University of Florida Taser incident
Encyclopedia
On September 17, 2007, U.S. Senator
John Kerry
addressed a Constitution Day
forum at the University of Florida
in Gainesville
, which was organized by the ACCENT Speakers Bureau
, an agency of the university's student government. Initially allowed to ask questions after the close of the question period, Andrew Meyer, a 21-year-old fourth-year undergraduate mass communication
student, was subsequently removed from the forum by university police
for unruly behavior. During the struggle to arrest Meyer, one of the officers drive stunned him with a Taser
following Meyer's pleading shout to the police, "Don't tase me, bro!".
Several videos of the episode were then posted on the Internet. The most viewed version of the video, shot by Kyle Mitchell of The Gainesville Sun
, has more than 6,086,748 views on YouTube as of November 26th, 2011. The New Oxford American Dictionary
listed "tase/taze" as one of the words of the year for 2007, popularized by the widespread use of the phrase "Don't tase me, bro!" The Yale Book of Quotations
designated Meyer's exclamation as the most memorable quote of 2007. Mick Jones
, former guitarist for The Clash
, wrote and published a song inspired from the event, "Don't Tase Me, Bro", and new wave band Devo
use the quote in their song "Don't Shoot (I'm a Man)." The quote was also used by laptop rapper, MC Lars
in his song "True Player For Real".
), was, at the time of the incident, an undergraduate student majoring
in television journalism
at the University of Florida
. He attended Cypress Bay High School
in Weston, Florida
, where he worked at the school newspaper, The Circuit, and was a member of the National Honor Society
. At the University of Florida, Meyer worked as a columnist
for the college paper Independent Florida Alligator. Meyer has stated that he writes "mostly whimsical nonsense columns about nothing in particular, yet occasionally finds [himself] angry enough to rain down fire and brimstone
on an unsuspecting politician or celebrity".
He received international publicity when videos were posted of police tasering him at the town hall forum featuring Senator Kerry.
The Miami Herald
has stated that "Meyer's grandmother, Lucy Meyer of Pembroke Pines, Florida
, told The Miami Herald that he is a hardworking student with no prior run-ins with the law." She also said "He gets very, very overcome with passion for whatever he is feeling. Maybe the passion took over".
According to eyewitness and police reports, the widely circulated video of the confrontation captured on Meyer's camera was not the first interaction between police and Meyer at the event that day. According to reports, Meyer was in line for access to the microphone, when it was announced by former Ambassador Dennis Jett
, a University of Florida political science instructor and the forum's moderator, that one more question would be taken from the microphone on the right as seen from the stage. Meyer then grabbed the second microphone, on the left, which had been shut off, and loudly demanded he be allowed to ask a question. Meyer reportedly yelled, "Why don't you answer my questions, I have been waiting and listening to you speak in circles for the last two hours." "These officers are going to arrest me", "You will take my question because I have been listening to your crap for two hours". When an officer intervened, attempted to cut Meyer off, and attempted to escort Meyer out of the hall, Meyer then broke away and continued to shout. Kerry then intervened and requested that Meyer be allowed to ask a question. Meyer was then brought back to the microphone with police officers on either side of him.
Meyer then handed his camera to the woman who was standing in front of him in line and requested that she record him. Kerry then finished answering a previous question, and Meyer was then recognized by Kerry to ask a question.
's description of the 2004 U.S. presidential election
and reports of election irregularities
. According to The Washington Post
, Meyer's question turned into "an increasingly agitated three-parter."
Meyer questioned Kerry's concession of the 2004 U.S. presidential election, Kerry's support or lack of support of the efforts to impeach George W. Bush, and Kerry's involvement in the Yale University
secret society
known as Skull and Bones
.
After Meyer used the term "blowjob
", (in reference to the impeachment of Bill Clinton
) and while he was asking about Kerry's involvement in Skull and Bones, Meyer's microphone was cut off. Later, Steven Blank, ACCENT chairman, said, "We make it clear that any profanity and vulgarity by anyone asking questions will result in a cutting off of the mic."
only one hand.
