Shameful: Fountain Valley Police Captain Makes Excuses for Bad Police Officers

Sometimes I wonder if it's worth making complaints to police departments about their police officers.

They will excuse the behavior of their police, without regard for the fact that members of the audience think that they can get away with certain things.

I attended the April  3, 2018 Fountain Valley City Council meeting to urge the city council to file an amicus brief with the Department of Justice lawsuit against the state of California.

It did not look good at the outset. The city council had informed the audience that they were prepared to sit back and do nothing, let other cities and counties take the lead on their own.

I arrived with other fellow Trump supporters in the city and from the region throughout Southern California showed up. Most of them spoke out and then went to West Covina right away.

I had to stay longer in order to give my public comment.

Before I got to speak, a man in the audience stood in front of me and prevented me from seeing the podium, the city council, and the speaker at the city council:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4AWi6HOIdpY&feature=youtu.be&t=43m

At the 43 minute mark, as you can see above, one member of the audience stood up and blocked me and others from seeing the speaker and the city council.

I asked him to sit down. He refused. I went up to the police officers, and I asked Sergeant Spangler badge #200 to do something about the guy.

He refused, after looking at Captain Sheppard #220 , who apparently wasn't interested in actually doing anything at all.

After I spoke at Public Comment, I spoke with Sergeant Spangler to ask why he didn't do anything about the guy who stood in front of me and others in the city council chambers blocking our view.

He blew me off, then walked away. One of the deputies with him blocked me briefly before I could speak with Captain Sheppard


Then I spoke with Captain Sheppard.

Sheppard was a smart-ass, refused to answer my questions.

Finally, I contacted Captain Mike Simko for the Fountain Valley police department and filed a formal complaint.

Here is the text of it:

Today’s Date: April 7, 2018

Your Name: Arthur Schaper

Your Home Address" 20415 Anza Ave #21, Torrance, CA 90503

Your Home Telephone Number: (310) 793-8647

Alternative Telephone Number: None

Date of Occurrence: April 3, 2018

Location of Occurrence: 

City Hall
10200 Slater Avenue
Fountain Valley, CA 92507

Captain Mike Simko:

I am disgusted and very disappointed with the inconsistent and disrespectful behavior of two of your department's officers, who were serving as sergeant at arms and/or public safety detail in the Fountain Valley City Council chambers at the April 3, 2018 City Council meeting

Captain Sheppard Badge #220

Sergeant Spangler Badge #200

On April 3, 2018, I was attending the Fountain Valley City Council meeting.

About 43 minutes into the video below, which I was recording at the city council meeting, one man stood up in front of me, blocking my views and the view of other people at the city council meeting by standing up in the front row.

You can see the incident in the video below:

https://youtu.be/4AWi6HOIdpY?t=43m

fountain valley No Sanctuary State youtu.be

The black man next to me stood up in the middle of one person's public comment, so that I could not see the speaker. I asked him to sit down, and he refused.

I then approached Sergeant Spangler and asked him to have the black man sit down. He looked to Captain Sheppard, and they did nothing.

I sat down briefly and asked the black man to sit down again. He did not.

Someone in the next row behind me asked him to sit down as well, and nothing happened.

Afterwards, I asked the city council if I would be allowed to stand, too.

Then Sergeant Spangler approached me and told me to stop being disruptive. I was shocked and disappointed. He did nothing when one man was disrupting the meeting, preventing me from seeing the speaker (to record on my YouTube channel).

But then he tells me that I am disruptive. This is selective enforcement, and it is not acceptable.

After I spoke at public comment, I asked to speak With Sergeant Spangler.

He told me that I was being disruptive, but then I reminded him twice that the black man who stood in front of me and others was preventing us from seeing the speaker and the city council. He then suggested that the man standing in front of me, preventing me and others from seeing the person spdeaking at the podium as not disruptive. That is not true. During city proceedings, it is out of order for members of the audience to stand while members of the public are addressing the city council during public comment, and certainly they are not permitted to block others from seeking the city council and speakers.

Spangler just walked away from me and said "This conversation is done."

I then asked to speak with Captain Sheppard. He was rude and arrogant, refused to explain the conduct of his men or himself in failing to keep decorum in the city council chambers.

