A video of a Ridgeland police traffic stop that has set social media afire does not exactly tell the whole story.
Ridgeland police stopped Michael Gattis on Pear Orchard Road on March 16 for driving with an expired tag. Gattis posted a video online of the stop that claims the police arrested him due to racism.
The video does not tell the whole story. Ridgeland Police Chief Bryan Myers said the original video is very long. The social media video is short and highly edited. Indeed, one will notice the video does not progress in chronological order.
Chief Myers said the Gattis case has not been to court. Gattis obtained the video from the officer's body cam in discovery.
The Ridgeland police chief provided a version of events that varied just a weeee little bit from the story told by Gattis.
Chief Myers said an officer pulled over Gattis because he was driving with the expired yellow plates. As the officer approached the vehicle, he asked Gattis to roll down his rear tinted window for safety reasons. Gattis had already lowered his window. Gattis did not comply. The officer asked him three more times to lower the tinted window. Gattis refused to do so. Thus the officer asked Gattis to exit the vehicle. This is where the fun begins.
The officer patted Gattis down for safety reasons and discovered a .38 pistol in his pocket. The officer secured the revolver. It becomes known Gattis actually has his new tag but for some reason has not replaced the tag affixed to his car. The officer also discovered a 9mm pistol in the front passenger's seat.
The officer asked Gattis to provide his license. Gattis twice blurted out his driver's license number but the officer was unable to write it down. Chief Myers said "After much conflict," Gattis finally offered a digital copy of his driver's license on his phone. The officer ran the license.
Gattis refused to provide his actual license to the officer, arguing it was his property. He refused to produce proof of insurance. Raising his voice, a belligerent Michael Gattis talked incessantly as he refused to let the officer speak. The officer's backup arrived during this time.
The officer cited Gattis for having an expired tag, improper display, and no proof of insurance. Chief Myers said the officer was going to give him back his guns and let him go.
Gattis allegedly said he had illegal window tint. The backup officer broke out his testing kit but Gattirs raised hell about the officer touching the window with his testing equipment.
Police have the option of arresting a driver or issuing a citation at a traffic stop. Chief Myers said the officer decided to arrest Gattis instead of citing him. He placed him in the back of his cruiser. "How simple this could have gone," said Chief Myers.
The police chief acknowledged the video showed the officer in question running his mouth as he talked tough. The officer said he was going to stick it to Gattis. However, Chief Myers said "nobody is sticking anybody with anything. The Sergeant and Patrol Commander will watch the video and read the report. We all police ourselves and this is not going to happen," said Chief Myers. He concluded "where these officers did wrong, they will be disciplined."
The police discovered weed in the car after handcuffing Gattis and placing him in the back seat of the cruiser. The police charged Gattis with illegal possession of a firearm with a controlled substance.
Kingfish note: Some have been griping about the protective order Judge Jordan placed on all parties in the Owens-Lumumba indictments. This video is a perfect example of why the release of discovery materials is often limited. Instead of. using the video for court, Gattis apparently edited and rearranged clips of the traffic stop.
50 comments:
When an officer says “I’m going to fuck him every way I can”, that’s a problem. The way the chief sticks up for his assholes in badges proves he isn’t fit for the job either.
It’s amazing what comes out when the officers actually turns on their body camera. It’s no wonder all those thugs fought it so hard against mandatory use and rarely turn them on. They all claim to be American patriots and whine about how tough and dangerous their jobs are, but in reality they are the most anti-American authoritarians of any profession and show no respect for human lives other than their own kind.
Looks like he was trying to set up the Ridgeland PD.
Probably figures all he needs is one viral video and he'd never have to work again, like the modern-day version of winning the lottery.
Just another loud criminal with guns and dope in a car thinking their race card will be honored outside of Jackson.
April 15, 2025 at 5:59 PM
Move it south of County Line.
Wow, 6:09. Really? You're one of "those," huh?
I support to whatever it takes to Make Thugs Afraid Again
“I’m going to f—- him every way I can..” absolutely incredible a police officer, on camera, displaying this behavior, is not fired immediately and stripped of law enforcement credentials. That’s the beginning and end of that.
Per the FAQ at https://www.driverservicebureau.dps.ms.gov/mobile-id/ :
"It is required to present a physical driver license when requested by law enforcement and when going through TSA checkpoints at the airport."
I see a future with Capitol Police...
Wait! Illegal possession of a controlled substance with a firearm.
What the hell does that mean? Mississippi law enforcement as well as the governor and LEO at local levels have stated they are not going to cite drivers for cannabis possession since the med-mar law went into effect.
So, he was cited since he had both weed and a firearm in his possession, but would not have been cited if he had been in possession of one or the other but not both? Right?
Will this outlaw LEO department in Ridgeland also defy the governor and cite someone with an approved medical cannabis card who has a firearm in the credenza.
