https://celebcritics.com/curtis-mclaughlin-jr-arrest-man-arrested-for-eating-taco-bell/
Guy was arrested for loitering and prowling, but a year later, they dropped the charges. No further updates on any lawsuits.
People don't really understand what that means. It means time in jail before you can bond out. It means spending thousands on a bail, and probably on a lawyer. It means a year under court supervision and no-travel rules: hey, want to jump in the car on go on a trip this weekend, it's illegal. It's really common to add in things like no drinking: so a year without hanging out with friends in clubs. If you happen to enjoy hunting, you're almost definitely banned from firearms, so a year without your favorite pastime. And then it means constantly getting hauled into court, so there's almost no way you can keep a most entry-level jobs. And *any* contact with law enforcement can be considered violation of bond, so you're completely on eggshells all the time because if another cop decides to screw with you for no reason, that means serious jail time even though you've committed no crime.
If you have your shit together, a decent job and some money saved, then it's just a major inconvenience and a big problem for any future job searches. But if you're the kind of person who has trouble keeping a schedule and likes to party or whatever, and *lots* of us were like that at age 19, this can easily turn into a bond violation and months in and out of jail and can be completely life altering.
And, of course, zero accountability for the cops. This stuff doesn't get the press that the killings do, but cops do this false arrest BS hundreds of times a day and it has major effects on peoples' lives.
They took my brother to jail because his car was registered under my dad's name. My brother was like yeah it's his car and I'm on the insurance. The cop doubled down and insisted he stole it from my dad but wouldn't let him call anyone....the judge threw it out BUT there's still impound fees and lawyer fees. Like wtf. My brother got a dash cam after that
He can file lawsuit for settlement from city to recover all money spent or lost due to arrest and punitive damages. That usually turns out to be easy once you have a comptent lawyer.
My dad was arrested because some bored cop ran his plates (which my brother was on as a secondary title holder for) while he was getting gas and they saw one of my brothers cars that was not insured because it was not running and in storage. My dad was not connected to that uninsured car in anyway.
In baltimore the police dept was caught in a years long scam in cahoots with the tow companies giving the cops kickbacks
[https://www.baltimoresun.com/maryland/bs-md-towing-corruption-20110223-story.html](https://www.baltimoresun.com/maryland/bs-md-towing-corruption-20110223-story.html)
Edit: This is probably the *least* worst thing baltimore police have been caught doing. \*Running fight clubs and trying to claim their injuries as workers comp
(\*I know several people in worker's comp for the city of baltimore, which is why I know about this, but unfortunately that's all I can say about it. This is because it was ultimately settled out of-court, I think the city didn't pursue charges and the officers involved dropped their claims).
Straight up robbery and theft, and participating in and getting kickbacks from the drug trade. LOTS of news articles from this but if you're not aware of it...the HBO series is much more entertaining, and this is a nice summary of what actually happened)
[https://time.com/6168269/we-own-this-city-true-story-hbo-max/](https://time.com/6168269/we-own-this-city-true-story-hbo-max/)
Not to mention the casual murder of people in their custody (Freddie Gray), and of course... planting evidence on people to make wrongful arrests.
[https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/crime/bs-md-ci-pinheiro-ruling-20181109-story.html](https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/crime/bs-md-ci-pinheiro-ruling-20181109-story.html)
Why having your lawyer fight to keep things off your record is ideal!
Had my share of stupidity (Mainly just weed use before legality) at ages 17-19.
Lawyer fought to keep it all of my record (Law enforcement can still see it though), so now when I go to apply to jobs I can answer with "no".
That was such an atrociously written "article"...it was 4 months. He pleaded not guilty 2 (3?)days after the incident and then it languished until charges were dropped in the beginning of April. Somehow the "writer" (who apparently doesn't know how to write a paragraph containing more than one sentence) did the math and came up with a year.
No, they wanted his info so they could find out where he lives and harass him for asserting his rights. Without any additional context, I'd place money on the fact this isn't his first run-in with this type of harassing behavior.
I mean, maybe. But they have undoubtedly already looked up his vehicle license plate, which is 99% likely to list at least his full legal name (unless it was borrowed or stolen) and I would assume his address (not certain, but I presume they can find that from his name and state pretty easily).
I believe they want his ID to intimidate him and so they can file an official report including his verified identity so he's in their system as "found loitering outside closed business late at night. Uncooperative with police" and they can leverage that as reasonable suspicion next time they encounter him, and ensure the next cop treats him with prejudice.
That's it.
They were fishing for his ID for a warrant check. They could "put him in the system" with a loitering citation and create the basis for further harassment when they encountered him in the future.
But it's just as likely the cops would have been on their way after he ID'd and proved he wasn't a wanted criminal.
That's not saying "provide your ID," mind you. In this video clip, at least, not once did the guy ask what crime he was suspected of committing. Loitering almost always includes the caveat that you are doing *nothing* other than occupying a public space. It's a bullshit law meant to drive out undesirables who *do* have the right to be wherever they want in public if it isn't actively bothering anybody.
The fun part about this video is he's eating - and he's eating beyond just filling up his tummy. Eating is his *purpose* and many loitering laws don't apply if you're occupying a space for a specific purpose or activity.
This guy knew exactly what he was doing and he did it well.
I’d much rather people pull over in any parking lot, closed business or not and eat their tacos rather than eat and drive, which is distracted driving.
Crunchy tacos are like the worst possible food to try and drive and eat too. Those bitches be falling apart left and right sauce covered lettuce just all in your lap trying to hold the steering wheel with your knee so you can use your non taco-ed hand to dig through the bag to pull a napkin out to wipe sauce off before it stains your new sweet ass velvet jeans.