As Meyer requested to be allowed to leave of his own accord, they informed him that he no longer had a say in the matter and threatened several times to taser
him if he did not comply. Meyer asked again to leave, and yelled "Don't tase me, bro! Don't tase me!" but was drive stunned (referred to in the police report as a "contact tase") in the shoulder by officer her department-issued X-26 Taser when he failed to comply.
Meyer continued screaming for help as the officers removed him from the room. During the altercation, Kerry urged everyone to calm down, joked that "Unfortunately, he [Andrew Meyer] is not available to come up here and swear me in as President" and continued his response to Meyer's question, which he referred to as "very important". Senator Kerry later released a statement saying that he was unaware that any Tasing had occurred until afterwards.
Meyer was then escorted off the premises, remaining uncooperative with police during questioning. He was detained overnight in the Alachua County Jail. A large gathering of students protested outside the jail that evening.
and disturbing the peace
and taken to Alachua County
Jail. Police recommended charges of resisting arrest with violence, a felony, and disturbing the peace and interfering with school administrative functions, a misdemeanor. Meyer spent one night in the Alachua County Jail and was released the following morning.
Meyer's attorney, Robert S. Griscti, stated he would seek to have the charges dismissed. Meyer later issued a public apology for his "failure to act calmly", stating that he "stepped out of line". He also insisted there was no reason for his arrest and demanded an apology from the Alachua County Police Department. The state attorney stated he would drop prosecution of Meyer's case if he completed a voluntary 18-month probation. He returned as a student in the spring semester of 2008 with the charges dropped despite serving no probation.
.com has stated that student opinions on the University of Florida
campus are evenly divided as to whether the officers acted properly. About 300 students marched to the steps of campus police headquarters the following day with another 100 marching to Emerson Alumni Hall. They chanted that police used excessive force
and waved signs that read "Stop police brutality", "Taze Pigs", "Freedom of Speech not a Felony", "Tasers Kill", and Meyer's words, "Don't Tase me, bro". They demanded that Tasers be banned from campus, and that charges be filed against the police officers that restrained and tased Meyer. Four weeks after the incident the university sponsored a panel to discuss appropriate police practices. Fifteen people attended and one signed up to make comments.
James W. Preston, president of the Florida State Lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police, referred to student Andrew Meyer's actions during the Kerry town hall forum as a "theatrical production" that "set the stage for Andrew Meyer's own gratification to bring attention to himself."
The American Civil Liberties Union
's Florida chapter released a statement on September 18, 2007 expressing dismay over the incident.
John Levy, a graduate student at the university and a friend of Meyer's since the second grade, has said that he spoke with Meyer shortly before Meyer entered the Kerry forum. He said that Meyer felt excited, had come up with several questions, and wanted to hear the senator's responses. Levy also said that Meyer was "really upset that people are more concerned with the police attack and not with the dialogue he was trying to start with Kerry" and that "What kind of message does that send? He wants to show students it's okay to ask hard questions, and then he gets tased for doing it." In the 2008 film Free For All, filmmaker John Ennis
and Greg Palast
(the author of the book Meyer was holding during the event) strongly echo this sentiment. When "asked about speculation that Meyer staged
the confrontation", University spokesman Steve Orlando has stated that a member of the Office of Student Affairs told Orlando that Meyer brought a video camera
to the forum and gave it to Clarissa Jessup, the young woman who was next in line to ask a question, with whom he was unacquainted, before he spoke. Henry Perlstein, a university senior who has known Meyer since high school
, said, "My first impression was that [the video] was a home movie
he made for his friends because it was so surreal
. Then I heard the screams and he sounded genuinely afraid."