You can look at a photo of that chief and tell he's about as bizarre as they come.
If this video has unaltered audio, and the police chief doesn’t allege that it is altered, here’s a few quotes attributed to Ridgeland’s finest:
Officer 1 @ 10:42:50 - “I might hit him with resisting.”
Officer 2 @ 10:42:52 - “Yeah, Fuck this motherfucker”
Officer 2 @ 10:43:18 - “Um, you put the cuffs on him?”
Officer 1 @ 10:43:21 “Oh he cuffed up easy”
Officer 2 @ 10:43:50 - inaudible
Officer 1 @ 10:43:52 - “I’m gonna fuck him every way I can.”
It’s pretty tough to defend the officers’ language here, especially that last one. Maybe Kingfish is right and the video is edited and none of this happened, but it sure looks like real body cam footage to me and the timestamps line up during each quote.
To me, just editing the video for time to show highlights before posting online isn’t deceiving anyone, it’s just what we do to post videos for online consumption. It’s not the full story, but this is the story that won’t get prosecuted in court so why not take it to social media?
It’s funny that when the chief tells his version of events, he does the exact same thing he claims is unfair about the video. He highlights the ways the guy they arrested was an asshole while leaving out anything wrong with his officers actions. The only mention of any issues with his guys was to say they ran their mouth and talked tough and then claimed the talk didn’t mean anything because his guys are so good they wouldn’t actually do anything like that, but if they did do something wrong they’re totally getting disciplines for it.
>Mississippi law enforcement as well as the governor and LEO at local levels have stated they are not going to cite drivers for cannabis possession since the med-mar law went into effect.
Source?
May well be true, but yet the facts of the case matter more. Appears to have been an effort to set the cop up and he might have fell for it to some degree; however, that will just be a slap on his record. Doesn't make the perp any less guilty or out of line with his actions and activities.
How do you propose we do that? They have a gun and badge and aren’t afraid to shoot you.
When did those officials make that statement, sans a med-weed card having been issued to the possessor?
I'll wait.
just reading the comments, the officer should have exercised some self control in his words, but, Gattis brought in own himself by acting the way he did. We have laws for a reason, respect the law, obey the laws, and this video never happens........it's not rocket science
Talk shit to the police for an hour, then film the last five minutes. Social media will light up and a handful of loudmouths will come to your defense. The rest of us are wishing you had gotten tased.
Your Facebook and Instagram will get much traffic, and maybe you can sell ads instead of having to work.
The guy who got stopped is an arrogant POS thug; weed, pistols, refusing to comply, trying to hide behind the race card, etc. He tried his best to goad the officers into reacting, and they did to an extent, but nothing that deserves more than a slap on the wrist. If that officer had stopped me, I’d have smiled, showed him my new tag and license, and then been on my way after a few brief pleasantries. This asshole kept his old tag on just so he would get stopped and get a chance to stir some shit. I hope some hardass judge teaches him there are consequences for violating rules in a civilized society.
I watched this guy on Clay Edward's show yesterday.
He never answered any direct questions, claimed to be from a family of law enforcement ... and portrayed himself as the most law abiding bouncing baby boy to ever be born in Jackson/Hinds County.
Jeez it's not too hard.
If ones wishes to drive in Madison County, buy a new tag every year (like the rest of us) and don't be an asshole when pulled over.
He is a textbook example of FAFO.
This jerk could have used a little "waffle face" in the patrol car.
Chief Meyers is far from a disciplinarian. Will defend his boys to the utmost. As for the firearm with weed charge, all LE depts do this, even with a med marijuana card and legal possession. So if you have or plan to get a weed card, just know that if u get caught we weed and a gun, cops are gonna take your gun.
@ 8:32, I was listening and heard him call in. Didn't he also say he was on the phone and told the officer he would be with him when he finished his phone call? And that he cursed first? I know he said that he had warrants, which he claimed to have taken care of, but also said he didn't have any proof that he had done so. This guy KNEW he was going to jail the minute the blue lights came on, I think he tried to get some force used on him so he could sue.
“Protect and Serve” not, “Take it personal and retaliate “ and that’s the bottom line…
One sided video is bias against LEO. Person by law must comply with showing DL & rolling down windows for safety of officers. Brad Sullivan was an example of what goes wrong when he was shot 7 times. I stand by LEO as their request was not unreasonable & completely legal!
Law enforcement is a thankless job. 99.5% of them are truly heroes for what they do. It's sad that the media has used that less than 1% to make the rest look so bad. God in Heaven help us if society doesn't have them to maintain order....but that's what many want....defund (or discourage) the police, and it will be the poor who suffer the most.
Must be one of Jokeways dope boys
Officer: “I’m going to f__k him every way I can.”