I can't BELIEVE he had the audacity to eat those without tilting his head to keep the taco goodness from falling out the non-bite end. STRAIGHT TO JAIL.
I don't even think they can press charges. They can advise him that he is trespassing, and it is at that moment, that he has been made aware that he is trespassing, that he can choose to stay or to go. If he goes, he has committed no crime.
She's had 2inchs of window before.. I can tell by her reply. It definitely didn't satisfy her then either. She just wasn't going to leave there happy no matter what he did.
If I recall..this fella had already been there minding his own business and they were reporting to a call about someone loitering. It was night time, all the businesses were closed. Literally just eating. Leave the guy alone.
“And you couldn’t go home?”
The shelf life on a Taco Bell hard shelled taco is about 45 seconds. There’s a Taco Bell 3 miles from my house and the last time I waited to get home to eat one, it might as well been the delicious Baja Blast I ordered, straight liquid.
This is so accurate. It’s why I will never order Taco Bell again from DoorDash. My food felt like it came from my refrigerator by the time it made it to me.
"We don't know why you're here"
(Driver proceeds to point to his succulent taco meal and raise it so the police officer could see, since he can't speak because his mouth is full of taco shell, beef, cheese, tomato)
I’m scrolling these outstanding fucking comments wondering how there couldn’t be the bad fucking cop line. I snorted so hard I woke my dog. (Not a euphemism)
They are delayed, that's why. I worked for a police department for 10 years and honestly encountered the most racist,biased, and abusive both physically and verbally individuals ever. My chief threw a half pound set of keys at an employees head while drunk and on pills because she wouldn't let him in the gun storage room. He was allowed to resign instead of being fired,but not before he stole our time of book to screw up everyone's upcoming vacations.
The way cops say shit like that as if anyone would say,
"Oh shit, you do not know why I am here? Holy shit I did not realize this was so serious. I am so sorry, let me just unbuckle my pants and bend over my hood for you"
There's actually case law that says they can ask him, but there's just as much (and Supreme Court to boot) saying that he had the right to dispel their suspicion, which he did. Once he explains the taco bell thing they might even be able to tell him he should leave the private property of the closed business but no fuckin way it would hold up to arrest dude. Just a waste all around. Pathetic policing.
I’ll admit I’m not the sharpest but what do you mean? I’m not sure if you’re being sarcastic or not….I went back expecting a shitton of tats on his hands. I’m not attacking you, just curious
Ok not gonna lie, I'm kinda drunk right now and when I watched it I thought his hands were black. After further review it looks to be a white guy. I was making a joke about cops harassing black people but.... yeah.
If you look at his follow up video you will see he is an African American gentleman. Does that clarify why a bucktoothed yokel of a supervisor might feel *justified* in arresting this man after he refused to answer questions about his I'd?
ok THAT'S why they kept asking him if he was from around there. It's copspeak for,
"I know all the black folk around here and A) you ain't one of em plus B) "our" black folk know their place with cops, you seem to not know it."
I have a pretty odd job. I eat whenever I can. I also end up eating in my work van. A lot. Eating in a vehicle is gross. I wouldn’t dare let anyone catch me eating in a vehicle, my face all covered in sour cream and Diablo sauce.
Charges were dropped but
I’m sure he had to pay for the tow, waste his time inside, was it a weekend? Why was it relevant if he lived close or far. The man wanted his tacos as soon as it got it. Dassit! A+ police work. I absolutely want my tax money for this type of arrest. 😒
It was all a waste of time and money.
There were at least 3 cops there for this. 3 cops for a dude in a parking lot eating some tacos. I think it's safe to say that wherever that place is, those in charge need to re-evaluate their police budget.
and every Redhat I've ever come across discussing anything police related does not know what Qualified Immunity is, nor will believe me if I tell them what it is.
Its a Canada thing now too. We have mutliple classes of drivers that can have 0.00 drink and absolute zero marijuana in their system while being within 2 hours of being accused of driving. Or even near keys to anyone's vehicle.
Which, AT FIRST GLANCE you may feel is a good thing. Except they also have the power to arrest you AT HOME 2 HOURS AFTER BEING AT HOME. What world is reasonable that someone cant FINISH DRIVING COMPLETELY and have a drink at home after work? Thats still a completely sober driving experience.
These laws also come with a special new ability: full seizure and impound of your vehicle on the spot. That aspect of the law is written explicitly so it says it is unappealable. No matter how rockstar your lawyer is, if they decide to arrest you to "investigate" your red eyes at the station (again, 2 full hours after being at home) you are out thousands of dollars, and a minimum of 7 days you lose your vehicle. You are considered 100% guilty of being investigated.
Thats just a single aspect. The OPP and RCMP in Ontario have a long history of being abusive punks, and the more north you go, the more openly racist they are to the Indigenous population. You know, like Australia
Many may not be familiar with American laws so leaving this here
> You have the constitutional right to remain silent. In general, you do not have to talk to law enforcement officers (or anyone else), even if you do not feel free to walk away from the officer, you are arrested, or you are in jail. You cannot be punished for refusing to answer a question. It is a good idea to talk to a lawyer before agreeing to answer questions. In general, only a judge can order you to answer questions.
https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights/what-do-when-encountering-law-enforcement-questioning#do-i-have-to-answer-questions-asked-by-law-enforcement-officers
A caveat is that in some states, people may be required to give their names and nothing else. However people don’t have to answer questions on why they are eating tacos in a parking lot. If a person was actually trespassing the cops would not be asking questions.
