OFF THE WIRE
agingrebel.com
There was an error in a story published here two days ago. The story was titled “Southern Nevada COC Sues Vegas Metro.” You can read a corrected version of the story here.
The original version of the story stated:
The Error
“In August 2011, a biker named Robert Barreto, Jr. honked his horn at and flipped off the driver of a green car after that car failed to proceed through a controlled intersection in Las Vegas when the light turned green. Afterward the driver ‘tailgated Plaintiff Barreto for some distance and appeared visibly upset. As a result, Plaintiff pulled into a Circle K convenience store in order to avoid further confrontation, however, the green vehicle followed him there.’
“The driver of the green car as ‘off duty Officer Darren Walker, who was wearing plains clothes, drew his weapon and pointed it at Plaintiff. Plaintiff yelled for help. Officer Walker ordered Plaintiff to the ground and identified himself as a police officer. Officer Walker ordered Plaintiff to put down the knife, but Plaintiff was not carrying one. Officer Walker called 911 and additional officers arrived on the scene. Plaintiff was unjustifiably arrested and taken into custody even though he was not carrying any weapons.’”
The story implied that Barreto is a party to the suit.
Barreto is not a party to the lawsuit and The Aging Rebel apologizes to Mr. Barreto for the error.
How And Why
Last night this page was told by Stephen P. Stubbs, the attorney representing the Southern Nevada Confederation of Clubs and the other plaintiffs:
“Your story was based on an erroneously filed complaint. My staff accidentally, initially filed the wrong document. After the error, the correct complaint was filed immediately after and a motion to strike was filed to remove the erroneous filing.”
The story was corrected this morning to reflect the revised filing.
Stubbs Speaks
When asked to comment for this correction Stubbs said:
“Since September 2011, we have been talking with law enforcement in an attempt to correct the unconstitutional behavior. They were unwilling to correct anything. After being challenged by Detective Joseph Gagliardi to file a civil lawsuit, we are happy to oblige him.”
“This case is about protecting the Constitutional rights of all bikers, regardless of which patch you wear.”
“In the words of the Beastie Boys: ‘You got to fight for your right to party!’ We want to make sure that bikers can frequent any establishment where the owners welcome them. Property owners should dictate their own customers, not law enforcement.”
