Wild Video: Man Dragged Face-Down at Airport by Police, Authorities Investigating
- Posted on March 25, 2012 at 10:26am by
Madeleine Morgenstern
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(Image source: KWTV-TV)
Authorities in Oklahoma are investigating an incident captured on surveillance video that appears to show police officers dragging a man face-down at Will Rogers World Airport.
The security footage from the Feb. 20 incident shows officers first using a Taser to subdue the man, then dragging him face-down by his feet across the floor.
The man, James Heidebrecht, allegedly tried to sneak into a secure area to meet GOP presidential candidate Newt Gingrich and claimed he was with the CIA.
Oklahoma’s KWTV-TV reported:
The man can be heard in the security footage claiming, “I’m with the CIA.” In the police report, officers described Heidebrecht as combative. The security video shows one officer shoved Heidebrecht to get the man away. That was then an officer fired his taser, striking Heidebrecht. The audio from the recordings revealed that officers repeatedly commanded the suspect to “put your hands behind your back.”
[Oklahoma City Police Captain Dexter] Nelson says officers fired the taser multiple times during the arrest, which is part of their standard training.
“He‘s a big man and they’re trying to get him to put his hands behind his back,” said Nelson. “What we’re trained is, if you’re dealing with somebody with a taser and their hands are still up underneath them, they’re still considered a threat.”
When the officers finally gained control of Heidebrecht, they each grabbed a leg and dragged him, face down, across the floor to a police area inside the airport.
Nelson told ABC News that whenever there is an arrest involving any force other than routine handcuffing, there is an administrative and criminal investigation of the situation. He acknowledged the incident was “more than routine handcuffing.”
“The gentleman had some mental discord,” he said told “He was not in a normal state of mind. Communication with him was not going well.”
One of the officers in the video is currently on “restricted duty status,” meaning he will not interact with the public.
Heidebrecht was originally charged with trespassing, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. Those charges have since been dismissed.
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Comments (104)
Atilla
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 1:44pmMaybe the guy didn’t think that he had to prove his innocence to anything. News Flash. The unconstitutionality of what the TSA is doing daily is stunning. Imagine any police force having the power and authority to search and sizw completely without probable cause. TSA is merely a desenstizing process to get the public to accept an unconstitutional search and seizure by government. Sheep to the slaughter.
Report Post »blackyb
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 2:19amThat man who shot the congresswoman and ruined her political career didn’t have to prove who he was either did he? I am a conservative, she is a democrat who was a good woman just doing her job. I say drag their azzes and sort it out later. Our Constitution will not be read when people are to be dragged. Officers are trained to act. Their actions cannot wait for a debate. So there will always be those who disrespect the laws and Constitution but who will be the first to try to lean on it. Prepare to be dragged if you are in the wrong place even appearing to be doing the wrong thing. Times are such that debate is out of the question.
Report Post »redracer
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 12:45pmDid you notice the spokesman for the police has a ‘cross’ on his cubicle wall? Uh oh – the atheists will be after him next – filing a suit that he is offending others in his office.
Report Post »teamarcheson
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 1:52pmTSA Would Not Dare Do This To A Black
If TSA Groper Corps SS would loose job and go to jail for doing this to a protected minority like black. When are people going to rebel against this TSA like the blacks rebelled against the Cops in Sanford, Florida?
Report Post »db321
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 1:57pmMy guess – this man was probably trying to get into the Gingrich Meeting to yell “Mic Check” or “Alla Akbar” – they both mean the save to me.
Report Post »BarackStalin
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 4:02pmNo need to wonder why the Occupiers harbor so much animosity and resentment toward the police…
This is just another day on the job…
If you are going to treat people like animals, then expect people to start acting like animals…
Report Post »Baddoggy
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 6:38pmHe may enjoy the TSA anal probe,,,who knows.