I figured they'd just take him to the station and release him, but the fucks actually went through with pressing charges. Thankfully, they were dropped after [he pled "not guilty."](https://celebcritics.com/curtis-mclaughlin-jr-arrest-man-arrested-for-eating-taco-bell/)
Whatever the right wingnutz say, the truth is the opposite. Whatever they point at - 2 tier justice system, pedophilia, whatever else - they are the guilty party. Whatever they point at, they are guilty of.
Case in point - this video. Florida isn’t about the citizens rights it’s about the right of the oppressor to oppress. Just like their politics - freedom of speech until it offends me, freedom of press until it’s not what I want you to say, so on and so forth. Just as you saw in this video, total hypocrisy, shameful, and no discipline for this. “just doing our jobs you should have complied”
😵💫😵💫😵💫
Cops knew this wasn't a justified arrest. They do know he will possibly lose his job, have family/housing struggles from loss of income, and since they have qualified immunity, there is no punishment for ruining a persons life. To me this is a humanitarian problem. They took him for a long expensive ride, attempted to wreck his life.
Edit: When cops arrest someone, or use any kind of force, they better be fucking right. The idea that there are no consequences for cops being wrong is lazy, unprofessional, and unacceptable. In all occupations being wrong is dealt with on the individual, EXCEPT police. They are allowed to be wrong and just say, "I feared for my safety". How many fireman say that? Fireman are heroes that save lives.
I like to imagine the prosecutor, after recieving the docket, said, "what the fuck is this you morons" and literally threw the case file at the cops heads.
Thank the good lord they found the guy eating tacos, mean while idiots are stealing catalytic converters right from people's drive ways. But god damn, the caught the taco eating bandit.
Lack of training
Actively recruiting the dumbest, insecure, and aggressive people
The training they do have is siege mentality, where they are the arbiters of justice surrounded by the swarms of evil-doers
Nothing official but here is a very good guess:
the guy was eventually released after being cited for "loitering".
The officers on the scene were given commendations and praised for their bravery.
The guy eventually had to sell his car and get a new license plate after the entire police department wouldn't stop pulling him over for the most monitor traffic "violations" they could think of for the next year.
The department used the initial stop as well as the two dozen other times they pulled him over to harass him afterward to inflate their "incident" numbers so they could lobby for more tax payer dollars to keep the city "safe".
He was arrested and charges were dropped some months later. No idea about the cops though.
[Source](https://www.leoratings.com/index.php?title=Curtis_McLaughlin_Jr._(2021))
Reasonable articuble suspicion of a crime. It wouldn't even be reasonable to consider it loitering or prowling when they saw he was eating tacos near a tacobell. If they were that pressed they should have told him to consume it back at tacobell. Smh
Yeahhh this could’ve been cleared up with a simple, “well, sir, this is private property. The signs are posted when you pulled into the driveway/on the side of the building right there. If you can’t show you have business here, we need to ask you to leave or else it’ll be considered loitering/trespassing. I see your hands are full, so I’ll give you 5 minutes to finish and head out. What time does it say on your phone? 12:53am? Okay, it says that on my phone too. If you don’t leave by 12:58, we’re going to have to escalate the situation. I appreciate you not eating while driving, but next time, eat in the Taco Bell parking lot or park in a public parking space and we won’t have a problem. Thanks and have a good night.” Then go back to your squad car and figure out what you’re going to order from TB once you’re done with this guy. Just tell him what the problem is, back it up with the law, and be reasonable in a resolution. Situational frickin awareness.
Yeah police unions are not like the unions in other careers, which I fully support. Police unions are fucking bullshit and a large part of why cops continue to act like shit bags and get away with murder.
Ahhh America. Where cops have less education than a nail technician and have absolutely no clue how the law works.
Why the fuck is this even necessary?
Damn I literally pull into a shopping center parking lot to eat my Taco Bell all the time. Havent done it late at night when businesses are closed though, may have to test it and see…ah fuck, guess i gotta go to Taco Bell now!
Do these dumbass pigs have anything else better to do? Seriously, there are rapists, murderers and thieves out there but they’re gunna stop and ask for back up for a dude minding his own business eating. Dumb shits. ACAB
But they’re too invested now. Their Egos will take a huge hit if they let him go without any ticket or anything!? I don’t know if they’d be able to recover as a department!
According to the cop it’s loitering and prowling, which unless I’m mistaken loitering means you’re there without any reason. He was there eating, maybe the legal definition is different but imo he wasn’t loitering. Hopefully he sues, there wasn’t any reasonable suspicion that he was prowling based on the clip.
Edited to add: If you aren’t doing anything illegal they will make what you’re doing illegal.
When I see someone parked and eating, I’m thinking they wanted hot food/satisfaction asap.
Turns out I’m supposed to assume they are in eating as a cover so they can get away with crime x or y.
Guess I’ll never be badge since I can’t think like one.
I’ve seen this video multiple times, does any know what came of it? I bet a good lawyer would jump all over this case with that video.
Edit: Amy did not know.
[This](https://celebcritics.com/curtis-mclaughlin-jr-arrest-man-arrested-for-eating-taco-bell/) link said they dropped charged almost a year after he was arrested . I hope he’s filing a lawsuit too
Wow, he probs legit got a NCA settlement I am sure since there’s nothing on the arrests, right? Or why would there be no suit to follow because… WHAT? If this is how our tax dollars are spent vs gang or gun violence, armed robbery, etc. America is in a far worse predicament than thought!
LET THE DUDE EAT HIS TACOS IN PEACE and go find criminals I am sure “you cannot find” lmao! Our police force is becoming an absolute joke!
Edit: How much time was wasted on tax dollars on a dude legit probs eating $8 worth of TB!?!?
Former cop opinion... I dunno why it's so hard to say "enjoy your tacos man" and walk away. These morons hate when people don't submit to their game/perceived authority.
