Thabo & Pero Arrested; Thabo OUT FOR SEASON due to injuries

[AHF]

Couple interesting tidbits since we have all speculated on a lot of these points:

 

(1)  It is clear that the officers were inexperienced, as some of us suspected from the beginning based on the fact that they drew the assignment of dealing with club violence in the early morning hours.

 

(2)  It is now clear what Thabo and Pero were out clubbing (which isn't a crime).

 

(3)  Thabo didn't commit any crime, although insulting the police isn't smart.  NYPD legal is just doing this exercise as a warm up to the civil law suit that will likely come.  They don't have a prayer of convicting him.

 

(4)  Thabo was unfairly targeted by the police and made himself a more appealing target by insulting the police and re-entering the scene after he had cleared it and gone in his car.

 

I've got no doubt that Thabo is going to win the criminal case.  It won't be close.  I wish him all the best in cleaning the clocks of the NYPD in the civil case to come.  I hope none of our guys is out clubbing at 3 a.m. on a game day this season because mama was right.

[capstone21]

Couple interesting tidbits since we have all speculated on a lot of these points:

 

(1)  It is clear that the officers were inexperienced, as some of us suspected from the beginning based on the fact that they drew the assignment of dealing with club violence in the early morning hours.

 

(2)  It is now clear what Thabo and Pero were out clubbing (which isn't a crime).

 

(3)  Thabo didn't commit any crime, although insulting the police isn't smart.  NYPD legal is just doing this exercise as a warm up to the civil law suit that will likely come.  They don't have a prayer of convicting him.

 

(4)  Thabo was unfairly targeted by the police and made himself a more appealing target by insulting the police and re-entering the scene after he had cleared it and gone in his car.

 

I've got no doubt that Thabo is going to win the criminal case.  It won't be close.  I wish him all the best in cleaning the clocks of the NYPD in the civil case to come.  I hope none of our guys is out clubbing at 3 a.m. on a game day this season because mama was right.

agree and it was totally irresponsible of Thabo to reenter the fray and especially to insult a cop ... no matter what, that will never result in a good outcome.

[lethalweapon3]

Pero testified that, during Mini-Me's arguing with Thabo, even he was closer to the scene than Thabo was. This was after the cops pushed Pero twice to move away. Pero hailed the cab that the pair was getting into, with cops still chasing them, before the "beggar" (the backup security guy) approached asking for money.

 

~lw3

[AHF]

Just as an aside, what the heck was the security guy doing begging for cash?

[HawkItus]

The "homeless" guy? Turns out, he was "backup security" and administered aid to Copeland. The cops could have used him to help make the case against Bleary (the stabbing case NYC seems eerily disinterested in adjudicating).

 

He "went up the block" to clear the yellow-taped scene the police were setting up... and was STILL getting whisked away as Thabo was making his monetary offer.

 

~lw3

so how disheveled was the security guard that he was mistaken for homeless?

[HawkItus]

This freaking incident should be a 30 for 30 lol

 

"When Hawks land among big city pigeons"

[Guest]

agree and it was totally irresponsible of Thabo to reenter the fray and especially to insult a cop ... no matter what, that will never result in a good outcome.

 

You're not wrong.  Still though, police are supposed to be above responding to petty insults.

 

Just as an aside, what the heck was the security guy doing begging for cash?

 

Do we know he was panhandling?  Was it Thabo just hooking him up since he'd helped Copeland?

Edited October 7, 2015 by kg01

[lethalweapon3]

You're not wrong.  Still though, police are supposed to be above responding to petty insults.

 

 

Do we know he was panhandling?  Was it Thabo just hooking him up since he'd helped Copeland?

 

Redditor's note from the panhandler's testimony, to the Direct-Exam (Defense):

 

• Noticed D before. Yeah he's a basketball player. I said what up. He was about to hand me money. I was happy. "Yeah not gonna lie, i was about to get some money from an nba player."

 

and from the Cross-Exam (Prosecution):

 

• Did you recognize D? "My eyes are big, see 'em, I knew him off the top."
• Always ask NBA'ers for money? "Yeah, everyone, Jay-z Beyonce, everyone"

 

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

Thabo's on the stand at the moment.

 

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~lw3

Edited October 7, 2015 by lethalweapon3

[lethalweapon3]

The Private Investigator witness wasn't there for the skirmish but he played a valuable role for the defense in noting the importance of the Cops using crime tape to set up the perimeter of the crime scene.

 

Central to everything that unfolded are the vague commands the NYPD officers received to "clear the block" beyond the area they had roped off, around a half-hour after the Copeland stabbing. Is "the block" all the way to the corner? Everyone leaving the club? Everyone chilling around the pizza shop up at the corner? How about across the street? How about all the traffic whizzing by on the street?

 

Left to their own devices to understand what "clear the block" means, Joe Pesci Lite goes hunting for someone most likely, in his estimation, to "cause trouble." Maybe make a big scene of him "complying" (see my "Big Bird Rule") so everyone else will know he's not just some shorty cop messing around.

 

Oh hey, there's a tall mark leaving the club in a hoodie! Let me make sure I cuss him out...