The conduct of these officers was unbecoming and unprofessional. Captain Sheppard was particularly disrespectful, not taking my concerns seriously and refusing to answer me. These officers had a responsibility to ensure that everyone in the city council chambers abide by the rules of decorum, which includes not standing and blocking others in the chambers from seeing the events and comments of people on the dais or at the podium.

I have never seen such petty conduct from police officers before, and they should be duly reprimanded or not assigned to the city council chambers in the future.

Here is the video of  my interaction with the two police officers cited above.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjWEmNcH_UQ

Bad Cops in Fountain Valley www.youtube.com Bad Cops in Fountain Valley

I do not have the name of the third officer, the one who accompanied Sergeant Spangler when I questioned him, but he deliberately blocked me from approaching Captain Sheppard, too. 

Again, this disrespectful conduct is unacceptable and has no place in a city council meeting or in any place within a municipality.

I want them summarily reprimanded and no longer assigned to the Fountain Valley City Council chambers.

Thank you for your time and attention to this matter:

Sincerely

Arthur Schaper

SIGNATURE PAGE:

YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO MAKE A COMPLAINT AGAINST A POLICE OFFICER FOR ANY IMPROPER POLICE CONDUCT. CALIFORNIA LAW REQUIRES THIS AGENCY TO HAVE A PROCEDURE TO INVESTIGATE CIVILIANS’ COMPLAINTS. YOU HAVE A RIGHT TO A WRITTEN DESCRIPTION OF THIS PROCEDURE. THIS AGENCY MAY FIND AFTER INVESTIGATION THAT THERE IS NOT ENOUGH EVIDENCE TO WARRANT ACTION ON YOUR COMPLAINT; EVEN IF THAT IS THE CASE, YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO MAKE THE COMPLAINT AND HAVE IT INVESTIGATED IF YOU BELIEVE AN OFFICER BEHAVED IMPROPERLY. CIVILIAN COMPLAINTS AND ANY REPORTS OR FINDING RELATING TO COMPLAINTS MUST BE RETAINED BY THIS AGENCY FOR AT LEAST FIVE YEARS. IT IS AGAINST THE LAW TO MAKE A COMPLAINT THAT YOU KNOW TO BE FALSE. IF YOU MAKE A COMPLAINT AGAINST AN OFFICER KNOWING THAT IT IS FALSE, YOU CAN BE PROSECUTED ON A MISDEMEANOR CHARGE. I HAVE READ AND UNDERSTOOD THE ABOVE STATEMENT. 

Complainant: Arthur Schaper

Date: April 7, 2018

Finally, Captain Simko contacted me.

He asked me if I had been a victim of discrimination. I simply responded that I thought the police would not say anything to him because he was black.

He asked me if I wanted to add anything to my complaint beyond what I had written what was in the video.

I reminded him that Sergeant Spangler told me that I could have moved my seat. Not acceptable, because there were no seats for me to move to.

The point remained--that man standing and blocking me and others needed to sit down.

For the next ten minutes, the Captain led me through the video that I had recorded

He wanted to focus on the fact that I had shouted at the city council for doing nothing about the guy standing in front of me. He wanted to focus on the fact that I had made comments quietly into the camera disparaging the remarks of the person at the podium.

I was incredulous!

This is how the Fountain Valley police department behaves.

It's time to hold this disrespectful police officers accountable.

Contact the Fountain Valley police department, and tell them to do their job, and have the two--now three police officers reprimanded:

Fountain Valley Police Department:

(714) 593-4400

lawrence.doan@fountainvalley.org

Captain Mike Simko:

(714) 593-4528

Email: mike.simko@fountainvalley.org

Here are the emails for the Fountain Valley City Council:

Michael.Vo@fountainvalley.org;

Steve.Nagel@fountainvalley.org;

Larry.Crandall@fountainvalley.org;

John.Collins@fountainvalley.org;

Cheryl.Brothers@fountainvalley.org

This selective enforcement from police officers has to stop, and we need to let cities and police departments know that their disregard is unacceptable.

I Survived Berkeley (And I Will Return)

I survived Berkeley, CA—not just in April, mind you, but also this past weekend (August 27, to be precise). Yes, I did. It was not my first trip up to the East Bay. On April 27, I reveled in an unrivaled victory for the free speech movement. Conservative speakers from all over the country descended upon Berkeley to rally for our God-given freedoms.

