Tactics against an obnoxious grandma

JohnH1963 · June 10, 2009, 07:25 PM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yWaE8tTlsc

Now this, in my opinion, is a prime example of taking things way too far with weaponry. This woman is obviously very weak and, at one point, the officer pushes the woman 10 feet away. There is no question that the officer could easily overpower the woman and handcuff her.

I dont believe the officer, or any citizen for that matter, would be justified to use a taser, handgun or any type of weaponry against someone who is this weak.

As a regular citizen, if I came upon an obnoxious elderly woman that grabbed and pushed me and I used a taser, then I would be taken to jail for assault and battery. How could I convince any judge or jury that I had the right to use a taser even if she did push me?

wickedrider · June 10, 2009, 08:28 PM

Thanks for being the one to post. This whole video puts whatever jurisdiction this is in a very bad light. To top it off, the Lt or whatever rank the officer is, attempts justifies the whole thing.

gregdry · June 10, 2009, 08:56 PM

I disagree. When a person is being defiant, beligerent, and will not "settle down" after repeated warnings by the police, age does not matter - the officer was quite justified. Sure, he could have easily overpowered her. But can you imagine the lawsuits that would follow if she, having fallen, happened to break her hip? He chose the only option which would prevent him from having to physically take her down. Since when do we have such sympathy for people who are being totally obnoxious???? She was stopped by the patrolman, and very uncooperative - she deserves what she got. (Frankly, she may have been playing it up just so she could get lots of mug time on TV. It worked. Yea, she's 72 years old; even more reason: she's old enough to know better!)

VA9mm · June 10, 2009, 08:59 PM

Comply with the officers commands and you won't get tazed.

Beentown71 · June 10, 2009, 09:24 PM

DON'T TAZE ME DUDE!!!

Sorry had too.

Beentown

hogdogs · June 10, 2009, 09:30 PM

He never had to let her off the hood! If that big cop couldn't handle the ol' gal, I would hate to see him trying to keep his gun from a fighting 18 year old 6'4" muscle bound thug!
Brent

wickedrider · June 10, 2009, 09:31 PM

Please, the only weapon that grandma had was her mouth. The LEO needs a course in professionalism.

hoytinak · June 10, 2009, 09:31 PM

If she would have listened to the officer and complied in the first place she wouldn't have gotten tazed.

gregdry · June 10, 2009, 09:48 PM

Shocking...just shocking!

Deaf Smith · June 10, 2009, 10:02 PM

In the hospital where my wife works they have belligerent old people all the time there.

Now I've never heard and she has never seen or heard of them tass anyone.

Now how can hospitals control old people without injuring them but the cops can't?

How?

Well they hold onto the old peoples arms. Yes they can struggle, or even bite, but usually they cannot do much of anything effective.

You do not use a joint lock on them, nor any kind of trauma. But you can hold them till backup comes.

The officer was a stupid borderline bully jackass. It was totally unnecessary.

Ok?

Hornett · June 10, 2009, 10:11 PM

When I see these videos and the ones like it, I just can't help but try to get into the head of the woman.
Unfortunately, I just can't.
I have been pulled over a couple of times and I have even been really curt to an officer once or twice. But, I always comply with any request and for sure a shouted command.
I don't believe this officer could have done anything to diffuse this situation.
If he had let her go, he would not be doing his job.
If he had tackled her he probably have hurt her worse than the taser: bruises, broken bones, cuts and scrapes would make him look really bad in a court room.
With the taser, I would think he was risking giving the grandma a heart attack.

No one knows why she got pulled over, but she was out of her car. I have never been asked by an officer to leave my car. This makes me think she was already in pretty deep trouble, but I may be wrong.

It really upsets me to think that people act like she did. It makes the policeman edgy and grouchy for the next traffic stop, which might be me.

Probably, the officer used too much force, I don't know, but, please don't defend her beahvior. It was ridiculous.

hogdogs · June 10, 2009, 10:51 PM

Stop was for speeding I heard...
Brent

Sixer · June 10, 2009, 11:13 PM

I like how he yells at her to "GET ON THE GROUND" as she is incapacitated and falling! I guess she learned her lesson the hard way.

