I had a new experience tonight. I cut down a very large weed tonight in an alley downtown OKC. I put it in a pile so I could pick it up tomorrow. Shortly after I was confronted by an OKC police officer and asked if I was the person who cut the weed. I told the officer that I did cut the weed down and that I would be back tomorrow to pick it up. I was told that if I did not pick it up tonight I was going to Jail. Someone had me on video cutting weeds on city property and that if I did not pick them up I was going to jail. I did not litter. I only made a dead weed from a live one. Two officers stood guard as this dangerous criminal gathered the weed he had murdered. I have been weeding the flower beds along Main from Walker to Lee as I have time, free, no expense to the city. This activity will cease now that I find there could be jail time involved. As the evening progressed I found that Major Hill with the OKC police department was behind the whole thing. Thanks to Major Hill there will be no weeding of the flower beds any more.

A major blow against weed cultivation. You a dangerous man.

Wow. That is really crazy. Thanks for what you did do though. bunch of douchebags out there

Wow. That is really crazy. Thanks for what you did do though. bunch of douchebags out there

Thank You for Thanking Me for trying to make OKC a little better place. Alas my career in municipal gardening is over.

We can all thank Major Hill for my forced retirement.

I smell bumper sticker fun - OKC Cops Love Weed

That is Total Friggin' Bullschitte. I can't believe that the police have enough free time on their hands to hassle someone over a non-issue like this.

That is Total Friggin' Bull****e. I can't believe that the police have enough free time on their hands to hassle someone over a non-issue like this.

The murder of a 6 foot weed is a major offense.

This is the same city that arrests people for picking up illegally placed liter (campaign signs) and throwing them into a trash dumpster.

Am I the only person here who thinks there might be more to this story? I'm not suggesting necessarily that the OP has misrepresented (or not fully described) the encounter, but is there perhaps a chance that something might have been at work here OTHER than a police desire to randomly make life difficult for a helpful citizen?

^ Based on what Brian posted in # 8, no, not really.

Am I the only person here who thinks there might be more to this story? I'm not suggesting necessarily that the OP has misrepresented (or not fully described) the encounter, but is there perhaps a chance that something might have been at work here OTHER than a police desire to randomly make life difficult for a helpful citizen?

There's that possibility. But I also don't put it past some over zealous coppers to interpret the littering laws in a way as to try and make it apply to this situation. Personally, I would have insisted on knowing exactly hat statute they planned to enforce.

I'm sure they claim that the moment the weed was no longer rooted to the ground (as God intended) and intentionally cut, it became litter that the person who cut it was obligated to properly dispose of it. Just my guess though.

The murder of a 6 foot weed is a major offense.

I guess it's as the old saying goes: "No good deed goes unpunished."
You deserve a public apology. imho, only, of course . . .

^ Based on what Brian posted in # 8, no, not really.


And yet, I've never seen a single attempt to stop the people who nail "we buy houses" signs (etc.) to every utility pole they can find or stake them illegally in the ground at intersections.

Am I the only person here who thinks there might be more to this story? I'm not suggesting necessarily that the OP has misrepresented (or not fully described) the encounter, but is there perhaps a chance that something might have been at work here OTHER than a police desire to randomly make life difficult for a helpful citizen?

I have witnesses to everything I have posted that can verify everything that took place. You would have to get with Major Hill for comment on his agenda.

Unequal enforcement of the law breeds contempt.
So does moronic interpretation of the law.

"So the weeds formed a union
And demanded equal rights
The grass is just too greedy
We will make them give us light
Now there's no more weed oppression
For they passed a noble law
And the weeds are all kept equal
By hatchet,
Axe,
And saw"

"So the weeds formed a union
And demanded equal rights
The grass is just too greedy
We will make them give us light
Now there's no more weed oppression
For they passed a noble law
And the weeds are all kept equal
By hatchet,
Axe,
And saw"

Now don't Rush to judgement.

I have witnesses to everything I have posted that can verify everything that took place. You would have to get with Major Hill for comment on his agenda.

I think you might consider a jury trial. Followed by a civil action directed at the apparent idiots who messed up your day. Maybe the theme could be . . . There's "Littering" and then there is "Illiterate Literalism" . . ? No joke: It's complete Bullschite involving a disconnect between Authority, Accountability and Responsibility. Maybe this is one around which both the ACLU and ACLJ could rally. (I'd insert a vidclip of that old Coca-Cola Commercial, but I don't want to annoy anyone or get sued for copyright infringement.) I would suggest that your Offensive Defense Team be prepared to confront a presentation, by the "persecution" of that that Joanie Mitchell Tune about paving paradise and putting in a parking lot as Exhibit C . . . =)

edited to add: The spelling of "Joanie" in the Mitchell reference, above may only be traditional and not exactly correct.

p.s.: Here's some metaphorical ammo for the bag . . . when you go to court:

Famous By Naomi Shihab Nye
(stolen from The Poetry Foundation)
(used and mis-paragraphed with permission
directly from the author
when I interrupted her personal gardening
at her house, on a Saturday morning
with an old-fashioned phone call.
she exhibited both patience and forgiveness.
then we had a nice chat.)