The Miami Herald
has stated that, at the press conference, President Machen called the situation "regretful for us" and announced that two officers involved in the incident had been placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the probe. University spokesman Steve Orlando said Meyer was asked to leave the microphone after his allotted time was up. However, a transcript of the event shows that this is untrue; he was not told to leave at any point. The university president "would not say whether he thought the latest episode was a prank."
On October 24, 2007 the Florida Department of Law Enforcement released a report on their investigation of the incident. They found that the officer's actions were justified. University President Bernie Machen stated that "I have full confidence in the police department" and that the two officers previously placed on paid administrative leave have been fully reinstated.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement
investigated the incident and, in a report released on October 25, 2007, concluded that Meyer may have planned a 'disruption' of the forum. The same report cleared the police officers involved of any wrongdoing in subduing Meyer.
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
John Kerry
John Kerry
John Forbes Kerry is the senior United States Senator from Massachusetts, the 10th most senior U.S. Senator and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party in the 2004 presidential election, but lost to former President George W...
addressed a Constitution Day
Constitution Day (United States)
Constitution Day is an American federal observance that recognizes the adoption of the United States Constitution and those who have become U.S. citizens. It is observed on September 17, the day the U.S...
forum at the University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
in Gainesville
Gainesville, Florida
Gainesville is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Alachua County, Florida, United States as well as the principal city of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area . The preliminary 2010 Census population count for Gainesville is 124,354. Gainesville is home to the sixth...
, which was organized by the ACCENT Speakers Bureau
ACCENT Speakers Bureau
ACCENT Speakers Bureau is the Student Government-run speakers' bureau of the University of Florida. It claims to be the largest student-run speakers' bureau in the United StatesThe organization is a Student Government agency....
, an agency of the university's student government. Initially allowed to ask questions after the close of the question period, Andrew Meyer, a 21-year-old fourth-year undergraduate mass communication
Mass communication
Mass communication is the term used to describe the academic study of the various means by which individuals and entities relay information through mass media to large segments of the population at the same time...
student, was subsequently removed from the forum by university police
Campus police
Campus Police or University police in the United States and Canada are often sworn police officers employed by a public school district, college or university to protect the campus and surrounding areas and the people who live on, work on and visit it....
for unruly behavior. During the struggle to arrest Meyer, one of the officers drive stunned him with a Taser
Taser
A Taser is an electroshock weapon that uses electrical current to disrupt voluntary control of muscles. Its manufacturer, Taser International, calls the effects "neuromuscular incapacitation" and the devices' mechanism "Electro-Muscular Disruption technology"...
following Meyer's pleading shout to the police, "Don't tase me, bro!".
Several videos of the episode were then posted on the Internet. The most viewed version of the video, shot by Kyle Mitchell of The Gainesville Sun
The Gainesville Sun
The Gainesville Sun is a newspaper published daily in Gainesville, Florida, United States, covering the North-Central portion of the state. It is a part of the New York Times Regional Media Group. The paper is published by James E...
, has more than 6,086,748 views on YouTube as of November 26th, 2011. The New Oxford American Dictionary
New Oxford American Dictionary
The New Oxford American Dictionary is a single-volume dictionary of American English compiled by American editors at the Oxford University Press....
listed "tase/taze" as one of the words of the year for 2007, popularized by the widespread use of the phrase "Don't tase me, bro!" The Yale Book of Quotations
The Yale Book of Quotations
The Yale Book of Quotations is a quotations collection that focuses on modern and American quotations and claims a high level of scholarship and reliability. Edited by Fred R. Shapiro, it was published by Yale University Press in 2006 with a foreword by Joseph Epstein, ISBN 978-0-300-10798-2...
designated Meyer's exclamation as the most memorable quote of 2007. Mick Jones
Mick Jones (The Clash)
Michael Geoffrey "Mick" Jones is the former lead guitarist, secondary vocalist and co-founder for the British punk rock band The Clash until his dismissal in 1983. He went on to form the band Big Audio Dynamite with Don Letts before line-up changes led to the formation of Big Audio Dynamite II and...
