Bullfeathers. If you are breaking into any house and a cop stops you to figure out what is going on, it is incumbent on the potential thief to cooperate. I cannot imagine things going any other way. And it had nothing to do with racism. I wonder how this clown got the title "Professor", because he certainly doesn't act like one, and he still refuses to admit he was being a butt. I feel sorry for the cop who has to just sit there and take this crap.A white Cambridge police sergeant and a black Harvard professor both made mistakes in a confrontation last year that led to an arrest and a national debate on racial profiling, a report released Wednesday said.
The report details the infamous July 16, 2009 arrest of Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates by Cambridge police Sgt. James Crowley. President Barack Obama jumped into the debate over the arrest leading to the well-publicized "Beer Summit" at the White House, where the officer and the academic met with the president.
Crowley arrested Gates when the officer responded to a call of a possible home break-in at the Cambridge residence, which turned out to be Gates' home.
Gates was charged with disorderly conduct for allegedly yelling at the officer and protesting his actions. But Gates claimed he never raised his voice and accused Crowley of racial profiling. Charges against the professor were later dropped.
The report, conducted by the Cambridge Review Committee, said the situation quickly spiraled out of control.
"Seconds after Crowley and Gates encountered each other, the situation deteriorated rapidly, according to both men. Within six minutes, Crowley had arrested Gates for disorderly conduct and placed him in handcuffs at his own home," the report said.
Mistakes by both men contributed to the outcome, the committee found.
"Sergeant Crowley and Professor Gates each missed opportunities to 'ratchet down' the situation and end it peacefully," the report said. "The Committee believes that the incident was sparked by misunderstanding and failed communications between the two men."
The committee, was the idea of Cambridge's police commissioner and was made up of experts in law enforcement and race.
But even after the national debate over the arrest, both men told the committee they would have done much differently.
Crowley said he felt he had no choice but to arrest Gates, the report said.
Gates said in retrospect he would not have done much differently except he would not have left his house and followed Crowley after the officer was trying to leave the scene.
"Sergeant Crowley and Professor Gates missed opportunities to lower the temperature of their encounter and communicate clearly with each other, and the results were unfortunate for everyone concerned. They share responsibility for the outcome," the report concluded.