Storm Chaser Arrested
Storm Chaser Brian Barnes was arrested while leading a storm chasing tour in Crane, Texas Monday night.
Here is his story, taken from WX-CHASE…
Dear All –
It finally happened, a storm chaser was arrested on May 06 for “storm chasing†and unfortunately it happened to me (while I was conducting a tour) and I spent the night in the Crane, TX lockup.
I’m not going to post all the fine details here and I’m going to ask you to please reserve your opinions until after the details come out (likely after I go back to court) – but here is the basics:
We were parked in a rest stop area south of Crane, TX with a developing wall cloud just to our due south and I was shooting video. The storm had already produced one brief tornado while it was about 15 miles west of Crane and I called that into the San Angelo WFO and they relayed the message to MAF and the storm was tornado warned.
I then drove east into town and then south until we found the rest area along the highway, we pulled into the rest area and pulled all the way over to the left side near some picnic tables with the intention of leaving plenty of space to allow other cars to pass through the rest area and to keep our tour customers safe from the traffic.
A cop didn’t like us being there and told us to leave. He was upset, nervous and very erratic. But the basic is that I wouldn’t leave and he decided to take me to jail – he said at the time (and on video) that it was
“for my safety”. I was on public property and I was legally parked and
doing nothing to break the law.
After we “core punched†the storm in the police truck (golf ball to tennis ball hail) and arrived in the flooded town of Crane, I was taken to a holding cell and it took the deputy 5 hours to “manufacture†a charge. He came up with this – “obstruction of a highway and/or passagewayâ€.
Just so you know (and there is a LOT of photo and video evidence) I was not obstructing anything, in fact, I was a little perturbed before the arrest happened because cars were driving in front of my camera in the rest area –
so there was plenty of room. I also explained the storm situation to a
fire fighter from a nearby town and he was appreciative.
The local newspaper reporter was behind me and taking pictures and witnessed the entire thing and it was recorded “cleanly†on my video camera,
pictures/videos from my tour customers, etc… The newspaper guy was so
upset about it that he almost went to jail with me and the former sheriff of Crane County is my bondsman and he said the charges were “BS†and he’s a great guy.
Likewise, the people in Crane Texas are some of the nicest people that I have ever met. All that I met today (there were a lot, probably 85% of the
town) were very supportive and they all seemed extremely upset at their county law enforcement office.
So we are fighting this and it might get a bit ugly for me, but I at least hope that I have all the support from my fellow chasing friends and I truly hope that you’ll all support the storm chaser on this one.
I have released a small fraction of the video to the local media, but under the advise of my attorney, I am not going to youtube this until he gives me to okay…he hasn’t reviewed it yet, he’s in north Texas and I’m still down along I-20 tonight.
But, I’m sure when you see the video you’ll agree completely that I was
doing nothing illegal. Under the law (as it was recently explained to me)
a police officer can tell me to move, but he can’t arrest me if I decide to stay (which is why the charges were manufactured they way they were), and this will be considered a “wrongful arrestâ€.
I’m tired tonight so I’m hitting the sack. I refused all the food they
gave me and I didn’t even lay down on that “thing†that they had for inmates to sleep on because it was full of things like dried semen and God only
knows what else – so I slept standing up in the corner. I’ve got a
top-notch suite tonight at a 4-star, so I’m in the Jacuzzi in 10 minutes and then off to la-la land for awhile.
I’m going to work on putting something on ST in the next few days as well, along with some video from the local news stories happening in the Midland/Odessa areas.
Thanks to all.
Brian Barnes
Violent Skies Tours
BTW – the Crane County jail was “third world†at best, and it’s as close to being in a Mexican jail that I ever want to get!
May 7th, 2008 at 11:30 pm
im suprised this doesnt happen more. Moral of the story should be, if a police officer (no matter how he may come across) tells ya to do something as simple and non-life threatening as to move, perhaps you should and avoid a night in a county jail. Not saying the officer was right or anything, just sometimes better to avoid conflict with someone who has and can abuse the power to “haul you in”….might as well moved a mile or 2 down the road and solved the situation instead of dealing with the courts…who knows what will happen then.
