Protesters at events like these are in many cases self-defeating and deliberately confrontational. But some of these videos look like outtakes from Children of Men. There are police in riot gear literally marching in lock-step formation ("Left! Left! Left, right, left!"), the apparent use of sonic weapons to disperse crowds, and an omnipresent creepy voice over a loudspeaker declaring, "By order of the Pittsburgh chief of police, I declare this an unlawful assembly." Last night, students at the University of Pittsburgh, including bystanders apparently hanging out news their student union, were gassed by riot police.

So far today, protests appear to have gone without much incident, at least according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's G20 blog.

Police deploy acoustic weapons.

Firing teargas and—reportedly—rubber bullets on University of Pittsburgh students last night.

More teargas and confrontations with University of Pittsburgh students, some of whom claim not to have been protesting.

An arrest yesterday.

Riot police taking down a woman who appears to be antagonizing them.

CNN reporter teargassed yesterday.

This video, linked on the Drudge Report, appears to show a protester being hauled away by military servicemembers in an unmarked car. Some right-wing bloggers are calling bullshit on it, noting inconsistencies in their uniforms and speculating—not without warrant—that performance-artist protesters might be interested in staging an incident like this.

There's no doubt that as media gossip goes this is exactly the kind of story Gawker would usually cover. And while I'm a bit surprised that the incident took as long as it did to become public, I doubt this will be the only mention in the media. But seeing as how it involves a guy sitting ten feet away from me, I doubt anyone really expects Gawker to be an objective referee of the facts here. So we'll let the other media outlets who are being tipped to the incident do the digging and speculating.

After Barack Obama used the word "stupid" in reference to the arresting officer last night in his press conference, we heard from a police officer acquaintance of ours. He requested that his identity be withheld so that he could speak candidly, a request we're more than happy to honor. Anyway, here's what he wrote to us in an email:

I've been on calls where the exact same sort of thing happened. I would get dispatched to some call where the witness got all of their facts screwed up and the subject is pissed. I have generally been able to calm that person down with an appeal to their sense of reason. Sometimes I can't and still don't make an arrest because it just doesn't make sense to lock someone up just for being an asshole. However, there is a reason that they have Disorderly Conduct on the books. It's generally a problem solver when you can't figure out any other way to resolve the situation.

Reading the Gates affidavit, I would say that the cop really didn't do enough to calm him down. However, if everything that's written is true then the cop was within the letter of the law. I have considered the possibility that the cop either lied or exaggerated. Unfortunately, I've seen that happen before too.

I can only give you my word when I tell you that I have never based my decision to arrest someone based on race. However, I've been accused of racism a number of times, been falsely accused of calling someone a n—--r in court and investigated claims of racism against officers that have turned out to be proven false. I've also met a few complete asshole bigoted cops. On this Gates thing, I honestly can't tell you which one we have here. Bigot? Overzealous rookie? Out of control subject? No idea.

I'm pretty sure I would have let him go, but that's because I'm too impressed by scholars for my own good.

So there you go. Personally, we think the biggest asshole in all of this is probably the lady who called the cops in the first place, but that's just our opinion.

Gianelli, the Chief of Patrol of the Special Operations Division decided it would be a smart idea to send out a bunch of desk-riding, paper-pushing cops who never see field work out into some of the most dangerous neighborhoods in New York with beat cops.

For past two Fridays, approximately six to 10 administrative cops from each of the 76 police precincts were reassigned to foot patrols — sometimes in the roughest parts of the city. Precinct commanders, however, had complained that they need their desk jockeys to keep the mundane operations of daily police work flowing smoothly.

The guys who run interference for their commanders and keep the bullshit off of their desks? They were being taken out of the office, into the streets. So paperwork begins to stack up, and maybe the red tape won't be as tight. Maybe New York's crime statistics might get higher, since it's the NYPD's administrative officials deciding what's a crime and what isn't. Maybe Kelly wouldn't want that.

Then again, this could (maybe) be a terrible thing, considering the last time these guys saw any kind of action was in the academy, and if the NYPD needed to mobilize them in an emergency, they wouldn't know their tazer from their ass. 

But the best part? Kelly didn't have much of an idea it was going on, or any way of stopping Gianelli from doing it, besides taking him down. He was reportedly "annoyed" after not being told about it, even though the New York Post reported on it last month. Hm.

Regardless, the next time there's an administrative screwup at your office, say, a meeting where half the staff ends up on the roof of your building and the other half in the dumpster two blocks away, just remember: these kinds of things happen to New York's cops, too! It can't be that bad, right?

