FREE THE FAUROT 30!!!!

[gblowfish]

Interesting story in Columbia. Saturday night the local campus cops arrested 30 field rushers, seemingly at random, when as many as an estimated 30,000 rushed the field. Is it right to arrest .1% of those who rushed the field after the win for "trespassing?" Here's the story in the Columbia Tribune:

http://tinyurl.com/2g5yskt

Also, the MU Athletic Dept was selling posters of the fans flooding the field in celebration as late as today on their website, then, when they were asked why they were making money off promoting this "illegal act" the took the poster down off their website.

So what do you think?

Should these 30 be make examples of, or should the charges be dismissed. Discuss!

[Shogun]

Dismissed. IMO They were showing support, not hurting anybody but those poor Oklahomo's for getting crushed.

[Brock]

I'm guessing these charges will be dismissed.

[siberian khatru]

Dismissed. Ridiculous.

Are they also charging folks who have pieces of the goalposts with receiving stolen property?

[Third Eye]

.1%

[Priest31kc]

Totally ridiculous. They better drop the charges. Wouldn't surprise me if they don't tho, this world is so fucked up.

[sportsman1]

Yeah they do that at Tech too. I myself am not a victim of that because I am a tall and lanky guy. The people that get arrested are those that are of the rounder variety. Any of y'all MU people coming down for the game? I'll be there, love to tailgate.

[POND_OF_RED]

My brother was thrown out of the game Saturday before kickoff by some state trooper for throwing a cigarrette over the turnstyle. Complete bullshit. Said anyone stupid enough to throw a lit cigarrette into dry leaves (with scattered thunderstorms all day) didn't deserve to be at the game. Luckily I was able to drop my ticket down to him from the turnstyle and he went into another entrance. Made it to our seats about a minute before we returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown so it worked out great. Meanwhile we sat at the top of our section where we could see the same state trooper kick out 8 more people for the same reason and even arrested one guy.

[Brock]

My brother was thrown out of the game Saturday before kickoff by some state trooper for throwing a cigarrette over the turnstyle. Complete bullshit. Said anyone stupid enough to throw a lit cigarrette into dry leaves (with scattered thunderstorms all day) didn't deserve to be at the game. Luckily I was able to drop my ticket down to him from the turnstyle and he went into another entrance. Made it to our seats about a minute before we returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown so it worked out great. Meanwhile we sat at the top of our section where we could see the same state trooper kick out 8 more people for the same reason and even arrested one guy.

Should have been cited for littering.

[joesomebody]

I heard a state rep or senator was pushing for Mizzou to drop charges. Also, here's a link to the photos they were selling after arresting people.

http://email.replayphotos.com.s3.amazonaws.com/Missouri_102410_EB.htm

[Goldmember]

My brother was thrown out of the game Saturday before kickoff by some state trooper for throwing a cigarrette over the turnstyle. Complete bullshit. Said anyone stupid enough to throw a lit cigarrette into dry leaves (with scattered thunderstorms all day) didn't deserve to be at the game. Luckily I was able to drop my ticket down to him from the turnstyle and he went into another entrance. Made it to our seats about a minute before we returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown so it worked out great. Meanwhile we sat at the top of our section where we could see the same state trooper kick out 8 more people for the same reason and even arrested one guy.

Not too smart to be throwing a butt down in front of a cop. I get pissed when I see people throw their butts out car windows. That's how roadside fires get started.

[bowener]

My brother was thrown out of the game Saturday before kickoff by some state trooper for throwing a cigarrette over the turnstyle. Complete bullshit. Said anyone stupid enough to throw a lit cigarrette into dry leaves (with scattered thunderstorms all day) didn't deserve to be at the game. Luckily I was able to drop my ticket down to him from the turnstyle and he went into another entrance. Made it to our seats about a minute before we returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown so it worked out great. Meanwhile we sat at the top of our section where we could see the same state trooper kick out 8 more people for the same reason and even arrested one guy.

Not saying your bro should have been thrown out, but there are proper receptacles for cigarette butts. He probably just made himself look like an asshole in front of a power tripping trooper (that or one who has some vanity plates that read "GAY4OK").

