined", "imprisoned", "in custody", "confinement",
"imprisonment", refer not only to the actual, corporeal and
forcible detention of a person, but likewise to any coercive
measures by threats, menaces or the fear of injury, whereby one
person exercises a control over the person of another, and detains
him within certain limits.

Acts 1965, 59th Leg., vol. 2, p. 317, ch. 722, eff. Jan. 1, 1966.

 

[bones_708]

Ok, is it arrogance and/or lack of respect for the law, or is it a failure of their training with these officers that don't seem to know the law regarding requirements to identify???

Ignorance on the part of some posters here. If they were citing her then she does have to give her name and follow lawful orders while detained.

 

[Acera]

Ignorance on the part of some posters here. If they were citing her then she does have to give her name and follow lawful orders while detained.

With the incident in Electra, and from a conversation I had the other day with a LEO buddy, the failure to identify thing is being applied a lot differently from how the law is written in many cases.

 

[kurt]

If I am not mistaken the female committed a "class C" violation in front of the Officers and they were stopping her to answer for that violation (just as if it were a "traffic violation). If the Officer stops us for a "class C" traffic violation are we allowed to ignore the Officers investigation and ignore/not sign the citation? I believe that is considered "in custody" until we are released by signing the "promise to appear" (the citation) to answer to a judge.

I can assure you that she is under "constructive custody" pending the signage of the citation and if she refuses to ID and sign the citation she will be physically booked into jail. The citation is just a release pending her promise to appear.

Ignorance on the part of some posters here. If they were citing her then she does have to give her name and follow lawful orders while detained.

You guys are ruining a good mad-on with facts. Stop it.

 

[AustinN4]

[h=1]Police Chief Art Acevedo: Officers acted appropriately in arrest of jaywalking suspect[/h]http://www.statesman.com/news/news/crime-law/police-chief-art-acevedo-officers-acted-appropriat/ndYBP/

 

[HillRider]

Ignorance on the part of some posters here. If they were citing her then she does have to give her name and follow lawful orders while detained.

If you are going to fail to identify, you better first ask "Am I being arrested?" or "Am I being detained?" I guess you better be sure you did not commit an offence either. It would help if the LEO notified people first what law they violated, what they are being citied for, and that they are being lawfully detained before asking them to self-identify.

I've done jobs up in that part of Austin and am up there frequently. It's not a dangerous area and there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of crime. Lots of cops around there though. Stings against jaywalkers and smokers leads me to believe that the Austin PD doesn't have anything better to do.

But hey, students and libs are easy prey.

Austin is a Democrat town, and Dems love a police state.

 

[bones_708]

With the incident in Electra, and from a conversation I had the other day with a LEO buddy, the failure to identify thing is being applied a lot differently from how the law is written in many cases.

In this case? She was being given a ticket. You must ID for a ticket or you go to jail. That is how it is supposed to work so if some other cop on a different dept in a different town did something wrong it has what to do with this event? And yes I think the Electra incident was BS also.

 

[1rightguy]

Headphones in her ears, no ID because she's running. She ends up in handcuffs & arrested? Cop must have been concerned that she was concealing a weapon somewhere? A harsh reaction should be expected, especially by a female when grabbed from behind & man handled while committing bloodthirsty shit like exercising.
Clearly Austin needs to raise the PDs hiring standards & those with cop man crushes should learn to be a little objective. I don't see anything in the video or the witness statements that doesn't point to anything other than a dip shit bully that caused an easy, routine incident to greatly escalate.