Assaulted Paramedic Wants Oklahoma DPS Trooper's Badge

The scariest part is, how many of these incidents happen where there aren't any witnesses, and there aren't video cameras?

An air force security police officer was shot by the CHP for slowly standing up after being told to stand up. If there wasn't video, that cop would've gotten away with attempted murder.

Most cops are honorable, but those who aren't still have a badge, a gun, and 99% of the time no one will ever find out the truth about why they blew a hole in some innocent guy, or beat someone half to death.

We need to be sparing with the PTSD trope too. Most of us back from Iraq are living perfectly normal lives: a trip to serve your country doesn't mean an automatic ticket to the shrink on return.

Most people who return as assholes went there as assholes.

Whatever the reason, we DON'T need guys who can't control their temper acting as publicly sanctioned dispensers of violence. Refusing to admit error is even worse, and tips the scale over to the side of removing this guy from that role permanently.

… but how many incidents like this is it going to take for his command to decide he's got a problem?

Are we going to wait until he shoots an unarmed suspect? Or until he beats the shit out of some mouthy teenager?

AD, do you think they are just sitting there blindly, doing nothing? He is on administrative leave and not working the road. All that "what if" stuff above is conjecture and the sort of reaction I expect from the left the aisle every time they read a gun/shooting story….OMG! WHAT IF, WHAT IF, WHAT IF??

Again, it is his command's responsibility to make sure he has his shit together and whether he needs help, needs to ride a desk, needs to leave law enforcement. And if the public doesn't like the command decision, the Oklahomans can write the mayor, or state legislature, or governor. Oh, and the EMS can sue, or the AG can file criminal charges, and all kinds of shit can happen. But the OMG, WHAT IFs is pointless at this juncture.

"AD, do you think they are just sitting there blindly, doing nothing? He is on administrative leave and not working the road."

Yes, that's exactly what they're doing. He's on paid administrative leave at HIS request, because he's gotten death threats and had his email hacked by some whackjobs.

Thus far, he has not been disciplined in any way.

Dave said: "Not to worry; IA will investigate thoroughly, and determine that the Gang in Blue has Done No Wrong, and that the medic is lucky to have gotten off as easily as he did.

I'll put money on it. You name your price and I'll name the odds."

I cannot speak for OK, but there's a flip side to that coin.

In Philadelphia, the so-called "Gang in Blue" – of which I am a 15-year veteran – is almost always guilty until proven innocent. The last two officers fired were relieved without an investigation, hearing, or trial. The commissioner acted solely upon the words of the complaint.

I'm not sticking up for this Trooper, because I wasn't there. (Although the video is damning.) However, I will stick up for the millions of officers out there who are all lumped into one group of bad apples by people like yourself.

He's on paid administrative leave at HIS request, because he's gotten death threats and had his email hacked by some whackjobs.

From what I've read on the Oklahoma news sites, he was offered the leave and took it because of the death threats. I don't know about YOU, but I'd rather be HOME if people were threatening MY family.

Thus far, he has not been disciplined in any way.

Kelly, c'mon, let the investigation get completed before having him hanged.

What it keeps coming down to for me is that it's best to let the investigation get done and if there are NO consequences for his behavior, regardless of the reason, THEN start wigging out.

Scary- and being just back from Iraq IS NOT AN EXCUSE!

I know Dan Martin. This hits much too close to home.

I can't tell you how disappointed I am in him and how downright EMBARRASSED I am of his behavior. His actions (and his superiors' subsequent inactions) make the OHP appear inadequate and unprofessional.

Priss, I heard he was called off the call so he turned around and went back to pull the ambulance over at that point. (granted, that was just rumor amongst LEO's) Alternately, his attorney says he arrived at the call, decided to pull himself off of it when he thought he saw the ambulance driver flipping him the bird as they drove by, and subsequently pulled the ambulance over. Either way, uncalled for IMO.