The cop needs to be a bit more careful though... If he keeps tazing old ladies, eventually one of them is going to have a stroke or heart failure.

Just because you can, doesn't mean you should.

tmd11111 · June 10, 2009, 11:24 PM

Before you make judgement on who was right and who was wrong you should get the Paul Harvey version (the rest of the story).

Seems that evening after Granny got tazes she was all over the 10 o'clock news telling all of Austin how the cops ruffed her up for no reason. She went on and on about how it was unprovoked and how cooperative she was. "Why I'm just an innocent old lady" and "the big bad cop was mean to me for no reason what so ever".

Well boys and girls, as soon as the PD released the video granny went into hiding and now refuses to do any more interviews. Go Figure......

Kind of make you wonder What the Heck Was She Thinking..........

Capt. Charlie · June 10, 2009, 11:28 PM

Even though the press was careful not to present the whole video, and after 32 years in professional, full time LE, I have to agree that use of a Taser was somewhat over the top.

Even so, I fail to see how this affects our Tactics and Training, and this is most certainly going to erupt into nothing more than a simple cop bashing thread.

Closed, because it really has little bearing on the focus of this forum.

June 10, 2009, 07:25 PM	#1
JohnH1963 Junior member Join Date: October 22, 2008 Posts: 416	Tactics against an obnoxious grandma http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yWaE8tTlsc Now this, in my opinion, is a prime example of taking things way too far with weaponry. This woman is obviously very weak and, at one point, the officer pushes the woman 10 feet away. There is no question that the officer could easily overpower the woman and handcuff her. I dont believe the officer, or any citizen for that matter, would be justified to use a taser, handgun or any type of weaponry against someone who is this weak. As a regular citizen, if I came upon an obnoxious elderly woman that grabbed and pushed me and I used a taser, then I would be taken to jail for assault and battery. How could I convince any judge or jury that I had the right to use a taser even if she did push me?

June 10, 2009, 08:59 PM	#4
VA9mm Senior Member Join Date: August 8, 2007 Location: N. VA Posts: 254	Comply with the officers commands and you won't get tazed. __________________ “The key is to hit them hard, hit them fast, and hit them repeatedly. The one shot stop is a unit of measurement not a tactical philosophy.” Evan Marshall

June 10, 2009, 10:02 PM	#10
Deaf Smith Senior Member Join Date: October 31, 2000 Location: Texican! Posts: 4,453	In the hospital where my wife works they have belligerent old people all the time there. Now I've never heard and she has never seen or heard of them tass anyone. Now how can hospitals control old people without injuring them but the cops can't? How? Well they hold onto the old peoples arms. Yes they can struggle, or even bite, but usually they cannot do much of anything effective. You do not use a joint lock on them, nor any kind of trauma. But you can hold them till backup comes. The officer was a stupid borderline bully jackass. It was totally unnecessary. Ok? __________________ “To you who call yourselves ‘men of peace,’ I say, you are not safe without men of action by your side” Thucydides

June 10, 2009, 10:11 PM	#11
Hornett Senior Member Join Date: August 1, 2006 Posts: 569	When I see these videos and the ones like it, I just can't help but try to get into the head of the woman. Unfortunately, I just can't. I have been pulled over a couple of times and I have even been really curt to an officer once or twice. But, I always comply with any request and for sure a shouted command. I don't believe this officer could have done anything to diffuse this situation. If he had let her go, he would not be doing his job. If he had tackled her he probably have hurt her worse than the taser: bruises, broken bones, cuts and scrapes would make him look really bad in a court room. With the taser, I would think he was risking giving the grandma a heart attack. No one knows why she got pulled over, but she was out of her car. I have never been asked by an officer to leave my car. This makes me think she was already in pretty deep trouble, but I may be wrong. It really upsets me to think that people act like she did. It makes the policeman edgy and grouchy for the next traffic stop, which might be me. Probably, the officer used too much force, I don't know, but, please don't defend her beahvior. It was ridiculous. __________________ Guns don't kill people, Jack Bauer kills people.

