Thursday, April 4, 2013

What crime have I committed? 'See offense report'



Temple – When the top kick started blogging, his world turned cold. Colonels and Command Sergeant Majors began to question his military mind.

Over the course of 6 years – nearly the last half of a 15 year career – Master Sergeant C.J. Grisham, who is 39, has had some dramatic dust-ups involving the internet, video, and the skillful application of administrative authority. For instance, there was the time he and Mrs. Grisham took exception to a new school board policy  requiring students to wear uniforms to class.

The couple made videotapes at the board meeting, recording their remarks and the response of the officials. Sgt. Grisham blogged about the matter.

The Army saw that as a no no.

The Colonel at that former duty station, Redstone Arsenal at Huntsville, Alabama, had him standing tall on the carpet after the Command Sergeant Major held an initial counseling session with him.

They wanted the offending blog entries removed. They said so. 

They didn't really get anywhere. Sgt. Grisham kept on plowing straight ahead, making an issue of his constitutional rights, among other concerns, and the matter finally blew over as the Army's growing number of blogsters sat up and took notice.

All four editions of the military “Times” - Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force – featured his struggle on their back cover, the “Off Duty” section.

It seems the Army's bloggers all fell silent for a day in support of Sgt. Grisham's hassle over taking a Boy Scout hike with his son, an AR-15 strapped across his chest on an elastic sling.

In the world of corporate politics, it's a headache for management, this thing of the blogsters. And make no mistake about it, the Department of Defense is probably the world's largest and most influential corporation, its conglomerate ties to defense contractors and military suppliers the biggest business in America.

The current hassle all started at a few minutes after high noon on Saturday, March 16, when a passing citizen felt threatened by the presence of an Army trooper dressed in fatigues, his assault rifle at the ready, his .45 holstered by his side, as he and his son strolled down a narrow country road in the 7000 block of Prairie View. That location is in a rural neighborhood of West Temple, very near the intersection of State Highways 36 and 317.

Blocks away there are strip malls with doughnut shops, suburban banks, filling stations, pizza parlors, soccer fields, jogging paths, playgrounds, and exercise emporiums.

The Sergeant was reportedly locked and loaded, strolling along the blacktop.

'In this day and age...'

Badge 465 is Temple Police officer Steve Ermis, 48. He didn't see a violation of the law, but he did see a valid reason for concern, according to a videotape made at the time of the arrest. 

“In this day and age,” he said, people have a need to be concerned when they see a man so heavily armed and out for a stroll on a country road.

He wanted the weapons, and he wanted them pronto. He may be heard to say that until he obtained a positive identification of the sergeant, he wanted control of both weapons – the carbine and the handgun. In return, he got some static.

He and a backup officer took them with little ceremony, and even less conversation.

The weapons are still held in evidence, pending the sergeant's appearance in court. The video is on the internet, on public display.

Look-see pidgin. Too much monkey business 

They originally charged him with the Class A misdemeanor of resisting arrest, but supervisors changed their mind about it. He's now charged with interfering with an officer, a Class B misdemeanor that carries as much as a $2,000 fine and 6 months in the County Jail.

The offense could nevertheless very well end the career of a high-ranking NCO who is nearing a comfortable retirement.

When asked for a copy of the offense and arrest report, police department officials responded with a 'first page' of the report, as required by the Texas Open Records Act.

Asked for a narrative account of the arrest, their laconic response was, “See offense report...”

10 comments:

  1. Didn't hear them read him his Miranda rights when they handcuffed him and put him in the back of the vehicle

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  2. Miranda rights could have been read at a later time.

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  3. your rights are required and not read, you don't walk. It only means any answers you gave are not admissible in court. they have all the evidence they need on video, so there is no need to question the person. If there is no need to question them, there is no need to advise them of their Miranda rights.

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  4. Sorry, but that's bulls**t -

    Law states that arrestee's rights' advice to the arrestee is MANDATORY - as in "REQUIRED BY LAW" - in verbal and/or written form AT THE TIME AND SITE OF THE ARREST. That's as affirmed and upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court, per the Miranda case decision.

