VIDEO: Pay $250 Fine or Patrol Car Gets Towed, Illegally Parked Cop Gets a Taste of Police Extortion

By Justin Gardner on October 15, 2015

Charleston, SC — The owner of a Charleston small business decided he was going to show that cops are not above the law.

In this video, Chad Walton of CWR Racing hooks his winch to a police cruiser that was parked illegally behind his business, with every intention of towing it to his facility. According to the posted sign, once an illegally parked vehicle is hooked for towing, it costs $250 to unhook. There is also a charge of $30 for every day the vehicle sits in the facility.

“This police car is illegally parked here. I’ve gotten a couple of tickets downtown, had my car booted, towed, um, all that good stuff. So we’re going to go ahead and return the favor. As soon as we hook up to it…just like they do to everybody in downtown Charleston…$250 before I disconnect, or we’re going to go ahead and tow it inside our facility over there.”

Mr. Walton points out that there are guns and other gear in the trunk of the police cruiser which could be stolen.

“If anybody would like a free handgun, a couple of shotguns, some lights, bulletproof vests and what not…all in the trunk of this car here. We’re doing a public service by pulling this car out of this dangerous neighborhood.

Mr. Walton and another person witnessed the cop park the car, get out and put his patrol belt into the trunk, then get into the car with another woman and drive off, saying they were going “car shopping.”

Within 20 minutes, six police show up on the scene. Car after car can be seen pulling into the lot, as if Mr. Watson was a suspect.

The cops seem to be in disarray, finding no possible excuse they could use to beat Mr. Walton or otherwise violate his rights.

“They don’t know what to do,” whispers Mr. Walton to the camera.

As Mr. Walton is explaining the fee for unhooking the vehicle, the driver of the police car angrily gets his patrol belt from the trunk and stalks off.

Another non-uniformed officer attempts to antagonize Mr. Walton as he is talking to the Deputy Chief of Police on the phone, claiming that Mr. Walton is violating the law.

It looks like none of the cops can believe what they were seeing. An informed citizen giving police a taste of their own extortion medicine is a powerful force that throws a wrench in the authoritarian mindset.

The issue was temporarily resolved when the Deputy Chief agreed to meet with Mr. Watson later in the week to discuss the matter, and the police car was unhooked.

Mr. Walton indeed performed a public service.

“For those of you…who have had your bicycles stolen downtown by the police department because, you know, you had tied to a stop sign or something like that…this is for you guys.”