On July 4th individuals employed at the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office in
Tennessee held a DUI checkpoint. When one driver questioned the need to roll his
window down further, he was bullied and lied to by AJ Ross. Fortunately, the
driver knew his rights, asked questions, and filmed the interaction.
Unsurprisingly, that video has gone viral, with many calling for the dismissal
of Ross.
Perhaps the only suggestion I have for the driver – who did a superb job – is to have not moved to the secondary location as advocated by AJ Ross. Yes, Ross was clearly ramping-up his bullying tactics, but the fact that he avoided the driver’s question (whether he was being detained) helped communicate that, if the driver would have kept asking that question rather than comply by moving his vehicle, the search of his vehicle might not have happened. Of course there’s a chance too that Ross may have gotten so agitated that he shot the driver, or that the interaction would have taken another course of action, but the driver would definitely have been well within his rights to stand on that point.
Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office
(615) 898-7770
http://www.rutherfordcountytn.gov/so/index.htm
Perhaps the only suggestion I have for the driver – who did a superb job – is to have not moved to the secondary location as advocated by AJ Ross. Yes, Ross was clearly ramping-up his bullying tactics, but the fact that he avoided the driver’s question (whether he was being detained) helped communicate that, if the driver would have kept asking that question rather than comply by moving his vehicle, the search of his vehicle might not have happened. Of course there’s a chance too that Ross may have gotten so agitated that he shot the driver, or that the interaction would have taken another course of action, but the driver would definitely have been well within his rights to stand on that point.
Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office
(615) 898-7770
http://www.rutherfordcountytn.gov/so/index.htm
