FL cops harass and detain a legally blind man walking home from jury duty, then arrest him.

[StrictlyRockers]

FL cops harass and detain a legally blind man walking home from jury duty. No probable cause. They say his walking stick looks like a gun. (It doesn't.) They then immediately arrest him for "resisting arrest" when he asks for their badge numbers. This seems like an obvious Fourth Amendment violation to me.

This just happened in Columbia Co, FL. The cops haven't yet dropped the charges. Mr. Hodges may need legal assistance. If you know anyone who can help him, please reach out on his YouTube.

You can also post a comment in support at Jim Hodge's YouTube site, here:
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At this website: https://civitekflorida.com/ocrs/county/12/ you can run a public search under his name, James S. Hodges. It is a misdemeanor case. Once you click on the case you can open the case documents on the left of the individual entries.

There are reports that this poor man could not take his meds for the duration of his jail stay. That, and the stress of the arrest have caused his seizures to come back. This is really terrible, and it was entirely avoidable.

Link to tweet

[LetMyPeopleVote]

1. These cops are going to be sued and should be fired

[electric_blue68]

2. What a bunch of bullies! Sue their butts off.

[The_Casual_Observer]

3. Cops are pressed to do arrests to show they are earning their

Outrageous salaries and overtime. Clearly they were wrong bothering that man but it didn't matter to them, they "got one". God help you if you get involved in any police action anywhere.

[Celerity]

4. Fucking 🐖 🐷 🐽 . Hardly a shock its in Floriduh either.

[brush]

5. Hope he sues the hell out of them for their blatant...

Last edited Mon Nov 7, 2022, 03:37 AM - Edit history (1)

police state bullying. That should've been nothing but a simple check to see it was not a weapon...no ID check, no cuffing, certainly no arrest.

[Celerity]

6. It's an American pig thing. I have almost none of the rage towards the old bill here in Sweden that

I have for American coppers.

95+% (tbh 99%, and I am a black female, so in a position to potentially see some shit) of them here in Stockholm are not in perma raging asshole mode like SO many are in the States.

The society and culture here simply will not, on balance (to a HUGE degree) condone it or tolerate it, whereas in the US they have 100 million plus cheering the shit on.

The Italians knew in the early/mid 80s about this shite:

[ShazzieB]

7. I wonder why that is?

It's absolutely true that an awful lot of American cops seem to be in "perma raging asshole mode," and I really wonder why that is? I don't have any personal experience with cops in other countries, but if there really is as much difference as you say, we (as a society) need to find out what the hell is going on that makes our cops like this and try to fix it.

[wnylib]

9. Might be the type of person that

police departments hire. Plus the kinds of military equipment that police departments have. When you have military equipment, you treat situations and people like you are on a war zone.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

11. Many Americans are engaged in WAR constantly...

Last edited Mon Nov 7, 2022, 05:39 AM - Edit history (1)

... in their MINDS.

We have people who automatically thank someone dressed in a military uniform for "serving" this country, without knowing anything about them! The soldier might've been killing innocent children in Iraq for fun, for all they know! Probably not, but why automatically put them on a pedestal?

One of my brothers joined the military because he was a poor student in school, so he viewed the military as his chance at achieving some security in our dog-eat-dog economic system. (Yes, the idea that he MIGHT go to war someday was less frightening to him than trying to make it as a civilian!) He might've chosen to become a police officer for the same reason, but he took the military route.

EDIT:
It's so ridiculous, there's some needy people who put on a military uniform just to get the anticipated praise... so-called "stolen valor"! It's somehow valor for just WEARING a uniform?! The whole thing is insane to me, from the fakers to the people getting so angry about it.

[carpetbagger]

8. I used to work five blocks from there

Not surprising in the least. At least he's white so he didn't get shot or mauled by a dog or at the leas tazed.

[Grumpy Old Guy]

10. That woman is a menace to society.

She could clearly see that the cane wasn't a gun, and she knew full well that he wasn't resisting arrest.

The other cop was just as bad.

[DENVERPOPS]

12. Coming soon

to a town near you if the Republicans take control of the House and/or Senate....

This is it, folks...............

[ShazzieB]

18. You're right, but omg.... 😱

Now I feel like going back to bed, pulling the covers up over my head, and assuming the fetal position. The thought of THEM taking control is too horrible to contemplate.

Right now, I feel like this dog:

[RocRizzo55]

13. #ACAB n.t.

[malaise]

14. Bullies and monsters on power trips

Sickening.

