there's no reason for this get my phone Sherry videotape this this is a paramedic with Thompson Valley yeah my shoulders [ __ ] up he's gonna check yeah [Applause] yeah um I will need to talk to my supervisor [Applause] hello and welcome back today's episode is a case where the victim's rights are being inexplicably and unequivocally violated by Colorado Police a bystander at the scene of a motorcycle crash didn't want to talk to an officer about what he saw and didn't have to it's as simple as that but the officer clearly didn't see it that way and would continue to escalate the situation until the 60 year old man is on the ground being roughed up by multiple officers we'd like to thank Sarah shellke the life and Liberty law office for providing us with this footage you can view the unedited version of the clip over on their Channel if you like this video go give the unedited version of you and a like as well September 22nd 2019 around 11 A.M the Loveland Police Department received word of a motorcycle that had wiped out in the middle of a road and was blocking an exit it at the time of the report the driver was trapped underneath his bike and appeared to be injured when officer Ash responds to the scene medical staff are already there tending to the cyclist as he approaches the writer seems to be sitting up on a gurney able to communicate and actively talking to a group of civilians standing around him [Applause] I don't know what happened to nobody really these guys saw what happened I didn't okay if you're not talking to anybody you can leave no I'm not going to come talk to you I'm not going to come talk to you police officer man just I know did you pull the bike off did you pull the bike off him I did not okay so you just told me you did okay you're free to leave yeah you're free to leave provided that the parking lot is private property unless the owner of the parking lot requests that Mr Preston leave the premises he's under no legal obligation to go as he's not currently there illegally or breaking the law the officer is clearly speaking from frustration and his request exhibits an adolescent level of emotional intelligence and self-regulation what's his name press time you got ID on your boss I'm gonna need an ID now okay one seven seven witness come on over here I need to talk to you right no I need to I don't want to talk to you you have to I don't want to talk no I don't you do no I don't okay you came down here to help them so I don't have to talk to anybody let's talk to anybody I don't have to talk to anybody okay [Applause] several things to dissect here Colorado revised statutes section 16-3-103 defines the circumstances in which a citizen has to identify themselves to police it says that an officer may stop and request identification from any person who he reasonably suspects is committing has committed or is about to commit a crime this means that an officer cannot just walk up to a civilian and demand their ID the only situations where an officer would be permitted to ID someone is if they have Reasonable Suspicion of illegal activity or if they're conducting a traffic stop in which case the suspect must provide an officer with their ID seeing as neither of these are applicable Mr Preston is not required to identify himself to the officer as for the accusation of obstructing that's just blatantly wrong any informed citizen can tell tell you that according to the Fifth Amendment refusing to talk to or answer questions from the police is the right of every citizen no matter what the reason or circumstance furthermore the crime of obstructing a peace officer is defined in Colorado as when by using or threatening to use violence Force physical interference or an obstacle such person knowingly obstructs in pairs or hinders the enforcement of the penal law or the preservation of Peace by a peace officer in other words to be obstructing one would have to be making a deliberate effort to impede the investigation on the contrary Mr Preston is trying to stay away from the investigation by definition it's safe to say that refusing to have a conversation does not qualify as obstructing thus for an officer to ever claim that someone has to speak to them would be inaccurate and to claim that it's a crime is grossly uneducated but the officer clearly has no doubt that he's in the right and he's willing to take Mr Preston to J over it you're right here I'm not obstructing nothing okay these guys are taking care of it please just come talk to me nope okay I don't want to talk to you turn around right now nope nope turn around videotape this sure I'm already doing no it's right here no you're wrong turn around my constitutional rights I don't have to talk to you I don't have to die I don't have to ID myself we came down here to help I don't know what happens if you want to talk to me I'm not telling you again put your hand behind your back now no you're being wrong Sherry take this [ __ ] what are you what are you [ __ ] with me this is [ __ ] up [Music] I'm not obstructing justice I didn't want to talk to you I didn't have to talk to you dude you're right [Music] levels this is total [ __ ] [ __ ] I gave you plenty of opportunities no I didn't want to talk to you I didn't have to talk to you I'm gonna sit here that's my constitutional right I'm gonna set you up that's my constitutional rights stop tuck that knee in this is [ __ ] up this is [ __ ] up you're [ __ ] with me my car over here there's no reason for this here we get a better view of the wounds on Mr Preston's head according to the lawsuit that was filed following the incident after taking him to the ground officer Ash Twisted the victim's arm behind him while shoving his face into the pavement besides