Man's arrest in Austintown uploaded to the internet
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By ROBERT CONNELLY
AUSTINTOWN
A Warren man uploaded video of his arrest in the township to the Internet this week, claiming his First Amendment rights were violated because he was on a public sidewalk and did not need to turn over identification to authorities.
Jason A. Morrison, 36, of Selkirk Bush Road, was arrested on misdemeanor charges of obstructing official business and aggravated menacing at 1:30 a.m. March 21 at North Raccoon and Idlewood roads. The obstruction charge was amended Monday to failure to disclose one’s personal information, a misdemeanor in the fourth degree. He was arraigned Monday in Mahoning County Area Court in Austintown, pleaded not guilty and posted a surety bond of $2,250, court records show.
The police report of his arrest, however, details that he made threats to officers while on the way to Austintown Police Department. “Once at APD Morrison began yelling, ‘We will meet again when I get out and next time you better have your gun ready,’” the report states.
The video shows Morrison watching the traffic light at Raccoon Road and Mahoning Avenue. From there, an off-duty officer and Morrison exchange words and refuse to exchange information— Morrison asked the man for his badge number, and the man asked Morrison for his identification.
Morrison then walked down the street, noting he is walking along an easement and on public sidewalks. A trooper from the Ohio State Highway Patrol stopped Morrison first and then Austintown officers arrive. The police report and the video coincide that officers ask Morrison for his ID, but he does not provide it, saying: “No, I am not doing anything illegal, you have no right to see my identification.”
The report says the officer had received calls about a man wearing blue jeans and a camouflage jacket taking pictures of vehicles.
The man was arrested after again refusing to give identification, the report and video detail.
In the video, Morrison argues that they are violating his civil rights. On the way to jail, Morrison told officers, “I hope some black guy shoots you in the head; I would not feel twice bad for you,” the report said.
Austintown Police Chief Robert Gavalier said he would not comment on the case until April 13 for Morrison’s pre-trial hearing in Mahoning County Area Court. Officials from the Mahoning County Prosecutor’s Office also did not comment.
As of Thursday night, more than 30 reviews related to this incident were posted on the Austintown Police Department’s Facebook page, which was listed on the website with the video of the arrest. The photographyisnotacrime.com website, which posted the story March 25, had 73 comments and 6,426 views.