Report Post »RepubliCorp
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 6:50pmI would like to see Obama dragged out of the white house this way
Report Post »Abraham Young
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 8:34pmTasers have become far too commonly used. Incrementally, we are becoming a fascist nation.
Report Post »TheValley
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 10:38pmThere are a couple criminals in uniform that is for sure, I don’t give a damn what their training tells them, this is straight up brutality and over use of force. Soon cops will be getting killed in numbers for this kind of crap.
Report Post »RedbirdNTX
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 8:41amwe are no longer the majority.. we’ve been out numbered according to the new surveys.. Not surprising.
Report Post »rangerp
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 8:41amTheValley
yea, you tell them how it is.
Cops need to get rid of guns, night sticks, and handcuffs. Just say “pretty please” to the criminals and law breakers, and they will be sure to listen and do what they are told.
What an idiot you are.
Report Post »TheValley
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 10:35amRangerP, You sir have just removed all doubt as to your competence. I did not say to take weapons away from police, not even once. But just because they have a badge and a uniform, doesn’t give them free reign to use said weapons at will. They, the cops, have rules too. They are bound by our Constitution as well. The fact that the rules on police behavior are way lax, does not mean they have the right to use excessive force. Those two cops should be in jail.
Report Post »cuinsong
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 12:45pmI see some of the post here think it is ok for the security people to act like Gestapo agents and inflict injury after perp is subdued and handcuffed!
Report Post »I guess that as long as it isn’t you its all good and the bad guy got his just dues, right?
I think that this is a good example of lib-think!
Anything you do to those of a different persuasion is good for the cause and as long as I get treated differently I will turn a blind eye to the injustice’s perpetrated on people I disagree with.
I believe this kind of justice is called TYRANNY you idiots!
This song is for you “The End Times” http://www.reverbnation.com/play_now/song_10381143
ianmc002
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 1:29pmAgreed sir. Welcome to the police state.
Report Post »teamarcheson
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 1:59pmObama would have terminated his trip to Korea and returned to the White House if this had been a black man. Obama would send Justice Department and FBI units in to investigate. No black man could ever be treated like this at an airport.
Report Post »mildot rider
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 3:26pmVery well said. The TSA is definably a Nazi organization who’s only goal is to suppress our freedoms and distort our moral conscious into a “planet of the apes” mentality.
Report Post »West Coast Patriot
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 9:03pmAs long as we keep electing candidates that do not take their oath to protect and defend the Constitution seriously, we will continue to experience tyranny more and more. Any candidate that does not have at least an A on the 2nd amendment, should not even be looked at for POTUS, period!
http://gunowners.org/2012presidential.htm
Report Post »TheValley
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 10:41pmRight on, there are some simple minds here that is for real. These guys are thugs in uniform, nothing more.
Report Post »rawmilker
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 11:19pmTo serve & protect, people fear us, women want us….now fall in & shut up! We’re looking for bomb carrying boogeymen & if you do not submit to our demands, show us your bo o bs, allow us to inspect your colostomy bag, your prosthesis, closely grab your crotch, molest your young child, put you cutie pies up on our X-Ray body of the week bulletin board….. we’ll have you wearing the new taser necklace……we’ll show ya, zzzzzzztttt! Heil Janet!!!
Report Post »Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 12:38pmLet the matter be fully, honestly, completely be investigated on the officers and see what comes out.
Report Post »TurboCat
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 2:31amHey! The same thing happened to me one time……by kidnappers!
Report Post »jungle J
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 12:34pmonly because he is white.
Report Post »Baddoggy
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 6:39pmWhat a stupid post.
IMAWAKENOW
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 10:23pmThere are people that race to post something, anything, just to be first.
Report Post »devo8466
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 7:26amYour so correct ! Double standards have become the “norm”.
Report Post »lel2007
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 12:34pmPolice get paid to win. Unfortunately, some seem to lose their humanity and ability to measure perceived threats. Two big strong cops should be able to walk away a Tased and handcuffed perp.