A police body cam recording? Really? What small level of intelligence is required to know that you, the officers are being recorded, since you the officers, are doing the recording?
Chief Myers: "Nobody is sticking anybody with anything.” "Where these officers did wrong, they will be disciplines."
Thank you, Chief Myers! Since some of these officers never ever seem to learn, the right thing to do seems to be just fire the fool(s). Otherwise, there must not be enough good police officer applicants with the small level of intelligence required to just STFU.
Poor Michael Gattis, his elevator doesn’t appear to make it anywhere close to the top. If he had installed the new tag, or, just STFU.
I don't see what all the fuss is about just because a dude is riding around with dope and guns in a car with illegal tint and an expired license. Picky, picky, picky.
Gattis is a moron who was looking to get famous and maybe a GoFundMe on CNN.
The cops are moron who played right into his trap.
That said, the cops deal with multiple Gattis idiots a day for a small salary so I am going to give them what little grace I have left for society.
I saw an interview of the chief on the news and he DID say there would be actions taken against the officers for their conduct.
I agree with the opinion that Gattis was attempting to provoke the officers. He had a current tag, didn't place it on the vehicle, and continued to drive with an expired tag. He was, in my opinion, asking for law enforcement's attention.
I find it interesting that Gattis used the word property when responding for his license to drive. It's been awhile since I looked in to driving licenses, and I may be speaking out of turn. But, I don't ever remember a driving license being referred to as belonging to the person that it was issued to. To my remembrance, the license was given to identify the number that identified the lawful holder of the number.
His property response sounds like a sovereign citizen reply, which confuses the right to travel with the privilege to drive.
That is exactly where that language comes from.
@8:50 AM - He can't retain Carlos the Clown but he may very likely retain a similar shark in an attempt to cash in. He may have also been playing the sovereign citizen card.
When law enforcement encounters one of these insufferable "sovereign citizen" asshats, instead of listening to that indecipherable babble, why not just call for a tow truck to impound the vehicle? And tell the sovereign citizen to exercise his right to travel ..... on foot.
A driver’s license is actually the property of the issuing state, not the driver, at least that is what AI says, and that seems to be correct. If that is correct, Mr. Gattis was incorrect in asserting the license was his personal property and that he was not properly required to display it to the officer.
If he plays the sovereign citizen card he's likely to represent himself in court.
to 6:03...if thats the case why do men and women line up to get jobs in law enforcement?
I'm so tired of all this. Grown men, on both sides acting like fools. The policeman should have chilled, Mr. Gattis should have acted like a gentleman respecting a law officer. All of you jumping in and wanting to place the race game - shame on all of you. I would not want to be a policeman pulling over anyone in this area....watch the news......black men are toting guns, shooting at law officers, and other folks and all anyone posting stuff seem to want to say is..."It's racism and ....." Y'all can have it. Wake up people.............it's not racism....it's a culture issue. Raise your young boys to be gentlemen. Teach them to respect the law.
Complaining about whether a DL is considered “property” instead of the officer’s behavior makes total sense. Especially considering you forgot about the case law that says an officer is held to a higher standard. But no worries, half the Bar doesn’t read or remember case law very well either. Also, do us a favor and don’t complain when the Feds uncover GoonSquad2.0…
I see what you did there. Well played.
Police Chief Myers stated,”We police ourselves.” Let that sink in. Kina comes across as, we cover our own. Look how well that process worked out for The Rankin County Sheriff’s department. Police officers must be held accountable for misconduct. Does your department need the liability of an officer who has shown retaliatory behavior?
@7:46 - when all it takes to “set up” a cop is to talk to them without being entirely subservient, that’s not a set up. The cops recorded all this on their own and knew it was being recorded. These must be a couple of the dumbest people on earth if that’s what it takes to set them up.
What a dumb take. You think this was a set up?
Why can’t the officers respect the law also? They get a free pass even though it’s their entire profession? Their actions destroy their credibility, there’s no way an objective jury would believe a word from those 2 morons.
Ridgeland cops are butt holes... I got caught in a drag race of two cop cars in both lanes of Lake Harbor and instead of going around me one stopped behind me and made me hop the curb going backwards into a bank parking lot before just driving off afterwards. And we All personally know that one that was a Huuuugeee problem 10+ years ago. He's back around now BTW.
What's the matter, mama didn't have your hot pockets ready on time?
Ridgeland PD has fallen off a lot. Chief Neal was our favorite. Neal didn't play about Ridgeland. Myers need to go find us another Chief Neal to keep us safe .
I hope he doesn't talk to the judge like this because he going to have a cell at the Madison County Jail.
The only jobs you expect thanks for are volunteer positions. The thanks is the salary and it’s quite high in policing when accounting for the incredibly low competency and intelligence requirements.
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