oldrustytulsa, Tulsa (5/7/2009 5:18:14 AM)

Its a case of he said she said, he kicked no way around it she was already cuffed,time to let him go.

bubba oky, tahlequah (5/7/2009 6:28:15 AM)

this man should be charged with assult on a disabled person. What a coward, we don't need these cowards protecting the public. Six years for putting body fluids on an officer is a fair sentence. However he should be subject to at least the same time if not more.
He is a coward by anybodys standards, and deserves no place with the brave and professional, acting men and women that proudly carry the badge.

Webmeister, Tulsa (5/7/2009 6:33:56 AM)

What a HANDY law?

An ACCUSATION of spitting on a LEO, and there goes FIVE YEARS of your life.

Who is the court supposed to believe, a sworn LEO (who just happens to be videotaped kicking the daylights out of a handcuffed woman), or a civilian?

If this is not OPPRESSION, what is.......?

The LEO should be charged with a felony: Attempted murder.

Why? With your hands cuffed behind your back, getting repeatedly kicked in the chest by a jack-booted thug of a OHP officer IS attempted murder.

Misdeamenor? Phooey.

LesGuvment, Sand Springs (5/7/2009 6:48:23 AM)

Get a rope!!

DF, Tulsa (5/7/2009 7:02:13 AM)

Spitting is a felony?

HarleyRyder55, Tulsa (5/7/2009 7:06:23 AM)

I highly respsect our law enforcement who do their jobs properly, but this State Blooper did not. Even if the woman spit on him repeatedly, he had the option to cuff her ankles as well as her hands and lay her face down on the ground or on the back seat of the cruiser. His actions were way out of control. He should be terminated, fined, and imprisoned.

HarleyRyder55, Tulsa (5/7/2009 7:11:21 AM)

The thinking behind spitting on another person being a felony stems from the possibility the bodily fluids could be infectious or even deadly. As would be the case with someone who has HIV or full blown AIDS. So it equates, more or less, to assault with a deadly weapon.

LnorR, tulsa (5/7/2009 7:19:58 AM)

Taze and mace man taze and mace.

justiceawaits, Claremore (5/7/2009 7:37:12 AM)

Rowland need to be fired and sent to prison, this is the type of POS that gives cops a bad name.

me, (5/7/2009 7:39:45 AM)

If she had not been doing something wrong to get herself arrested, she would not have been handcuffed and kicked. Now the sleazebag will probably get a big settlement at taxpayers expense.

jaybo, (5/7/2009 8:09:38 AM)

There's no excuse for police brutality, especially when someone is handcuffed. In front of a camera no less. Busted

Sarge776, Tulsa (5/7/2009 8:27:30 AM)

This is not good at all. First of all, these Troopers are trained to be the best in the USA when it comes to all matters relating to the job. This includes self control as well. This Trooper should not of allowed his emotions to take over when this woman allegedly spit on him. Yes, she committed a felony by spitting on the officer. This however gave the Trooper no excuse to kick or beat the woman, especially since she was handcuffed. It is deplorable that he just made the rest of the Troopers look bad, but remember, one bad apple doesn't spoil the whole bunch. He will be dealt with, and he may or may not lose his job, but if he does, then so be it.

Webmeister, Tulsa (5/7/2009 8:46:57 AM)

I anticipate that the Felony spitting charge is going to disappear, just like Mr. OHP Jack-Boot "Jacko" Rowland's LEO career.

She spent a WEEK in jail for a public intoxication charge, and the bogus charge of spitting on a LEO because she couldn't make a $250 bail?

What sweethearts run the Okmulgee County jail?

We know the LEO added that charge after he saw where his stomping fit was going to land him:

In Jail....

mypast, (5/7/2009 8:49:13 AM)

What is wrong with the world now days? I'm sure there is little chance that spit would find some open wound on a cop to infect him w/a disease..just as sure that kicks in your chest can kill. Wonder how the man treats his wife & kids?

Angry Citizen!, Bluejacket (5/7/2009 9:12:19 AM)

What did she do to get arrested, before she spat on this guy?

DowntownNow, (5/7/2009 9:55:36 AM)

Ms. Walls needs to have an attorney look into this matter. While there may be strict laws that protect officers in the performance of their duty, those laws will not protect him against a civil suit where it can be found that kicking her was an action deemed outside the scope of work by the officer and therefore not protected.

The laws protecting officer's of crimes such as this are a disgrace...how are ordinary citizens supposed to honor the laws when our own enforcement personnel do not and can get away with far less of a penalty than the average person?

