A Houston cop nearly tased and detained two teens for using a video camera outside a Walmart store Friday morning.


The cop was off-duty working as a contracted security guard for the store and told the teens he didn't want to be recorded.

The teens told the cop they would not record him. The cop confronted them anyway.

The video was uploaded to Youtube Friday and has already surpassed 60,000 page views.

The Youtube description states the cop handcuffed the men but were released when a second cop showed up, apparently realizing they had not committed a crime.

The teens apparently avoided a trip to jail after they somehow convinced the cops that they had deleted the footage.

The incident was only resolved after the cop tried to bribe and threaten the men to ERASE this footage or go to JAIL....

According to Click 2 Houston:

The Harris County District Attorney's office declined to press charges against the teens. Police said they were let go with a warning about criminal trespassing.

A Walmart representative said the incident is being investigated and the cellphone video and their own surveillance video will be reviewed.

The company asked the security company it contracts with not to schedule that guard at any of the Walmart stores until the investigation is completed.

video here

http://www.sott.net/articles/show/243894-Outrageous-Houston-Cop-Threatens-To-Tase-Teens-For-Video-Recording



funny thing is, i live right down the street from there...cops are getting to be very nazi-ish nowadays....

let me see your papers
let me see your ID....

sounds pretty close now...

private security on private property is different than a cop in uniform on a public street.

Being you live in Texas what is the law concerning videotaping cops in public?

there is no laws that i know of... they have every right as any citizen does when being taped... and those kids weren't even video taping the cop, they were doing something else. he got video taped when he butted in...

I guess I need to watch the video..

Does not really matter what the law in Texas is, becuase the supreme court has already ruled that no one has an expectation of privacy in public. If Texas law says something different, its unconstitutional.

Trespassing is a different beast entirely.

can't trespass in a public store unless you were already told not to be there... i don't think that was the case there. and is there any signs or anything that says you can't videotape at wall mart?

I agree, and to my knowledge there is no such signage, not that such signage would be a legal deterrent to video taping, however if asked to leave you are obligated to leave, which we agree.

true.. but the cop never told them to leave, he wanted them to stay and show ID... he never said for them to leave. as a matter of fact, they (the kids) wanted to leave, but he wouldn't let them..

I dont know if all store parking lots are considered 'public' as opposed to 'private' property.

But I guess if the punks would just not try to be confrontational and had just said Yes sir,, they would not have gotten into trouble,,,


the world we live in

I didn't really see the kids as being confrontational, but just the opposite... the cop was out of line IMO...

I understand. I agree. Im being facetious and sarcastic with the idea that not simply 'complying' and submitting to an assertion of authority warrants whatever happens to the non submissive party,,,,

He was a security guard....NOT a cop!

He had no right to even ask for an ID as they were in a public place, not breaking ANY laws, and NO complaint by store personnel had been launched.

He could have asked them to leave, legally, if he felt them a threat, and if they didn't comply, situations could have changed then allowing his response.

The "race card" would go a LONG ways here if someone were to play it, but his actions alone, even without it, are unwarranted!

thats how cops think now... like nazi's...

I have friends and family who work for large retail outlets, and I am told, they can't even "forcebly" detain shoplifters if they want to leave. They can call the police, give details to act on, BUT THEY CAN'T "LEGALLY" DETAIN THEM!

They also have NO right to ask for ID....so how do they tresspass? From a police arrest in a face-to-face with the person or persons involved

Public and private property is not the same as expectations for privacy while out in public.

A store which allows customers to freely enter is not a place where a person can claim an expectation of privacy.

Security guards are only there to protect the rights of others. That is the only legal basis for their presence.

If the store is closed, that's another matter, then they protect property rights.

i think they can, it's called a citizens arrest. anyone can try to detain another, as long as the one being detained broke a law. otherwise, it's called false imprisonment and maybe a kidnapping charge.

Whether they "can" or not, the retailers stand is "try...but don't enforce"... the cost to prosecute, the liability and other factors make it NOT worth the risk anymore!

I'm sure you have seen the implications and lawsuits coming out of such actions in the last year. They are all over youtube! The lawsuits alone are horrendous!

Theft costs retailers over a BILLION dollars a year (combined), add litigation, and lawsuits......they will let you walk and simply make a police report..... much better for them cost and liability wise.

If they "confront" you, you know you've been "had" and the chances of you returning are less.....good for them in that respect.... but they won't "force" you to wait for police.

This is not to say certain "precautions" are not in place. Employees and security guards will contact police upon "commission" of the theft or crime, and they are usually waiting now to make the arrest, video tape in hand, and the witness to tresspass you and make their statement.