being scratched up he advised officers that his shoulder was in pain his age increases the likelihood that his shoulder could have been dislocated or fractured from the impact with the ground though it's a terrible situation to be in even under the threat of false arrest it's never a good idea to Lunge at a police officer initiating a physical altercation with an officer is nothing but a guaranteed trip to jail and possibly extra charges depending on the severity of the assault to get the best possible result do your best to communicate calmly and clearly and focus on getting through the situation without further incident so that you have the opportunity to meet with an attorney as quickly as possible while it is Officer Ash's obligation alone to act with a certain level of professionalism and awareness the interaction might have gone differently if Mr Preston hadn't been so combated from that start as the officer seems to be responding to his negative attitude more than anything else no reason for the [Applause] foreign I didn't have to talk to you I don't know what happened he came over we saw him down I came to help him get his [ __ ] bike up okay and that's what I need to talk that's right so if you've imported yourself you need to talk to me I I don't know I'm not instructing anything inserting oneself into a situation isn't an actual legal standard of involvement even if it were Mr Preston seems to be trying to get the officer to understand that he didn't insert himself into the incident because he clearly wasn't there when the situation occurred he was just one of several individuals who was present in the aftermath of the accident helping someone who's just injured themselves doesn't constitute involvement in the actual incident I wanna want to talk to your supervisor I want to talk to yourself advisor Police Department right no I want to talk to him right [ __ ] now you can talk to him before you go to jail I'm not going to jail yeah I didn't do anything I helped the guy get his bike up and that's why and I'm obstructing [ __ ] [ __ ] [Applause] [ __ ] but have a seat help [Applause] [Music] I'll get in your [ __ ] thing loosen these cups up please they're tight can we please loosen these cups up they're not a finger [ __ ] with the way hey relax dude that's what happened to relax that's what happens when you go I'm throwing my ass down [Applause] other pretty [ __ ] tight yeah so the bike has been moved over there yes sir and that's why you needed to sit there and talk to me yeah well I didn't need to sit there yeah it did I didn't see what happened I didn't witness what happened well you obviously did because you came out and helped him I yeah but I didn't know what the hell happened I came down on my bike my buddy's bike's down that's part of the investigation and we need to know all about that and you're [ __ ] wrong okay have a seat please loosen these hey they are super loose no they're not have a seat in the car no my right my left wrist is trash do you want me to check them can I check these yes sir please [Applause] Hunters Hill it's two officers who have checked them and I loosened them and I want to talk to your [ __ ] supervisor right now [Applause] all right yeah [Music] [Applause] okay here here yeah any statements from the guy in the bloom flasher okay the guy in the black uh Eagles thing okay he was the one who moved his bike over there or was moving and the Eagles jersey moved it over there yeah okay and then I still don't even know who this is still don't even know okay this raises the question of why the officer didn't just go talk to the man in the Eagles jersey himself he seems to be equally if not more involved in the incident than Mr Preston seeing as he apparently moved the bike to its current position better yet why didn't the officer talk to the driver of the motorcycle who was sitting right there in front of him conscious alert and able to communicate it's also surprising that several additional officers have joined the scene at this point and not a single one told officer Ash that he was making a mistake or confronted him with the fact of what he was doing wasn't legal these officers simply let an unjustified arrest play out in front of them and did nothing to intervene and some would argue that their lack of action makes them equally culpable girl in the silver Jeep is his wife is this dude's life yeah okay that's it muted I will talk to my supervisor [Applause] the officer mutes his body cam while chatting with his fellow officers and before going to talk to his supervisor in the state of Illinois it is legal for an officer to mute or turn off their body cam under certain conditions to avoid recording personal information that is not case related when working on an unrelated assignment when there is a long break in the incident and in administrative tactical and management decisions when civilians are not present given that all these conditions could have possibly applied here the officer is within his right to mute his body cam for now though it's hard not to be suspicious of why this would be necessary he unmutes the device three minutes later when the paramedics arrive to inspect the victim sir [Applause] throw me [ __ ] down like that I gave you plenty of chances I didn't want to talk to you that's not resistant that's not [ __ ] anything we'll explain all that information yeah right I know my rights I wasn't I didn't I didn't need to talk to you yeah nothing to do with what happened here you told me down here I came down here to see what was going on and you're asking me questions I don't know what the [ __ ] happened but I [ __ ] up my shoulder and you're gonna have a [ __ ] lawsuit okay like I said this is my partner