Why Wouldn't He Simply Obey?
Last week, Jay Inslee, Governor, Washington State, asked the State's Attorney General, to investigate Pierce County Sheriff Ed Troyer over his Jan 27 confrontation with a Black newspaper carrier.
Troyer, started following 24-year-old Sedrick Altheimer after spotting him going house to house on his delivery route. At one point, Altheimer stopped, walked toward Troyer and asked why he was following him. Troyer did not identify himself, and instead demanded that Altheimer show him identification. Altheimer got back into his car, and continued with his paper route, and at one point, Troyer blocked him in a driveway, and called 911.
[quote]“Hey, it’s Troyer,” the caller greeted a 911 emergency dispatcher over an internal hotline.
Pierce County Sheriff Ed Troyer then proceeded to report that he’d “caught someone in my driveway who just threatened to kill me, and I’ve blocked him in.”
“He’s in some sort of gray car, and he was in my driveway and in my neighbor’s driveway, and he knows who I am and he threatened to kill me and I’ve got him blocked in,”
“OK, does he have a gun or anything?” the dispatcher asked.
“I have no idea,” the sheriff responded. “He looks homeless in his car. He was in my driveway and I got in my car and he was in my neighbor’s driveway and tried to get in my garage.”
“OK, I have units headed your way,” the dispatcher told the sheriff.
“I just need one or two real quick. He was at my neighbor’s houses and climbing all over…” the sheriff said, his voice trailing off.[/quote]
Even as the dispatcher tried to get more details, South Sound 911 prioritized Troyer’s report as a “Priority 0: Officer Needs Help” call, alerting all 19 law enforcement agencies within the dispatch center’s service area. Only potential mass-casualty events such as a lahar — a mudslide caused by a volcanic eruption — are given a higher priority designation, a dispatcher would later explain to an officer.
42 police units responded.
Within about five minutes, officers realized the man — who is Black and denied ever threatening Troyer — had been delivering newspapers.
“We do not have a crime at this point,” an officer radioed to a dispatcher at 2:15 a.m. “Just a misunderstanding.”
Then, Troyer started to change his story. Denying that he said the man had threatened him, until he finally admitted to what really happened.
“All he had to do is calmly say, ‘Hey, I am delivering newspapers,'” Troyer said.
Turns out that this is not the first time someone had tailed and harassed Altheimer, despite the fact that he delivers papers 6 days per week.
So, all he had to do was to calmly obey? I don't know why blacks in our country cannot simply obey.
Troyer, started following 24-year-old Sedrick Altheimer after spotting him going house to house on his delivery route. At one point, Altheimer stopped, walked toward Troyer and asked why he was following him. Troyer did not identify himself, and instead demanded that Altheimer show him identification. Altheimer got back into his car, and continued with his paper route, and at one point, Troyer blocked him in a driveway, and called 911.
[quote]“Hey, it’s Troyer,” the caller greeted a 911 emergency dispatcher over an internal hotline.
Pierce County Sheriff Ed Troyer then proceeded to report that he’d “caught someone in my driveway who just threatened to kill me, and I’ve blocked him in.”
“He’s in some sort of gray car, and he was in my driveway and in my neighbor’s driveway, and he knows who I am and he threatened to kill me and I’ve got him blocked in,”
“OK, does he have a gun or anything?” the dispatcher asked.
“I have no idea,” the sheriff responded. “He looks homeless in his car. He was in my driveway and I got in my car and he was in my neighbor’s driveway and tried to get in my garage.”
“OK, I have units headed your way,” the dispatcher told the sheriff.
“I just need one or two real quick. He was at my neighbor’s houses and climbing all over…” the sheriff said, his voice trailing off.[/quote]
Even as the dispatcher tried to get more details, South Sound 911 prioritized Troyer’s report as a “Priority 0: Officer Needs Help” call, alerting all 19 law enforcement agencies within the dispatch center’s service area. Only potential mass-casualty events such as a lahar — a mudslide caused by a volcanic eruption — are given a higher priority designation, a dispatcher would later explain to an officer.
42 police units responded.
Within about five minutes, officers realized the man — who is Black and denied ever threatening Troyer — had been delivering newspapers.
“We do not have a crime at this point,” an officer radioed to a dispatcher at 2:15 a.m. “Just a misunderstanding.”
Then, Troyer started to change his story. Denying that he said the man had threatened him, until he finally admitted to what really happened.
“All he had to do is calmly say, ‘Hey, I am delivering newspapers,'” Troyer said.
Turns out that this is not the first time someone had tailed and harassed Altheimer, despite the fact that he delivers papers 6 days per week.
So, all he had to do was to calmly obey? I don't know why blacks in our country cannot simply obey.