May 7th, 2008 at 11:30 pm
Amazing…
May 7th, 2008 at 11:33 pm
want to add….sad that a police official would harass someone doing such an important job and saving lives such as chasers do all the time….almost like telling a paramedic to move his van away from the wreck……sad. But like the old people will tell ya, dont mess with someone toting a gun.
May 7th, 2008 at 11:48 pm
I would hope the charges would be dropped. That is a sad story, someone helping to save lives arrested for just that.
On another note, the dewpoints have fallen into the 40’s are they expected to rise overnight?
May 8th, 2008 at 2:32 am
he had every right to not move. I agree with him. I will do nothing out of my way when I’m doing my duty, no matter if the person telling me to has a gun or not. Maybe this is the one event that will finally show how ignorant society is to the duty chasers carry.
May 8th, 2008 at 3:06 am
As a retired Law Enforcement Officer, I think it should be said that before saying “it is sad a police offical would harass someone” and “don’t mess with someone toting a gun”, it would be best to wait until all the facts come out and/or this goes to court. It is very irresponsible to make these and the other statements without knowing the facts. There are always two, actually sometimes more, sides to every story. IF and it is an IF, because NONE of us were there, it comes out the Officer made a mistake, then he should be held accountable. Both should for that matter.
May 8th, 2008 at 3:40 am
If this is the true story, the officer will likely be punished. It’s fine for an officer to advise me that a storm is coming and tell me for my safety that I should leave, but I have the right to decline. In this case, he took it too far. Another chaser had an incident like this in the panhandle last year, but luckily he caught it on video too.
May 8th, 2008 at 3:47 am
I kind of agree with what Alan says, let’s wait until all sides of the story come in on this one. The storm chaser’s version sounds a little far fetched, but who knows.
May 8th, 2008 at 4:02 am
Alan you have a point about not having the facts in…but how many “facts” can there be missing from a story of police trumping up charges on a storm chaser and taking him to jail for no apparent reason? lol…this stinks of small town police trying to make a name for themselves.
If Brian was in a vehicle that did not have to do anything with the media, then i am almost certain he would not be in jail right now. But at any rate, whatever the case may be…i’m sure the Crane, TX police department have worse crimes to attend to and arrest people for. Sad case…..
May 8th, 2008 at 5:21 am
Gotta agree with Alan and Sharky… just wait for the judge and jury to decide the outcome. I further agree with Sharky, if a police officer tells you to do something, DO IT as long as it is not illegal or immoral. They are in a position of authority. No one likes to get a ticket or be arrested and most often they will tell you how wrong the officer was, I think its time people step up to be responsible for their actions and stop blaming someone else. If they would, Brians story could be much shorter and say ” a police officer gave me a lawful order to move because in his opinion I was breaking the law… I didnt obey they order and I went to jail… boy was I ever dumb”. But instead he wants to blame the officer instead of himself.
Now, no, police officers are not always right and certainly they are not perfect, but nonetheless, if THEY think they are giving you a lawful order, you might just want to follow that order… or like Brian… you can spend the night in jail.
May 8th, 2008 at 5:52 am
GOLDWINGDAVE…i see your point, man. It is a good idea to do what the police tell you to do…but also i can see Brian’s point. If you know for a fact that you are doing nothing wrong…then why should you move? At some point you have to stand your ground and not let people bully you around, no matter what kind of badge they wear…and no matter who they THINK they are.
But anyways, we will find out sooner or later what the whole story is. Maybe it’ll be a good outcome for both parties.
May 8th, 2008 at 6:12 am
If I think I’m obeying the law by doing 90MPH because the sign said county road 90, it doesn’t mean I won’t get pulled over. Assuming everything is true, he broke the law by arresting an innocent man for a crime that doesn’t exist. Ignorance is no excuse to a crime. We’ll se what happens, Until then I’ma keep doing 70 on the interstate when the officers do 60 and everyone follows them <3 If you know you’re not breaking the law, don’t fear law enforcement!
May 8th, 2008 at 6:14 am
The officer told him to move on and he ignored the direction. Hmmmm…. and he’s surprised he went to jail?
Sounds like this storm chaser has a chip on his shoulder and a problem with taking directions. I would have added Disorderly Conduct to the “manufactured” charges.
May 8th, 2008 at 6:15 am
What happened to all the people who were on the storm chasing ‘tour’ with him?
