Video of UTC student arrested near evangelist goes viral, sparks controversy

[d_r]

Source: Chattanooga Times Free Press

Controversy has arisen over the arrest Thursday afternoon of a 24-year-old student near a female Christian evangelist who's reportedly been haranguing students at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

A 3:58-minute video, apparently shot with a cell phone, titled "Police brutality on UTC campus," had close to 2,500 views on Youtube this morning.

UTC Police Sgt. Willie Trueitt arrested Cole Montalvo for disorderly conduct. According to Trueitt's incident report, Montalvo tried to get past a perimeter of cones set up around the evangelist.

"Due to some mishaps of the last visit from the evangelist, a perimeter was set up … to keep students from bothering or getting in the evangelist face/space," Trueitt wrote in the report.

Read more: http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2013/nov/15/utc-arrest-bicyclist-near-evangelist-sparks-contro/

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The headline should have been "college student beat up by police after calmly telling crazy woman to stop screaming at people."

I don't know if you have seen this sort of thing on college campuses in other parts of the country. Basically crazy people come on campus and yell to students about what sinners they are. This is right in the middle of campus on the main cross road.

Here is the video clip that the "evangelist" herself put on youtube:

[Sunlei]

1. what a witch! the police crap is at 8 mins.

[icymist]

13. Please don't insult witches.

Really, have you ever seen a witch preach from a book like this? Nope! Not a witch.

[Le Taz Hot]

53. +1

[Marrah_G]

24. A witch would never behave like that.

[hrmjustin]

32. Agreed.

[Katashi_itto]

38. Agree, witches have alot more decorum

[elehhhhna]

2. Disturbing the Peace. Cops inciting a riot.

I'd stand in a circle yelling FUCK YOU & WTF until she quit. Edit; they do!!!

He was taken down and busted for asking her to stop calling people sinners and stop yelling. THIS IS HORSESHIT.


Stupidest part; after they take him out there is NO SECURITY there AT ALL and I suspect after the recording stops the students shut her down.

[dickthegrouch]

3. Can they counter-sue?

Observer: "Are you calling me a sinner?"
Whackjob: "Yes"
Observer: "Prove it or be sued for defamation of character"

A few dozen of those kinds of suits should bury the whackjob's finances for a nice long time.

[freshwest]

68. I like that. If the wackjob tries to get him to admit to doing something to prove it, one could say,

'You won't interrogate me here for your accusations. You have no authority. I'll see you in court under oath.'

Well, something like that. After all, the woman does not know the person or people she's spiritually abusing, so she needs to have her facts in line.

Just say 'But I know that you are because all people are sinners at birth,' is just a matter of belief and prejudice and not fact.

[zeemike]

4. For the first 8 minutes they did what they should have done...

Ignore her....but when they stopped ignoring her she won and so she got a viral video on Youtube...just what she wanted...attention.
When will we ever learn?

[muriel_volestrangler]

9. I disagree - he won, because the police assault on him is now on YouTube

She happens to look like as asshole too, but there should be a good case for getting the whole "we will prevent students from using the public spaces of the campus" rules altered.

[Frustratedlady]

5. What about his freedom of speech?

She was accusing perfect strangers of being sinners and he was asking her to stop.

What is it with police these days who jump the gun on such situations?

Why was she allowed to spew that crap at the college in the first place? I would have been upset, as well, if I was called a sinner or any of the other nasty accusations. SHE was violating their space.

Where are these people coming from?

[freshwest]

69. Televangelists? CPAC? Megachurches? Media? A lot of brainwashing going on.

[marshall]

6. It's basically performance art

At least that is how I would deal with it. Critique her performance and applaud her portrayal of a madwoman.

[busterbrown]

14. Yea but why is the college supporting her?? n/t

[marshall]

15. Many colleges have free speech zones

And they are often populated by obnoxious people.

[GReedDiamond]

25. What about the "free speech" of the guy...

...who was, IMO, unlawfully detained/arrested by the obvious christo-fascists?

[marshall]

30. They might require a person to reserve the zone

And then that person has the right to use it. They do have rules, mostly to prevent confrontations. Free speech zones are inevitably sites of conflict.

