Why was Alamo Heights Police Chief Richard Pruitt so quick to defend Crawford’s decisions and actions?
Carter has held nine different jobs in area law enforcement in the last nine years. His is not a career built on success stories. His resume suggests an itinerant cop who wears out his welcome fast and then is moved along to the next job to repeat the cycle. It’s doubtful there will be a job for him at UIW when the dust settles. Will he find another force willing to take him on?
Carter has changed jobs and uniforms so many times over so many years, it’s impossible not to doubt his version of events.
The Alamo Heights police, who were given the wrong address by a UIW dispatcher asking for backup, weren’t present for the incident. Yet Alamo Heights Police Chief Richard Pruitt already has declared publicly that Carter acted appropriately.
Carter should have checked Redus’ identification. Once he confirmed he was home and had reached “safe harbor” he should have issued a written warning and sent the student to his apartment to sleep it off. No harm done, but don’t let there be a next time. Instead he attempted to handcuff and arrest Redus when common sense and a cool head were the weapons best deployed in the situation.
Carter should have waited for Alamo Heights police, who were delayed by a wrong address, before moving to arrest Redus if he felt such an arrest was absolutely necessary. Since when are arrests made before conducting a field sobriety test?
Assuming Carter is truthful and Redus grew violent, why did the officer attempt to subdue him without law enforcement help? Had he awaited backup, one officer could have subdued Redus with a Taser or pepper spray, which Carter was not carrying, while one or two other officers restrained him with handcuffs.