There's a video of an arrest of a Rhode Island Assistant Attorney General that's going viral, and when you see it, it will be easy to see why.
Newport Police were called to the Clarke Cooke House, where they allegedly found Special Assistant Attorney General Devon Hogan Flanagan and a friend, Veronica Hannan, outside. The restaurant reportedly wanted them to leave; it's unclear what occurred prior to the video, but they wanted them gone. The officer asked if the restaurant wanted them "trespassed" and they said yes, they wanted them to go, "Please." That's when things went south, as the officer told them they had to leave, saying he didn't want to have to arrest them.
Warning for graphic language:
Flanagan insisted that their body cam protocol was that if she asked them to turn the camera off, they had to turn it off. Her friend said she was a "lawyer, so she knew." The officer was unmoved and said it wasn't true. "I'm an AG," she insisted. The officer said, "I don't give a s***. Let's go."
When they continued, the officer moved to put the cuffs on Flanagan, as she yelled over and over again, "I'm an AG! I'm an AG!" She said you're putting me in cuffs and you're not "Mirandizing" me. He's also not questioning you, so no, he doesn't have to.
He put her in the car. She said, "Buddy, you're gonna regret this. You're gonna regret it! I'm an..." as the door shut. I think we can fill in that last word, "AG." If you have to deal with a cop, the last thing you should do is drop titles. She is an Assistant AG, and the police didn't care. Then she appeared to be throwing her weight around with that threat.
The police also had to get the friend into a car - that was quite the struggle, but they finally managed.
Police wrote that during the booking process, Flanagan was “berating officers, repeatedly stating her position as an AG, and refusing to follow instructions.”
Flanagan was arrested for willful trespass.
Timothy Rondeau, a spokesperson for the Attorney General’s Office, said on Monday that Flanagan’s request is not part of the statewide body-worn camera policy, and confirmed the policy applies only to victims and witnesses of crimes.
The Attorney General's Office said they were reviewing the incident and that Flanagan worked for the Appellate Unit of the Criminal Division.
Her boss, the actual Rhode Island AG, is a Democrat. Peter Neronha had some interesting things to say about the incident.
He said that Flanagan has not been placed on leave, but that a "strong sanction" would be coming, including a "suspension without pay" if he decides to retain her with the office. [....]
"Look, she's put me in a bad position. She's embarrassed herself, humiliated herself, treated the Newport Police Department horribly," Neronha said during the Aug. 19 interview on WPRO. "She is going to take some steps to try to address that in the next day or so."
He said she understood that an apology was "necessary." He said he hadn't decided yet as to what discipline to take.
"It was inexcusable behavior," he said. "She knows better ... I've got 110 lawyers. She embarrassed all of them, in a sense."
He said that he had Flanagan watch the body camera footage herself, take a few days and then come back to him with what she thought she needed to do to "make this right."
He also said she "misstated" the body cam protocol.
"Look, it's my office that drove that body cam program in the first place. So I'm really glad that they're on every police officer in the state," Neronha said.
We'll have to see what comes next.
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