GRAND RAPIDS, MI — A man was forced to the concrete at gunpoint, handcuffed, and held with a pistol aimed at his back by an officer who didn’t approve of him exercising his right to bear arms.
Johann Deffert, 28, was simply walking down the street — breaking no laws — while wearing a holstered pistol on his waistband.
Such an act is perfectly legal in the state of Michigan. Yet when the streets are patrolled by overzealous, uninformed law enforcers, exercising rights can be a serious hazard to one’s health.
Grand Rapids police officer William Moe saw Deffert walking down the sidewalk. “It does look like he’s got a handgun on,” Moe told a dispatcher. Moe reacted to him like as if he had just robbed a bank. Moe exited his vehicle with his pistol trained on Deffert, barking orders and putting lives at risk.
“On the ground!! On the ground!! Put your hands on top of your head!”
The March 3rd, 2013, encounter was recorded on dash cam and recently released to the public.
“Do not move,” Officer Moe said. “Why do you have a handgun on you?”
“It’s my constitutional right to defend myself,” said Deffert, showing restraint as he looked down the barrel of the officer’s gun. “May I ask why I’m being stopped?”
“Because you got a handgun walking down the street! That’s why!” shrieked Moe, his own pistol remaining trained on the pedestrian.
Deffert was put to the ground; his face shoved in the cold cement as he lay handcuffed and disarmed at the mercy of an aggressive hypocrite.
“I’m not a felon, nor am I breaking any laws. I’m currently being detained against my will for lawful possession of a firearm.”
