Here’s the bodycam video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5i88VDrI3VA

The whole thing of “you need your lights on when it’s cloudy outside” was definitely bullshit. If he’d handed the guy his driver’s license, it seems unlikely he would have gotten a ticket for it, and he definitely would have been able to beat it if he did.

At 1:05, that whole exchange “Give me your driver’s license, registration” “No!” “and proof of insurance.” “No! Call your supervisor” is a massive fuck-up. Don’t do that. I get that he’s frustrated over a bullshit traffic stop, but doing that is (a) a crime and (b) a good way to piss off the cops and escalate the situation.

At 1:16, the whole thing “Why did you pull me over?” after the cop explained why he pulled him over is also a fuck-up. I have no idea why people do this. Again, literally the only outcome is pissing off the cop additionally. You could say, “The reason you just explained is a bunch of bullshit, though. Here’s my license. That’s bullshit though.” if you want to make the point. All repeatedly asking over and over what the cop has already answered is going to do is, again, piss off the cop and escalate the situation. There is absolutely no possibility that the cop’s going to go, “Aaaaah, you got me, I was just bein’ racist. Thanks for putting me in check” and let you go on your way if you just keep asking enough times.

1:56 “Why’d you pull me over?” “I’ve already told you” “No you didn’t!” honestly is just going to make the cop think you’re drunk or something. Maybe he is just not listening because he’s heated, IDK. But yes, the cop definitely did tell him.

2:03 They tell him he’s under arrest, because by refusing to ID himself he is committing a crime

2:37 They ask him to come out of the vehicle, warn him they’re planning to break the window

3:20 “Call your supervisor!” I have absolutely no idea what this guy thinks is going to happen when the supervisor arrives. He’s on his way already, I think the cop asked for him over the radio instantly when the stop began, just because the situation’s complicated now and they will want someone in authority to be there. But I would say it is vanishingly rare that the supervisor will arrive to this situation and take the driver’s side. Sometimes they might decide to take some time to talk with him and see if they can make some progress with him, most times they will just assist with breaking the window and dragging him out.

4:29 Window bust, dude is still thinking somehow that not exiting the vehicle is going to help his situation

4:46 It’s not visible on body cam, but the cop hits him in the face with an open hand while he’s dragging him out. He definitely shouldn’t have done that.

4:56 The cop grabs his hair and holds his face on the asphalt. Again, he shouldn’t have done that, it’s fuckin’ excessive, and it sounds like they busted his lip or something (the cops are clearly talking later about having blood on them which they’re unhappy about.)

5:02 “What do you mean? I was putting my hands behind my back!” Dude no you weren’t. You were staying in the car with the door locked, and then fighting them when they pulled you out after they spent several minutes warning you that that’s what they were planning to do. If you’d said, “Hey I’m getting out and I’m going to put my hands behind my back,” they probably still would have thrown you on the ground, but it wouldn’t have been a big fight about it. More to the point, if you’d dealt with the traffic stop like a normal human being from the jump, then none of it would have happened in the first place. You would have gotten at most a bullshit ticket.

5:09 “What’s going on?” “You’re under arrest, that’s what’s going on.” “No, bro! No! You have to have a lawful reason!” Dude still doesn’t comprehend the situation.

5:33 “He asked you to step out of the vehicle” “Sir, your partner didn’t even ASK!” Absolute bullshit

5:41 “He talkin’ about arresting me and stuff, but I didn’t do anything wrong!” Congratulations dumb dumb, you just hurt your case (not that it really matters), because you admitted that you heard and understood that the cop told you you were arrested. That’s not a voluntary process or something you get to argue with the cop about. That’s what court is for, in a calm situation where both sides get to have expert advice.

5:45 “I didn’t do nothing wrong, bro!” Probably true. You did do something illegal and then antagonize the cops about it though.

6:00 The cops call an ambulance for him, since his lip is busted.

I think the chance this dude has a traumatic brain injury from this is zero percent. I think he’s just continuing his whole “No, bro, no! Call your supervisor!” strategy with this whole lawsuit. I mean, what the fuck he’s got his right to his day in court and let’s see what happens, but it seems like it would have been smarter to just accuse the cops of hitting him in the face which they actually did do, and see what mileage he can get out of that.