, former guitarist for The Clash
The Clash
The Clash were an English punk rock band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk. Along with punk, their music incorporated elements of reggae, ska, dub, funk, rap, dance, and rockabilly...
, wrote and published a song inspired from the event, "Don't Tase Me, Bro", and new wave band Devo
Devo
Devo is an American band formed in 1973 consisting of members from Kent and Akron, Ohio. The classic line-up of the band includes two sets of brothers, the Mothersbaughs and the Casales . The band had a #14 Billboard chart hit in 1980 with the single "Whip It", and has maintained a cult...
use the quote in their song "Don't Shoot (I'm a Man)." The quote was also used by laptop rapper, MC Lars
MC Lars
Andrew Robert MacFarlane Nielsen is an American rapper, known by his stage name MC Lars. He is the self-proclaimed originator of "post-punk laptop rap". He was one of the first underground rappers to sample and reference post-punk and emo bands...
in his song "True Player For Real".
Student
Andrew William Meyer (born September 15, 1986 in Fort Lauderdale, FloridaFort Lauderdale, Florida
Fort Lauderdale is a city in the U.S. state of Florida, on the Atlantic coast. It is the county seat of Broward County. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 165,521. It is a principal city of the South Florida metropolitan area, which was home to 5,564,635 people at the 2010...
), was, at the time of the incident, an undergraduate student majoring
Academic major
In the United States and Canada, an academic major or major concentration is the academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits....
in television journalism
Journalism
Journalism is the practice of investigation and reporting of events, issues and trends to a broad audience in a timely fashion. Though there are many variations of journalism, the ideal is to inform the intended audience. Along with covering organizations and institutions such as government and...
at the University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
. He attended Cypress Bay High School
Cypress Bay High School
Cypress Bay High School is a secondary school located in Weston, Florida open for students in grades 9-12. Cypress Bay is a part of the Broward County Public Schools district....
in Weston, Florida
Weston, Florida
Weston is a suburb of South Florida located in Broward County, Florida, USA. Established as a city in 1996, much of the community was developed by Arvida/JMB Realty and is located near the western developmental boundary of Broward County. It is the most western city in Broward County, and its...
, where he worked at the school newspaper, The Circuit, and was a member of the National Honor Society
National Honor Society
The National Honor Society is a recognition program for high school students in grades 10-12 in the United States and in several other countries...
. At the University of Florida, Meyer worked as a columnist
Columnist
A columnist is a journalist who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs....
for the college paper Independent Florida Alligator. Meyer has stated that he writes "mostly whimsical nonsense columns about nothing in particular, yet occasionally finds [himself] angry enough to rain down fire and brimstone
Fire and brimstone
Fire and brimstone is an idiomatic expression of signs of God's wrath in the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament. In the Bible, they often appear in reference to the fate of the unfaithful. "Brimstone," possibly the ancient name for sulfur, evokes the acrid odor of volcanic activity...
on an unsuspecting politician or celebrity".
He received international publicity when videos were posted of police tasering him at the town hall forum featuring Senator Kerry.
The Miami Herald
The Miami Herald
The Miami Herald is a daily newspaper owned by The McClatchy Company headquartered on Biscayne Bay in the Omni district of Downtown Miami, Florida, United States...
has stated that "Meyer's grandmother, Lucy Meyer of Pembroke Pines, Florida
Pembroke Pines, Florida
Pembroke Pines is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. The city had a population of 154,750 at the 2010 census, making it the second most populous city in Broward County, the tenth most populous in Florida, and the 150th most populous in the United States...
, told The Miami Herald that he is a hardworking student with no prior run-ins with the law." She also said "He gets very, very overcome with passion for whatever he is feeling. Maybe the passion took over".