I'm not sure what the man was trying to do when the struggle started. They apparently had the right to keep him outside a marked perimeter, but he seemed to be moving away. Ì

[d_r]

31. I teach at utc

it isn't a free speech zone. It is the middle of a crossing of two walk ways right in the middle of the campus.

You can come on to campus to speak if you fill out a form and submit it. That's why the woman says she had signed up.

There arn't usually the pylons there. The campus police said they put them up because when the woman was doing this before she complained that students were getting to close talking back to her.

I think they are doing this because they are afraid the woman will sue them that she isn't getting her access to free speech.

I don't think that this guy knew what the pylons were at first. He doesn't look like he was trying to go straight to the woman or anything, more like he was trying to pass by.

eta here is a video the evangelist posted that shows when she first showed up and they came out and made her sign a paper to be on campus

this from the evangelist's facebook page-

[They_Live]

51. He tells her

"..the only thing is, if you're disruptive to (the) campus, we're gonna have to ask you leave."

She should be gone gone and not allowed back.

[shenmue]

7. When I was in grad school, a guy peacefully stole the show...

There was a crazy preacher who used to always come to talk in front of the Humanities building at the U of Florida. Someone got tired of him one day, dressed up as a gorilla and started handing out candy slices to the crowd.



I love that gorilla to this day.

[jpak]

46. Brother Jed and Sister Cindy!

yup!

[yurbud]

67. Someone at Oregon State stood near him and started preaching from his statistics text

in the same style as Brother Jed's preaching.

He had his own amen chorus that interject "Praise statistics!" from time to time.

[Owl]

8. F the "evangelist" asshole and the complicit security and police shit-heads!!!!

Unbelievable!!!!

[George II]

10. Wasn't Jesus non-violent, and didn't he preach to turn the other cheek and forgiveness?

She's a NUT, not an "evangelist".

[busterbrown]

12. Tell me what Evangelist isn’t a nut..

Fairy Tale world of flying angels and Messiahs and who knows what else..

[hrmjustin]

33. I assure you we are not all nuts and as hateful as this woman.

[7962]

41. There always has to be one to step in and disparage religion, right?

[Gore1FL]

50. The woman in the video already disparaged religion more than any detractor ever could. n/t

[Arugula Latte]

81. Talk about something that needs MORE disparagement in this society...

Religion is it.

[Deny and Shred]

65. Don't be silly

Jesus was an American. He spoke English, packed heat, and voted Rupublican.

[Pale Blue Dot]

77. The Biblical Jesus very liking never existed.

Lots of fictional characters teach turning the other cheek and forgiveness.

[secondvariety]

11. There was a day

when a bunch of shit eating cops wouldn't have dared lay a hand on a student for fear of starting a full scale riot. I wish those days would return.

[2naSalit]

16. Welcome to the NWO?

She was all about getting someone arrested for her video so she could have proof of the evil in students who revile her while she is "preaching"

Something bad's probably gonna happen to her, that karma thing seems to be real. Hope hers shows up soon. And I hope it shows up in the form of a lawsuit... except that some whackjob church will pay her bills and she'll become the next gen SP (only without the bikini and the shotgun).

[Scootaloo]

21. Karma's not real

Dick Cheney is far wealthier than you, can have his heart replaced when it goes bad, and so far, has suffered nothing for his lifetime of utter assholery.

Karma's as much bullshit as the fantasy world this woman lives in, with its angels and devils. There is no universal comeuppance mechanism.

[busterbrown]

34. So far...Ah, but Chaney has to live everyday in fear that his next breath might be his last..

Last edited Sat Nov 16, 2013, 04:14 PM - Edit history (2)

Not a great way to live....And yes we all realize that our next breath might be our last as well. But having a heart which was transplanted is not a comfortable situation..He’s suffering...

[Scootaloo]

35. So does everyone else on the planet

Death is an inevitability, and it can come suddenly. Cheney's been given more "escape from death" plays than most people ever will. If we see death as a karmic punishment, we have to assume karma likes wealthy assholes - or karma hates the unwealthy.

Or - again - Karma is like heaven and hell, wishful thinking for people who want rewards for themselves and punishments for hteir foes, but are powerless to create either themselves.

[PassingFair]

49. +1

"Everything happens for a reason, Scootaloo."

[BuddhaGirl]

52. not to mention that he's a miserable person

who lives a fear-based existence.

Karma can also catch up with someone in their next lifetime...

