Crazed LEO in Dashcam in Boston Suburb

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Originally Posted By: wcvb.com
MEDFORD, Mass. —A Medford police detective was placed on administrative leave Monday morning after a driver's dash camera captured him threatening and yelling at the driver after a traffic stop late Sunday night, 5 Investigates reported.

The officer was identified by Medford police as Detective Stephen Lebert, who was off-duty when he stopped the driver who had made a wrong turn going through a rotary.

The dash camera video, which was posted to YouTube, records Lebert as saying, "I'll put a hole right through your head," as he repeatedly swore at the driver.

"You are lucky I am a cop or I'd beat the (expletive) out of you right now," Lebert is heard saying on the video.

Lebert was warned several times by the driver that he was being recorded, but continued to yell at the driver, as the driver continually apologizes for his driving mistake.

"I am troubled by what I have seen on the video," said Medford Police Chief Leo Sacco. "I was upset to see one of my officers involved in this kind of activity."

Lebert, who was not in uniform, called other Medford police officers, who are recorded as handling the situation calmly and telling the driver that he will receive a summons for the traffic violation.

Lebert told 5 Investigates Kathy Curran that he had not seen the video and had no comment.

(Editor's note: The date on the dash cam video of July 28 is the result of an incorrect setting on the camera. The video was record July 26.)
 
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Time to get some dashcams.

And someplace to hide them. The cop told him he was going to seize the evidence.
 
Even the "nice" cop said "The more you stay here, the more trouble you're going to get into".

Why? What if he needs a moment to calm himself down before driving? The average person would be shaken up if they were just told they were close to having a bullet put through their head.
 
The defenders keep saying it's a few bad apples, but everyday we hear a new story of some type of abuse from a cop. I have to believe it's far more than just a few.

So in MA you have to inform the cop he's being taped so he can seize your camera? You would have to find a camera that uploads in real time to the cloud so you can preserve evidence to defend yourself with.
 
Originally Posted By: Benito
Even the "nice" cop said "The more you stay here, the more trouble you're going to get into".

Why? What if he needs a moment to calm himself down before driving? The average person would be shaken up if they were just told they were close to having a bullet put through their head.


I don't understand why he wanted to keep talking to them, I'd be getting as far away from those maniacs as fast as I could.
 
Before video was everywhere (like here), this kind of thing went on all the time. Still does actually. Cops get intoxicated with power & think they can threaten anyone, bust someone in the head, etc. Now we can catch them. Threatening someones life like that is menacing, a misdemeanor.
 
I would have been on the phone to 911, to get a sane, on-duty cop there as quickly as possible.

And Chief Sacco needs to void out that ticket as soon as possible.
 
Originally Posted By: mrsilv04
I would have been on the phone to 911, to get a sane, on-duty cop there as quickly as possible.

I'm surprised the victim didn't do that!

Also, I'm glad the victim was not black, or we'd be seeing the usual race-relations experts trotted out on CNN decrying how white cops mistreat and target blacks again. Truth is cops mistreat just about anyone.
 
The motorist clearly was driving recklessly, but the detective was clearly wrong and out of control, if I was the driver I would have if possible left the scene and as soon as out of range of the detective I would have phoned 911 and informed them of what happened and explained to the arriving officers why you refused to remain at the location of the detective.

The motorist is doing himself NO favor by baiting and arguing with the detective, he is really lucky that he wasn't put under arrest for repeatedly refusing to comply with the reasonable requests of that detective and arguing with him considering the state of mind he was in a very unwise move, I would not have even mentioned the dash cam since it actually and expectedly agitated detective.

That being said the detective needs to be relieved from duty and most likely not return.
 
^^^GiveMeAVowel, I don't see the "baiting and arguing". The victim was the sane one here. Detective was way out of control. Threatening to blow a hole in somebody's head is serious.
 
Originally Posted By: GiveMeAVowel
The motorist is doing himself NO favor by baiting and arguing with the detective, he is really lucky that he wasn't put under arrest for repeatedly refusing to comply with the reasonable requests of that detective and arguing with him considering the state of mind he was in a very unwise move, I would not have even mentioned the dash cam since it actually and expectedly agitated detective.


And he should have given the cop a [censored] to thank him for not pulling the trigger.

Meanwhile, back in the real world, any of us peons who make a credible threat to kill someone go to prison.
 
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Originally Posted By: mrsilv04
I would have been on the phone to 911, to get a sane, on-duty cop there as quickly as possible.

And Chief Sacco needs to void out that ticket as soon as possible.



Actually, the ticket seems legitimate....the driver admitted his mistake.
 
Originally Posted By: pbm
Actually, the ticket seems legitimate....the driver admitted his mistake.

Given that the victim almost paid with his life (hole blown in head is usually fatal) from an armed, rude, belligerent, threatening, jeans shorts wearing cop, ... I'd say the ticket should be waived. And the detective should spend 30 days in jail thinking about threatening people.
 
Originally Posted By: GiveMeAVowel
if I was the driver I would have if possible left the scene and as soon as out of range of the detective I would have phoned 911 and informed them of what happened and explained to the arriving officers why you refused to remain at the location of the detective.


You don't think doing ^ would lead to the below outcome?
21.gif


Originally Posted By: GiveMeAVowel
he is really lucky that he wasn't put under arrest for repeatedly refusing to comply with the reasonable requests of that detective and arguing with him considering the state of mind he was in a very unwise move
 
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