Incident prior to start of video
Dennis Jett
Dennis Coleman Jett is an American diplomat and academic. He served as the United States ambassador to Mozambique and Peru under the Clinton administration and is currently a professor of international relations at the School of International Affairs at the Pennsylvania State University...
, a University of Florida political science instructor and the forum's moderator, that one more question would be taken from the microphone on the right as seen from the stage. Meyer then grabbed the second microphone, on the left, which had been shut off, and loudly demanded he be allowed to ask a question. Meyer reportedly yelled, "Why don't you answer my questions, I have been waiting and listening to you speak in circles for the last two hours." "These officers are going to arrest me", "You will take my question because I have been listening to your crap for two hours". When an officer intervened, attempted to cut Meyer off, and attempted to escort Meyer out of the hall, Meyer then broke away and continued to shout. Kerry then intervened and requested that Meyer be allowed to ask a question. Meyer was then brought back to the microphone with police officers on either side of him.
Meyer then handed his camera to the woman who was standing in front of him in line and requested that she record him. Kerry then finished answering a previous question, and Meyer was then recognized by Kerry to ask a question.
Video begins
At this point, Meyer's video began. Meyer spoke for approximately 1 minute and 20 seconds, beginning by citing the book Armed Madhouse and its author Greg PalastGreg Palast
Gregory Allyn Palast is a New York Times-bestselling author and a freelance journalist for the British Broadcasting Corporation as well as the British newspaper The Observer. His work frequently focuses on corporate malfeasance but has also been known to work with labor unions and consumer...
's description of the 2004 U.S. presidential election
United States presidential election, 2004
The United States presidential election of 2004 was the United States' 55th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on Tuesday, November 2, 2004. Republican Party candidate and incumbent President George W. Bush defeated Democratic Party candidate John Kerry, the then-junior U.S. Senator...
and reports of election irregularities
2004 United States election voting controversies
During the 2004 United States presidential election, concerns were raised about various aspects of the voting process, including whether voting had been made accessible to all those entitled to vote, whether ineligible voters were registered, whether voters were registered multiple times, and...
. According to The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
, Meyer's question turned into "an increasingly agitated three-parter."
Meyer questioned Kerry's concession of the 2004 U.S. presidential election, Kerry's support or lack of support of the efforts to impeach George W. Bush, and Kerry's involvement in the Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
secret society
Secret society
A secret society is a club or organization whose activities and inner functioning are concealed from non-members. The society may or may not attempt to conceal its existence. The term usually excludes covert groups, such as intelligence agencies or guerrilla insurgencies, which hide their...
known as Skull and Bones
Skull and Bones
Skull and Bones is an undergraduate senior or secret society at Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut. It is a traditional peer society to Scroll and Key and Wolf's Head, as the three senior class 'landed societies' at Yale....
.
After Meyer used the term "blowjob
Fellatio
Fellatio is an act of oral stimulation of a male's penis by a sexual partner. It involves the stimulation of the penis by the use of the mouth, tongue, or throat. The person who performs fellatio can be referred to as the giving partner, and the other person is the receiving partner...
", (in reference to the impeachment of Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
) and while he was asking about Kerry's involvement in Skull and Bones, Meyer's microphone was cut off. Later, Steven Blank, ACCENT chairman, said, "We make it clear that any profanity and vulgarity by anyone asking questions will result in a cutting off of the mic."