You guys are the first I've heard of the PTSD theory. The vibe I get is it had nothing to do with that, rather playing Macho Man for his latest wife that was on a ride-along. Either way, NO excuse. None whatsoever.

Something I'm not hearing much of in the blogosphere, though, is the downright OUTRAGE (I think there should be) regarding the fact that Martin did NOT make the arrest. Now, before you string me up, understand this: Martin was way out of line. Every inch he took in this incident was over the line. The word "arrest" should have never been uttered from his puckered lips. BUT…coming from a law enforcement standpoint, since when does an officer tell a suspect repeatedly (and I do mean REPEATEDLY) "You are under arrest" and then *poof* up and walk away?

WTH was up with that? Either you arrest him or you STFU, kwim? But you never EVER tell a suspect they're under arrest while going hands on and then turn your back on them & walk away. That's Basic LE 101, guys. Epic FAIL.

Priss, I left out a not-so-minor detail about the attorney's statement of Dan's actions. He said when Dan arrived on scene he saw there were plenty of other units already there, that is why he felt it was ok to pull himself from the call. Assuming that what the attorney said is true, the call did get covered.

In that same vein though, I would find it interesting to learn why he felt pursuing the ambulance was more important than backing up those other officers on the call. I don't know what kind of call it was (or if I've heard, I can't recall), but obviously it was serious enough to make him run Code. So I'd like to know at exactly what point he decided or who gave him permission to go 10-8 from there while the call was still active. Not that it's any of my business, but I do think it's something that should be pursued…not glossed over or assumed to be true based on his or his attorney's statements.

I haven't found anyone here (I live in the Oklahoma City area) who doesn't think the trooper ought to get hammered hard. The tapes tell the story. He needs to be shown, in gruesome detail, how to put his attitude back in his rectum where it belongs.

I've watched both the videos, and it looked to me like the medic shook off the trooper when he grabbed the medic's wrist.

Which, just so we're clear, is resisting arrest.

What's going to get the Trooper in trouble is the "un-arresting" of Mr. White. Once a police officer tells you you're under arrest, that's it. You ARE going. Only a court can release you after that.

"I'll finish arresting you later" or "You're lucky I'm letting you go" can't happen. It's illegal. Without anything else that happened here, and whether White ever files/filed a complaint or not, the Trooper put his job in jeopardy with that one act.

However, I will stick up for the millions of officers out there who are all lumped into one group of bad apples by people like yourself.

Tell you what, Mr. Earp: you get the bad cops to wear signs separating themselves from the good cops, and I'll trust the good ones.

Until that time, though, I have to assume that I drew the short straw, and the guy who pulled me over/knocked on my door/whatever is the bad one and is willing to misuse his power in a way that could bring me harm, be it legal or otherwise. The risk calculation won't allow me to do otherwise. If I'm wrong, and he's a good guy, we'll have a few uncomfortable moments, he'll think I'm a standoffish jerk, and we'll go our separate ways.

If I'm wrong the other way, though, and I give him trust he doesn't deserve, well, I'll probably spend time in jail. Throw in the fact that courts tend to believe cops over private citizens, and you can strike the "probably."

You should never invite policemen or vampires into your home, and for much the same reason.

Wow. That video is horrendous. Get that cop out of there!

Our city had two raging cops beating on an older black man for the crime of sitting in his car on a summer evening–a man well known in the community as a lifelong volunteer in all kinds of good works. They did permanent damage and he was hospitalized. The city very quickly settled for a quarter million and gave the man an abject apology. Oklahoma should note, if nothing else, that abusing others under color of authority can be expensive.

I'm an ADA.

After careful review of the dash cam footage, Failure to Yield on the part of the ambulance driver is non-existent. Thus, this entire episode – the police pursuit, traffic stop, and the attempted arrest of Paramedic White, are all unwarranted and in fact, illegal.

In my state, the two videos and witness accounts of this incident would be enough evidence to hang felony assault and interference with emergency personnel convictions on Trooper Martin, and possibly Trooper Iker. Both are felonies.

