Ryan Moats runs red light so see family member on death bed...

[Wagner]

FOXNews.com - Dallas Officer Detains NFL Player Rushing to Dying Mother-in-Law's Bedside - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News

In the process of running the red light to see his dieing mother-in-law, he is pulled over outside the hospital. Of course he is agitated because of the circumstances and wants to see her before she dies, however, the cop is going by the book asking for documentation and writing the citation, obviously not considering the circumstances.

Long story short, mother-in-law passes away while Ryan is arguing with the cop. Now Ryan wants the cop to lose his job, for what? Doing his job? Sure he was an @ss for not understanding and simply citing Moats faster, however...Moats broke the law. "I waited till it was clear" what if you hit a kid? Hit another driver because you were upset on your way to the hospital. How do you explain that to the possible victim? You were "upset"?

I understand Moats side fully but the cop was doing his job. Moats could have just as easily said "screw this, ran into the hospital and up to see his mother-in-law telling the cop to pretty much screw off" he would have later been arrested, but if it is worth it to see the dieing relative...do it. I would. But what Moats seems to want is 'no consequence' for his actions.

The cop needs training on understanding the full breadth of a changing situation, not fired. Just my 2 pennies.

[MrLabGuy]

That's a tough one...For me it would depend on how egregious the offense was that evening. If there was light traffic or if it was shortly after a yellow with no other cars in motion I'd be more likely to let it go under the circumstances. If he blew the light in traffic with no regard for the safety of others I might not let him off so easy.

That said I think officers need to weigh the circumstances with the offense and make an appropriate determination.

[Michelle]

Cop was a jerk. Ed Norris agrees.

[cmyX6go]

Originally Posted by Wagner

The cop needs training on understanding the full breadth of a changing situation, not fired. Just my 2 pennies.

I'm sure cops get plenty of BS stories when someone is trying to get out of a ticket. I saw the video this morning on the news. He was in the hopsital parking lot, for God's sake. The cop lightened up when a nurse came out and said his mother in law was in bad shape. I would have given the cop my license and told him to write me as I bolted for the hospital.

[StanF18]

In the court of "common sense" and "compassion", this cop LOSES. Bigtime.
If he wants to keep his job, he should leave no stone unturned in deeply apologizing to Mr. Moats and his spouse.

I do not buy the "by the book" excuse. In any job, including law enforcement, there needs to be flexibility, common sense, and good judgement. This officer exercised none of these 3 qualities. The motto of many police departments is "To Serve and Protect". This officer obviously fogot the "SERVE" part. A seasoned, compassionate officer would have quickly assessed the situation, realized that this family was in a real bind (where every second mattered), and should have proceeded not ONLY to let them go, but to CLEAR THE HOSPITAL CORRIDORS for them.

And quite honestly, as I was watching the video I could not help but wonder if a Caucasian male would have had to endure the same BS lecturing and condescending attitude from this cop.

[mrkbbd]

The solution is to just pull over for a second, tell the cop where your going and say you can take whatever action you want, here's my license, but I'm going to continue on my way

[jayjay_dee]

Originally Posted by StanF18

And quite honestly, as I was watching the video I could not help but wonder if a Caucasian male would have had to endure the same BS lecturing and condescending attitude from this cop.

I was thinking the same thing or this cop is just an a$$hole...

Most cops just forgets that its also their duty "to serve" and thinks they are "God".

[vegasX5]

Originally Posted by StanF18

In the court of "common sense" and "compassion", this cop LOSES. Bigtime.
If he wants to keep his job, he should leave no stone unturned in deeply apologizing to Mr. Moats and his spouse.

I do not buy the "by the book" excuse. In any job, including law enforcement, there needs to be flexibility, common sense, and good judgement. This officer exercised none of these 3 qualities. The motto of many police departments is "To Serve and Protect". This officer obviously fogot the "SERVE" part. A seasoned, compassionate officer would have quickly assessed the situation, realized that this family was in a real bind (where every second mattered), and should have proceeded not ONLY to let them go, but to CLEAR THE HOSPITAL CORRIDORS for them.

And quite honestly, as I was watching the video I could not help but wonder if a Caucasian male would have had to endure the same BS lecturing and condescending attitude from this cop.

Well said. You want to verify his excuse? Just follow him to the hospital - if he's lying, write him up for speeding and any other permissible offenses relating to giving a false statement to an officer. If he's not lying let him go with a warning or just write him up for the offense later.

[vegasX5]

Apparently officer D-bag also pointed his gun at Moats' wife and Moats, and told them both "I can screw you over". It sounds to me like if Moats would have ignored the cop and rushed into the hospital he could have very well been shot! I think he handled the situation very calmly and well considering the circumstances. The cop is now on administrative leave but I wouldn't be upset if they showed the same lack of compassion to him and fired him.

"I can screw you over," he said at one point in the videotaped incident. When another officer came with word that Moats' mother-in-law was indeed dying, Powell's response was: "All right. I'm almost done."

Click here to see the video and for more from MyFOXDallas.com.

Dallas Police Chief David Kunkle apologized to the family and announced that Powell would be on paid leave pending an internal investigation.

"When we at the command staff reviewed the tape, we were embarrassed, disappointed," Kunkle said. "It's hard to find the right word and still be professional in my role as the police chief. But the behavior was not appropriate."

[chilliwilli]

Originally Posted by StanF18

In the court of "common sense" and "compassion", this cop LOSES. Bigtime.
If he wants to keep his job, he should leave no stone unturned in deeply apologizing to Mr. Moats and his spouse.

I do not buy the "by the book" excuse. In any job, including law enforcement, there needs to be flexibility, common sense, and good judgement. This officer exercised none of these 3 qualities. The motto of many police departments is "To Serve and Protect". This officer obviously fogot the "SERVE" part. A seasoned, compassionate officer would have quickly assessed the situation, realized that this family was in a real bind (where every second mattered), and should have proceeded not ONLY to let them go, but to CLEAR THE HOSPITAL CORRIDORS for them.

And quite honestly, as I was watching the video I could not help but wonder if a Caucasian male would have had to endure the same BS lecturing and condescending attitude from this cop.

Well said sir...