Removal and arrest
After his microphone was turned off, two University of Florida police officers attempted to take him away. Steven Blank, ACCENT chairman, later said "They [the police] acted independently of Accent." Some members of the crowd began to cheer and applaud. Physical contact by the police occurred right after Meyer remarked, "Thank you for cutting my mic!" Kerry responded to the police action, "That's all right, let me answer his question", but two police officers continued to hold Meyer and attempted to escort him towards the exit. Meyer repeatedly asked why he was being arrested. He struggled for several seconds shouting, "Get off me! What are you doing? What is going on?" while a third police officer kept a Taser aimed at him. Meyer managed to get back towards the stage and stated, "I want to stand and listen to the answers to my questions!" A fourth officer joined in, and single-handedly managed to remove Meyer to the back of the auditorium while being escorted by the three other officers. Meyer was carried part of the way by officer King, holding Greg Palast's book up in the air with his one free arm and shouting, "Why are you arresting me? Help! Help!" Close to the exit, Meyer broke free for a short moment and then was wrestled to the ground. Two more officers joined in and Meyer was now held down by four officers on the body and two on the legs. The officers managed to handcuffHandcuffs
Handcuffs are restraint devices designed to secure an individual's wrists close together. They comprise two parts, linked together by a chain, a hinge, or rigid bar. Each half has a rotating arm which engages with a ratchet that prevents it from being opened once closed around a person's wrist...
only one hand.
As Meyer requested to be allowed to leave of his own accord, they informed him that he no longer had a say in the matter and threatened several times to taser
Taser
A Taser is an electroshock weapon that uses electrical current to disrupt voluntary control of muscles. Its manufacturer, Taser International, calls the effects "neuromuscular incapacitation" and the devices' mechanism "Electro-Muscular Disruption technology"...
him if he did not comply. Meyer asked again to leave, and yelled "Don't tase me, bro! Don't tase me!" but was drive stunned (referred to in the police report as a "contact tase") in the shoulder by officer her department-issued X-26 Taser when he failed to comply.
Meyer continued screaming for help as the officers removed him from the room. During the altercation, Kerry urged everyone to calm down, joked that "Unfortunately, he [Andrew Meyer] is not available to come up here and swear me in as President" and continued his response to Meyer's question, which he referred to as "very important". Senator Kerry later released a statement saying that he was unaware that any Tasing had occurred until afterwards.
Meyer was then escorted off the premises, remaining uncooperative with police during questioning. He was detained overnight in the Alachua County Jail. A large gathering of students protested outside the jail that evening.
Legal action
After the incident, Meyer was arrested for inciting a riot and charged with resisting an officerResisting arrest
Resisting arrest is a term used to describe a criminal charge against an individual who has committed, depending on the jurisdiction, at least one of the following acts:* threatening a police officer with physical violence while being arrested...
and disturbing the peace
Disturbing the Peace
Disturbing the Peace is the second studio album by Alcatrazz, and is the only one featuring Steve Vai on guitar. One of the singles, God Blessed Video, can be found on the fictional radio station, V-Rock, on Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. Weeks on Chart: 7, Peak: #133...
and taken to Alachua County
Alachua County, Florida
Alachua County is a county located in the U.S. state of Florida. The U.S. Census Bureau 2006 estimate for the county is 227,120. Its county seat is Gainesville, Florida. Alachua County is the home of the University of Florida and is also known for its diverse culture, local music, and artisans...
Jail. Police recommended charges of resisting arrest with violence, a felony, and disturbing the peace and interfering with school administrative functions, a misdemeanor. Meyer spent one night in the Alachua County Jail and was released the following morning.
Meyer's attorney, Robert S. Griscti, stated he would seek to have the charges dismissed. Meyer later issued a public apology for his "failure to act calmly", stating that he "stepped out of line". He also insisted there was no reason for his arrest and demanded an apology from the Alachua County Police Department. The state attorney stated he would drop prosecution of Meyer's case if he completed a voluntary 18-month probation. He returned as a student in the spring semester of 2008 with the charges dropped despite serving no probation.
Allegations of excessive force
CNNCNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
.com has stated that student opinions on the University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
campus are evenly divided as to whether the officers acted properly. About 300 students marched to the steps of campus police headquarters the following day with another 100 marching to Emerson Alumni Hall. They chanted that police used excessive force
Excessive Force
Excessive Force is a musical side project started in 1991 by Sascha Konietzko of KMFDM and Buzz McCoy of My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult.-History:...
and waved signs that read "Stop police brutality", "Taze Pigs", "Freedom of Speech not a Felony", "Tasers Kill", and Meyer's words, "Don't Tase me, bro". They demanded that Tasers be banned from campus, and that charges be filed against the police officers that restrained and tased Meyer. Four weeks after the incident the university sponsored a panel to discuss appropriate police practices. Fifteen people attended and one signed up to make comments.