DowntownNow, (5/7/2009 10:16:02 AM)

Ms. Walls needs to have an attorney look into this matter. While there may be strict laws that protect officers in the performance of their duty, those laws will not protect him against a civil suit where it can be found that kicking her was an action deemed outside the scope of work by the officer and therefore not protected.

The laws protecting officer's of crimes such as this are a disgrace...how are ordinary citizens supposed to honor the laws when our own enforcement personnel do not and can get away with far less of a penalty than the average person?

DowntownNow, (5/7/2009 10:16:21 AM)

OOps...sorry bout that

ajohnb, Jenks (5/7/2009 10:58:34 AM)

This trooper needs to be fired immediately AND go to jail. If it is on video tape of him kicking her, that is evidence enough. It does not matter what she did to him while intoxicated.

She will go to court on the charges and should be punished if it is proven that she did spit on the trooper.

Makes no difference. He should be fired immediately. But what happens? They are paying him while they investigate.

I think that the trooper should face a lot longer than a possible 90 days and $1000.00 if she is facing 5 years for spitting on him.

Looks like there are different standards for law enforcement people than for the average person.

grizz, tulsa (5/7/2009 12:34:39 PM)

Send that redneck sorry excuse for a human, much less a trooper, into the general population at big Mac. And do something about the stupid felony spitting law.

70rocks, (5/7/2009 2:48:00 PM)

Kicking vs. Spitting
What in the world has happened to our laws? The common citizen is now subjected to laws that protect only the law makers and keepers. How did we as citizens allow the lawmakers to decide that ANY law enforcement officer can kick us under ANY situation and merely be suspended WITH pay and charged with a misdemeanor? If convicted (will not happen) the kicker gets 90 days in lockup. Should the citizen disapprove of this butt kicking-while-handcuffed and retaliate by spitting on the officer (how else could one retaliate while handcuffed and being kicked in the chest?) we are tagged felons and receive 5 years in the pen.
We must take society back. Demand that this tape be released to the media and the so called law enforcement officer terminated and prosecuted.
The Tulsa World, in my humble opinion, cares about our civil rights as much as I do. I implore the newspaper to not let this one die. What is really more important than somehow returning respect to the common citizen?

Berries, (5/7/2009 2:48:23 PM)

Although I support law enforcement completely, Trooper Rowland should not be in law enforcement. The fact that his own people turned him in really says something. He's not well liked, he's a liar, he's arrogant, and he's abusive. I just hope he's not that way at home. He should have known better. Those cameras are running, something I know he is well aware of. It isn't just that he kicked this woman, occasionally force is required, but it is the manner in which this occurred. The article states that the others did not see her spit on him and then it sounds like he was trying to convince her that she did spit on him. Why else would he continue to ask her why she did it? If she's drunk the "why" is obvious. Rowland is an arrogant, manipulative jerk to think he can get away with this.

Floyd Lawson, Mayberry (5/7/2009 3:10:28 PM)

I've known cops who get run out of the job after unnecessary force, etc., in which no one was seriously hurt. It's a pretty rough punishment for the majority of these guys. Especially the ones that pull this kind of stunt. I hope the barfly gets sober, and this guy gets some anger management and a lower stress job.

What?!?, (5/7/2009 3:21:51 PM)

Can't release the tape because it's "Part of an ongoing investigation?" It's been almost half a year, how long does it take to investigate when you have the assault on videotape? So he gets a paid six month vacation and she gets a felony charge, while he only faces a misdemeanor. It sounds like the FBI needs to investigate him for violating her civil rights. Quite a bit more jail time for that. Sounds like he'd fit right in there.

Webmeister, Tulsa (5/7/2009 3:29:28 PM)

The police and DA has been hiding the video recording of the prisoner beating since November 21, 2008.

It's time for a diligent news organization to file a request under the Oklahoma Open Records Act, and get EVERYONE a look at the video.

Obviously, the recording so badly impugns the LEO involved that the DA and police are hiding it so the accused LEO can skate by on a puny misdeamenor charge of assault & battery, instead of a more serious Felony charge of which several fit.

The Tulsa World allied with some other news organizations previously conducted a really good investigative report on various state, county and city governmental organizations, and their slipshod compliance or non-compliance with the Oklahoma Open Records Act.

Tulsa World reporters have the moxie to get their hands on this video recording.......

Let's hope they get the motivation, now......