[Samrob]

15. Good thing he isn't a minority. There would have been 15 cops responding and his life in danger. n

[Chainfire]

16. The two cops should not just be fired, to move on to the neighboring county to continue their crimes

they should be charged with a felony. The test being, that If you had done that to the man as a civilian, restrained him and forced him into your car, it would be called kidnapping. Since they had no legal cause to do what they did, why is it not kidnapping?

The man was arrested for not sufficiently kissing their asses.

[mackdaddy]

17. "You will RESPECT Maahh Auutthorataaaa!!!"

South Park with Cartman as a Cop on a tricycle had that one right....

It is frightening how many (hundreds?) of videos of occurrences there are like this now.

[ShazzieB]

19. Just think of all the crap they got away with before there were bodycams and cellphone videos. 😡

I seriously hope that all this stuff being recorded and posted on the internet will eventually lead to some badly needed changes. They used to be able to do anything they wanted, all the time, with absolute impunity. Now that so much stuff is being recorded, there are possibilities of accountability that didn't used to exist.

Like Derek Chauvin - he thought he was going to get away with cold-blooded murder, but instead he's behind bars for life, because of a teenager with a cellphone. Video justice, dude!

[Mr.Mystery]

20. It looks like the public outrage is having an effect:

https://columbiasheriff.org/2022/11/07/statement-regarding-arrest-of-james-hodges/

"We are aware of the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office body camera video involving the arrest of Mr. James Hodges on October 31, 2022. Sheriff Hunter is troubled by what he has seen in the video and the matter is being addressed. An administrative investigation was initiated on November 3, 2022 when the incident was brought to our attention. If policy violations are sustained at the conclusion of that investigation, appropriate action will be taken. While we understand the frustration and concern associated with this event, please know we are working to resolve this matter as quickly as possible."

*****

The "supervisor" who flippantly popped off "book him for resisting arrest" is really exposed on this. They had zero cause to arrest except that he protested their unjustified detainment . . . and he in no way was "resisting" anything except their bogus line of questioning.

And lastly, when does carrying a gun (which he wasn't) mean you get hassled by cops in FLORIDA. Don't the cops give you a high-five for that?

[LetMyPeopleVote]

21. Florida cops investigated for viral video of arrest of blind man:

These cops need to be fired and prosecuted for violating this person's civil rights

Link to tweet

https://www.rawstory.com/florida-police-investigation/

Columbia County Sheriff Mark Hunter has opened an investigation after a blind man spent 26 hours in jail after being hassled by deputies for jaywalking with a white cane walking stick in his pocket.

James “Jim” Hodges, 61, was arrested for resisting arrest without violence and received a $1,000 bail, The Daily Beast reported.

"According to an arrest affidavit, the incident began on Halloween morning when Deputy Jayme Gohde watched Hodges cross the street despite a crosswalk beacon indicating he should wait. Gohde tells Hodges she stopped him because she thought he was carrying a weapon in his back pocket," The Beast reported. "Hostility between Gohde and Hodges is present from early in the exchange. The deputy asked Hodges what was in his back pocket and the 61-year-old shot back that it was his walking stick, along with some choice words."

The body cam footage captured the interaction.

“It’s a navigational aid, what’s the problem, are you a tyrant?” Hodges asked......

The Beast reported, "Hodges’ request appears to strike a nerve with the unnamed deputy and he tells Gohde to arrest Hodges on a resisting arrest charge. Gohde then escorts the man to her cruiser and places him in the back."

Watch below or at this link.

[EndlessWire]

22. Dumb cops

They just caused their department a lot of money.

They were going to uncuff him until he asked for their names and badges. At that point, he was suddenly "resisting." He was in cuffs standing still.

I guess it's the totality of the whole interaction, but it is plain as day that they didn't consider him to have done anything until he asked for their names and badges.

I was afraid for this man when he first pulled his cane out of his pocket. I thought he might get shot for possessing a navigational aid.

There are plenty of people who bristle at cops, and it's not a crime. He is walking down the street minding his own business. I once was walking down a street going to work with my hand in my purse, finger on a short in the wire to my radio. A cop swooped up a distance in front of me, flung his door open, crouched behind it with his gun drawn, and demanded that I take my hand out of my purse. I was completely surprised and confused. The cop told me that he thought I had a gun in my purse. He had to tell me twice, because I didn't get it. I'm lucky I wasn't shot, and I think this man was lucky he wasn't shot.

Cops are well aware of their power, and the catch all for anyone they want to hassle is, "resisting arrest." I saw none of that, and I hope he sues the pants off of them.