May 8th, 2008 at 6:25 am
Coppertop.. most of them do have a chip on their shoulder.
The self-righteousness in this thread is sickening.
I actually laughed out loud when someone said they are doing “important work”. 90% of these people are thrill seekers with a death wish with visions of the movie “Twister” running through their heads.
I guarantee you there is more to this story than this guy is saying.
May 8th, 2008 at 6:39 am
Not sure too on this one.
Technically, law enforcement is most likely in the right, despite what was being done. Then again, I can’t imagine a cop telling 33/40’s Storm Chaser van crew to move, and then arresting Brian “The Professor” Peters. I believe the difference is, Press and Media crew are a bit more official (and probably have their own badges showing association) than us Joe Schmoe’s out there spotting storms for reports, pictures, and videos (who usually only get a printable certificate for proof of classtime with the NWS). Should be interesting to find out what happens and WHAT happened, either way…
May 8th, 2008 at 6:45 am
Do you realize HOW many problems could be avoided if people would just do what police officers tell them to do?? Don’t argue. Don’t just disregard what your told. JUST DO IT! Their job is to protect the public and they have to use thier own judgment to do it at times. Afterall, we can’t expect them to be trained in meteorology too. So since 1 tornado already touched-down, he used good judgement. Life is simple that way. Why make it so complicated?! People need to learn respect again. And respect authority always.
May 8th, 2008 at 7:01 am
If the cop told you to jump off a cliff should you do it?
May 8th, 2008 at 7:16 am
re Erica: That is a very cliche and ridiculous statement. The police officer was doing what he was trained to do, protect the public. You can’t find fault in that!
People need to learn to respect authority again – bottom line!
May 8th, 2008 at 7:48 am
Well, there you have it, folks!! Everybody had better get ready for martial law and the coming POLICE STATE! All you sheeple out there better do what the coppers tell you to or else! (This message brought to you courtesy of Alex Jones and other true patriots.)
May 8th, 2008 at 8:00 am
It’s not just the fact that he was arrested for not doing what he was told, but the fact that the officer obviously had an attitude and was very verbally abusive.
May 8th, 2008 at 8:35 am
The self-righteousness in this thread is sickening.
I actually laughed out loud when someone said they are doing “important workâ€. 90% of these people are thrill seekers with a death wish with visions of the movie “Twister†running through their heads.
–WOW! You are as ignorant and stupid as they come. I hope a tornado rips through your house and if it does I have a feeling the very first words that will come out of your mouth as you sob and whine on the news camera is “WE HAD NO WARNING!!!!!”
I dont get how people can say the cop was doing his job to protect the public by arresting the ONE person of the bunch who knows the weather best and then driving THROUGH the storm. I hope that hail put a bunch of dents in his pretty little squad truck, then guess whos tax money goes to pay for the body work.
May 8th, 2008 at 9:30 am
Anyone ever heard of people of authority abusing their power (Hitler, Stalin…) need I say more? I doubt that there is more than a handful of people that have not encountered “that cop” that acts like he is a divine entity.
May 8th, 2008 at 9:48 am
I need to add that I am not comparing the severity of the things that Hitler and Staling did to this situation, I am simply using them as an example because most people know who they are and that they did abuse their position of authority. I’d like to think that all people are good, but we all know that some people, cops or not, are jerks, and get thrills from causing drama in other people’s lives.
May 8th, 2008 at 10:02 am
Adam.. PLEASE don’t bomb any federal buildings.
Ok.. since you called me it first.. STUPID.. there is a difference between STORM SPOTTERS and STORM CHASERS you ignorant cow. Its funny to see how low and vile piece of garbage you are that you wish death on me (ne?.. anyone?) who differs from your gutter ignorant ideas.
May 8th, 2008 at 10:11 am
Legally parked??? Does that mean that he was actually in a parking spot, or just pulled over off the side of the road. If he had used a parking spot, this wouldn’t even be an issue. The best thing he should have done was listen to the officer, waited for the officer to leave, them pull back to the spot (if it was a great vantage point on the storm). If it was just for a quick break, then obeying the officer would have been the right move. All of this could have been avoided. But, I agree we need to see the video evidence before we cast stones at either party involved. But I do not think it is a good idea to badmouth the town, or the lock-up facility. He might have to spend a little more time there in the future. That storm chasing vehicle will now have a bullseye on it in that town. Just my opinion. And folks, this is a blog for weather… not a place to call someone an idiot on their opinion or wish a f5 would hit a person.