This would be a very painful, unpopular prosecution in our department, but it would be necessary and charges would be brought forth. How any DA's office in Oklahoma could ignore these crimes is beyond any reason.

Indeed, a very sad day in our pursuit of truth and enforcement of the law…

Well, I am not tired of this yet and am not going to rest until OHP addresses this issue. I have a feeling they are going to wait it out until the public forgets or grows tired of it, and then do nothing. This is a very important incident that needs addressed and the problem of a cop on the loose that sees nothing wrong with stopping and holding an ambulance with a patient on board needs to be seriously rectified. The punishment of Martin is warranted, but what is more important is policies developed to prevent a similar occurance. LEOs I guess need a policy when dealing with EMS since Martin's actions clearly show LEOs all don't have the ethical discression to think of the patient first.
I want to know Martin is punished in some way and will have attitude adjustment training; I want OHP (and Martin) to admit wrongdoing and apologize to the EMS crew, the patient and her family; I want OHP to develop a policy and procedure in proper interations with EMS when patients are involved. Unitl then, I will not forget this incident.

Anon ADA – You would consider charges against the other trooper? Are you serious? On what grounds? Backing up a fellow officer with a suspect who was resisting arrest? Are you kidding me?

You might want to carefully review the dashcam video again. Specifically at 14:01:33. That is the point at which Dan waited until back-up arrived, approached Mr. White and said "You are going to jail. You are under arrest. You are under arrest". The scuffle then began and the other trooper assisted in restraining the man whom he just heard Martin say was under arrest. The trooper had no back story, no idea why Martin had requested back-up, why the man was being arrested.

Thinking that felony charges on that trooper would stick is laughable and it is disappointing to hear you would consider wasting tax payer dollars in such a pursuit.

5150Wife – Thank you for your comments. I appreciate sharp dialogue from intelligent people. This is a good post.

In regard to White’s “resisting arrest”, we must go back to the original reason for the traffic stop, and Trooper Martin’s subsequent knowledge that there was a patient onboard in need of emergency medical transport.

I must reiterate that this was indeed, an illegal traffic stop. Ambulance driver Franks yielded the right of way in a perfectly reasonable, prudent and sufficient manner. This makes any subsequent actions on the part of Trooper Martin, especially his choke hold on White and his interference with the medical transport, also illegal.

As for Trooper Iker, his actions/inactions will be judged on how he responded once he was informed of the need for medical transport. I said that he “may be charged” in my last post. On a probability scale, he most likely will not. But from the statements of the patient’s family, they indicate that Iker was informed within a few seconds of arrival that a heart condition patient was onboard in need of medical transport. This makes every second of delay and inaction on his part highly questionable, and subject to disciplinary action and/or prosecution.

Charges from prosecutors should be based on three key elements: 1. common sense, 2. an unbiased/unfavored enforcement & interpretation of the law, and 3. a reasonable anticipation of conviction. Trooper Martin’s motivations in this event were irrational and grossly irresponsible. His actions, the moment he left his original emergency destination, were illegal. Furthermore, the circumstances involving a patient being delayed treatment, make these actions reckless. Under Oklahoma State law, he committed a crime. As sad as it is for all good law enforcement everywhere, if he is not charged and brought to trial, the Okfuskee County District Attorney is not representing the good people of Oklahoma.

Also, attorney Gary James should be ashamed of himself in his defense strategy involving Trooper Martin. He has made things worse by inflaming the public and attacking White’s character. If you know Dan Martin and wish to pass along some good advice, tell him to fire that yutz and make an immediate, public apology to everyone involved. It is most likely too late to save his career, but there is no need for him to be an angry, hated monster.

Time will heal this tragedy…

It's real simple.

You DO NOT get to slap people around and endanger innocent patients becuase your feelings were hurt.

And a cop who unilaterally takes HIMSELF off a call for "Officer needs assistance" (which is what his attorney has said he did) to go chase down an amubulance driver who didn't "Respect his Authoriti" is unconscionable.