[FiveGoodMen]

61. Always worth mentioning!

There is no justice unless WE create it.

[Conium]

75. Re: Cheney

The devil takes care of his own.

[Ikonoklast]

17. Police being police, any excuse to beat down a civilian makes their day.

And for all of you that defend the police, one day they will beat you down, too.

You think it will never happen to you, you're a law-abiding citizen with nothing to fear, but you are only one accident of fate away from getting the shit kicked out of you by a police officer who is just champing at the bit to show you just how little your rights mean to him.


See what all those years of kissing their ass means to them then.

[kmlisle]

18. The Gospel of Hate and Fear

Same thing happens at our local campus plus threats and homophobic remarks addressed to students with personal threats of "Going to Hell"

[cosmicone]

19. This reminds me of Taliban

when anyone questioning Islam was attacked.

We now have Evangeliban.

[weissmam]

20. another annoying christian wack job,

go feed somebody that hungry or take care of someone thats sick instead on being a PIA

[JimboBillyBubbaBob]

22. Well now,

the big woman was exercising her freedom of religion and expression. Dude with the bike, he had no freedom of expression. The university rent-a-pigs, likely taxpayer supported, helped that lady express her rights but not the young man. Where was that separation of church and state that we here so much of? This action was questionable on so many levels.

[Igel]

48. He was told to get behind the pylons.

He didn't comply with security's instructions. Don't know what would have happened if he'd just backed up 2-3 feet.

They argued. At some point he turned, his arm raised, or took a swing at the black guard closest to him. I can't tell which. Only at that point did they try to cuff him.

If he'd let them cuff him, the rest wouldn't have happened. Things would have gone better for him.

UCLA has--had?--an area outside of Kerckhoff Hall for this, a grassy patch overlooking Bruin Walk. Some days religious fundies would be there. Some days political fundies would be there. They were mostly ignored--and when I say "mostly," I mean out of the tens of thousands of pass-bys by people at any given time most days just a few would stop to watch.

It's like with a business. Location, location, location.

Don't know that I agree with the loudspeaker. Not sure there was one--perhaps she was miked?


The nice fellow calling the fundie a "bitch" towards the end also deserves, I guess, our moral support. (?)


As for police brutality, that's from a bunch of relatively pampered kids or kids who have been polarized by media portrayals. It's a conditioned reflex. Our cat's conditioned the same way--I get out of bed, she runs and stands by the food dish in the kitchen, mewing "food! food!" Even if it's 2 am and I'm heading for the bathroom. Stimulus-response.

For brutality, "brutal" is a prerequisite. Kicks to the head and groin, dislocated arms and legs, broken fingers and pulled-out fingernails, those are brutal. This was police "inconvenience" and "police mild discomfort." At its worst, "police discomfort."

[muriel_volestrangler]

54. There are principles here that you're missing

1) This is a public path, where anyone, especially members of the university, should be able to move. That is it's fundamental purpose. No-one, especially someone from outside the university, should be able to commandeer it.

2) University security should not be helping someone from outside keep university members off the paths in the university. They have proper jobs to do; they should be elsewhere.

3) Police officers should not be helping someone from outside keep university members off the paths in the university. They have proper jobs to do; they should be elsewhere.

4) The woman was being insulting and disruptive (shouting very loudly). There may be a free speech case to allow that to continue, but it should not affect other people, eg the student who wants to wheel his bike across that area, as normal (and yes, the guy who calls her a 'bitch' does deserve our moral support slightly more than she does - she started the insults).

5) "He was told to get behind the pylons. He didn't comply with security's instructions."

He shouldn't have to. They should be supporting him, as a member of the university, not ordering him around for no reason. They have no right to place unnecessary cones out, and then stop people going about they normal business.

6) "At some point he turned, his arm raised, or took a swing at the black guard closest to him. "

You're wrong, and completely blaming the wrong person. One of the 'security' guys in yellow stands in his way. Then the police officer comes over, and takes out his handcuffs. At this point, their voices are not that raised. The victim says something like 'now you're arresting me', and the police officer reaches for him. The victim moves his hand so that the office can't put the cuffs on it, and turns to go away. At that point the officer and security guy hold him, and push him up against the low wall. Then to the ground.