May 8th, 2008 at 10:50 am
Gawd… why waste time trying to track storms down in Hicksville, Texas? Inbreds like Deputy Dawg or Barney Fyfe whatever the hell he calls himself, are best left to be weeded out by Mother Nature.
May 8th, 2008 at 11:27 am
Folks, read Thoreau. There indeed are times when an individual can make a logical, premeditated decision to disobey authority. This does not by definition make them an idiot. Our history is peppered with examples of individuals who decided to be disobedient to civil authority. A woman on a bus comes to mind. Of course, when you do this, you must do so with the full understand and willingness to suffer whatever civil consequences that might arise; it is, without a doubt, very inconvenient. But convenience should not be confused with moral choice.
May 8th, 2008 at 12:20 pm
“Coppertop.. most of them do have a chip on their shoulder.
The self-righteousness in this thread is sickening.
I actually laughed out loud when someone said they are doing “important workâ€. 90% of these people are thrill seekers with a death wish with visions of the movie “Twister†running through their heads.
I guarantee you there is more to this story than this guy is saying.”
Ok, as a long-time storm chaser (AND storm spotter, you can be both you know!), I find this comment borne out of ignorance. 90% of chasers do not have a “death wish” and want to be like the folks on “Twister” (most of us laugh at the antics on Twister). Yes there are a few out there like that but most are reasonable people who just happen to have a shared passion for severe weather (just like any other hobby, be it skiing, mountain climbing, bird watching, or what-have-you). Many of us are highly-trained professional meteorologists (including myself). Many also do indeed report their observations to the NWS. I try to when I can.
That said, there are just so many chasers out there nowadays, that inevitably there are going to be a few bad apples that ruin it for the rest of us, and foster attitudes like the one displayed in this comment. And yes, I agree, there always is “more to the story”.
May 8th, 2008 at 1:26 pm
“# Scott!!! Says:
May 8th, 2008 at 10:02 am
Adam.. PLEASE don’t bomb any federal buildings.
Ok.. since you called me it first.. STUPID.. there is a difference between STORM SPOTTERS and STORM CHASERS you ignorant cow. Its funny to see how low and vile piece of garbage you are that you wish death on me (ne?.. anyone?) who differs from your gutter ignorant ideas.”
Hey Moron,
Storm chasers and spotters are the same thing. The only difference is some us has to go 1000 miles to see a good storm to freshen up on spotting skills! The Chicago area doesn’t get severe weather to often this is why we have to chase to KS, OK, TX to see something good. As a storm chaser or spotter we always call the NWS to report wall clouds, hail, rotating wall clouds, and severe level winds! So back the hell off since you should be taking cover in your house and not going outside to see if the tornado is coming! I have training and I been doing this for 7 years now!
May 8th, 2008 at 2:48 pm
Anyone who has watched the video knows that the police officer (in this case) was simply pissed off that Barnes didn’t say “how high” when the officer said “jump.” In these small towns (I was raised in one), sometimes the men with the badge are simply bullies, who get off on the power the badge gives them. In this case, Ellison (the deputy in question) seems to be just that type. Watch the video. Both sides are on it. The deputy was completely wrong.
May 8th, 2008 at 3:10 pm
Of Course, do as the nice policeman says. It does not matter that your life and priorities are not only interupted but that moment of YOUR life is now gone forever. And what do you get in return? At the most it will an apology and “it won’t happen again” or action has been taken against the officer. Who care that he got a slap on his wrist. Your freedom has been taken away and that part will never be returned. Why, because some egghead in uniform thinks he charge of all the rest of the human race.
I will wait for the results from the courts before I fully comment on the actions of the officer but, it just sounds like another one of those cops that believes all citizens are criminals, he just hasn’t caught us yet.
May 8th, 2008 at 3:23 pm
Matt
You are a KING among men.
Your work will not go unnoticed.
Thank you for pointing out how a bunch of pot heads and drunks are saving a bunch of peoples lives.