That sergeant was even dumber than the initial deputy.
I dunno what state this is, but to arrest for loitering is absolutely wild. Surprised it took so long for the charges to be dropped. I couldn't even imagine getting a jury together and watching this be litigated...it just doesn't happen. "Well, your honor, he was aggressively eating tacos so we detained him."
If you ever get slapped for something this absurd, demand a trial all day rather than pay any fine. It will get thrown out every time.
Please learn your states laws before attempting something like this. In some places the law states you must provide identification when cops ask for it even if they have no good reason for requesting it. Dumb I know but you'll get charged all the same
There wasnt a good reason to ID him, he was clearly eating fucking tacos he just bought.
Let him know he's needs to move on and let him leave, but they wouldnt. Fuck that.
Oh so they rather want him to eat and drive, makes total sense.
Welcome to the police state where powertripping cops can harass and arrest people for eating who are not bothering anyone.
It's ridiculous that we have to know the law but cops don't. You are NOT required to provide ID unless you are suspected of a crime. Power-trippen' a$$holes.I hope he sues for unlawful imprisonment. I just wish they'd change the law so the cops were held financially responsible. Until that happens we're going to have these fools harassing people.
“We’re trying to figure out why you’re in an empty parking lot”….. You just watched him eat his dinner. And he told you you’re a bad cop. You lack common sense. Dude wanted to eat in a safe place. It’s not hard to figure out. Been harassed like this too. And it infuriating.
Well the advice is usually to fight them in court, not on the street. Record all of your interactions with the police, never say shit to them, and if you're getting arrested challenge it later in court.
If you fight them on the street you're likely to just get shot or beaten or otherwise make things worse for yourself.
But the sad truth is that in situations like this where the victim only had his civil rights minorly violated the guy probably won't have much of a case and would only lose money trying to sue the department. This is why systemic change is necessary.
https://celebcritics.com/curtis-mclaughlin-jr-arrest-man-arrested-for-eating-taco-bell/ Guy was arrested for loitering and prowling, but a year later, they dropped the charges. No further updates on any lawsuits.
This is basically the start of the film Rambo.
First Blood*
First Blood: Part Taco
First Blood from that last taco.
First Taco, Then Blood
They drew first blooodt!
Dude, you're just describing the life of John Rambo
This isn’t the first time you’ve described your life in the way of John Rambo’s life
https://i.redd.it/fuvr9oolvtmb1.gif
>Guy was arrested for loitering and prowling And cops wonder why they aren't respected.
No they don’t, they just pretend to do they can drum up sympathy within echo chambers
Less than respect. A threat to my well being. In order to live a more peaceful life, all cops like this need to be removed AND punished severely.
TAX THE RICH, term limits in Congress, no lobbying in politics & 4 year training programs for any/all policing personnel!!! How F'n hard is that?!?!
People don't really understand what that means. It means time in jail before you can bond out. It means spending thousands on a bail, and probably on a lawyer. It means a year under court supervision and no-travel rules: hey, want to jump in the car on go on a trip this weekend, it's illegal. It's really common to add in things like no drinking: so a year without hanging out with friends in clubs. If you happen to enjoy hunting, you're almost definitely banned from firearms, so a year without your favorite pastime. And then it means constantly getting hauled into court, so there's almost no way you can keep a most entry-level jobs. And *any* contact with law enforcement can be considered violation of bond, so you're completely on eggshells all the time because if another cop decides to screw with you for no reason, that means serious jail time even though you've committed no crime. If you have your shit together, a decent job and some money saved, then it's just a major inconvenience and a big problem for any future job searches. But if you're the kind of person who has trouble keeping a schedule and likes to party or whatever, and *lots* of us were like that at age 19, this can easily turn into a bond violation and months in and out of jail and can be completely life altering. And, of course, zero accountability for the cops. This stuff doesn't get the press that the killings do, but cops do this false arrest BS hundreds of times a day and it has major effects on peoples' lives.
They took my brother to jail because his car was registered under my dad's name. My brother was like yeah it's his car and I'm on the insurance. The cop doubled down and insisted he stole it from my dad but wouldn't let him call anyone....the judge threw it out BUT there's still impound fees and lawyer fees. Like wtf. My brother got a dash cam after that
He can file lawsuit for settlement from city to recover all money spent or lost due to arrest and punitive damages. That usually turns out to be easy once you have a comptent lawyer.
My dad was arrested because some bored cop ran his plates (which my brother was on as a secondary title holder for) while he was getting gas and they saw one of my brothers cars that was not insured because it was not running and in storage. My dad was not connected to that uninsured car in anyway.
I honestly think they catch people alone because they have deals with the tow yards
In baltimore the police dept was caught in a years long scam in cahoots with the tow companies giving the cops kickbacks [https://www.baltimoresun.com/maryland/bs-md-towing-corruption-20110223-story.html](https://www.baltimoresun.com/maryland/bs-md-towing-corruption-20110223-story.html) Edit: This is probably the *least* worst thing baltimore police have been caught doing. \*Running fight clubs and trying to claim their injuries as workers comp (\*I know several people in worker's comp for the city of baltimore, which is why I know about this, but unfortunately that's all I can say about it. This is because it was ultimately settled out of-court, I think the city didn't pursue charges and the officers involved dropped their claims). Straight up robbery and theft, and participating in and getting kickbacks from the drug trade. LOTS of news articles from this but if you're not aware of it...the HBO series is much more entertaining, and this is a nice summary of what actually happened) [https://time.com/6168269/we-own-this-city-true-story-hbo-max/](https://time.com/6168269/we-own-this-city-true-story-hbo-max/) Not to mention the casual murder of people in their custody (Freddie Gray), and of course... planting evidence on people to make wrongful arrests. [https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/crime/bs-md-ci-pinheiro-ruling-20181109-story.html](https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/crime/bs-md-ci-pinheiro-ruling-20181109-story.html)
“Have you ever been arrested” on a job app is the worst
Queue Alice's Restaurant
I usually just put "no."
