A New Jersey Hero cop was video’d brake-checking a driver who does not appear to have been tailgating him. In ant event, brake-checking is certainly not “safe” – and aren’t Heroes all about “safety”? If the motorist int he video was in fact tailgating, why not simply pull him over instead?
The Clifton, New Jersey, Police Department is aware of the incident,” according to police spokesman Robert Bracken. “Internal Affairs matters are confidential, therefore, we will not be commenting on the incident at this time.”
Bracken did not disclose the officer’s first name or the department’s policy on brake checking. Public records identify the Hero as Juan Velez, who has been working with the Clifton Police Department since 2005 and makes an annual salary of $119,558.
Omar B. included this description with the video:
I was driving home and an officer was driving ahead of me. For the road that we were on, we were going pretty slowly, but the speed limit is 25 so I can’t complain there. That being said, a good amount of traffic had built up behind us.
All of a sudden, this officer slams on his brakes and tried to have me run into him. When we were talking about it, he told me the brake checked me because, paraphrasing, “He thought I was going to run into him…” I don’t know how to respond to this comment. He braked because he thought I was going to run into him… I cannot wrap my head around it.
He could have hurt me, himself, and anyone else that was behind me that could not have stopped in time. If he wanted to pull me over, he should have pulled over to the side, let me pass him, and then used the lights and sirens on his emergency vehicle to pull me over like a proper officer.
Maybe visit the Clifton, NJ Police Facebook page and let them know what you think of Hero Velez’ actions.
Ah, Clifton NJ. My mom grew up there. Used to be a nice place, today, not so much.
Juan Valdez? I guess that coffee thing musta run its course….sorta like that rich, Corinthian leather.
Remember the SNL skit where the cartel boys in their SUVs make fun on poor ol’ Juan? ‘What an a-hole.’
The cop should not have “brake-checked” the individual. If the LEO believed there was a violation, he could have pulled over the individual in a safer manner without trying to instigate a crash.
(It appears that the individual was following about 2 seconds behind the LEO, which should be enough following distance for an attentive driver. The video demonstrates that the individual was able to stop his vehicle without hitting the car in front of him.)
Regardless of the LEOs actions, the driver was not too bright driving near a LEO while driving with some legal violations. (No front license plate and a few other issues IIRC)