May 8th, 2008 at 3:26 pm
I love how many HIGHLY trained (but unemployed) meteorologists there are on here with a degree.
You people should sue your colleges.
I so intimidated.
I learned as much as you did with a 15 dollar book as you did with a $2000.00 education.
May 8th, 2008 at 4:55 pm
“I love how many HIGHLY trained (but unemployed) meteorologists there are on here with a degree.
You people should sue your colleges.
I so intimidated.
I learned as much as you did with a 15 dollar book as you did with a $2000.00 education.”
I shouldn’t even respond to this, but against my better judgment, I will. Unemployed? Where did you get that? I happen to work for a research organization as a graduate research assistant, developing and running high-resolution computer models to help predict severe thunderstorms.
Oh, I’m sorry. That $15 book (whatever it is) you read means you know more than me about it. Give me a break.
By the way, my post was not meant to try to intimidate you. I made a good faith effort to point out where I thought you were ignorant about the demographic of storm chasers (not stupid!) and to maybe help you to see that not all storm chasers were crazy loons. I even agreed with you that there was more to the story about the arrest.
Instead, you show your true colors by continuing to stereotype and call people names, and then insult them because they chose to work their rears off getting a degree in a subject they love. Classic.
May 8th, 2008 at 5:10 pm
Hey Matt, If you think a storm spotter and a storm chaser are the same thing, you clearly don’t know what your talking about.
A storm chaser runs around chasing severe weather, or more accurately, forecasting where it will be and then beating the severe weather to that location. I do that to the best my ability here in Massachusetts. Prolly 3 or 4 times a summer we get some decent action near enough to me that I can run around the area taking photos. I’m a storm chaser AND a storm spotter.
My sister is a storm spotter. She doesn’t leave the house, so she doesn’t chase anything. She reports to the NWS in Taunton whenever my little hometown gets Hail and reports rain totals snow totals and whenever the tide washes over the sand dunes. She is NOT a storm Chaser but she is a storm spotter.
The 2 are completely different. Most storm chasers are storm spotters. We all try to call in our findings when we can. Not all storm spotters are storm chasers. In fact, most storm spotters are not storm chasers. The 2 are not 1 and the saem. All Thunderbirds may be Fords, but not all Fords are Thunderbirds.
May 8th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
Listening to the story and remember there R two sides. I for one can attest to being pulled over once my fault for not dimming the brights after coming thru a core into complete dry air, other times while stopped and told to move on due to being on the roadside, in the officer’s eyes, a safety issue. On other times not disobeying any laws officers stopping behind me wanting to inspect the car as under suspicion for drugs. All in the course of my 30 years of storm hunting. Now while I never was thrown in the hoose-gow, but time spent under scrutiny was highly annoying. Most of us respect higher authority but it is due to the increasing YAHOO community of speed racers that give us a bad & reckless image. There was an incident a couple years ago occurring after I returned home of a large number of YAHOO chasers that were on a highway flyin over speeds in excess of 90+ mph that even the cops could not catch. Soundes kinda funny but in actuality it was damn REAL STUPID. Nevr did find out who the clowns were but THEY know who they are!!!
May 8th, 2008 at 5:47 pm
The facts will need to be brought to light for a final decision but as of yet I think that the deputy needs to be demoted. There is some allegations as to a conflict of interest as the deputy is the Sheriffs son in-law.
May 8th, 2008 at 6:15 pm
After watching the video it is obvious that officer needs to be fired and not allowed in any law enforcement position in any state. An officers duty is to enforce the law, not make the law. Serious reforms are needed in police work. It is becoming more and more common to hear of police overstepping their bounds.
Surely too many uneducated, unintelligent folks are being put into positions of great responsibility. It is past the time to raise the bar of law enforcement professions by requiring a minimum bachelor’s degree from an accredited 4 year college or university with at least a 3.0 GPA or better. You should also have letters of recommendation from at least 5 people with whom you are not related that are of prominence in the community. The job that law enforcement officers do can mean the difference in life or death in some cases; and, I for one only want the best person for that job and not some high school drop-out (or someone who couldn’t get any other job). Instead of putting more officers on the streets…governments should be firing these idiots and putting better qualified officers on the street. Have you seen the pay scales for law enforcement officers? They get paid as much or more than folks with college degrees. So yes, I think I can demand more “bang for the buck.”
