Sorry about what happened. Something similar happened to Louis Gates not too far back.

I would have been pissed as well!  But then glad when all was explained and I was released. A shame that they could not detain the coke head and do a drug test on him!  I had a similar experience several years back.

I had been driving all day and pulled into a town I was going to do training at the next day.  I checked into a motel and went to bed early as I was exhausted.  About 2am, I heard some loud banging and then the phone started to ring.  I answered it "groggily" and it was the front desk demanding that I turn down my TV (it was not on).  I told them the problem was coming from next door, not my room, and they wanted to argue with me!

Seems some drunk came back to his hotel room and called them to complain about the noise coming from my room.  The only noise was snoring.  I tore the night manager a new asshole on that one.  Any idiot could have come up to my door and listened and heard there was no sound coming from the room.  Instead, these idiots had banged on my door and started calling me incessantly!  Jackasses.

Shit happens.

This morning the desk clerk told me they arrested the idiot for making a false report.

Yeah, I would have raised hell too.

That is good news!  At least one idiot will think twice before doing it again.

The only similarities are that they both got arrested and it was late.  The police had SAF for Gates because he wouldn't at least show identification and it was reported that there might be a buglary going on.  Gates became irrate and when you become irrate it doesn't help in anyway when dealing with law enforcement.  All Gates had to do was show some form of ID and the officers could check the ID and would immediately find that this is his house.  If I was Gates neighbors, I would have sued him for disturbance of the peace because all he had to do was say I am Louis Gates the owner of this house here is my ID.  If he wasn't black or friends with Obama this wouldn't have most likely made the news.

With Mason, an individual said that he was a possible suspect to a crime that had a gun.  This is potentially a dangerous situation considering that Mason could have had a gun (which he didn't) so the officer had the right to both detain him AND search him. 

In reality, they weren't allowed to arrest you (I guess they could say cuffing you was not necessary arresting you but for their own safety.). 

Did you get your knife back? Did they at least apologize to you?

If you feel like your rights were violated considering that you were cooperating with the officers there was no reason to handcuff you you could go to copwatch (www.copwatch.org ) and report it.

I will say that police officers do have a difficult job.

I'm guessing that this won't make the news either.  If Mason was a minority this would be all over the news.  Which isn't right. 

Even if Mason showed the office identification this still wouldn't have solved the situation.

Once again, Louis Gates and Mason's cases have very little in common.

well Mason...at least you can check this one off your bucket list.  Been there done that! 

Nobody likes to be accused for something they didn't do, forget the addition of handcuffs!  Good grief! 

Ouch Mason, but glad that it worked out fairly quickly.

I don't blame the cops, though I think putting you up against the car, not face down on the ground would have been enough. As pointed out you're not a minority so your civil rights weren't violated, not that I believe they were no matter what color your skin.

Mason, sounds like if you would have stayed for one more beer at Applebee's, all would have been good. Glad you weren't out for a walk without an alibi. Didn't the cite the kid for false accusation?

I'm sure by now the drugs or whatever have worn off enough that he's regretting his stupidity.

Yes to both questions. Once it was proven that I couldn't have possibly have been involved they did apologize to me and did return my knife along with a few comments about how they liked the knife (Smith and Wesson S.W.A.T. spring assisted lock blade, a razor sharp tactical knife that I carry at all times).

My rights weren't violated in any way. In their shoes, as a cop I would have had to handle it the same way. If someone says a person has a gun and committed some crime, the cops must proceed as if that person does have a gun until they can determine otherwise. It's the only way they can stay alive and healthy given the job they have to do.

I hold no grudge at all against the officers involved, only the drugged out scumbag who drug me into his little bit of bullshit.

The biggest difference being that Gates brought trouble upon himself by being an ass.

Stuff happens.

Thanks. Despite the fact that I was a bit pissed off at the time it happened, it wasn't really that big of a deal. Just some stupid dope head causing a scene.