During Washington's record-breaking snowstorm on Saturday, about 200 people from a D.C. neighborhood gathered at the corner of 14th and U streets to participate in a massive snowball fight organized by Twitter users, CNN affiliate WJLA reported.
Snowfight turned furious
The adult men and women were laughing and hurling fresh-fallen snow at one another in the middle of the street, but a good-natured romp in the snow soon turned scary when a cop in plain dress appeared in the scene.
According to multiple media reports, the cop was attempting to drive his big red Hummer down the snow-covered street when snowballers pummeled the vehicle with snowballs. The officer, reportedly a D.C. detective, then got out of the car, approached the crowd and pulled his gun out, presumably to scare off the crowd.
"It was pretty fun," one unidentified participant told WJLA. "And then, you know, when the gun came out, uh, it just changed the tone of the thing a little bit."
"This police officer threatened a bunch of people on the street in broad daylight with a firearm because his Hummer was hit by snowballs," a witness Sarah Massey wrote in a blog post. "This is not the kind of person I want serving me and my community. He threatened and scared people and acted in a dangerous manner."
Incident goes viral on the Internet
The snowball fight was captured by local television and amateur videographers, who took no time to upload pictures and video of the officer holding his weapon to Web.
The officer, whom authorities have not identified, admitted to removing his gun in one such video.
"Yes, I did, because I got hit with snowballs," the plain-clothes detective says, apparently referring to the fact that he pulled out his gun, in a video posted to YouTube by a witness.
New York Daily News says he identified himself as Det. Baylor or Det. Bailey (the video's sound is unclear) in the video footage. The D.C. police did not identify the officer, but said he was a veteran detective.
Gun pointed to the ground
The D.C. police say several photos and videos taking rounds on the Internet are showing the cop with his gun drawn but none show the detective pointing his gun at anyone.
Recent police statement said "there is no evidence that [officers] pointed any weapons in the direction of the crowd or at any individuals."
Investigation is on
D.C. Assistant Chief Pete Newsham, head of the investigative services bureau, said they are probing the Saturday incident.
"We have to see what the entire circumstance was," Newsham said Sunday. "But just a snowball fight, not in my mind. That doesn't seem a situation where we would pull out a service weapon."
Why don't they leave him alone?
Why didn't those fools just leave the man alone?
When I drive my HUMMER, I just want to be left alone. If I want to drive a car that gets three gallons to the mile, then WHY THE HECK NOT? I wish I was a police officer. I would drive around with an AK... in reverse... with a deer carcass on the hood and one in the trunk for good measure.
GOD BLESS AMERICA!
While those comments before
While those comments before are funny, this is actually pretty alarming, don't you think?
People have tried this many ways, in many different parts of the earth - giving a small minority of an elite, and their armed (though unwitting, good-intentioned) minions, an exceptional amount of power. Including the power over another person's basic safety - if you can be captured and chained, at the risk of pain and brutality at the hands of a heavy booted armed soldier of the state, you do not feel safe.
Of course they are going to pull out their guns. They are going to do much worse.
And a scene in which an irate cop waves a pistol - an act of threatening life-taking violence against other citizens - becomes just a comical diversion from the much more threatening norm of quiet oppression.
Det. Hummer O'Dumber
Somebody stick a banana in Detective Hummer O'Dumber's tail pipe.
Big Red Hummer
How does a D.C. cop afford that Hummer, unless he's on the take? Probably shakin' down some hookers and dealers so prevalent in the metro. Another black city success story.
cop undercover? How were they to know
Someone gets out of a car and pulls a GUN. Can anyone cay OUT OF CONTROL COP! GUN HAPPY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Racist black cop screwing
Racist black cop screwing with a bunch of white folks who were having too much fun.
Pretty simple if you ask me.
absolutely true. The big red
absolutely true. The big red hummer testifies to the nature of the dude
Get used to it??
"This is how a socialist culture works people...get used to it!"
Why? is there more snow coming?
welcome to the Obamanation
This is how a socialist culture works people...get used to it!
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