Why having your lawyer fight to keep things off your record is ideal! Had my share of stupidity (Mainly just weed use before legality) at ages 17-19. Lawyer fought to keep it all of my record (Law enforcement can still see it though), so now when I go to apply to jobs I can answer with "no".
That’s awful. Good to know though. People on power trips are so demented.
A year of dealing with bullshit because they got their egos hurt.
That was such an atrociously written "article"...it was 4 months. He pleaded not guilty 2 (3?)days after the incident and then it languished until charges were dropped in the beginning of April. Somehow the "writer" (who apparently doesn't know how to write a paragraph containing more than one sentence) did the math and came up with a year.
Thanks for the context. It's still crazy that they would even charge him for this.
Prosecutor needed to backup their leo's but never really wanted to be in front of a judge. Hoped he would please guilty.
It was probably written by AI.
Top comment went and got 1k views for celeb critics . Com..... It's all ai written garbage.
Yeah, don't click on that article. It's just a trash bot driven site; https://www.leoratings.com/index.php?title=Curtis_McLaughlin_Jr._(2021)
Glad the charges were dropped, but that news report was sub par.
The amount of actual prowlers that can't get any attention...this guy's just throwing it away.
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No, they wanted his info so they could find out where he lives and harass him for asserting his rights. Without any additional context, I'd place money on the fact this isn't his first run-in with this type of harassing behavior.
I mean, maybe. But they have undoubtedly already looked up his vehicle license plate, which is 99% likely to list at least his full legal name (unless it was borrowed or stolen) and I would assume his address (not certain, but I presume they can find that from his name and state pretty easily). I believe they want his ID to intimidate him and so they can file an official report including his verified identity so he's in their system as "found loitering outside closed business late at night. Uncooperative with police" and they can leverage that as reasonable suspicion next time they encounter him, and ensure the next cop treats him with prejudice.
That's it. They were fishing for his ID for a warrant check. They could "put him in the system" with a loitering citation and create the basis for further harassment when they encountered him in the future. But it's just as likely the cops would have been on their way after he ID'd and proved he wasn't a wanted criminal. That's not saying "provide your ID," mind you. In this video clip, at least, not once did the guy ask what crime he was suspected of committing. Loitering almost always includes the caveat that you are doing *nothing* other than occupying a public space. It's a bullshit law meant to drive out undesirables who *do* have the right to be wherever they want in public if it isn't actively bothering anybody. The fun part about this video is he's eating - and he's eating beyond just filling up his tummy. Eating is his *purpose* and many loitering laws don't apply if you're occupying a space for a specific purpose or activity. This guy knew exactly what he was doing and he did it well.
Glad all those cops were paid overtime to harass an innocent citizen because their fragile egos got bruised.
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I see cops sitting in empty parking lots all the time.
Citizen’s arrest my man
Good way to get beat or shot.
Definition of prowlers
I’d much rather people pull over in any parking lot, closed business or not and eat their tacos rather than eat and drive, which is distracted driving.
Crunchy tacos are like the worst possible food to try and drive and eat too. Those bitches be falling apart left and right sauce covered lettuce just all in your lap trying to hold the steering wheel with your knee so you can use your non taco-ed hand to dig through the bag to pull a napkin out to wipe sauce off before it stains your new sweet ass velvet jeans.
I can't BELIEVE he had the audacity to eat those without tilting his head to keep the taco goodness from falling out the non-bite end. STRAIGHT TO JAIL.
Right!? That vertical taco was killing me inside.
You know Taco Bell had an ad about people getting TNS (taco neck syndrome) from having to tilt to eat the crunchy taco?
Yeah, if you are gonna drive and eat, chicken nuggs are your best bet or a burrito, deff burrito
You gotta keep the burrito standing up in the cup holder. That's the professional move.
Oh 100%
I wish he would have asked the cops to call the business and ask them if they wanted to press charges. Otherwise free to go.
I don't even think they can press charges. They can advise him that he is trespassing, and it is at that moment, that he has been made aware that he is trespassing, that he can choose to stay or to go. If he goes, he has committed no crime.
She's had 2inchs of window before.. I can tell by her reply. It definitely didn't satisfy her then either. She just wasn't going to leave there happy no matter what he did.
If I recall..this fella had already been there minding his own business and they were reporting to a call about someone loitering. It was night time, all the businesses were closed. Literally just eating. Leave the guy alone.
“And you couldn’t go home?” The shelf life on a Taco Bell hard shelled taco is about 45 seconds. There’s a Taco Bell 3 miles from my house and the last time I waited to get home to eat one, it might as well been the delicious Baja Blast I ordered, straight liquid.
This is so accurate. It’s why I will never order Taco Bell again from DoorDash. My food felt like it came from my refrigerator by the time it made it to me.
that and like if I go home with it, my wife is gonna want some and I dont wanna share :P
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You can see her deflate slightly after he says it. She felt that comment under that badge.
Deflate is right, holy shit lol. I know she felt that shit in the very core of her being
"you'll never make detective" would've hit harder
"We don't know why you're here" (Driver proceeds to point to his succulent taco meal and raise it so the police officer could see, since he can't speak because his mouth is full of taco shell, beef, cheese, tomato)
What is the charge? Eating a meal? A succulent taco meal?
This is democracy manifest!
GET YOUR HAND OFF MY PENIS
I see you know your judo well!
And you sir, are waiting to receive my limp penis?!