And then HE drags OTHER officers into the mess!

He's a menance to the civilans on teh street with whome his job forces him to interact.

He's a menance to his fellow officers, in that he'll leave them hanging when he feels a personal urge to go hassle someone.

He's a liability tohis fellow officers and department, becuase he'll turn a "one bad cop" incident into a group situation.

Trooper Martin needs to be cashiered, not "allowed to resign".

And OHP needs to PUBLICLY do it to restore some credibility. Right now, it is patently obvious it's a situation of "The Thin Blue Line hangs together, and damn the truth".

And I LIKE cops. Just think this one is about as professional as a solo ER doctor who'd take off unannouced to go drinking when he's heard there's inbound multiple traumas.

Anon ADA – you'll be happy to know that I agree with many aspects of your post. As I have stated previously, I am vehemently opposed to Dan's actions on that day. However, there are a few points that I'd like to mention:

#1 I am not entirely sure it is so black and white as to whether the ambulance did in fact pull over as quickly and prudently as it should/could have. My personal opinion is actually in line with yours, however my husband and I have had an extremely spirited debate about it, as he feels the opposite. He feels the white car in front of the ambulance that pulled over is clear evidence that the driver of the ambulance could have/should have also seen the Trooper approaching running Code. In fact he feels that the ambulance should have pulled to the side behind the car, as is required by State Law. (again, I'm not in agreement with that stance, but it does illustrate there are different viewpoints)

IF a court were to judge that the ambulance failed to yield — again, under OK law they are required to do — it changes everything… gives Dan the PC to make the subsequent stop…places Mr. White as obstructing the moment he stepped out the back of the ambulance…gives Dan full right to arrest Mr. White for obstruction and ticket the driver of the ambulance for failure to yield.

If every time a suspect was found not guilty of a crime, the officer was then charged with assault for arresting that person, we'd have no resemblance of a justice system in this country whatsoever. That simply is not how it works. In my ever-so-humble opinion, when Dan told the driver he would be ticketed and told Mr. White he was under arrest, he was obligated to fulfill those promises and let the courts sort it out. It's the old "Tell it to the Judge" thing.

#2 Again I say the other Trooper who arrived as backup should not be charged, nor do I believe any charges would ever hold. He simply is not culpable. Regardless of whether the arrest was legal or not, that Trooper was not aware and was merely helping to restrain a subject whom he believed to be under arrest. From the moment we see him come into the video to the point of altercation, he is NOT told there is a patient onboard. But, let's assume he was, as you are doing. I challenge you to find anywhere in OK law that says patient transportation trumps law enforcement. It doesn't. I'm sorry to say. Some may argue that is inhumane or archaic. So be it. But it's the law.

#3 Lastly, my husband knows Dan much better than I, as he is the one who worked closely with him and, as the Wife, I only know him socially. My husband believes that based on Dan's interaction with the driver, if Mr. White had stayed in the ambulance and stayed out of the whole thing, Dan would have had a quick conversation with the driver and all would have been on their way. He believes it was Mr. White's obstruction that caused the situation to escalate.

Personally, I'm on the fence with that one. I think Dan was fuming long before that…thus it was a grand total of 7 seconds from the time he called 97 at the scene (where he should have been backing up the other officer) to the time he took off after the ambulance. (oh, and by the way, he never did call out that he was 10-8 from the stolen vehicle call, which is against protocol). I also think Dan's radio transmission to the ambulance about watching their rearview mirror was enough of a rebuke. I think if he felt the need to pursue it further, it should have been done through superiors, not through the abuse of power as we've all witnessed.

*Sigh* Yes, we're a house divided on this subject. LOL

I am going to put myself out on a limb here again

Regarding the white car in front of the ambulance that pulled over first, I think THAT vehicle may be what would determine whether the ambulance driver was in violation of the law or not. Here's why:

IF the driver of that vehicle saw the trooper's lights or heard his sirens, then I agree with my husband that it would be reasonable to believe the ambulance driver should have seen/heard it as well.