Shane he's gonna check you yeah thank you [Applause] after his brief conversation with Mr Preston he mutes his body cam again for about two minutes he mutes it twice more after this but we'll just skip over those to save time [Applause] yeah um I got an email which one Hospital right taking on the key now when I felt it okay [Applause] okay are you life I didn't get your name I'm sorry the above okay so he's gonna go to the hospital and get checked and then I'm going to take him to the police department he's going to be booked in for obstructing and resisting and then he'll be transported to Larimer County Jail I just needed I mean two seconds you would have talked and we haven't been done the thing is he has seen so many videos on Facebook about not having to give your name and so that's why he did that okay and so my whole thought on that is if he told me right away that he helped me that's what he told me okay okay and then at that point in time he's insert himself in the accident I'm just trying to figure out what happened today right no I understand I do need to talk to him so at that point in time but he didn't move the bike well he told me he did he didn't okay the other guy is dead okay well he told me he'll move like that's what I'm just trying to figure out was what happened yeah so we came up all these guys were already over there they got the bike up they moved it why would you tell me you help move the bike then so that's that was my whole thing I just need to know what they did to move that bike so then I could move on to the next part of the investigation which I understand and if you were to judge told me that you guys would be home already probably okay Sherry clearly appears to find something amusing she's in rather good spirits for someone whose partner just got beat up and arrested her smartphone is in her hand meaning she's likely been making calls or doing some research she's probably aware of what the officer apparently isn't aware of which would be that he currently has her boyfriend's detained illegally moreover if what the officer is saying is true and it really was simply a matter of figuring out what happened so as to move on with the investigation again why not walk away and talk to one of the multiple other Witnesses who responded to the scene and helped move the bike this feels more like an excuse for escalating the situation with the victim rather than a reason for any legal or logical footing and it doesn't seem to be getting over on Sherry here [Applause] Facebook the videos I I understand I just you understand where I'm coming from I do okay okay um I'm sure he'll give you a call as soon as you can okay you have any questions for me okay well other than that I think you're free to leave if you want or you can stay for whoever else is here I'll wait okay thank you the bike's gonna be towed Preston's gonna go to the hospital and get checked because he got a couple injuries during the scuffle it's Portland County Jail which side of the bike you just laying down do you remember it's in the right side right here yep they're both misdemeanors there's no felony Chargers or anything like that might have to be towed and take care of it it's part of our policy but he'll be able to get it out right away there won't be a hole on it all right all right you have any other questions I appreciate you not trying to jump in there well I mean if dealer just talked to me for two seconds it would have been over and you guys probably would have been gone by now that's all all it was stupid things yeah unfortunately all right thank you you have any questions for me no okay we do appreciate you guys help sorry it went to where it went to yeah no problem all right let me know what I gotta do you get money all right thank you very much [Applause] so here's what we're gonna do okay okay [Applause] I know [Applause] McKee hun [Applause] ger right here okay let's stand right here [Applause] closed captioning not available [Applause] Mr Preston was taken to jail charged with obstructing a peace officer and resisting arrest and later released after reviewing the case the District Attorney's Office dropped the charges as they were able to clearly see that officer Ash had no cause to arrest the victim in the first place this fact was also acknowledged by the Loveland Police Department whose authorities announced that they found the officer's actions to be in violation of policies surrounding limits of authority use of force search and seizure and exercising discretion in June of 2022 Preston filed a lawsuit against both the city and the officers involved the following January there was a settlement for 290 thousand dollars the documents concerning the lawsuit emphasize that the settlement was in no way an admission of criminal wrongdoing by either the city or the officers someone certainly seems to be doing something wrong since the Loveland police department has been in headlines for several instances of excessive force in recent years this includes the violent arrest of a 14 year old old and her father in 2020 an officer striking a handcuffed woman in the face with a closed fist in 2023 and another incident that same year where police assaulted a 73-year-old woman with dementia though it was never publicly disclosed if or how officer Ash was reprimanded in October of 2021 two years after Mr Preston was wrongfully arrested officer Ash was fired for an unrelated incident concerning unauthorized accessing of Records the files he was trying to access were coincidentally related to the assault and arrest of the offer mentioned 73 year old in December of that year Ash filed a lawsuit against the department claiming that he believes he was wrongfully fired how ironic