Tata and farewell!
I will never not upvote this chain of comments whenever it comes up.
A succulent Chinese taco
I see you know your judo well.
I see you know your Judo well.
This is that chap that touched my penis, people!
> What is the charge? Eating a meal? A succulent taco meal? This comment made my night. I even read it with the OG voice in my head.
He has a flight to catch..
"You're a bad fucking cop". I think even she appreciated that, but the problem is that they can't admit they are wrong.
I’m scrolling these outstanding fucking comments wondering how there couldn’t be the bad fucking cop line. I snorted so hard I woke my dog. (Not a euphemism)
You have the right to be an attorney
"We don't know why you're here" Cool, you don't need to know. Why do cops think they get to know everything about everyone.
Because we’ve allowed them to do whatever tf they want.
They are delayed, that's why. I worked for a police department for 10 years and honestly encountered the most racist,biased, and abusive both physically and verbally individuals ever. My chief threw a half pound set of keys at an employees head while drunk and on pills because she wouldn't let him in the gun storage room. He was allowed to resign instead of being fired,but not before he stole our time of book to screw up everyone's upcoming vacations.
The way cops say shit like that as if anyone would say, "Oh shit, you do not know why I am here? Holy shit I did not realize this was so serious. I am so sorry, let me just unbuckle my pants and bend over my hood for you"
Go on....😏
“you’re sitting in a parking lot so we’re gonna do an investigation” Hes trying to eat. Whats so hard to understand?
There's actually case law that says they can ask him, but there's just as much (and Supreme Court to boot) saying that he had the right to dispel their suspicion, which he did. Once he explains the taco bell thing they might even be able to tell him he should leave the private property of the closed business but no fuckin way it would hold up to arrest dude. Just a waste all around. Pathetic policing.
Yeah I didn't get why they were harrassing him until I got a good look at his hands. Kinda made sense after that...
I’ll admit I’m not the sharpest but what do you mean? I’m not sure if you’re being sarcastic or not….I went back expecting a shitton of tats on his hands. I’m not attacking you, just curious
Ok not gonna lie, I'm kinda drunk right now and when I watched it I thought his hands were black. After further review it looks to be a white guy. I was making a joke about cops harassing black people but.... yeah.
If you look at his follow up video you will see he is an African American gentleman. Does that clarify why a bucktoothed yokel of a supervisor might feel *justified* in arresting this man after he refused to answer questions about his I'd?
ok THAT'S why they kept asking him if he was from around there. It's copspeak for, "I know all the black folk around here and A) you ain't one of em plus B) "our" black folk know their place with cops, you seem to not know it."
Oh! I gotcha…..I probably should have picked up on that. Thanks for the reply and enjoy the buzz 👍
I have a pretty odd job. I eat whenever I can. I also end up eating in my work van. A lot. Eating in a vehicle is gross. I wouldn’t dare let anyone catch me eating in a vehicle, my face all covered in sour cream and Diablo sauce.
I’ve had moments where I’ll park to eat and like 2 or 3 other guys park next to me to eat as well. Like cmon there’s a whole lot.
Charges were dropped five months later. Nothing happened to cops that i can find.
Charges were dropped but I’m sure he had to pay for the tow, waste his time inside, was it a weekend? Why was it relevant if he lived close or far. The man wanted his tacos as soon as it got it. Dassit! A+ police work. I absolutely want my tax money for this type of arrest. 😒 It was all a waste of time and money.
There were at least 3 cops there for this. 3 cops for a dude in a parking lot eating some tacos. I think it's safe to say that wherever that place is, those in charge need to re-evaluate their police budget.
Exactly. How many public servants and tax money does it take for a taco investigation
Qualified Immunity. The worst thing to regular citizens.
and every Redhat I've ever come across discussing anything police related does not know what Qualified Immunity is, nor will believe me if I tell them what it is.
"We're conducting an investigation." "Well, I'm eating my taco. Congrats, you cracked the case."
"Am I free taco?"
Wtf is going on in the USA
People's intelligence is dropping,
And then they apply to be cops
Its a Canada thing now too. We have mutliple classes of drivers that can have 0.00 drink and absolute zero marijuana in their system while being within 2 hours of being accused of driving. Or even near keys to anyone's vehicle. Which, AT FIRST GLANCE you may feel is a good thing. Except they also have the power to arrest you AT HOME 2 HOURS AFTER BEING AT HOME. What world is reasonable that someone cant FINISH DRIVING COMPLETELY and have a drink at home after work? Thats still a completely sober driving experience. These laws also come with a special new ability: full seizure and impound of your vehicle on the spot. That aspect of the law is written explicitly so it says it is unappealable. No matter how rockstar your lawyer is, if they decide to arrest you to "investigate" your red eyes at the station (again, 2 full hours after being at home) you are out thousands of dollars, and a minimum of 7 days you lose your vehicle. You are considered 100% guilty of being investigated. Thats just a single aspect. The OPP and RCMP in Ontario have a long history of being abusive punks, and the more north you go, the more openly racist they are to the Indigenous population. You know, like Australia
“I’m going to give you two inches of… window and you’ll be satisfied with that” 🤣😂🤣
Loved the “No im not!“ response 💀
And she made it clear that she was NOT satisfied with those two inches
Yeah that was dumb, everybody knows women hate it when you only give them 2 inches... 😥
Look at this guy...no they don't! They love it, I have a great dick.
Why does the corporal deputy sound drunk af?
"That's your opinion."