James W. Preston, president of the Florida State Lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police, referred to student Andrew Meyer's actions during the Kerry town hall forum as a "theatrical production" that "set the stage for Andrew Meyer's own gratification to bring attention to himself."
Free speech issues
Some critics of the actions of the police have suggested that it was not Meyer's actions which led to his removal, but the content of his remarks. For example, writer Palast said, "When you bring up uncomfortable stuff, it's going to create discomfort. Obviously, if he was speaking about baseball scores—if he maybe had a different political viewpoint that wasn't seen as combative or outside of what's permissible—then the cops' backs wouldn't have been up."The American Civil Liberties Union
American Civil Liberties Union
The American Civil Liberties Union is a U.S. non-profit organization whose stated mission is "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States." It works through litigation, legislation, and...
's Florida chapter released a statement on September 18, 2007 expressing dismay over the incident.
Criticism of Andrew Meyer
News articles about the incident have reported that Meyer had posted on his web site numerous comedy videos. It has also been pointed out that Meyer made arrangements to have himself filmed and have speculated that the incident may have been a stunt by Meyer. The reported behavior of Meyer when no cameras were present is also cited as evidence that the incident was a prank. According to the police report: "as [Meyer] was escorted down stairs with no cameras in sight, he remained quiet, but once the cameras made their way down stairs he started screaming and yelling again." Additionally, the report states that Meyer was "laughing and being lighthearted in the car, his demeanor completely changed once the cameras were not in sight." The police officers have said that during the ride, Meyer said: "I am not mad at you guys, you didn't do anything wrong, you were just trying to do your job."John Levy, a graduate student at the university and a friend of Meyer's since the second grade, has said that he spoke with Meyer shortly before Meyer entered the Kerry forum. He said that Meyer felt excited, had come up with several questions, and wanted to hear the senator's responses. Levy also said that Meyer was "really upset that people are more concerned with the police attack and not with the dialogue he was trying to start with Kerry" and that "What kind of message does that send? He wants to show students it's okay to ask hard questions, and then he gets tased for doing it." In the 2008 film Free For All, filmmaker John Ennis
John Wellington Ennis
John Wellington Ennis is an American filmmaker, activist, and blogger from Los Angeles. In 2004, he directed a film starring Amy Poehler and the Upright Citizens Brigade titled Wild Girls Gone. He is the co-founder of Video the Vote, a non-partisan group interested in documenting problems at U.S....
and Greg Palast
Greg Palast
Gregory Allyn Palast is a New York Times-bestselling author and a freelance journalist for the British Broadcasting Corporation as well as the British newspaper The Observer. His work frequently focuses on corporate malfeasance but has also been known to work with labor unions and consumer...
(the author of the book Meyer was holding during the event) strongly echo this sentiment. When "asked about speculation that Meyer staged
Publicity stunt
A publicity stunt is a planned event designed to attract the public's attention to the event's organizers or their cause. Publicity stunts can be professionally organized or set up by amateurs...
the confrontation", University spokesman Steve Orlando has stated that a member of the Office of Student Affairs told Orlando that Meyer brought a video camera
Video camera
A video camera is a camera used for electronic motion picture acquisition, initially developed by the television industry but now common in other applications as well. The earliest video cameras were those of John Logie Baird, based on the electromechanical Nipkow disk and used by the BBC in...
to the forum and gave it to Clarissa Jessup, the young woman who was next in line to ask a question, with whom he was unacquainted, before he spoke. Henry Perlstein, a university senior who has known Meyer since high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
, said, "My first impression was that [the video] was a home movie
Home movie
Home movie may mean:*Home movies, referring to private or amateur motion picture photographic products shot and printed in any video or film format....
he made for his friends because it was so surreal
Surrealism
Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members....