You are siding with the excessive use of force, by officials who are wasting their time and other people's money supporting a religious nut. Your attitude is "everyone should kowtow to authority, whether or not it is in the right".

[cvoogt]

71. He did not take a swing

He was getting on his bike. He swung his arm over the guy in order to get on his bike.

[d_r]

74. I don't think he knew the pylons were there at first

there are two ways I can see of looking at the pylons (I have never seen them before in 6 years of being here). One is, they are all on the circle of the concrete outline. The other is that they are making a square (there are four pylons). Either way, he was outside the zone when they grabbed him. He looked like he was trying to move away from that zone when they grabbed him, he was trying to go the other way.

No, I agree with you it wasn't that rough. They sprayed him with mace when he was down, but they didn't really rough him up that bad at all. The thing is, they shouldn't have grabbed him in the first place imho. He wasn't doing anything.

[Conium]

78. Resisting?

As timid as they are, even a mouse will bite you if you press it into a corner.

See what happens when people are denied mental health care? They spread their illness!

[DisgustipatedinCA]

79. Jesus Christ. Why don't you set up some time to go lick their boots?

Authoritarian dickheads just love people like you. They wouldn't be possible without people like you.

[Arugula Latte]

82. Wow.

Pretty pathetic defense of these ridiculously authoritarian actions.

[Marrah_G]

23. Hateful nasty disgusting woman

[penultimate]

26. What exactly did he do?

What laws are in place to prevent other people from talking to you when you're in public and engaging them?

[BlueStreak]

27. Did that woman have a loudspeaker? How is that not infringing on the rights of everyone else?

[TriplD]

80. Most places have nuisance laws that she would be violating

that people were complaining about her yelling is evidence that she was disturbing others right to quite.

It's a campus - how can someone study with her yelling?

[RosettaStoned77]

28. The real problem here seems to be,

the police and University staff seem to agree with the nutcase. The sad thing is he will probably be convicted of whatever bullshit charge they come up with.
Having dealt with the law myself I know the truth. GUILT is an EMOTION! Wonder how he fees about himself. Righteous, I hope.

[obama2terms]

29. My nephew goes to school here, he's a freshmen

I already worry about him in college enough, now I have to add police brutality to my list of worries, oh what a world.... I've told him at least 100 times to be safe, but it's hard to say that when some of the people that are supposed to make sure things are safe for the students are bad people themselves!

[blkmusclmachine]

36. It's religion protesting using intellect and reasoning skills, which are threatening things to the

Buybull beaters.

[muriel_volestrangler]

37. And the policeman tried to use mace too - fascist apologist Cindy Carroll weighs in

Last edited Sat Nov 16, 2013, 09:37 AM - Edit history (1)

(it's not often I call people a fascist, but I think this really does apply to this police officer and his lickspittle Assistant Director of University Relations):

24-year-old Cole Montalvo was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, obstruction of justice and inciting to riot. Police say he tried to ride his bike through their coned-off barrier separating students and a controversial evangelist. (ed: that's a lie - he was trying to push the bike, and the 'security' guy in the yellow shirt (who's paying for his time there - and why isn't the police officer out trying to arrest real criminals?) blocked and pushed him)
...
The video shows one sergeant spraying his can of mace and missing. He didn't spray again after they "finally had him on his stomach and hands behind his back and cuffed."

"It was strictly trying to get him into a situation where they could arrest him, and since it fell to the ground... They arrested him there," Carroll said.

"We have to remember our police are sworn to protect everyone and that's exactly what they were doing at the time of this arrest," she said.

http://www.wrcbtv.com/story/23981508/video-of-utc-students-arrest-goes-viral

[d_r]

39. here are some other videos from other vantages

This is the guy closest

This shows later events and the cops conferring after

[muriel_volestrangler]

42. That situation is crying out for all the bystanders to walk into the circle

It's such a bullshit idea that someone can get campus security to enforce a privacy zone in a public place. If 20 of them walked into it, the police and security weasels wouldn't be able to arrest them all. And they'd have done nothing out of the oridinary - just walked on part of their campus.

[FreakinDJ]

40. Jesus would NOT call her a Christian

She went looking to start an argument/fight

[KansDem]

43. Couldn't they put her in a "Free Speech" zone?

Somewhere in the outskirts of a parking lot?