The river is famous to the fish.

The loud voice is famous to silence,
which knew it would inherit the earth
before anybody said so.

The cat sleeping on the fence is famous to the birds
watching him from the birdhouse.

The tear is famous, briefly, to the cheek.

The idea you carry close to your bosom
is famous to your bosom.

The boot is famous to the earth,
more famous than the dress shoe,
which is famous only to floors.

The bent photograph is famous to the one who carries it
and not at all famous to the one who is pictured.

I want to be famous to shuffling men
who smile while crossing streets,
sticky children in grocery lines,
famous as the one who smiled back.

I want to be famous in the way a pulley is famous,
or a buttonhole, not because it did anything spectacular,
but because it never forgot what it could do.

“Famous” from Words Under the Words: Selected Poems (Portland, Oregon: Far Corner Books, 1995). Copyright © 1995 by Naomi Shihab Nye. Used by permission of the author.

Source: Words under the Words: Selected Poems (Far Corner Books, 1995)
(and illegally harvested from The Poetry Foundation)
(as was already admitted to at the top of the post. =)

Am I the only person here who thinks there might be more to this story? I'm not suggesting necessarily that the OP has misrepresented (or not fully described) the encounter, but is there perhaps a chance that something might have been at work here OTHER than a police desire to randomly make life difficult for a helpful citizen?

Better Call Saul . . . =)

So, to answer my own question, yes, apparently I am the only person who thinks there was at least possibly more at work here than meets the eye. Sad comment on the current public perception of law enforcement.

So, to answer my own question, yes, apparently I am the only person who thinks there was at least possibly more at work here than meets the eye. Sad comment on the current public perception of law enforcement.

At the risk of unintended insult, I feel compelled to agree with you 100%.
Ya know . . . there used to be a Peer Tree growing in OKC but someone cut it down.
Probably with a permit. With a license from out of state. =)

Therefore, it will be somewhat difficult and problematic to arrange a jury of one's Peers in connection with Truth, Justice and The American Heart o' The Heartland/Southern Division Way. =)

Please do not confuse the above verbiage with any sort of complaint about the removal of that eyesore that used to be known as Stage Center. At least when "The Mystery Tower"--or whatever--is finally constructed, it will block the view of The Art Deco Bus Station and that ugly parking garage from The Myriad Gardens. =)

So, to answer my own question, yes, apparently I am the only person who thinks there was at least possibly more at work here than meets the eye. Sad comment on the current public perception of law enforcement.

you're not alone

Okay . . . now there's three of us . . . =) yet . . . who's counting? =)
(ref. "Alice's Restaurant" . . . by Woody G's kid . . . same problem, except in upstate New York or New England or something . . .)
(ref. Episode One of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" . . . the one involving putting a banana peel in someone else's garbage can . . . =)

Might be something to be learned from going to the police station and seeing if a report was filed and getting a copy. If no report was filed, then I'd get a transcript of the dispatch. This should have info on whomever notified police and exactly what they said to a dispatcher and how the call was dispatched.

Sad comment on the current public perception of law enforcement.
Nothing (good or bad) that the police do really surprises me anymore. Some are good guys but I think the power hungry jerks outnumber the good guys. It also isn't limited to OKC, I think it is pretty much the standard everywhere. There's pretty much a weekly story about some bad cop here in Denver about Denver PD or DCSD, a few other stories about bad behavior in the suburban agencies. It is almost a daily occurrence in Houston and weekly in Austin.

The profession tends to attract more "bad apples" than good people and that is a strain on the ones trying to do good.

Nothing (good or bad) that the police do really surprises me anymore. Some are good guys but I think the power hungry jerks outnumber the good guys. It also isn't limited to OKC, I think it is pretty much the standard everywhere. There's pretty much a weekly story about some bad cop here in Denver about Denver PD or DCSD, a few other stories about bad behavior in the suburban agencies. It is almost a daily occurrence in Houston and weekly in Austin.

The profession tends to attract more "bad apples" than good people and that is a strain on the ones trying to do good.

Yeah . . . It's a tough row to hoe . . .
This one scarred me for life back when I was about 9 years old.
Exposé of Police Burglaries Marked City's 'Year of Shame' - The Denver Post (http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_14405448)

Can you begin to imagine how tough it is in a time when there is that whole Black Asphalt/[Desert GravySnow or whatever] for profit Training Crusade going on encouraging peace officers to become highway robbers? It's nearly as difficult to make sense of as the confusion documented by Monty Python starring Dennis More. Or Moore. And knowing the difference between lupins and jewelry. =)

btw: that study done (referred to, in passing on that other thread on this subject) says that there are no "bad apples" there are only "apples" and all "apples" will turn bad when given the opportunity to do so via "bad laws".

