A woman in Riverside, California was recently arrested for exceeding her speaking time at the local city council meeting. She went over her three minute limit, and was led away in handcuffs.

The really horrible thing here is how she was treated. She’s 60 years old. She cannot get up without putting her hands down on the ground. So, when she had her hands behind her back on her knees (not sure how she got to her knees), the officers were pulling on her wrists and hands to get her up, which was causing her pain. To some young people without physical ailments  this may seem trivial, but I am one of those people who can’t get up from the ground without turning face-down and pushing off.

There is no mention in any article I’ve read of her causing a disturbance. Of course, there will always be people who assume that every arrest was justified. But, until I find out otherwise, I will assume the opposite — that authority figures overreact these days and criminalize everything.

Related posts:

1. Firing a Gun Within City Limits
2. Arrest Quotas and The War on Drugs
3. The Motor City Mad Man Has a Point
4. Cash for Clunkers
5. It’s a free country, I can ______ if I want to. No, you can’t.