Florida Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog
Shocking…get it? As you’ve probably heard, 21 year old UF student Andrew Meyer was arrested for resisting an officer and disturbing the peace and then tasered yesterday (Monday) during a question and answer session with U.S. Senator John Kerry. If you haven’t seen the full video of the encounter, I encourage you to Watch the following video and let me know what you think. Also, visit Andrew Meyer’s web site to gain some greater insight into what this guy is all about. http://www.theandrewmeyer.com/
I strongly believe that this student got what he deserved. While I’m a staunch supporter of the 1st Amendment, I believe that there are limits. In addressing John Kerry, he spoke for over two minutes and he wasn’t done. He exceeded the time limits placed on those asking questions. How he behaved when law enforcement attempted to apprehend him was grossly inappropriate. Court is the place to litigate whether an arrest was justified or not. Arguing with the police at the scene and resisting their lawful commands is not the way to go. In fact, as Meyer learned, it will invariably lead to further problems both legally, emotionally and physically.
That being said, I still passionately believe that citizens should be afforded wide latitude in expressing themselves. I also believe that law enforcement should reach for their taser guns only as a last resort.