By Matt Agorist
Federal Way, WA — Every year in the ostensible land of the free, millions of Americans are extorted, arrested, caged, beaten, and even killed for traffic “offenses” which have no victim — like no seat belt, dark window tint, and even something as trivial as having an air freshener hanging from their rear view mirror.
Traffic stops in the land of the free, are a means of bolstering the prison-industrial complex by extracting revenue from those who can pay and incarcerating others who cannot. When someone attempts to resist being forced to pay, they are beaten, imprisoned and killed.
For those too poor to pay their tickets, routine traffic stops end up in repeated imprisonment due to mounting fines or even violent encounters. It is a vicious cycle that ends with debtor’s prisons, hospital stays, and funerals.
If traffic stops actually made Americans safer, we would see declines in accidents and careless driving — but this is not the case at all. What’s more, as the following case illustrates, a “violation” need not exist in order for cops to extort you, because they can simply make something up.
A police officer in Washington state is under investigation after he admitted in a TikTok video that he can pull people over for anything and that he will use this power whenever he wants — especially against people who don’t immediately prostrate themselves before his almighty “Author-i-TIE!”
In the 40-second clip which has since been deleted from the platform, Federal Way officer Straus is seen ranting about citizens failing to move out of his way when he drives his police car. He doesn’t mention emergency situations and was simply talking about driving.
“PSA to everyone out there, I’m speaking for myself but I’m probably speaking for other officers out there if we’re driving on the freeway in our police car, get the f*** out of the way,” said Straus. “If us officers stay behind you long enough, we can find a reason to pull you over.”
When he says he speaks for other officers, he’s not exaggerating. Police officers all too often pull people over for the most ridiculous reasons and many times, it is done solely out of spite or profiling.
In response to the video, the Federal Way PD released the following statement to local media.
“The Federal Way Police Department stresses professionalism in every aspect of our mission and does not tolerate actions by any employee, on or off duty, that would tarnish the reputation of the agency. We value the trust that our community has in the Federal Way Police Department and we strive each day to earn and maintain the public’s trust.
We have viewed the social media video posted by Officer Straus and can assure you that it does not represent the core values and practices of our police department. The Federal Way Police have a reputation of being respectful, courteous, and professional and are focused on serving the community at the highest level.
This matter is currently being investigated administratively for policy violations and appropriate personnel actions will be taken. Working for FWPD, in any capacity, is an honor and privilege and we are held by the public, our industry, and ourselves to the highest standards of behavior and trust.”
We highly doubt that the “appropriate personnel actions” will be taken and if officer Straus faces any actual discipline it will likely be little more than a slap on the wrist.
Matt Agorist is an honorably discharged veteran of the USMC and former intelligence operator directly tasked by the NSA. This prior experience gives him unique insight into the world of government corruption and the American police state. Agorist has been an independent journalist for over a decade and has been featured on mainstream networks around the world. Agorist is also the Editor at Large at the Free Thought Project. Follow @MattAgorist on Twitter, Steemit, and now on Minds.