[cvoogt]

73. inside a glass bubble

a la Bill Maher

[L0oniX]

44. Here's what I would have done....

[jpak]

45. Is that Sister Cindy????

Brother Jed and Sister Cindy were regulars on southern college campuses in the 1980's.

[heaven05]

47. I had one, years back

screaming in my face, up close. I'm on my way to hell, he said and I said quietly, I'm already there with you screaming in my face. I walked away rather than let this 'christian' abuse me. Faith is inward and this behavior pushes people away. I have a battered faith of sorts. That's where it stands. Nothing more, nothing less. This person is disgusting. I feel for the beaten up student. As quiet as it's kept, these teaklanhadists have a lot of exaggerated power all out of proportion to their real numbers. Sad.

[Le Taz Hot]

55. These douchenozzles now have loudspeakers?

Oh, goodie! Like they weren't as annoying as fuck before.

I'm thinking the next time Ms. "Burn in the Damnation of Hell" goes back up would be a right good time for a good old fashioned, LOUD, sing-a-long.

[cvoogt]

72. reminds me of undergrad

at Georgia Tech. There was a crazy person there (a.k.a. fundie who thought he was a Christian) spewing all sorts of crap about how women's breasts are only utilitarian in nature .. NEVER for pleasure because that goes against God or something. Yeah, what a way to spread Jesus, err, the Gospel.

[The Stranger]

56. The Christian Fundamentalists are the same as the Muslim Fundamentalists and Jewish Fundamentalists.

And other Fundamentalists.

It is a global struggle for consciousness.

And the Fundamentalists will use force to take yours away.

Wake up, before it is too late.

[valerief]

57. Crazy Christians. I hate religious fanatics and I hate religion and its exploiters. I hate

TEH STOOOOOPID.

[mike_c]

58. campus evangelists are utterly crazy....

We get two or three every semester. They're beyond obnoxious.

[sulphurdunn]

59. Since when did freedom of speech

become freedom from debate? Since when does someone willing to rant but not argue warrant a security perimeter and a detail of cops to defend such behavior in the temple of reason?

[mahatmakanejeeves]

60. 10:08: "Why is he resisting?"

Jesus always cooperated with the authorities.

[bluestateguy]

62. Why do the police have to stick their nose in everything?

Why must the police be everywhere?

Geez. Now we have cops at ball games, grocery stores, at the polling place on election day and in parking lots.

Can't they just go away and mind their own business and let people resolve their disagreements themselves?

[MindMover]

63. When students on their own campus do not have civil rights ...

then you will very soon see mayhem ...

This was one person probably living close by hearing this obnoxious person ranting about her personal beliefs like this is OK and legally sanctioned by the university as a form of free speech ... bullhockey ... the student asking the question had as much right asking his question as the wandering preacher did preaching her message of bigotry ....

[dembotoz]

64. disgusting

[magical thyme]

66. how obnoxious. Either ignore her, or bring the biggest boombox available

and play it full blast to drown her out.

Actually, come to think of it, I did that with a neighbor. We had some people move in kittykorner to me who took to blasting the entire area with their music. From 8am until 11pm nonstop, while I was in school and trying desperately to study. Day after day. I remember having all my windows shut, storm included, and still hearing it while taking a shower. I love all kinds of music, but this was too loud, too constant and I do mean TOO LOUD. It was driving me nuts.

So I got my 2 biggest CD players. The bigger one I put in the garage window, facing their house, so I could have it plugged in. I put on Jessae Norman and the Chicago Philharmonic blasting Wagner or Mahler or something, full freaking blast.

And then I put the smaller, battery-operated, one at the corner of my property facing their house, and simulataneously blast Kathleen Battle and Wynton Marsalis.

different keys, different rythms, huge, powerful Norman/full orchestra going BOOM BOOM BOOM in the backround with Battle and Marsalis going DEE-DEE-DEE-DEE-DEE-DEE-DEE in the foreground.

a few hours of that and they NEVER blasted us with their music again.

[mainer]

70. The university has to pay for those guards

And it appears this "preacher" is using up a lot of university resources by repeatedly getting permission to shout on campus. Does UTC allow other wackos to shout on campus with guard protection? Are the wiccans allowed to do this? Is there a limit to how many times she can shout? Could she be there 365 days a year?

[bobGandolf]

76. Hope it leads to policy changes at the school. n/t