MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Twenty-year-old Dontavious Curtis is behind bars after police say he’s the man seen in a viral video taking a swing at a truck driver with a baseball bat.
On Monday, they picked him up near the corner of Robin Hood Lane and Sharpe Avenue.
He was a passenger in a car being driven by someone else.
Police said the driver wasn’t wearing a seat belt, and that’s when they spotted Curtis in the passenger seat.
They ran his name and found multiple felony warrants.
What police did was perfectly legal said Memphis Attorney David Gold, but he doesn’t like it.
“As long as there`s a warrant for your arrest, it negates any illegality or impropriety on the part of the officer,” he said. “Even if you`re doing nothing wrong at all, and that to me, is a complete erosion of the Fourth Amendment.”
Questions about when police can question a passenger started in Memphis last year.
That’s when Officer Connor Schilling pulled a car over and ran checks on both the driver and the passenger.
Darrius Stewart was the passenger and wanted in other states.
After a struggle, the officer shot and killed the teen.
Mayor A C Wharton ordered a review of policy policies.
On Tuesday, the department told WREG officers are allowed to use their own discretion.
“Now the officer can walk right up to the car and say, `what`s your name? What`s your name? I`ll be right back.` And you have to provide them with that information,” said Gold.
He told WREG before officers can do that though, they have to see some violation of the law or have reasonable suspicion before they pull someone over.