KELLY BUSTS PATROL CHIEF FOR DESK-PICABLE NYPD ORDER [New York Post]

She told Bucky Turco that she'd turned herself in, and whattaya know, that was in fact what happened. The Salt Lake City PD has promised to extradite her to face charges there, so presumably that will be the next step in this case.

Update: And it is. Det. Matthew Evans of the Salt Lake City PD's financial crimes unit says his department is working to bring Ferrell back to Utah. She's wanted there on six warrants alleging $60,000 in fraud, but he says additional charges are pending from people who have come forward since her story attracted blog-saturating coverage. Evans emails, "We have been working on it since Philly sent us the notification. Our fugitive squad will make contact with that law enforcement agency and arrange everything. She will be brought back here as soon as possible to face the charges she had already and some new ones from people who have come forward."

We've asked for a booking photo but we may or may not be able to get it. In the meantime, here is a Hipster Grifter Paper Foldable (courtesy of FreeWilliamsburg.com) and a dramatic new video slideshow of three Kari pictures. The legend lives!

There were two arrests, according to the AP, after NYPD cops blocked the group from reaching Kerrey's home. That comes on the heels of yesterday's arrests of 22 students after the cops rather brutally shut down a brief occupation of a New School building and then totally got caught lying about it.

The cops initially insisted that pepper spray wasn't used in yesterday morning's operation, telling the New York Time's City Blog yesterday that it was "untrue that pepper spray or mace was used in effectuating the arrests." When that was challenged, a spokesman later clarified that he meant no pepper spray was used to arrest people inside the building. But after being shown video footage of actual pepper spray actually being sprayed into the occupied building by actual cops, an NYPD spokesman offered this gem of a quote to the Times this morning: "Now, once I see it, I know what is going on."

At around 11, riot cops stormed the occupied building and started pulling out the protesters and arresting them. It looks like this occupation—the most reasonable one so far—is now over. Note to protesters: an end like this is far, far better for your cause than, say, the pitiful fizzle that happened at NYU. New School prez Bob Kerrey just sent out this email to the student body:

Subject: Announce from President Kerrey Concerning today's Break In at 65 5th Avenue

April 10, 2009

A Note to the Community

On December 15, 2008, an unofficial student organization calling themselves the New School in Exile occupied the cafeteria at 65 Fifth Avenue, barricaded themselves into the room, and issued a set of demands. Early on the morning of December 16, a group of students and non-students broke through a fire exit on 14th street and entered the building.

Although the occupants had violated a number of important security rules, the university made the judgment they were neither an operational or a security risk. Accordingly, we did not file a complaint with the New York Police Department to have the occupants removed. Instead we entered into a process of negotiations with our students and reached agreement on a list of demands including amnesty for all involved early on the morning of December 17. The students left peacefully at that time.

In January, this same unofficial student organization issued a public threat to forcefully shut down the university on April 1 unless the President and Chief Operating Officer were removed. Following this they were caught stealing an entire edition of the student newspaper on account of a story they regarded as unfavorable to them; and subsequently they vandalized the university's presidential residence.

During this time the university has allowed and accommodated every peaceful protest, teach-in, and demonstration. We have enforced our rules governing such events in such a way as to permit protests, so long as they don't endanger the safety of other members of the community or destruction of property.

This morning's illegal occupation of 65 Fifth Avenue was joined by a number of New School in Exile students as well as individuals without any affiliation to The New School. Their claim that this was a simple political protest is false. Their entry into this building was forced, they removed a man who was cleaning the building, took his phone, injured a security officer, and did physical damage to the building.

Accordingly, in this case the university asked the New York Police Department to remove and arrest those who were trespassing on our property. We suspended, pending administrative review, all New School students who were a part of this action.

The New School prides itself on civic engagement. We have been and will continue to be a refuge for open and critical political debate. Students and faculty who choose to peacefully and passionately oppose the policies of the university will have their rights to do so protected as strongly as we protect our right to safely and securely operate our university.

President Bob Kerrey

[Pic: yee.doris' Flickr. If you have video of the alleged police pepper spray rampage, send it here]

Earlier that evening Nara was all up in Niagara bar in the East Village, drawing shit all over the walls, and what did they do? Put plexiglass over it. That shit is valuable. This proves that drunks are smarter than the NYPD, although not as romantic about the impermanence of art:

[The Tangent/ AMNY]

Ettienne (not pictured above, that's Herc from The Wire) once posted the following under a video clip of a cop punching a handcuffed man, according to a New York Times metro article:

If he wanted to tune him up some, he should have delayed cuffing him... If you were going to hit a cuffed suspect, at least get your money’s worth ’cause now he’s going to get disciplined for a fagg-t-ass love tap!