However, I think interviewing that car's driver is the only way to know for sure. After all, it could be that vehicle pulled over because

#1 The driver heard the sirens & assumed it was the ambulance's & therefore moved over.

#2 The driver never saw/heard a thing, but his lovely wife of 50-some-odd years nagged "Herb, you're going slower than snail snot and that ambulance is on our ass. Pull over and let the young whipper snapper go by."

#3 Same lovely wife: "Herb, I told you my Depends was leaking some 3 miles back. Now pull over and let a lady do what a lady's gotta do."

If any such scenario occurred within that white car, we cannot then reasonably assume that the ambulance driver saw/heard the Trooper running Code either.

I would like to see THAT driver interviewed in order to assess why he/she pulled over, what exactly he/she saw/heard and at exactly what point. Furthermore, I think it should be done by an independent agency, such as the OSBI, not the OHP.

Or, ADA, if the case were to come across your desk, I hope you would do such investigating…'cuz I'm pretty darned sure Dan's attorney will.

"He feels the white car in front of the ambulance that pulled over is clear evidence that the driver of the ambulance could have/should have also seen the Trooper approaching running Code."

A car that was also being overtaken by the ambulance as well. A car that does not have a big steel box attached to its backside blocking sound. A car that does not have several emergency radios the driver must monitor. A car without a big, lumbering, loud diesel engine.

Yeah, he pulled over before the ambulance. Then again, unless you've ever driven an ambulance with the consideration for the comfort and safety of the patient and the medic in the back, you may not appreciate the fact that one does not do hard braking maneuvers unless one absolutely has to avoid a collision.

He held the trooper up maybe 3 or 4 seconds. That's getting out of the way in a timely fashion in anybody's book.

AD, no argument here. In fact, I mentioned several of those noise factors to my husband during our, ahem, discussion. (Although I admit I didn't think of the comfort of the rear passengers part) I also cited the fact that the Trooper's vehicle approached from around a curve, not on a straight-away, which is, of course, beyond everyone's control but could have been another factor.

When hubs asked me "What do you think they should do to Dan?", one of the options I mentioned was that at the very LEAST, I think Dan could benefit from a ride-along or two with EMS, even with Mr. White himself.

By the way, thank you AD for hosting such a lively discussion. And for allowing me to spew my 2 cents 2 many times. I appreciate the opportunity, as hubby and I have reached the "We'd best just agree to disagree" point in our discussions.

5150Wife –
Ahh, the spirited debates which arise from this thing we call “life”.

For the sake of argument, I will concede to your question of the FTY on the part of the ambulance. We’ll give Trooper Martin the benefit of the doubt. I will put my interpretation of the video evidence in check, and we will now call this a “valid” traffic stop.

Now let’s roll the Trooper Dash Cam once again:

13.56.51
Trooper Martin arrives his emergency
13:57:09
Trooper Martin begins his chase of the ambulance
13:57:40
The ambulance is stopped
13:57:53
Paramedic White immediately out of ambulance advises Martin he is in charge of the ambulance (he is)
13:58:10
Martin tells White to “get his a$$” back in the ambulance, he is talking to the driver
13:58:15
Both Ambulance driver Franks and Paramedic White advise Martin they have a patient in need of a transport

At this point, Trooper Martin is no longer in charge of this traffic stop. In the eyes of the law, it’s over. Paramedic White, being the senior medical official on the scene, has now established his legal authority in transporting the patient immediately to the hospital. This medical authority supersedes Martin’s traffic stop and his wish to cite Driver Franks with a FTY infraction. Martin is legally obligated to concede to White’s medical authority and immediately release the ambulance. Any delay on Martin’s part now, and he is guilty of “Interference with an Emergency Medical Technician” – OSC 21.20.650.3

14:58:43
Trooper Martin makes his first physical contact with White now, grabbing & pushing him against the ambulance, attempting an illegal arrest. Martin has now committed the crime of “Assault and Battery upon Emergency Medical Technician” – OSC 21.20.650.4

I can continue if you wish, but it only gets worse for the Trooper. With the dash cam video alone, there is ample evidence to secure a felony conviction against Dan Martin.