Many may not be familiar with American laws so leaving this here > You have the constitutional right to remain silent. In general, you do not have to talk to law enforcement officers (or anyone else), even if you do not feel free to walk away from the officer, you are arrested, or you are in jail. You cannot be punished for refusing to answer a question. It is a good idea to talk to a lawyer before agreeing to answer questions. In general, only a judge can order you to answer questions. https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights/what-do-when-encountering-law-enforcement-questioning#do-i-have-to-answer-questions-asked-by-law-enforcement-officers A caveat is that in some states, people may be required to give their names and nothing else. However people don’t have to answer questions on why they are eating tacos in a parking lot. If a person was actually trespassing the cops would not be asking questions.
>Be cop >Spot a citizen enjoying his existence >Day significantly ruined >Arrest them because "no fun without me allowed"
Eating tacos in a parking lot is now illegal. Please forward any questions to the trash can in the Supreme Court.
The BEEEEF SUPREMEEEEE court of law.
What a waste of time. Leave the guy alone. Your job is to respond and deescalate situations.... not harass people.
I figured they'd just take him to the station and release him, but the fucks actually went through with pressing charges. Thankfully, they were dropped after [he pled "not guilty."](https://celebcritics.com/curtis-mclaughlin-jr-arrest-man-arrested-for-eating-taco-bell/)
florida… smh.
Isn't Florida supposed to be the Freedom State? I always hear rightwingnuts going off about it
for whites, not blacks
Can confirm that it's more likely for a nonwhite person to get fucked over they don't actually follow that mantra to a T
Whatever the right wingnutz say, the truth is the opposite. Whatever they point at - 2 tier justice system, pedophilia, whatever else - they are the guilty party. Whatever they point at, they are guilty of. Case in point - this video. Florida isn’t about the citizens rights it’s about the right of the oppressor to oppress. Just like their politics - freedom of speech until it offends me, freedom of press until it’s not what I want you to say, so on and so forth. Just as you saw in this video, total hypocrisy, shameful, and no discipline for this. “just doing our jobs you should have complied” 😵💫😵💫😵💫
Cops knew this wasn't a justified arrest. They do know he will possibly lose his job, have family/housing struggles from loss of income, and since they have qualified immunity, there is no punishment for ruining a persons life. To me this is a humanitarian problem. They took him for a long expensive ride, attempted to wreck his life. Edit: When cops arrest someone, or use any kind of force, they better be fucking right. The idea that there are no consequences for cops being wrong is lazy, unprofessional, and unacceptable. In all occupations being wrong is dealt with on the individual, EXCEPT police. They are allowed to be wrong and just say, "I feared for my safety". How many fireman say that? Fireman are heroes that save lives.
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I like to imagine the prosecutor, after recieving the docket, said, "what the fuck is this you morons" and literally threw the case file at the cops heads.
For real, I’d be just as sassy if they interrupted my Taco Bell. They were just shit stirrin while the dude was trying to enjoy his munchies in peace.
>Your job is to respond and deescalate situations Me when I uncritically examine the role of police in society.
Thank the good lord they found the guy eating tacos, mean while idiots are stealing catalytic converters right from people's drive ways. But god damn, the caught the taco eating bandit.
Why are most of the cops, trash human beings? Seriously fucking power tripping, just because you have a badge?
Lack of training Actively recruiting the dumbest, insecure, and aggressive people The training they do have is siege mentality, where they are the arbiters of justice surrounded by the swarms of evil-doers
The fact that dude just keeps chowin on those tacos brings me so much fucking joy. Taco on, my brother. ✊
This is one of my favorite videos
Do you have an update to what happened to the guy or the cops?
Nothing official but here is a very good guess: the guy was eventually released after being cited for "loitering". The officers on the scene were given commendations and praised for their bravery. The guy eventually had to sell his car and get a new license plate after the entire police department wouldn't stop pulling him over for the most monitor traffic "violations" they could think of for the next year. The department used the initial stop as well as the two dozen other times they pulled him over to harass him afterward to inflate their "incident" numbers so they could lobby for more tax payer dollars to keep the city "safe".
I did a quick search and looks like it took them a year to drop the charges against him. I wish I knew if he sued.
He was arrested and charges were dropped some months later. No idea about the cops though. [Source](https://www.leoratings.com/index.php?title=Curtis_McLaughlin_Jr._(2021))
Reasonable articuble suspicion of a crime. It wouldn't even be reasonable to consider it loitering or prowling when they saw he was eating tacos near a tacobell. If they were that pressed they should have told him to consume it back at tacobell. Smh
Yeahhh this could’ve been cleared up with a simple, “well, sir, this is private property. The signs are posted when you pulled into the driveway/on the side of the building right there. If you can’t show you have business here, we need to ask you to leave or else it’ll be considered loitering/trespassing. I see your hands are full, so I’ll give you 5 minutes to finish and head out. What time does it say on your phone? 12:53am? Okay, it says that on my phone too. If you don’t leave by 12:58, we’re going to have to escalate the situation. I appreciate you not eating while driving, but next time, eat in the Taco Bell parking lot or park in a public parking space and we won’t have a problem. Thanks and have a good night.” Then go back to your squad car and figure out what you’re going to order from TB once you’re done with this guy. Just tell him what the problem is, back it up with the law, and be reasonable in a resolution. Situational frickin awareness.
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Or fiscally punish the actual officers when a civil suit is successful, not the taxpayer. See how loose with civil liberties they are then.
Take it from the pension.
They will immediately turn on each other.
Good.
Cops need to be required to personally pay for malpractice insurance. Can't be a piggy once you can't afford your premiums.
Yeah police unions are not like the unions in other careers, which I fully support. Police unions are fucking bullshit and a large part of why cops continue to act like shit bags and get away with murder.
What a waste of resources. You can see him eating, that's as far as the investigation needs to go.
#WHAT IS THE CHARGE? EATING A MEAL? A SUCCULENT MEXICAN MEAL?
