YouTube Video Results in Raid

Mike Riggs | June 27, 2008

After seeing a YouTube video made by Andre Moore, Philadelphia police broke down Moore's front door at 6 a.m. yesterday and arrested him for assault. Unlike the case of eight Florida girls who assaulted another girl, however, Moore's video didn't contain evidence of any criminal wrongdoing—unless verbally advocating violence against police constitutes a crime.

Michael Carroll from Villanova U. doesn't think the aggravated assault charges will stick:

"I'm not saying this is popular speech or that this is a responsible opinion. It's clear people are going to be upset by it, but that doesn't make it criminal."

Carroll believes this arrest stems solely from Moore's speech and nothing else, and speech, regardless of how hateful, is protected under the First Amendment.

Moore's video joins Body Count's "Cop Killer" on the list of "Protests Against Police Abuse That Actually Incite More Police Abuse."

Senior Editor Radley Balko wrote about another Internet phenomenon that earned police ire, here.