    It DOES NOT "only mean that any answers you gave are inadmissible" - there are SEVERAL parts to the "Miranda" rights statement, covering not only the arrestee's/defendant's statements made, but also their right to an attorney, right to have the attorney present during any questioning, right to not answer questions at all, etc. There is, further, a requirement that the arrestee/detainee/defendant be asked by the arresting officer if his/her rights are understood as explained, and that the arrestee/etc. make an affirmative response to that question.

    The "Miranda" warnings are NOT OPTIONAL.

    No matter what they SAID, those cops arrested the MSGT. without sufficient legal grounds to do so, without PROPERLY advising him of his rights when they did so, quite obviously in the belief that they would be able to come up with SOMEthing - ANYthing - as "grounds for suspicion/arrest" after taking him back to the cop-shop and searching (also likely illegally) him and confining him, intending to "bulldoze" the whole thing through.

    In addition: Apparently, the two that took his son home UNLAWFULLY interrogated the kid, and improperly detained him - away from his parents' custody or presence - until he answered their questions. Another major screw-up by the cops.

    He's quite likely going to take them ALL - individually, as well as collectively - to court, and hand them their asses in pieces. I SINCERELY HOPE he does so. This kind of arrogant, badge-heavy bulls**t needs to be stopped - before these kind of klown kops challenge the wrong guy, and get blown away.

    They were STUPID AND ARROGANT AND WRONG - and that should HURT them even more than it probably will, so they would learn to knock that crap off!

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  5. LMAO. Funny to see all these people hating on the cop, and saying there was absolutely no concern. I am certain if any of you pussies saw that guy coming towards you with all those unnecessary firearms you would quickly change your mind. This guy obviously wanted trouble bringing out all those firearms. He is a military blogger and wants attention. NO NEED TO CARRY MULTIPLE DAMN HANDGUNS/RIFLES. This specific person meant no harm, but allowing this to happen SURELY result in occasional accidents and attacks for no reason. WHAT DOES HE HAVE TO GAIN BY STROLLING WITH SO MANY DAMN RIFLES.

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    1. I guess the video was too long for you to actually watch it, huh? You could have at least read the description.

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  6. The soldier has nothing to gain - or to lose. He is a cypher, a number, an element in a battle for the high ground. Someone is playing human chess, working out in real time the factors in the interior curves of reality. There are no specific laws in Texas that would preclude his conduct in that place - at that particular time.

    Someone is looking to make some changes, but before they do, they have to make some changes in advance of making some changes. Understand? It goes to a shift to military law, a takeover of martial doctrine in the civil structure. I'm sure it will all become clear to you as time goes by... - The Legendary

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  7. This is inaccurate: "Blocks away there are strip malls with doughnut shops, suburban banks, filling stations, pizza parlors, soccer fields, jogging paths, playgrounds, and exercise emporiums." This event occurred in the country. There were no banks, soccer fields, jogging paths, playgrounds, filling station, or other businesses. There was a bar a half mile away, a gas station 3 miles away, doughnut shop 2 miles, the nearest mall is 4 miles away, and an airport one mile away (though that is a misleading point since I live literally along the fenceline of an airport).

    I honorably retired last year. I will always stand up for my rights even if it means getting thrown in jail for doing so.

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  8. I know you are right. I meant your location when the complaining witness, the CPS worker who passed you in her car, saw you were armed and walking with a kid. I thought that was close to the places I described. Because they won't give a specific report, it's difficult to pinpoint the exact location. My apologies. - Legendary

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    1. No worries. When I was spotted by the caller, the closest thing nearby was a senior care clinic and medical research facility, but I was already walking away from those when the caller saw me. The rest weren't even close. I just to make sure people understand how remote the area was. All but one of the right homes I had already passed were family as well. Thanks for allowing me to clear it all up.

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