UCLA Student Gets Tasered by UCPD Officers: Both Sides Are at Fault

Past 11:30 p.m. on the night of Tuesday, November 14, 2006, in Powell Library, 23-year-old UCLA Middle Eastern and North African Studies and Philosophy student Mostafa Tabatabainejad was tasered several times by two UCPD officers for being uncooperative after he failed to produce his BruinCard when asked and did not leave the premises immediately. Okay, I tried to make that sentence as neutral as possible because that's the way I feel about the incident. That wasn't the way I felt right after watching the video, though.

By the publication and eventual reading of this article, I'm sure a number of AC producers will have already seen at least one of the many videos on YouTube recorded by students who were present at Powell Library during the incident. If not, then you must've seen it on CNN, Fox, NBC, ABC, or any other major news network. If not, you might've read about it in the LA Times or your local paper. If this article is your first exposure to the incident, I'm a little flattered, but you might be spending too much time on AC.

Many have received this story from an angle. Many have only heard the story from the middle, from the moment Tabatabainejad was screaming on the floor, which is the start of the first six-minute-and-fifty-three-second YouTube video. I'll try to tell the story as best as I can from beginning to end. I was not an eyewitness, but I've read just about every Daily Bruin written on the issue published up to the writing of this article (November 19, 2006).

It was almost midnight in Powell Library. At this time, CSOs (Community Service Officers), who are usually students themselves, do a routine ID check. The purpose is to make sure everyone in the library is a UCLA student, faculty, staff, or somehow a legitimate member of the UCLA society and to guarantee the safety of everyone inside the library. Tabatabainejad says he was the only one asked to show his BruinCard. A US-born student of Iranian descent, he thought it was a case of racial profiling. When he was unable to produce his BruinCard, he was asked to leave. He refused. Some individuals have written that the CSOs should've asked for other forms of identification before calling the UCPD, who came within minutes.

This is when the original YouTube video starts. This is when things start getting fuzzy. Tabatabainejad was being uncooperative with the two UCPD officers. At one point, he was on the floor, the officers repeatedly demanding for him to stand up. It is unclear whether he was on the floor before or after he was tasered the first time. Some sources say he was tasered four times; some say five. He yelled things like "This is your Patriot Act!" and "I am not resisting you!" An editorial on the Daily Bruin says he was asked to stand up 23 times before he was tasered a second time. A taser shot of three to five seconds can immobilize someone for five to ten minutes.

He cried out in pain several times. Some students yelled for him to cooperate so they could be spared the scene. The two officers eventually handcuffed him and escorted him out. One female student asked to see one of the officers' badge and was told that she would be tased too if she got any closer.

I heard about this on the night after the incident from a friend over AOL Instant Messenger. By then, it was on NBC's website, every Internet junkie had seen the YouTube video, Facebook groups were created (many, many groups), student interviews were conducted, and an e-mail was sent to Interim Chancellor Norman Abrams by a UCLA alumnus.

Tabatabainejad was charged for disturbance of peace. He was filing a lawsuit as of Friday, November 17, 2006. UCPD Police Chief Karl Ross and Interim Chancellor Norman Abrams fed the media diplomatic bullsh*t. Ross naturally maintained that the UCPD officers had taken the right measures, and Abrams said a thorough investigation would be conducted. Of course, men in their positions could not have said anything more committal or decisive. They were only doing their jobs as they read the notes that were most likely written by their publicists. But it was still bullsh*t. On Friday, November 17, 2006, hundreds of UCLA students, faculty, and staff marched to UCPD headquarters to demand a deeper investigation of the matter. Some wore signs that read, "I'm a student. Don't tase me!"

So, was this police brutality or just officers doing their job? This is what I think:

I have to admit that when I first watched the video, I automatically sided with the student, but that was because the video only caught him screaming from the taser shots. Naturally, it wasn't a great video, but it was enough to get the attention of everyone who watched it.

But both sides were at fault. The three key players in this drama made some bad choices. Tabatabainejad was obviously trying to make a scene. Whether he was being singled out for being Middle Eastern or not, he overreacted. He really didn't need to yell out the things he did. He should've cooperated. The officers, however, should not have used their tasers. I don't think the situation deemed it necessary. The two of them could've easily pinned him down to search him for any potential danger. They could've simply handcuffed him from the beginning and escorted him out. You cannot tell me that would've been outside of the capabilities of the two officers.

Tabatabainejad was making more noise than necessary. I've never been tased before, but I have been electrocuted and burned (usually under my own fault), and yes, it hurts, but his screams were excessive. A 23-year-old man should be tougher than that. I'd cut him some slack if he had some sort of physical illness. Maybe he was screaming more from anger than pain (didn't sound like it to me, though). Even in that case, a 23-year-old man should have more composure in a public scene. Of course, he didn't need composure because he was making a scene.

And he did a good job. Thanks to the officers. They had to choose to use their tasers, which only caused students to be more sympathetic toward Tabatabainejad. And what was that about tasing whomever got too close? Bad move, buddy.

Both sides could've handled the situation with finesse. Much more finesse.

The damage has already been done. What matters now is how people react.

In typical UCLA fashion, the students are either acting with extreme passion or with passive indifference. Some are even getting a laugh out of all this. At least some of us are. The passive ones are not getting the most out of attending a great university like UCLA. You don't need to march down Bruinwalk with picket signs and a sheet of paper taped to your chest chanting with the rest of the rally group to be considered above passivity. All you need is to have an opinion, some feelings about the incident, and not act as if it doesn't matter.

The passionate ones, I think, are acting too passionately too quickly. I should know. A UCLA alumnus, I've been among them. They act on the philosophy that actions speak the most loudly, which is very likely true, but it may not always be the best choice. I can understand their mentality, though. Thanks to government bureaucracy, students have to overdo it to get anything done.

What I don't agree with is the on-campus student leaders' single-minded determination to side with the student, which was my initial reaction too. (Of all Facebook groups formed on the topic, the UCLA group "I forgot my BruinCard.. please don't TASER me" has the most members as of the writing of this article, with over 3000 members.) But they have to realize the guy was being pig-headed, just as the two officers were. The officers should at least be under temporary suspension, but I don't think this is something to lose your badge over, especially when the student was being difficult. The student himself, I believe, has already gotten everything he wanted out of the situation. The entire world knows about it. He should ask for no more, but he does have to sue just to show he won't take this lying down (no pun intended).

By the time you read this, there will hopefully have been some official decisions made, but I wouldn't be surprised if it took a few years. That's how long people are going to be talking about this anyway.