August 27 was not a defeat, either, despite the evil perpetrated by the Democratic Party’s new domestic terrorist wing, Antifa. George Orwell must be rolling in his grave, or if he could he would sit up and shout “Told ya so!” to these blackened goons. Good is Evil, War is Peace, and Truth is Error. The shields of shrouded hatemongers carried signs which read “No hate,” all while stealing property and pummeling their opposition. The sight of two "Latinos for Trump," a father and son, was too much to bear for these pitiless thugs, who beat and mauled them. Covered in black, hiding their faces to enact destruction and fear, Antifa hordes, funded by the anti-American globalist George Soros, want to destroy our liberties.

I can’t believe how violent and hateful the Antifa, KKK, George-Soros funded Nazi left has become. Or rather, I am shocked to see how quickly the anti-American forces in this country have whipped themselves into such a violent frenzy. For 15 minutes, I was hounded by black-clad thugs, who in vicious conspiracy beat down innocent participants and bystanders--anyone who seemed like a rabid fascist.

The day started out much better. The police had sequestered the park that morning. Only peaceful protestors could attend.  For two hours, I clashed with supporters and detractors of President Trump, the cult of political correctness, and freedom of speech. I met with a number of people who were willing to talk. At around 1:15 p.m., friends of mine barraged me with text messages and phones calls: “Get out of the park! Antifa is coming!”

I should have moved a little faster. Then again, I was worried about the three other people with me at Berkeley; but gathering them together and getting out safely became moot when my own safety was at risk. At first, I thought that the lined-up police in riot gear would have easily handled and fended off these would-be marauders. Then I saw the police walking away from the square.

Unbelievable. I took off as fast as I could, but two looming hatemongers rushed toward me. First they snatched off my MAGA hat (that wouldn’t be the first time someone took my hat or tried to steal it from me). Then someone ripped the Trump banner off my shoulders. As I quickened my step, I got sprayed with glitter, and my face started getting really hot: an Antifa thug “glitter-bombed" me. Finally, a Berkeley police officer blocked them from committing further harm.

Right away, I realized that there was no safe way I could get back to my car. Then I remembered the young lady during the San Jose rally last year who had turned into the outer lobby of a building. Cornered by press agents and agitators, she stood by, taking egg to her face and enduring hateful taunts. If the press were going to follow me, then they would serve as my wall of protection. I stepped into a gas station, found a spot near the door, and sat down.

As expected, the press surrounded me, recording and snapping pictures. A handful of left-wing protesters shouted at me. I just meditated on key verses which I have memorized for straitened times (Isaiah 54:17; 1 John 4:17). One hideous lady in pink stood over me telling me that I had to go. Another guy mocked me for supporting Trump and “hating working people." I went back into the same pattern I had followed at MLK Park: I talked about why I supported Trump, free speech, and his successful policies.  I didn’t notice that I was spit on until after I read online accounts.

Finally, a police officer emerged out of the crowd. He asked me if I needed medical attention, then escorted me to the sidewalk. A reporter came near and said to me “I am with you. If you support the Constitution, I am with you.” As she helped me to the sidewalk, friends drove up all of a sudden. They recognized me right away, took me in, and drove me out of the area.

I was dazed and shaken up, to say the least. My friends drove me to my car (after throwing off another rabid liberal who was following us). The skin on my arms and around my face began getting really hot. I had to clutch my seat belt to defer the pain from the pepper spray. Back at home, I stood in the shower for an hour to cool off the painful burning sensation.

The next day, I saw my story reported on all the major conservative news sites. Friends told me that a photo of me draped in my Trump banner was appearing on the front of newspapers all across the country. The Battle of Berkeley, August 27, 2017 was no defeat, but a consummate victory for conservatives. The presence of peaceful Trump supporters compelled the liberal media to report our side fairly. The violence and destruction, as lamentable as it may have been, signaled that the corrupt, vile, immoral, secular forces which have sought to undermine our country are falling away.

The Left has overplayed its hand, and the police powers in the Bay Area are now on notice. Violence as a final resort for sore losers is a signal that they will never recover, from the Confederacy’s secession movement to the KKK’s anti-American terrorism, to the bullying of Birmingham, Alabama’s Bull Connor against the Civil Rights Movement.

I say to all conservatives: stop being afraid. I survived Berkeley, and believe me I will return. Our liberties are at stake, and the victories we are gaining are too precious to lose.