. Then I heard the screams and he sounded genuinely afraid."
University investigation
On September 18, in Emerson Alumni Hall, University of Florida President, J. Bernard Machen held a press conference about the incident. He also issued a letter in which he stated that the University Police Chief Linda Stump had requested that the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) investigate the arrest. President Machen stated that "We plan to assemble a panel of faculty and students to review our police protocols, our management practices and the FDLE report to come up with a series of recommendations for the university." The State Attorney's Office will review the charges as well.The Miami Herald
The Miami Herald
The Miami Herald is a daily newspaper owned by The McClatchy Company headquartered on Biscayne Bay in the Omni district of Downtown Miami, Florida, United States...
has stated that, at the press conference, President Machen called the situation "regretful for us" and announced that two officers involved in the incident had been placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the probe. University spokesman Steve Orlando said Meyer was asked to leave the microphone after his allotted time was up. However, a transcript of the event shows that this is untrue; he was not told to leave at any point. The university president "would not say whether he thought the latest episode was a prank."
On October 24, 2007 the Florida Department of Law Enforcement released a report on their investigation of the incident. They found that the officer's actions were justified. University President Bernie Machen stated that "I have full confidence in the police department" and that the two officers previously placed on paid administrative leave have been fully reinstated.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement
Florida Department of Law Enforcement
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is a Florida government agency. FDLE is composed of five programs: Executive Direction and Business Support, Criminal Investigations and Forensic Science, Criminal Justice Information, Criminal Justice Professionalism, and the Florida Capitol Police...
investigated the incident and, in a report released on October 25, 2007, concluded that Meyer may have planned a 'disruption' of the forum. The same report cleared the police officers involved of any wrongdoing in subduing Meyer.
Response from Senator Kerry
On the day following the incident, Kerry's office issued a statement:See also
- Taser controversy
- Taser safety issuesTaser safety issuesTASERs represent a safer and less lethal alternative to handgun usage in law enforcement situations. While there have been deaths related to TASER usage, they are generally considered a less lethal form of weapon than the standard issue police sidearm....
- Taser InternationalTASER InternationalTaser International, Inc. is a developer, manufacturer, and distributor of the Taser less-lethal electroshock guns in the United States. It is based at Scottsdale, Arizona, United States. Taser is the most common brand of electroshock gun.-History:...
– Taser Manufacturer - Braidwood InquiryBraidwood InquiryThe Braidwood Inquiry was a public inquiry conducted in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, examining the safety of Tasers and the death of Robert Dziekanski. The two-stage inquiry is being conducted by retired Court of Appeal of British Columbia and Court of Appeal of the Yukon Territory Justice...
– Official Canadian enquiry into Tasers and similar devices - UCLA Taser incidentUCLA Taser incidentThe UCLA Taser incident occurred on November 14, 2006, when Mostafa Tabatabainejad, a fourth-year UCLA student, was stunned multiple times with a Taser by campus police, for allegedly refusing to be escorted out of the College Library Instructional Computing Commons lab at Powell Library...
- Robert Dziekański Taser incidentRobert Dziekanski Taser incidentRobert Dziekański was a Polish immigrant to Canada who died on October 14, 2007, after being tasered five times by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police at Vancouver International Airport....
- Iman Morales Taser incidentIman Morales Taser incidentOn September 24, 2008, 35 year old Inman Morales died after falling off a building ledge from being tasered in Brooklyn, New York.-The incident:...
- Student protestStudent protestStudent protest encompasses a wide range of activities that indicate student dissatisfaction with a given political or academic issue and mobilization to communicate this dissatisfaction to the authorities and society in general and hopefully remedy the problem...