FORT WORTH — A Facebook video apparently depicting a Fort Worth officer spraying pepper spray into a group of oncoming motorcyclists has received more than 200,000 views in 15 hours.
Fort Worth police confirmed Monday morning they started investigating the video as soon as they received it. FWPD Corporal Tracey Knight says pepper-spraying drivers is not a department-endorsed tactic.
News 8 spoke Monday to Jack Kinney, the man who recorded the video with his helmet camera, and Chase Stone, who edited the video and posted it to Facebook.
They say a group of about 200 motorcyclists were traveling up northbound U.S. 287 in Fort Worth Sunday afternoon when a Fort Worth police officer pulled over one of the motorcycle group’s “safety vehicles,” which is a vehicle that follows behind bikers in case of an incident.
In the edited video, which slows down and zooms in at one point, so viewers can see more clearly, the officer appears to spray something directly into oncoming traffic as he exits his vehicle. The bikers say it was pepper spray.
“It’s the last thing I would expect to see,” Kinney said.
“His intent was to hit the bikers for sure, there’s no doubt about it,” Stone says.
The men spoke to News 8 via Skype from Longview, Texas, where they live.
“His intent was to send somebody down, if not to cause a major accident with that spray,” Stone said.
As the story spread online Monday, viewers shared pictures and videos with us. Two videos show bikers driving “foolishly,” the viewer said, on another area highway, poping wheelies and weaving in and out of traffic. Fort Worth police say they had multiple calls about reckless motorcycle drivers on area highways, including 287.
We asked Stone and Kinney if it was possible the officer felt threatened.
“If you’re worried about safety, why would you pepper spray a large group of bikers like that?” Kinney said.
They say nothing justifies spraying blinding material into traffic. They say people could’ve died.
“When you put other people’s life in danger, it’s just uncalled for,” Stone said.
Late Monday afternoon, Fort Worth police announced the officer in the video has been taken off patrol and put on administrative duties until the culmination of the investigation. The officer is a six-year veteran with the force.
Police also say three of the people in the truck the officer pulled over were cited; the driver, for not having a license, and two others, for riding in the bed of a pickup truck.
The video can be seen here:
Copyright 2016 WFAA
I guess he was blinding drivers to make the roads safer, and it’s the kind of thing you have to expect when you have an “idiots only” hiring policy.
There’s a good argument that someone grinding the stupid bastard into the pavement would have been justified in the homicide, because he could have been saving the lives of many other motorists by stopping the psychotic threat to a normal flow of traffic.
The world will be a lot safer, and saner, when we no longer have this collection of morons “protecting us”. It’ll be a glorious day when angry mobs give ’em what they deserve.
That was very foolish of that stupid Ft Worth cop to be spraying pepper spray of all things, at motorcyclists! There is no excuse for doing something like this to innocent bike riders. However, in recent times I have witnessed motorcyclists doing stupid things on the interstate and putting other drivers in danger.
Just this morning my husband and I were coming back from Ft Worth where he had some work done on his pick-up truck. We were heading South on I-35 when all of a sudden I saw a motorcyclist right beside my driver door passing between me and a truck in the left lane. If my window had been down I could have easily slapped him, he was that close. Then I saw him still riding the yellow stripe and go between my husband and another truck in the left lane beside him. What a stupid fool! I hope he got to where he was going in one piece….idiot!
(Laughing)…The picture in my head of the fool getting slapped……Like on Benny Hill or something. Thank you.
LOL! Hal Apeeno you are very welcome! I just hope, for his sake, that he never causes a serious accident doing something that stupid.
Hey, CatFon! 🙂
Hardly see you anymore… 🙁
Hey #1 how are you doing? I’ve been around but don’t comment much. It’s now springtime here in Texas so I guess winter will soon be over for you in the beautiful state of Oregon. I know you are loving it up there. 🙂
Nice to hear from you!
We’ve got probably 2 more months of rain before we get any real sunshine around here. I’m definitely not used to all this rain… just the opposite of L.A.
Be that as it may, the trade-off is absolutely worth it. I’m surrounded by mountains and trees now, instead of buildings and WAY too many pigs.
Great to hear from you too, CatFon! 🙂