A prominent New Haven attorney arrested for bringing a loaded gun to a late showing of the “Dark Knight” Tuesday turned the incident into a referendum on the city’s police department…. In a statement emailed to the Daily News, Hwang said he has a permit to carry a weapon and felt he needed a gun for security while walking home alone at 1 a.m.
Hwang added that “no posting at Criterion states that weapons are not permitted. As far as the law is concerned, I have a right to carry there.”…. But Hwang defended his actions declaring New Haven ‘the murder capital of Connecticut,’ which prompted him to carry the weapon for his own safety. But he found few supporters at City Hall. “Just because its legal, doesn’t make it right,” New Haven Mayor John DeStefano said in a press conference Wednesday afternoon, adding that there should be a gun registry program for cities.
After receiving multiple complaints from patrons about a man openly carrying a handgun, theater staff called the police. Cops searched the theater asking moviegoers to exit with their hands in the air while being searched, according to the press release.
Interesting that the mayor is making right and wrong judgements…and meanwhile seems to be comfortable with gun registries. Now here’s where it gets interesting:
“Officers identified the suspect and with weapons drawn, ordered the suspect to put his hands up,” the press release said. “He remained in his seat while using his cell phone. He did not comply with the officers commands, and was taken into custody by force. Officers removed a loaded handgun from the small of his back.”
Hwang was then handcuffed and removed from the theater.
“Everyone in the theater responded to the requests of the police officers except for the individual involved, the police had to take action,” New Haven Police Chief Dean Esserman said in a Wednesday afternoon press conference.
Seriously dude? You’re going to play it tough when the cops are on you with guns drawn? You have a good case, it sounds like, why’d you have to taint it by being a jackass? You’re a LAWYER, you know better, if the cops wish to wrongfully arrest you, LET THEM, then SUE THEM!
“There still are behaviors permissible under the law,” said Mayor DeStefano, “we, as a community, need to discuss our priorities as a city.”
Hwang faces two charges stemming from the incident: interfering with police and breach of the peace.
Notice the lack of weapons charges. You just screwed the pooch, Councillor! What a shame. He’s right, New Haven is a damn dangerous city, I happened to sit down to a family dinner with a New Haven cop who worked for their gang division. New Haven is no Joke, and I wouldn’t want to be walking after dark without a gun.
But if the cops are arresting you, you really aren’t in a position to debate, comply and take action AFTER you’ve posted bail. He had a case for wrongful arrest if he let them book him for lawfully carrying a firearm, but resisting arrest and disturbing the peace are grounds to bring you in.
Actually the two charges they have him on are both weak in and of themselves. If their reason for arrest was because of a lawfully carried weapon they cannot get him for resisting arrest because it is legal to resist an UNlawful arrest.
As for disturbing the peace the actions of the officers helped create the situation. If the theater asked him to leave and he refused, it would be armed trespass. Just the same not listening to an officer bellowing orders at you doesn’t = disturbing the peace. They need legal cause and reason to be issuing the orders and they must be lawful. In WA there is actual precedent that an openly carried firearm is NOT disturbing the peace. I don’t know about CT, but it would surprise me if it was.
There is no doubt this wasn’t bright but I suspect that overall it won’t be going anywhere. The fact he was unresponsive was dumb, the word out of your mouth should be Why? Ask them to cite the exact broken law. You want them to look stupid not yourself. You don’t get anything by climbing that stupid hill on the side of the road. You do it in front of a judge when they cannot justify what they did.
Yeah there are a lot of people who suck at the game of chess in the public sphere, I wish they would just stay the hell out of the way. In this case I think he will survive.
Yeah I agree, when they found that the call was legit (as opposed to a guy with a blackberry or a fanny pack some idiot mistook for a gun), I’m sure they were set to arrest him on SOMETHING. Still the charges they filed are a LOT less egregious than if they had to stretch and arrest him for something to do with the gun.
Still, I think we know this will get thrown out….but I think put enough cover down for the cops.
That’s actually what really irritates me in this case. If he had played ball, he could have easily bent that PD and officers over the proverbial barrel and skipped the Vasoline.
So…carry is lawful in this case. And yet, they demanded that everyone be searched.
So, if I’m one of those searched without cause, I’M suing.
Of Course New Haven is in the belly of the Anti-Freedom beast, I suspect most of the people were GLAD to be searched…especially when they found out there WAS a guy with a gun (and all “Progressives” know that NOBODY carries a gun without WANTING to USE it).
Yeah that mass search is bravo Sierra! Of course it MAY fall into the horrible rule of law that allows for drunk driving checkpoints so long as everybody gets searched…
The interesting thing to me is that everyone seems to be accepting the Police version of events as gospel.
As if they’ve never been…um…creative…in their description of events to cover their butts and rationalize their actions.
According to the lawyer’s lawyer, the guy complied with all orders and cooperated fully.
So why so quick to condemn the guy on the assumption that the official report is the correct one?
I’d say that we should probably wait until more of the facts come out before rushing to judgement.
But that’s just me.
So the Mayor says “Just because it’s Legal doesn’t make it right.”
So we now have a Mayor ADMITTING that he thinks the LAW is only “Right” when HE thinks it is.
Funny. I thought we had the Rule of Law to PREVENT Assholes like him from becoming Dictators who are Above the Law.