May 8th, 2008 at 6:30 pm
I am from Crane and hate to see us getting this kind of attention, but considering the shape this sheriff’s office is in, we need this kind of attention. The arresting officer in this case is the son-in-law of the county sheriff, so don’t think this is going away on our end very easily. Keep up the good fight Brian.
May 8th, 2008 at 7:29 pm
I so intimidated.<———–
I learned as much as you did with a 15 dollar book as you did with a $2000.00 education.
-Apparently that book didn’t teach you proper English. What you said up there was pretty ignorant. As a chaser and a non-twister type youtube adrenaline junkie I took offense. You need to get the facts straight. Chasers and spotters are out there making the calls so the proper authorities can get real time information to help out people like you, who probably doesnt know SCUD from sunshine.
May 8th, 2008 at 7:52 pm
>>Scott!!!
Successful troll is successful. Whether or not the points Scott!!! makes are individually correct in and of themselves, and whether or not the counterpoints everyone else has made are correct in and of themselves, inflammatory statements were made and everyone bit by arguing back. The only way to chase trolls out is to quit feeding them what they want.
May 8th, 2008 at 8:21 pm
Anyone who’s ever dealt with law enforcement know that many of them are entirely insecure bullies who are in the job they are precisely because it fulfills their pyschological needs. This appears to be the case here. I am 99% sure the charges will be dropped, but Mr. Barnes should sue Crane County for false and malicious prosecution.
May 8th, 2008 at 9:54 pm
With all that is going on, Brian took the time to call Rick’s Mom about this issue. He wanted to make sure she was not stressed by finding this on the news. Brian was close friends with our meteorologist son who passed away at the age of 40 and keeps in regular contact. Apparently some storm troopers do not realize the service performed by professional storm chasers.
May 9th, 2008 at 2:24 am
This is to Craneite,
Before you blog on here maybe u should get your facts straight because I too am from Crane & know this deputy well & he has never been married to anyone. I also feel that a person no matter who they are should follow the orders of an officer, whether you agree with the decision or not. This deputy is a good man but yet he is being made out like the bad guy. Brian is just milking this for all its worth but I guess its just like he said on his site that that they try to keep every tour “exciting”..way to go Brian good professionalism, anything for a dollar, maybe this is why he insisted on going to jail?
May 9th, 2008 at 5:11 am
I would just like to clear up one HUGE thing here. There is a BIG difference between a storm chaser and a storm spotter.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Storm_spotter
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Storm_chasing
This guy is obviously a cowboy storm chaser who is in it for the thrill and profit (he admits he was doing a “tour” for people)
This guy couldn’t care less about “important work” or “saving peoples lives” .. so lets calm down with this hes better than a cop BS? Ok kids? Lets use the big boy voice ok?.. were outside now.
May 9th, 2008 at 6:19 am
O.K. I misspoke, I guess I should have said he is just the sheriff’s daughter’s live in. I was trying to be kind. Just a warning to all you thrill seekers coming to Crane County: if you come to bungee jump, sky dive, bike, jog, or even stormchase, you now have another danger to be aware of….rouge thug county mounties.
May 9th, 2008 at 2:47 pm
Well, apparently nobody took offense with my earlier comment (#20) which must mean that everyone agrees with me!
Oh, and Scott!!! Anyone who thinks Wikipedia is the ultimate source for tried-and-true accurate info is a fool. Anyone can go in & change anything about any topic as they see fit, even if they know the info they’re changing to is dead wrong.
Considering that your user name has 3 exclamation points at the end, I gather that you love to draw attention to yourself?
May 9th, 2008 at 3:18 pm
No Brian, I dont agree with you, I just did not comment because the post on this subject began to be filled with personal attacks and profanity, something I know James does not tolerate.
On the street is not the place to argue with a police officer, if he is in the wrong, file a complaint on him, call the news, write a story, heck…sue him if you like. But…. you are not going to win in the streets if the officer thinks he is right. You might win in court … but who really wants to spend the night in jail?
May 10th, 2008 at 1:01 am
Brian K. you accuse him of wanting attention when you had to come back and indirectly beg for someone to even respond to your ridiculous comment. Seems like you need to get a life.