Report Post »Before packaging the Taser into a hand-held weapon, electric shocking was considered torture.
hidden_lion
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 12:42pmHow can the guy put his hands behind his back while being tased?
Report Post »madasblazes
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 11:32pmHow can you put your hands behind your back after repeatedly being tazed?
Officers: to serve and protect or to punish and inflict undo and painful force? Absolute power corrupts…
Report Post »georgepatton
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 12:33pmNo mention of race ……so he’s white!
Report Post »Mil-Dot
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 12:46pmExactly. If he was black, they would have heard about it in Uzbekistan by now.
Report Post »whatthecrazy
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 1:43pm@ Mil.dot LOL
Report Post »Baddoggy
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 6:40pmGod you people are falling for the racist agenda…You fell in fools! WTF does the color of someones skin make?
Report Post »Workforit
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 4:58amReally? Not going well?… I see “standing your ground” does not bode well with the TSA…
I wonder if his name was Trayvon?
Do you think it could be Obamas white Uncle?
Report Post »thedirtmover
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 12:15pmSo whats the problem? It’s a smooth floor. Do you see any cactus? broken glass? sharp rocks?
Report Post »mildot rider
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 3:33pmI didn’t see any broken glass but I did see two Nazi thugs acting like Apes violating the Constitutional Rights of an American citizen. But that’s probably ok..right?
Report Post »Mil Mom
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 11:20pm@thedirtmover
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 12:15pm
So whats the problem? It’s a smooth floor. Do you see any cactus? broken glass? sharp rocks?
Report Post »***
The problem is there could have been any of that there. Besides, did you ever hear of friction burns, add the germs off people’s feet, and not knowing what kind of germs are there, this guy could come down with almost any kind of infection and I can’t imagine a Dr. being able to figure out what it is and how he came upon the germs.
RugDog
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 12:10pmThey released George Zimmerman’s home address.
TIME TO RELEASE TSA AGENTS HOME ADDRESS’S!!
Report Post »Frogginit
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 12:09pmAnytime you’re dragging a CIA agent, you drag him face down so you don’t blow his cover. What difference does it make if he’s face up or face down? The idea is to get the idiot under control and away from everybody else. The only thing they did wrong that I can see is, they failed to kick him in the head a few times.
Report Post »hidden_lion
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 12:43pmhave you ever had your face dragged across the floor?
Report Post »WakingSheep
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 11:59amEven if they would have found that the cops had done something wrong; think for a minute anybody would have been held accountable? “there is an administrative and criminal investigation of the situation” PSH…. like it would matter one way or the other anyway.
Report Post »flyezee
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 11:58amThe only questions now are how much of Will Rogers Airport will Heidebrecht own, and who will be the new Police Chief.
Report Post »progressiveslayer
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 11:49amIf you look closely you’ll see the drunk kept his face off the floor while being dragged to ensure future drinking binges will go uninterrupted.He’ll live to drink another day,hell maybe even have a few with the drunk Biden.
Report Post »P. Edmonds
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 11:49amI didn’t see any evidence of police brutality. This guy was resisting and wasn’t heeding the orders of Security. What were his intentions? Why would he have claimed (falsely) that he worked for the CIA. Seems justified to me given the information we know from the article.
Report Post »hidden_lion
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 12:46pmThere is no confirmation that he didn’t work for the CIA. The NYPD that arrested a navy seal thought he was full of it too. Still, no extreme use of force here, just kinda wrong to drag a guys face across the floor.
Report Post »mildot rider
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 3:39pmWhat I saw was a couple of power-hungry Nazi thugs acting on behalf of the Dark Lord and his filthy commie minions. A face down dragging? After he was subdued? The Gestapo tactics are a blatant act of terrorism to us all and our Constitution of the United States of America.