Again, this event saddens me. But I stand firm that Martin committed a crime(s) and prosecution is not only warranted, it is necessary.

My father is a cop and my grandfather is a fireman. Somehow I ended up going to law school. You can only image the spirited debates in our family…

For Reference:

OKLAHOMA STATUTES CITATIONIZED

OSC 21.20.650.3 – Interference with Emergency Medical Technician
Every person who willfully delays, obstructs or in any way interferes with an emergency medical technician or other emergency medical care provider in the performance of or attempt to perform emergency medical care and treatment or in going to or returning from the scene of a medical emergency, upon conviction, is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding six (6) months, or by a fine not to exceed Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), or by both such fine and imprisonment.

OSC 21.20.650.4 – Assault and Battery upon Emergency Medical Technician
A. Every person who, without justifiable or excusable cause and with intent to do bodily harm, commits any assault, battery or assault and battery upon the person of an emergency medical care provider who is performing medical care duties, upon conviction, is guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment in the custody of the Department of Corrections for a term not exceeding two (2) years, or by a fine not exceeding One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00), or by both such fine and imprisonment.
B. As used in this section, "emergency medical care provider" means doctors, residents, interns, nurses, nurses’ aides, ambulance attendants and operators, paramedics, emergency medical technicians, and members of a hospital security force.

*Sigh* Neither are/were felonies. Assuming Dan were convicted of either/both of the charges you cite, both are/were misdemeanors, not felonies.

Forgive me, I'm not good at doing the whole hyperlink thing, so you'll have to cut & paste.

OSC 21.20.650.3 (willfully delaying or obstructing) is a misdemeanor punishable by up to 6 mos in jail and/or a $500 fine. You can find the actual text here:

http://www.oscn.net/applications/oscn/DeliverDocument.asp?CiteID=69279

OSC 21.20.650.4 (assault on EMS) was a misdemeanor at the time Dan allegedly committed said crime. Gov. Brad Henry signed legislation changing it to a felony & doubling the possible jail time on May 22 — two days before Dan's tantrum. However, it did not go into effect until May 27 — 3 days AFTER Dan's tantrum.

The law as in effect on the date of the incident is here:

http://www.oscn.net/applications/oscn/DeliverDocument.asp?citeid=455318

and the law as it now stands is here:

http://www.oscn.net/applications/oscn/DeliverDocument.asp?CiteID=69280

Additionally, again I state that Mr. White exiting the vehicle and obstructing occurred first, before Dan was told there was a patient onboard. And it does not matter if Mr. White was "in charge" of the transport or not; it was the driver whom Dan felt had violated the traffic law.

It would be no different than if a cop pulled over a construction truck, let's say. The cop deals with/tickets the driver. If the foreman/owner/Obama Himself, jumps out of the truck and attempts to interfere with that, said foreman/owner/Obama is obstructing.

Also, if we listen closely to the audio, we find that in fact it was the driver, Paul Franks, who first advised Dan there was a patient on board, then Mr. White immediately chimed in with that same information.

Gosh, I'm beginning to sound like I'm on Dan's side here. And that's totally not the case.

On a side note, something else that's been bugging me: Dan attempted TWICE to restrain Mr. White. And he failed miserably both times. The first attempt was on the driver's side with only a few bystanders (and supposedly before it "registered" to him that there was a patient onboard), so he certainly should have been able to restrain Mr. White (I'm talking about from a tactical standpoint, not a legal one). The fact that he was unable to do so and then turned his back to Mr. White and walked away…ugh. I am shaking my head. So many MANY things wrong with the whole scenario, from beginning to end. I guess all I can say to sum it all up is what I said in my first comment on this: Dan's actions and the OHP's subsequent inactions are inadequate and unprofessional. Something has GOT to be done.