June 10, 2009, 11:13 PM	#13
Sixer Senior Member Join Date: April 16, 2008 Location: Missouri Posts: 1,891	I like how he yells at her to "GET ON THE GROUND" as she is incapacitated and falling! I guess she learned her lesson the hard way. The cop needs to be a bit more careful though... If he keeps tazing old ladies, eventually one of them is going to have a stroke or heart failure. Just because you can, doesn't mean you should. __________________ Hopp Custom Leather <------ click for HOLSTER awesomeness!! -There is no theory of evolution... Just a list of creatures Chuck Norris has allowed to live.

June 10, 2009, 08:28 PM	#2
wickedrider Member Join Date: May 19, 2009 Posts: 50	Thanks for being the one to post. This whole video puts whatever jurisdiction this is in a very bad light. To top it off, the Lt or whatever rank the officer is, attempts justifies the whole thing.

June 10, 2009, 08:56 PM	#3
gregdry Member Join Date: June 11, 2008 Posts: 52	I disagree. When a person is being defiant, beligerent, and will not "settle down" after repeated warnings by the police, age does not matter - the officer was quite justified. Sure, he could have easily overpowered her. But can you imagine the lawsuits that would follow if she, having fallen, happened to break her hip? He chose the only option which would prevent him from having to physically take her down. Since when do we have such sympathy for people who are being totally obnoxious???? She was stopped by the patrolman, and very uncooperative - she deserves what she got. (Frankly, she may have been playing it up just so she could get lots of mug time on TV. It worked. Yea, she's 72 years old; even more reason: she's old enough to know better!)

June 10, 2009, 09:24 PM	#5
Beentown71 Senior Member Join Date: March 1, 2009 Location: Midwest Posts: 1,560	DON'T TAZE ME DUDE!!! Sorry had too. Beentown

June 10, 2009, 09:30 PM	#6
hogdogs Staff In Memoriam Join Date: October 31, 2007 Location: Western Florida panhandle Posts: 11,069	He never had to let her off the hood! If that big cop couldn't handle the ol' gal, I would hate to see him trying to keep his gun from a fighting 18 year old 6'4" muscle bound thug! Brent

June 10, 2009, 09:31 PM	#7
wickedrider Member Join Date: May 19, 2009 Posts: 50	Please, the only weapon that grandma had was her mouth. The LEO needs a course in professionalism.

June 10, 2009, 09:31 PM	#8
hoytinak Senior Member Join Date: July 5, 2006 Location: Texas Posts: 5,721	If she would have listened to the officer and complied in the first place she wouldn't have gotten tazed.

June 10, 2009, 09:48 PM	#9
gregdry Member Join Date: June 11, 2008 Posts: 52	Shocking...just shocking!

June 10, 2009, 10:51 PM	#12
hogdogs Staff In Memoriam Join Date: October 31, 2007 Location: Western Florida panhandle Posts: 11,069	Stop was for speeding I heard... Brent

June 10, 2009, 11:24 PM	#14
tmd11111 Junior member Join Date: January 26, 2009 Location: San Angelo, Tx Posts: 275	Before you make judgement on who was right and who was wrong you should get the Paul Harvey version (the rest of the story). Seems that evening after Granny got tazes she was all over the 10 o'clock news telling all of Austin how the cops ruffed her up for no reason. She went on and on about how it was unprovoked and how cooperative she was. "Why I'm just an innocent old lady" and "the big bad cop was mean to me for no reason what so ever". Well boys and girls, as soon as the PD released the video granny went into hiding and now refuses to do any more interviews. Go Figure...... Kind of make you wonder What the Heck Was She Thinking..........

June 10, 2009, 11:28 PM	#15
Capt. Charlie Moderator Emeritus Join Date: March 24, 2005 Location: Steubenville, OH Posts: 4,446	Even though the press was careful not to present the whole video, and after 32 years in professional, full time LE, I have to agree that use of a Taser was somewhat over the top. Even so, I fail to see how this affects our Tactics and Training, and this is most certainly going to erupt into nothing more than a simple cop bashing thread. Closed, because it really has little bearing on the focus of this forum. __________________ TFL Members are ambassadors to the world for firearm owners. What kind of ambassador does *your* post make *you?* I train in earnest, to do the things that I pray in earnest, I'll never have to do. --Capt. Charlie