Report Post »TrueColours
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 11:43am“Authorities Investigating” Don’t we usually think of the Police as “the authorities”? Seems like a conflict of interest that authorities are investigating authorities. In any case the authorities appear to be jumping the gun on the coming fascist globalist illegal marshal law/coup this summer. These two must have just got back from Big Sis’s marshal law training symposium.
Report Post »Constructionist
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 11:30amThis man should have shown the police some old Hawaiian newspaper clippings that proved he was really with the CIA.
Report Post »Marengo Ohio Patriot
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 11:36amHeidebrecht was originally charged with trespassing, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest.
Report Post »if i were the prosecutor, the LAST thing i would do is DROP the charges!
something stinks. and it aint in denmark, it’s at will rogers airport at the police station!
davisgarvey
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 11:41am@CONSTRUCTIONIST,
That was the best/ funniest comment I have ever seen on The Blaze! I laughed and loved it!!
Report Post »MYHEROISRON
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 11:51amThere is nothing inappropriate here. It’s OK to drag a CIA officer face down across the floor. Next!
Report Post »RJJinGadsden
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 12:11pmCONSTRUCTIONIST, LOL, have to agree with DAVISGARVEY above. That is one of the funniest lines I have read here too.
Report Post »hidden_lion
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 12:48pmThe charges were dropped because he probably really did work for the CIA. That would make this story pretty funny.
Report Post »Workforit
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:01amBrilliant! That was good for a belly laugh and a couple of well placed “forwards” !!!!!
Report Post »yankeeredneck
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 11:18amI have my reservations about law enforcement, as do many others. But saying “I give up” is not compliance when your hands are still free. And you can’t drag an uncompliant suspect face up when his hands are finally cuffed behind his back. THAT would be cruel.
Report Post »progressiveslayer
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 11:38amI‘ve seen many bouncers deal with drunks this way and he was either drunk or on drugs or both and you can’t reason with somebody who’s under the influence.I have my reservations about law enforcement as well,good apples,bad apples but this drunk was dealt with the only way you can deal with a drunk.
Report Post »rawmilker
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 11:55pmWhy they didn’t slam him down in a wheelchair, restrain him and then hit him in the face with pepperspray like the Lee county FL Sheriffs Dept did to that Ohio man a few years ago. Ended up killing him and not one of them has been charged to this day.
I dont watch the lib young turks, but this is first vid that popped up on the subject
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILEmYeX7eHQ
Report Post »capitalismrocks
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 11:04amDifficult to really see what is going on, you can clearly hear the guy several times saying “I give up” and he is probably dazed and such by the tazing so maybe it wasn’t easy for him to move enough to get it arms out from under him.
The only clear thing you can see that is totally out of line is the dragging of him face down or otherwise, sorry but you either get him on his feet and walk him or if he can’t walk, then you call EMT and put him on a stretcher and move him, you don’t drag a guy like that no matter what.
Report Post »Smokey_Bojangles
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 11:00amI am sure the Commie Media will find a way to blame this on Newt.
Report Post »CatB
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 11:17amYup!
Report Post »RJJinGadsden
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 12:14pmNah, GW
Report Post »blackyb
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 1:42amOr George Bush
Report Post »Smokey_Bojangles
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 10:58amAdds to my worry about the 200 million rounds of .40 cal. ammo Homeland Security is stocking up on.Don’t think it is meant for us do you?2.2 million first responders.That is a lot of Americans to be shot!
Report Post »Stoic one
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 10:56am“More transparent with the public”… HA!
Report Post »More like this was leaked to some good local press.
shortafoot
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 10:55amI think the police were doing their job until they dragged him across the floor.
Report Post »Darla_K
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 10:52amHe certainly was not cooperating and all to see Newt. OMG…..
Report Post »ChiefGeorge
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 10:51amOur fine police state at work!
Report Post »progressiveslayer
Posted on March 25, 2012 at 10:35amThe guy sounded tased and confused,he was drunk or on drugs.
Report Post »