(The Times omitted those last three words; we found the original and put them back in because, wow, he wrote like a thug and a homophobe?)

The officer later set his MySpace status to "devious." The next day, he affected the arrest of a man who claims Ettienne broke three of his ribs and then planted a gun on him to justify the use of excessive force.

Then, just before the trial over that incident, Ettienne wrote set his Facebook status to "Vaughan is watching Training Day to brush up on proper police procedure," referring to the movie about a brutal, dirty LA cop.

That was maybe not so bright. Ettienne, a champion bodybuilder and onetime steroid user (legally, he claims), told the Times he thinks of the internet as macho locker room, all about posing and braggadocio. "You want to run your mouth with the best of them," he told the paper.

And he knows he was stupid to write what he did, but insists "there were hundreds of comments I made that were positive."

The jury acquitted his suspect on the weapons charge, presumably on the strength of the defense's argument that the gun was planted. See? Sometimes dumb internet overshares can benefit society, provided the oversharer is both stupid and in a position of power.

(Pic: Herc from The Wire via)

Boomp3.com

Law enforcement-lover Seth Green took a moment out of his busy schedule to show his love for the girls and boys in blue in the Big Apple. The Sex Drive star has been a fan of the coppers ever since they found his missing bicycle a few months back. Green said, “I was already to go on Craigslist to look for a replacement, but then there was a knock on my door. I opened the door and there was Officer Smith holding my cherished Huffy ten speed. I was pretty down about it, but then like a ray of sunshine, Officer Smith warmed me up. We even busted some kids for skateboarding together.”

[Photo Credit: Splash Pics]

*A Call To The Bullpen is a work of fiction. Although the pictures we use are most certainly real, Defamer does not purport that any of the incidents or quotations you see in this piece actually happened. Lighten up, people ... it's a joke.

Using the "Vincent Vega Defense" the Prosecutor General's Office in Moscow claims that the gun accidentally went off inside the car, and just happened to hit Yevloyev directly in his brain. Though that doesn't explain why, as his friend contends, the police tossed his body into the street near a local hospital and sped off. "It was in no way a mistake," says the friend.

The article notes that, "Magomed Yevloyev is one of the most high-profile journalists to be killed in Russia since investigative reporter Anna Politkovskaya was shot dead near her Moscow apartment in 2006, provoking condemnation of Russia's record on media freedom." [Reuters]

"'Police chiefs shouldn't get involved in everybody else's business or their personal lives. It's inappropriate,' Lohan told the photographers as she made her way through Los Angeles International Airport."

"Ronson, 30, said in an update on her Facebook page that Bratton should 'talk less and do more.'

"At a news conference on Thursday, Bratton dismissed a reporter's question that his remark about Lohan was inappropriate. 'No one is more supportive of gay rights than I am,' he said." [Reuters]

Nice save there, Bratty!

A spokeswoman for the force said today: "City of London police had received complaints about demonstrators using the words 'cult' and 'Scientology kills' during protests against the Church of Scientology.

"Following advice from the Crown Prosecution Service some demonstrators were warned verbally and in writing that their signs breached section five of the Public Order Act.

Civil rights groups are justifiably outraged. But it turns out the London police have a history of supporting the wacky church:

The City of London police came under fire two years ago when it emerged that more than 20 officers, ranging from constable to chief superintendent, had accepted gifts worth thousands of pounds from the Church of Scientology.

The City of London Chief Superintendent, Kevin Hurley, praised Scientology for "raising the spiritual wealth of society" during the opening
of its headquarters in 2006.

Last year a video praising Scientology emerged featuring Ken Stewart, another of the City of London's chief superintendents, although he is not a member of the group.

[Guardian UK]

Formerly in the Anonymous vs. Scientology battle: Protests, Video attacks, and the church's counterattack.

And at one point while the cops were still there, two girls tried going into the bathroom together (as per usual), and the bouncer wouldn't let them, they got into an argument, admitted they didn't actually have to "use the bathroom", so he just told them to move on.

The fallout from the law enforcement operation?

After they left, the bouncer announced, "Ok everyone, party's back on!"

[pic via NY Mag]

Contrast this to how LA Police treated Anonymous: http://youtube.com/watch?v=k9yIBOnbJjY

[www.youtube.com]