May 10th, 2008 at 11:10 am
I am shocked to see, that some consider real chasers as crazy thrill-seekers who break any possible law. Those nutcases are the yahoos.
If anyone is willing to read more about the REAL storm chasers, you are better off reading Stormtrack – http://www.stormtrack.org/library/faq/
Storm chasers have their own ethics and… they are not as bad as some anti-chaser folks want to show them to be.
May 10th, 2008 at 11:47 am
No, I wasn’t “indirectly begging for someone to respond to my comment”! And maybe you’re the one who needs to get a life, not me!
Either that, or you need to GET INFORMED about the spread of police brutality in this country!
May 10th, 2008 at 11:41 pm
WOW!
1st of all While hard definitions may exist, in reality there are all kinds of hybrid groups out there “mobile spotters” trackers, chasers, spotters. (sometimes spotters chase and sometimes chasers spot)
Hurling epitaphs at one another is of little value.
2nd, a house divided cannot stand. If you classify yourself as a spotter, If you classify yourself as a chaser, realize the public, the police and many others cannot always discern the difference. We are all in this very large boat, and perhaps that’s the irritant, but unfortunately it’s true.
3rd, what’s the law? in some cases the law gives most police officers statutory authority to disband a gathering (even an otherwise peaceful and lawful gathering) for any purpose other than freedom of expression. Especially on by public roadways, parks, etc. Under the auspices of things a simple as being disruptive, a hazard, or noisy. In some cases it’s even as simple a statement, (paraphrasing) “if directed by an officer to leave (an area), and the subject refuses to do so, the officer may use any reasonable force necessary (up to and including arrest) to produce compliance with the directive”
(and if you think that’s interesting google police continuum)
While we can question the authority of an officer’s application/judgment in this case (or the actions of the chaser in question)I think we should stop these destructive retorts and posturing. Instead let’s be positive and try to concentrate on constructive discourse that doesn’t involve personalities.
May 11th, 2008 at 9:55 pm
I have a few viewpoints on this issue as it has been ongoing for several days.
First, let me say and admit, I am a retired law enforcement officer with over 25 years experience.
Second, I am now a full time Spotter, Chaser, Hunter, Severe Weather Reporter, Videographer, Photographer, or most any other nice term often applied to this “job.”
Not a single one of us knows every single one of the facts of this case.
People are making assumptions, quoting – misquoting laws, decrying authority, calling law enforcement and certain weather people names and even have stooped to the level of calling each other on this blog, names based solely on a video of very short duration only showing part of an encounter and on a story written by some news media and the arrested person himself.
Was the Deputy Right or Wrong?
I, nor any of you, fully know, as we don’t have all of the facts.
Was the arrested person Right or Wrong?
Same answer as above.
Let the courts and the legal system make that determination.
Now, there are bad police in various capacities in various locations all over the world. But, people here have made remarks making every Law Enforcement Officer out to be vile, crooked, bullying, egotistical morons. How many officers do any of you know that have actually and factually commited any illegal or improper acts?
Some will say you hear about it all the time. Add all the number you hear about that are bad. Subtract a reasonable 25% that are just judgemental accusations. You only have 75% of that original number that may be bad. Now be reasonable and realize that that there over well over 45,000 Law Enforcement Officers in the U.S. alone. This makes a very small percentage that may reasonably and justifiably considered to be rogue.
Next take the total number of Trained Spotters, Chasers, or other terminologies used. You bet, there are some misfits, unfits, and some untrained people out there. Does that make all of us bad and nut cases and does that mean we have a death wish? I don’t think so. Again, general comments are made about a select few and everyone is suppose to believe it is all of us. Some people think I am a little loose in the head for going after a potentially deadly storm so that I can warn the general public of impending danger. And yes, I do take pictures and make videos and make my living from it. I also broadcast live to over 20 stations nationwide every day that I am out on the ongoing severe weather. This enables you and anyone else to know if that particular warning is real. Public Safety comes first. Pictures and Videos are often not made because the public’s safety and welfare is of the foremost importance.
I believe everyone should be held accountable for his or her own actions. Everyone is human and prone to make mistakes, but who is anyone here to make a logical judgement on what should happen to either the Deputy or the arrested person based on what we factually know?