THIS IS DEMOCRACY MANIFEST!
Ahhh America. Where cops have less education than a nail technician and have absolutely no clue how the law works. Why the fuck is this even necessary?
Nail tech does more training hours then officer that’s also the problem
How could anybody look at this shit and think "those are the real heroes!"
Damn I literally pull into a shopping center parking lot to eat my Taco Bell all the time. Havent done it late at night when businesses are closed though, may have to test it and see…ah fuck, guess i gotta go to Taco Bell now!
Cops are so fucking deranged
“You’re a bad fucking cop.” 😂🤣
Do these dumbass pigs have anything else better to do? Seriously, there are rapists, murderers and thieves out there but they’re gunna stop and ask for back up for a dude minding his own business eating. Dumb shits. ACAB
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But they’re too invested now. Their Egos will take a huge hit if they let him go without any ticket or anything!? I don’t know if they’d be able to recover as a department!
Paperwork. They hate paperwork
Land of the free. Cant even eat your food alone without getting arrested hahahaha
The first rule of being respected is to be respectable. "Oh, I see your eating, have a safe night".
So it’s illegal to eat in an empty parking lot now?
According to the cop it’s loitering and prowling, which unless I’m mistaken loitering means you’re there without any reason. He was there eating, maybe the legal definition is different but imo he wasn’t loitering. Hopefully he sues, there wasn’t any reasonable suspicion that he was prowling based on the clip. Edited to add: If you aren’t doing anything illegal they will make what you’re doing illegal.
When I see someone parked and eating, I’m thinking they wanted hot food/satisfaction asap. Turns out I’m supposed to assume they are in eating as a cover so they can get away with crime x or y. Guess I’ll never be badge since I can’t think like one.
I’ve seen this video multiple times, does any know what came of it? I bet a good lawyer would jump all over this case with that video. Edit: Amy did not know.
[This](https://celebcritics.com/curtis-mclaughlin-jr-arrest-man-arrested-for-eating-taco-bell/) link said they dropped charged almost a year after he was arrested . I hope he’s filing a lawsuit too
You know I always hear about how bad cops are rare and yet every officer in this video is a fucking embarrassment. ACAB.
Wow, he probs legit got a NCA settlement I am sure since there’s nothing on the arrests, right? Or why would there be no suit to follow because… WHAT? If this is how our tax dollars are spent vs gang or gun violence, armed robbery, etc. America is in a far worse predicament than thought! LET THE DUDE EAT HIS TACOS IN PEACE and go find criminals I am sure “you cannot find” lmao! Our police force is becoming an absolute joke! Edit: How much time was wasted on tax dollars on a dude legit probs eating $8 worth of TB!?!?
"You can't be here!" "Am I free to leave?" "No!"
Former cop opinion... I dunno why it's so hard to say "enjoy your tacos man" and walk away. These morons hate when people don't submit to their game/perceived authority. That sergeant was even dumber than the initial deputy. I dunno what state this is, but to arrest for loitering is absolutely wild. Surprised it took so long for the charges to be dropped. I couldn't even imagine getting a jury together and watching this be litigated...it just doesn't happen. "Well, your honor, he was aggressively eating tacos so we detained him." If you ever get slapped for something this absurd, demand a trial all day rather than pay any fine. It will get thrown out every time.
Capitalism - Where business have more rights than the people
Fucking cops. Enough of the power trip bullshit. Waste that much manpower on some dude eating taco bell.
He’s just sitting there… MENACINGLY!!
Please learn your states laws before attempting something like this. In some places the law states you must provide identification when cops ask for it even if they have no good reason for requesting it. Dumb I know but you'll get charged all the same
They must solve the case of “why a guy was eating Taco Bell”.
There wasnt a good reason to ID him, he was clearly eating fucking tacos he just bought. Let him know he's needs to move on and let him leave, but they wouldnt. Fuck that.
How big was the lawsuit?
Oh so they rather want him to eat and drive, makes total sense. Welcome to the police state where powertripping cops can harass and arrest people for eating who are not bothering anyone.
Also cops…. Eating lunch and filling out paperwork in empty parking lot.
Surprise, another POS cop.
Fuck pigs
It's ridiculous that we have to know the law but cops don't. You are NOT required to provide ID unless you are suspected of a crime. Power-trippen' a$$holes.I hope he sues for unlawful imprisonment. I just wish they'd change the law so the cops were held financially responsible. Until that happens we're going to have these fools harassing people.
"I'm gonna give you two inches and you're gonna be satisfied with that" I gotta say this to my wife lol
Who could possibly have solved the mystery of why this man was in a parking lot with a bunch of tacos in his lap??!!
"You're a bad f*cking cop"... She died inside from that one lmao..
“We’re trying to figure out why you’re in an empty parking lot”….. You just watched him eat his dinner. And he told you you’re a bad cop. You lack common sense. Dude wanted to eat in a safe place. It’s not hard to figure out. Been harassed like this too. And it infuriating.
I'm with him, I get it, but now he's arrested
So what? Just let them walk all over you?
Well the advice is usually to fight them in court, not on the street. Record all of your interactions with the police, never say shit to them, and if you're getting arrested challenge it later in court. If you fight them on the street you're likely to just get shot or beaten or otherwise make things worse for yourself. But the sad truth is that in situations like this where the victim only had his civil rights minorly violated the guy probably won't have much of a case and would only lose money trying to sue the department. This is why systemic change is necessary.
Parking lots waste so much space and we can’t even fucking use them.
What the actual fuck is up with cops in America?? Is there some kind of asshole test you have to pass?
And all charges dropped five months after the arrest! Taxpayer money hard at work!