Walnut Ridge, AR — With great power comes great responsibility, or so the quote goes. However, those who wield this great power over the public are often the ones who irresponsibly abuse this authority to inflict harm and oppress those they ostensibly protect. As the video below illustrates, this abuse of authority by power-tripping police officers lays waste to rights, puts innocent people in harm’s way, and is the antithesis to a free society.
The taxpayers of Walnut Ridge, Arkansas will soon be held accountable for the actions of their public servants as a lawsuit has been filed in response to infuriating tyranny caught on video. The incident began as a traffic stop and quickly escalated into an unlawful detention, assault, deprivation of rights and, eventually, conspiracy.
The victim in the video below, Adam Finley had done nothing wrong and had committed no crime when he was targeted by officer Matthew Mercado in December of 2016. Finley was simply on his way to work when Mercado pulled him over because he had out of state plates.
According to officer Mercado, having out of state plates was reasonable suspicion to harass and eventually attack and assault an innocent man.
As NEA reports, at the beginning of the stop, Mercado asked Finley why he was working on the railroad crossing. Finley was in an unmarked white work truck but had all of his work equipment on including an orange work coat and badge. The BNSF employee explained he worked for the railroad. This is when the lawsuit says Mercado took issue with Finley’s attitude and asked him to step out of the vehicle.
In spite of the fact that Finley obeyed every order the power-tripping officer barked, Mercado continued to curse, threaten, and escalate the situation. Eventually, Mercado would assault Finley by shoving him into the door of his truck and putting him in handcuffs.
As the officer searched through Finley’s truck, he continued to swear, threaten, and intimidate the innocent man. After flexing his authority for several minutes, this power-tripping cop eventually let Finley go—but not before issuing another threat—telling him that he would “ride the lightning” next time.
This would only be the beginning of Finley’s oppression, however. After he’d been unlawfully detained, Finley decided to file a complaint with the department to let them know how much of a loose cannon Mercado was.
Instead of taking his complaint, however, according to the lawsuit, the Walnut Ridge police department would then conspire to cover their officer’s actions and arrest Finley.
According to the report,
Finley went to Walnut Ridge Police Department to file a complaint right after this but that’s when he claims he was once again treated unfairly. He said he was interrogated by Chief of Police Chris Kirksey and Officer Matt Cook and following that, cited by Cook for refusal to submit and obstructing governmental operations.
The lawsuit calls this an attempt by the three law enforcement officers to “cover their actions” by charging Finley with two misdemeanor offenses.
Attorney Mark Rees is representing Finley and did not mince words he noted that the Walnut Ridge police had “vicious propensities.”
“If they would have taken the complaint, reprimanded the guy, and treated my guy respectfully when he entered the department, he wouldn’t have gotten a citation, wouldn’t have hired a lawyer, wouldn’t have came to my office and would have felt they did something,” said Rees. “But you live and learn.”
Now, because of the actions of the corrupt police department, the taxpayers of Walnut Ridge will be held to the fire.
Cop Caught On Video agrees with the lawsuit when it refers to the situation in the video below as “outrageous and utterly intolerable in a civilized society.”