(no subject)

[theweaselking]

Bob Dylan arrested for looking, sounding like Bob Dylan (but not having paperwork to prove it).

The cop, 24, was apparently polite and reasonable but was still pretty sure this guy was a homeless man who was lying to her about everything until they got to his tour bus.

Comments

[kierthos.livejournal.com]

Well, honestly, Bob Dylan does look like a homeless guy.

Well, until you notice that he has all his teeth....

[athelind.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I'm not sure I would have bought his story, either. Did he have any ID?

[sandchigger.livejournal.com]

That. Is. HILARIOUS! I especially loved the bit at the end, "In October, 2001, he was held up at a checkpoint at Jackson County Exposition Center in Oregon as he attempted to get into the backstage area of his own concert, according to the Associated Press."

[madamealexis.livejournal.com]

Thanks for posting this. It's a cool story.

[ladyfox7oaks.livejournal.com]

Geez,,, next to him, she looks young enough to be his GRAND-Daughter...

[theweaselking.livejournal.com]

He's 68. She's 24. She *is* young enough to be his granddaughter.

[marlo.livejournal.com]

That's so funny!! It's really awesome that he wasn't all, "THIS IS AN OUTRAGE!! I AM FAMOUS DAMMIT!" and he just said, "okay, I understand."

[holyoutlaw.livejournal.com]

I think she was fair in her treatment and did everything by the book. I wouldn't have believed someone caught trespassing in a bad neighborhood saying he was Bob Dylan.

[lafinjack.livejournal.com]

It's like he was a complete unknown.

[tsunami-ryuu.livejournal.com]

Apparently walking outside and looking at the front of a for-sale house while being scraggly and old = suspicious enough to warrant a stop-and-identify. Not JUST a stop and identify, but a stop, detain, and drive you around in a police car until we find someone who can verify your ID.

I thought that, while carrying ID all the time is highly advisable, there's no law mandating it in the US. Pretty sure that the Hiibel SCOTUS ruling declares identifying yourself by name to be enough in most cases.

Anyway, blahblahblahblarghamerica, etc. At least Bob Dylan was gracious about it.

[kjn]

If it was Dylan, would you've been able to make out his name when he said it?

[mcfnord.livejournal.com]

Cops should believe me when I say I'm Willie Nelson!

[spazcat101.livejournal.com]

I wonder if his ID says "Bob Dylan" or "Robert Zimmerman"...

[holyoutlaw.livejournal.com]

Good point. Probably not.

[tsunami-ryuu.livejournal.com]

Hahaha, I mean, I don't blame her for wondering if he was lying. But since no crime was being committed, and there's a total lack of probable cause or reasonable suspicion (besides a man looking at a for sale house), the law suggests she didn't have the grounds to actually detain the guy and demand government-issued ID.

[mcfnord.livejournal.com]

best comment

[interactiveleaf.livejournal.com]

No.

[entropymagnet.livejournal.com]

The only thing that rubs me the wrong way with this story is the fact that it assumes apparently everyone should know how Bob Dylan looks and sounds or be at risk of the news making you look like an idiot for doing your job.

I mean, I don't like the whole "your ID is your identity" angle, either, but I wouldn't like being made to feel foolish for not knowing what someone looks like, famous or not.

[le-trombone.livejournal.com]

Not to mention the fact that "everyone knows what Bob Dylan looks like" is nonsense, since what people think he looks like is this. Or even younger, depending on the CD you have on your shelf (or the iTunes image on your screen).

[tsunami-ryuu.livejournal.com]

Derail, but...

STICK STICKLEY!

[dj-jonny-flash.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty sure that loitering is against the law in many places, as is failing to provide some type of identification when a police officer demands it.

[dj-jonny-flash.livejournal.com]

Reminds me of Joe Cocker playing the most authentic looking singing bum ever in "Across the Universe."

[tsunami-ryuu.livejournal.com]

Walking isn't loitering, though, and the sidewalk is a public thoroughfare.

As far as I understand it, the most you're required by law to provide to an officer is your name (see Hiibel v. Nevada (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hiibel_v._Sixth_Judicial_District_Court_of_Nevada) and Terry v. Ohio (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terry_v._Ohio)). There's no law mandating government-issued ID (if there were, it'd be a huge constitutional issue with possible discrimination issues).

Problem with Terry stops is the "reasonable suspicion" clause. The officer must have a reasonable suspicion that a crime has been committed or is about to be committed. Hunches aren't enough.

I'm not sure that simply looking like a bum is reasonable cause for an officer to detain a person.