I'm not sure if this is a paradox or a conundrum. May even an enigma.

So why hasn't this been reported to the police department as a complaint on the officer? For one thing, I'm pretty 100000% sure that what they were trying to do was bullying and wouldn't hold up against any snuff in a court. And if they continue it, it could be considered harassment. That kind of power-trip douchebag should be called out for what he is. He's showing the type of behavior that spoils the opinions of the rest of the community on officers.

I'm sure we'd all be happy to sign something to help you out on that one.

So why hasn't this been reported to the police department as a complaint on the officer? For one thing, I'm pretty 100000% sure that what they were trying to do was bullying and wouldn't hold up against any snuff in a court. And if they continue it, it could be considered harassment. That kind of power-trip douchebag should be called out for what he is. He's showing the type of behavior that spoils the opinions of the rest of the community on officers.

I'm sure we'd all be happy to sign something to help you out on that one.

As much as I dislike what the officer did (based solely on the only account of the situation we have heard), I seriously doubt a complaint against the officer would be found in the citizen's favor. What would or would not happen with a jury is really irrelevant. If the citizen wants to see that conclusion then the citizen would need to disobey the officer as some sort of act of civil disobedience and then fight the resulting charge (which would most likely never come). The only other option would be a lawsuit - which would fail miserably in my opinion.

My advice would be to still file the complaint (knowing it won't be found in your favor), copy the complaint to your council person and any other city/community leader you like and wait of replies - from OCPD and anyone you copied. At least then you would have done due diligence and not coward down and also not couch quarterbacked the situation.

I can imagine dozens of 'what if's' that OCPD will use to justify their office's actions. However, that doesn't mean the officer(s) won't be told to dial it down a notch or two going forward.

Again, without getting a copy of the dispatch, you rely don't know exactly what your fighting against.

I do not have a problem with the officer that responded to the call. They have a job just like you and I, they are just doing the job and sometimes it sucks. I have requested a copy of the dispatch record to find out exactly what they were told. I also have found out that the officer that approached me went to the police association parking lot on the north side of main before coming to me and talked to the person on the lot. Major Ed Hill was the person working the lot at the time.

I do not have a problem with the officer that responded to the call. They have a job just like you and I, they are just doing the job and sometimes it sucks. I have requested a copy of the dispatch record to find out exactly what they were told. I also have found out that the officer that approached me went to the police association parking lot on the north side of main before coming to me and talked to the person on the lot. Major Ed Hill was the person working the lot at the time.

I have found out that there is no 911 call regarding the murdering of a weed. Major Hill flagged down a passing patrolman and told him to do the deed. It seems strange to me that the Major circumvented the normal procedure of reporting a problem. There was no robbery in process. There was no human life at risk. It seems strange to me that the officer magically appeared out of nowhere when needed, as if Aladdin rubbed his magic IPhone. I see traffic speeding on Main St and people trying to cross the street to go to the Civic Center and never an officer around.

This incident would have been completely different if the police would have approached me and asked me if I had a plan for disposing of the weed. They could have taken my license numbers to make sure they could find me. I believe there is something else going on here. I believe that Major Hill has a hidden agenda and I would like to know what it is.

A hidden agenda?

Maybe Major Hill's agenda goes no deeper than he's a douche bag cop with a chip on his shoulder. In my experience that's about all it takes and it is not a rare character trait.

A hidden agenda?

Think about it, we had two OKC police officers and their patrol cars, even though I only talked to one of them, tied up for the better part of an hour, to supervise the removal of a weed, on Saturday night, almost always the busiest night of the week for any police force.

A hidden agenda sounds a little far fetched doesn't it?
Usually the simplest answer is the correct one. Bates theory of a d-bag cop? That's far more likely/

I've had a number of professional interactions with Major Hill, and he struck me as just the opposite of a D-bag. You learn something new every day, I suppose.

ALWAYS record the police. This is a bizzare story, though. Phone video (please record landscape) is potentially life saving.

I've had a number of professional interactions with Major Hill, and he struck me as just the opposite of a D-bag. You learn something new every day, I suppose.
I don't know that he is a d-bag.
It just seems more likely than a landscaping conspiracy.

I'll just come right and say it: the weeds have obviously been artificially inseminated with a type of semen that causes the weed to become self-aware and the police officer is in cahoots with these weeds. The time to fight is now and we need to stop this from spreading because I for one, don't want to live in a society that is dictated by weeds.

Why doesn't someone email the supervisor of officer Hill and see if he or Hill want to respond to this thread?

I'm pretty sure Major Hill answers directly to Chief Citty. Either way, the results should be entertaining and probably enlightening.

I guess it's as the old saying goes: "No good deed goes unpunished."
You deserve a public apology. imho, only, of course . . .

More like No good weed goes unpunished.

Now don't Rush to judgement.
Yes, it's always better to display Grace under Pressure.