what a MORON.

that cop should be fired.

Obstruction doesn't just refer to where you physically are. If he obstructing an investigation (of the accident), that is still criminal. Just something to think about...

This is a case of "contempt of cop" - you question authority in any way, and they find a reason to arrest you.

Guys like that short fat miserable cop were huge dorks in high school, are community college dropouts, and invariably have nasty fat wives. I'm disgusted by this whole video.

I can't believe this cop! Him and thousands of other cops like this roam our streets every day! He should be fired for over using his "power". It's people like this that make me want to give up on America and the government! Unless we as a people stand up to this dictatorship that is America right now, we will No longer be the land of the free. But rather, the home of the enslaved...

WAKE UP AMERICA!!!

The courts have ruled on what obstructing an officer is and state that in order to obstruct they would have to physically get in the way of the officer in the performance of his duty. Simply talking to people or filming from a distance isn't criminal but when the officer went out of his way to arrest the crew and place them in a police car, the court states that the officer could have violated their right to free speech. The fact that he made a nurse get away from an injured person who is bound to help is very disturbing in itself. Recent articles in the Sun Sentinel and other papers throughout the state have confirmed that there is little to no accountability in law enforcement to punish officers for their conduct. Because of this, officers feel they can do whatever they want without fear of getting in trouble. This makes the officers more aggressive and combined with the MSNBC report that 25% of law enforcement officers use steroids, compounds the problem. A look at the forums section of officer.com will tell you what officers really think and it is quite disturbing from a Constitutional Rights standpoint. The only thing they seem to say is "you don't know what happened prior to the filming and that the video was edited to make the officer look bad". These officers seem to be legends in their own minds.Even watching the video, most of them state the officer was totally correct and saw absolutely no problem with his actions! WOW

If you can see there where other people standing around just watching are they obstructing the investigation to? This was claerly a case of something else. What happened to freedom of the press?

Great discussion guys. For me, the obstruction argument is difficult to buy. According to the video, the guys were clearly out of the way.

Of course, the video only shows part of the story and we don't know if anything precipitated what was caught on camera.

At the very least, these types of confrontation make for some awesome viewing!

I hope this cop gets FIRED before is even thinks about resigning. it was noted today on FOX news that this guy, even prior to this incident, has had at least 12 complaints filed against him. His department should be ashamed of him. What an ass.

yea its kind of hard to make comments like the ones before me without seeing everything that happened. We are only seeing part of the scene. What if the traffic on the side of the reporter is flowing then obviously the camera man and the reporter would be in the center of the highway and thus causing even more of an issue for the cop who is just doing his job.

On the other hand, if both sides of the freeway have stopped then it wouldn't matter where the reporter was.

Now I will agree that the officer is using brute force to get his point across, but sadly that would be expected with an officer of the law. I mean, come on, they weren't exactly top of their class in high school right? And we give them the right to use force when necessary. Though was it justified? The video does not show.

This story makes me think of the officer in boston i believe, who was antagonizing a 14 year old for skateboarding and had the child in a head lock, not to mention the other accounts of excessive force which was documented and nothing was done about.

Better measures must be taken to ensure public safety without the use of excessive force. This video might be evidence needed to cut down on bad cops, but maybe not, don't make a judgment until you have seen all the evidence.

@ Anthony Will

Obstruction comes in to play after the reporter failed to follow a lawful command. The lawful command being to vacate the emergency lane of a highway, in my opinion, to reduce the chance of a rubbernecker traffic crash. Officers are given broad powers, specifically at a traffic crash, to order anyone near that scene to move or leave. This is because most knuckleheads, in their haste to get a peak of the carnage, put themselves in danger. You may think the officer discourteous but he was within the law to make people leave and to make arrests when they failed to do so.

Please respond to the facts, not the emotion.

Anyone defending the cop in this video is clearly a law enforcement official themselves. They tend to think they are to be listened to no matter what they say.

Saying someone has a "cop mentality" is not a good one. It is like a "legal bully".

Ever wonder why cops hate videocameras? Because they tell the truth, not the truth a cop wants you to believe.

The reporter may or may not have been interfering with or obstructing the accident investigation. That question is irrelevant. He was arrested as was the cameraman while he was complying with the officers commands to return to his truck. He went to the truck but was stopped at the hood of the vehicle, physically restrained and cuffed before he could fully comply. The officer was out of line and there will be a lawsuit. The department will loose. This one is an attorney's dream - particularly in view of the fact that the police officer was foolish enough to loose his composure and his good sense in front of a rolling news camera.

Clearly this cop is out of line. A growing problem in this country.

Followup story on the incident: http://www.kvia.com/Global/story.asp?S=10224525&nav=AbC0

Thats why we call them PIGS.

This is what's out there 'to serve and protect'.
Who is protecting the public from them? The courts will love this one, I hope a judge puts this azzclown cop in jail, and the two people arrested sue the department and officer friendly individually.
Obviously a major breach of First Amendment rights, could even be tried in Federal Court.

I used to do law enforcement and I have been in the same situation as the reporter. What happened with my situation is the cop did something that was wrong and he did not want it recorded.