To those that claim they pay the Officer’s salary. I will say that a study was conducted a few years ago of this claim of people saying they pay the Officer’s salary. Everyone in the U.S. that works and pays taxes contributes only 25 cents per year for a police officer’s total salary and benefits per year. Guess what, if you work 40 years, you paid a grand total of about $10.00 for a Police Officer for your entire life time. All I can say, is we sure don’t have much room to talk about what an Officer says or does that does not directly affect us based on our contribution to the Officer’s salary.
I would dare say that most of us probably hope that what we do in life is worth more than a petty little $10.00 for our entire life.
Does anyone want their 25 cents back for this year to leave an Officer alone? But anytime you need or call an Officer, remember you are only paying him 25 cents per year. What do you really expect for 25 cents a year? I seem to see and hear an awful lot from people who are only paying 25 cents a year for someone to work.
For people here to stoop to the level of calling each other names and then to call and categorize Police and Chasers as all bad is just plain ridiculous.
This makes as much sense as someone saying because dozens of college students got arrested for drugs that all college students are drug addicts and dealers.
Might as well also say that since 75% of all crimes are committed by people under the age of 30 that they are all crooks and theives.
Just go ahead and put them in jail so 75% of the crimes will not get committed. Then when they turn 30, let them out of jail.
People really need to get all of the facts correct before they make their off- the-wall comments and suggestions on what happens. Also, remember your total contribution and opinion is only worth 25 cents a year where it concerns a police officer.
Finally, if the Deputy was wrong, then the appropriate disciplinary actions should be taken.
If the Chaser, spotter, tour operator is wrong, then he should pay the appropriate price for his actions.
I am not taking anyone’s side, as there is no totally reasonable and factual information to be had to make this type logical decision.
Lastly, for those who complain on what the Spotter, Chasers, Hunters, weather people, etc do, why do you even come in here to argue if you don’t like this subject? This is a weather blog after all.
May 13th, 2008 at 9:58 am
If he was indeed performing a pure public service, I have a problem with the arrest. It sounds, however, that he may have had a van full of customers paying to get close to a tornado (chasing for profits). If he potentially was putting others at risk, the officer may have had legitimate concern that the chaser was using unsound judgement for the sake of profits and putting his passengers at risk. Just a thought…..
March 12th, 2009 at 4:08 pm
I am a Lead Chaser in Amarillo, Tx I have done both radar and field. I agree with you and some of the others that have left comments about law enforcement giving chasers, people who put their life’s at risk to save the life’s of the ones they protect. We risk lots everyday and make sacrifices that are not only hard on us but can be hard on the ones we love. Storm Chasing is not a paid profession, no one pays these guys to do this they just do it.
March 23rd, 2009 at 8:10 pm
Woody, Dennis, Christine, Ryan: Amen to your comments!!!
However, in my opinion, stories like these are SOOO HYPE!!! There are many sides to a story, and until ALL the facts have been gathered, we MUST NOT jump to conclusions. We don’t even know the whole story, and besides, we weren’t even there when this happened! And if anyone who left a comment was, then you can tell your side of the story, but be honest, and try not to leave biased comments. Plus, whether you are a spotter, chaser, or severe weather reporter, YOU know the difference(s) between what each job is, and if you want to get out there and save lives, then that’s what matters most. However, you should also realize that innocent, ignorant, or otherwise untrained people may NOT know these differences. In many cases, if you inform them, and they try to argue by making illogical assumptions, then chances are, it’s not even worth your “two cents.” They’ll have to learn that lesson on their own.
August 20th, 2009 at 2:48 pm
I live in Crane, and I’ll tell you right now, the officer was in the wrong 100%. Most of the officers we hire are guys that big-headed jerks that think they know everything. It’s embarrassing to know that this is what our government is becoming.
November 4th, 2009 at 9:13 am
iam from crane,tx and yes the police here think there in the movies they have nothing to do but bother people people who arent doing nothing if you ride at night just to go to the store they will pull you over like were doing somthing they nothing better to do and he is lucky that it wasnt crane pd they are worse then the sherrifs they ride with there lights off and pass stop sighs they break the law all the time they harrass everyone here old people and young people dont ever come to crane,tx you will be profiled they didnt have a segagation wall for nothing if you know what i mean