California’s Riverside County paid a man $498,000 to settle a wrongful arrest lawsuit after he dared a police officer to arrest him in a 2022 incident, according to reports.
Gregory Whaling, who relied on a cane after his double-knee replacement, was arrested Sep. 14, 2022 after Riverside County Sheriff’s Office (RCSO) Deputy Robert Glaser accused the man of interfering with an investigation, CBS News reported. Glaser was questioning another man suspected of involvement in a dispute in a senior living neighborhood in Temecula, a bodycam video shared by the Orange County Register shows.
Glaser threatens to tase and eventually arrests Whaling, accusing him of impeding his investigation, according to the footage. Whaling filed a federal lawsuit accusing Glaser of unreasonable seizure, unreasonable use of force and false arrest, and pursued no less than $3 million in damages, according to the Orange County Register.
The RCSO fired the 14-year police veteran Glaser after an investigation determined that he had used unnecessary force and sustained other accusations of misconduct, an email obtained by the outlet said. Riverside County paid Whaling $498,000 to settle the suit. (RELATED: Man Who Spent 16 Years In Prison For Murder To Get Millions In Settlement: REPORT)
“It’s like a nothing use of force. … I have seen much worse behavior by Riverside County Sheriff’s Department deputy sheriffs,” said Whaling’s attorney, Jerry Steering.
“This was a big nothing,” Glaser’s lawyer, Michael Williamson, said. “The fact is, unfortunately he had a cane, unfortunately he was a Black man … it was not a beatdown. In this case, his mouth caused his problem.”
“Could this have been better? Absolutely … but this is much ado about nothing,” Williamson continued, claiming that the allegations against Glaser relied on “the flimsiest of evidence.”
Whaling first appears while Glaser is questioning another man, according to the bodycam footage. The man — who says in the video that he is not a registered tenant in the senior living facility but was there to see a friend — accuses Whaling and others of harassing him over being shirtless. Whaling is within earshot and can be heard responding to the man’s allegation.
Glaser warns Whaling to stop, adding that he will speak with him afterward. When Whaling keeps speaking, Glaser says, “Go over there or you’re going to end up in the back of my car!”
“I ain’t getting s—t,” Whaling replies, according to the video.
“You don’t think I will put you in my car?” asks Glaser as he can be seen approaching Whaling
“I bet you, you won’t. I bet you — not with these,” Whaling appears to reply, pulling up his shorts to reveal his knees. “I bet you, you won’t.”
“I will put you in the back of my car,” Glaser says as he reaches Whaling. “Go over there. Turn around. Put your hands behind your back. You’re impeding my investigation, sir. Put your hands behind your back, or you’re going to end up getting tased.”
“Put your hands behind your back,” Glaser says.
“For what?” asks Whaling.
“‘Cause I said so and you’re impeding my investigation there,” the officer says.
“How am I impeding your investigation, man? What did I do?” Whaling asks.
“Put your hands behind your back,” Glaser says.
“What did I do?” asks Whaling.
“Okay, you’re gonna get tased. Put your hands behind your back,” Glaser says in the video.
Both men keep arguing in the video, with Whaling saying at one point, “I can’t even walk, man, what’re you doing?” Whaling can be seen on the ground and he claims Glaser tackled him.
Glaser claims Whaling fell to the ground. “I told you my knees are f—ed up,” Whaling says.
A witness asks Glaser to let Whaling get back up. Whaling insists on waiting for a backup officer.
Glaser keeps on trying to handcuff Whaling and tells him, “It’s all on video, sir.”
“You’re stupid, man,” Whaling is heard saying. “You’re gonna be in trouble. Your a— is gonna be in trouble … I got two f—ing knee replacements and you tackle … you f—ing b—h! This motherf—er tackled me!”