 

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

I know there ought to be time constraints, but I wish the Prosecution wasn't granted a night's sleep at the Holiday Inn Express before cross-examining Thabo tomorrow. (as CViv just reported).

 

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

Notes from the Redditor Hawks fan/public defender, First of two acquaintances Thabo met with at 1Oak before leaving together, with Pero (Direct-Exam):

 

• Group was me, Carolyn, Thabo, Pero, some others
• Cop yells, "Get the f*ck off my street." Officer was short, young, caucasian.
• We were taken aback. We were like oooook, we're leaving, we kept going.
• He comes up again, "What are you still doing here?" We tell him we're getting a car. The car is coming. The car arrives. Officer comes up again.
• Thabo tells officer, just because you have a badge and gun doesn't mean you can do this.
• Ofc says "Doesn't matter badge or gun, I can still *beep* you up."
• Thabo says, "Clearly you're upset about something. I'm sorry you're short. I'm sorry I'm in a better financial situation than you. We're leaving."

 

That witness noted that while she never met Thabo before that night/morning at the club, she DID know another Hawks player (unspecified) who got her connected with the Defense Attorney after the incident.

 

From the Cross-Exam:

 

• Earlier, when D said, "clearly you're upset" he was calm.
• Calm when saying "sorry you're short"
• Calm when saying "better financial situation"
• Officer screaming the F word.
• Despite screaming, D was calm the whole time.

 

~lw3

Edited October 7, 2015 by lethalweapon3

[capstone21]

Napoleon Complex

 

[AHF]

Telling an a-hole in authority that he is beneath you both literally and financially is drawing a big old target on your back.  Doesn't justify the a-hole at all (there is a reason he is the a-hole in the scenario) but it is pretty predictable that you are going to get a negative reaction from that.  The only purpose of that comment is to put the a-hole in his place, something that a-holes historically don't so much appreciate.

 

Telling someone "I'm sorry you are so short and I'm so much richer than you" is very condescending, basically giving them the verbal middle finger.  Perhaps deserved in light of his blowhard, a-hole manner.  The original plan of giving him the verbal finger and driving away would have been a much better idea.

[Randy]

Looks like Thabo will get off Scott free (sorry, bad choice of words) unless the jury is stacked with "little people" who are not doing as well financially as Thabo. 

[lethalweapon3]

"I'm sorry you are so short and I'm so much richer than you" is very condescending, basically giving them the verbal middle finger.

 

Although the silver lining is, Thabo's Presidential Approval Ratings shot up another 10 percent! (sorry, wrong forum! I kid! I kid!)

 

I agree that Thabo's bruised ego was an ingredient of this mess as well. Meets a couple nice ladies (one, a Friend of a Hawk) on his celebratory night out, gets tossed out the club before they could ever enjoy the drinks they ordered, because of some unclear trouble outside, walks outside to set up their party plans elsewhere, and here comes some cop targeting him and his entourage, complete with F-bombs all the way up the street. This night out on the town's not going quite the way he planned.

 

"Sir, yes sir!" is the appropriate response to the jerkwad. Nothing else, even if that doesn't impress the ladies much. You can all poke fun at the po-po's once you've driven off and headed to the diner.

 

It should be noted that while Officer Mini-Me was the guy who went so far as to open the cab (Thabo's testimony) and order Thabo's party inside, he was not (by the Officer's testimony) part of the party that jumped Thabo when he walked to the other side of the car and re-encountered Truth the Beggar.

 

• I didn't know why Thabo was being arrested, i just saw him engaged with other officers.

 

However, the officer who overheard the "Midget" comment (NYPD's testimony) wound up being the one trying to "save" the officer whisking the beggar away from being "assaulted" by Thabo. He's the one who extrapolated Thabo's verbal diss of his partner into a potential War on Cops.

 

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

Jury deliberations will continue tomorrow after the Defense and Prosecution issued their closing statements. Bud was among the final witnesses (character witness, obviously) for the Defense. The prosecutor also got their wrists-slapped for delaying the issuance of evidence that might have shown contradicting statements (by the NYPD, prior to the trial) regarding Pero's actions, statements made before and after the TMZ video went public.

A Redditor (separate guy from the Hawks fan of the prior days) has been summarizing today's events. He's returned home and will expand on the closing arguments tonight.

https://www.reddit.com/r/nba/comments/3nys01/thabo_sefolosha_trial_day_4/?sort=new

Jean-Cosme Delaloye (Geneva Tribune's US Correspondent; Thabo's Swiss, of course) has been tweeting notes during the day as well.

https://twitter.com/jeancosme

 

~lw3

[MaceCase]

 

"Thabo, Pero, not guilty"

[Dejay]

I tried to get in to break the news but someone beat me to it. You know what should come next, right? I hope the NYPD have a civil suit settlement account on hand; they'll need it if I was Thabo...

Edited October 9, 2015 by Dejay

[macdaddy]

One down!  Two to go!   Nice work Thabo and lawyers.   What an embarrassment to nypd.   Now when is Mike Scott's deal?   I'm assuming Bud's will get settled in 2020.