I used to sell tickets and work the gates at all the home sporting events for Mizzou, and I can say most of the troopers are pretty laid back and lenient. Keep in mind how many drunk assholes they encounter on a game day. Lots.

[bowener]

Not too smart to be throwing a butt down in front of a cop. I get pissed when I see people throw their butts out car windows. That's how roadside fires get started.

If I had money, and a place to hang it, I think I would have to buy that picture.

[Bambi]

I heard a state rep or senator was pushing for Mizzou to drop charges. Also, here's a link to the photos they were selling after arresting people.

http://email.replayphotos.com.s3.amazonaws.com/Missouri_102410_EB.htm

Yea selling an image like this then arresting people is not going to fly.

It's kind of like the situation last week when the NFL was selling photos off their website that were images of Harrison and the other "fined" hits...

[joesomebody]

If I had money, and a place to hang it, I think I would have to buy that picture.I liked it too. I don't think it's for sale anymore because of the trespassing.

[Saul Good]

Yea selling an image like this then arresting people is not going to fly.

It's kind of like the situation last week when the NFL was selling photos off their website that were images of Harrison and the other "fined" hits...

Did the KU website sell pictures of Jayhawks fans storming the field after they being Georgia Tech?

[POND_OF_RED]

Not saying your bro should have been thrown out, but there are proper receptacles for cigarette butts. He probably just made himself look like an asshole in front of a power tripping trooper (that or one who has some vanity plates that read "GAY4OK").

I used to sell tickets and work the gates at all the home sporting events for Mizzou, and I can say most of the troopers are pretty laid back and lenient. Keep in mind how many drunk assholes they encounter on a game day. Lots.

There weren't any receptacles around. I guess the inside of the stadium is all no smoking. Not too many signs around to tell. Anyways my brother didn't give him any trouble. The trooper just had it in his mind that he was going to throw one of us out. Said he watched us smoke the whole cigarette and was just waiting for one of us to do something stupid. He could have easily come up to him before he threw it and told him it was a no smoking section and asked him to put the cig out. The guy was just being a dick. Plain and simple. No reason to throw someone out for that with a $75 ticket in hand to the biggest game of the season. Oh well. He got back in so it's really not that big of a deal.

[joesomebody]

I really like this one: http://www.finitefocus.com/p114570302/e33924e94

[jspchief]

Rushing the field is gay. And probably dangerous too. And a good way to get the college sued by some litigious cocksucker that gets crushed under a toppled crossbar.

As for it only being .X%... yea, mob mentality. It's why people act like that, the assumption of anonymity in numbers.

[gblowfish]

More on this in today's KC Star:

Fallout intensifies over MU students' arrests during football celebration
By JASON NOBLE

http://tinyurl.com/2az8fc4

JEFFERSON CITY | Often when students get arrested on campus, their cause is a serious one — war, injustice or maybe even rising tuition.

For the “Faurot Field 30,” the cause was football and the moment was one of celebration.

At the height of the University of Missouri’s collective euphoria over beating top-ranked Oklahoma last Saturday — and as thousands of spectators poured out of the stands and onto the gridiron — campus police nabbed the 30, handcuffed them and cited them for trespassing.

University officials maintain that entering the field posed serious safety risks and that fans had ample warning of what would happen.

But the arrests have enflamed students, parents, alumni and even the area’s state senator. They’re calling the university’s actions unfair, hypocritical and worse.

“My view of the situation is complete and total outrage,” said Bonnie Deem of St. Charles, whose son, Chris Deem, was among those arrested.

Sen. Kurt Schaefer, a Columbia Republican, said he wants those arrested to perform community service rather than face criminal charges. “This is selective prosecution,” he said. “It’s a problem to single out just those 30 for arrest.”

But for now, the university is moving toward prosecution. University spokeswoman Mary Jo Banken said Tuesday the cases would be turned over to the city of Columbia prosecutor’s office, which will then decide how to proceed with charges.

Banken did not return numerous calls seeking additional comment on Wednesday.

An official at the prosecutor’s office said it had not received any cases involving trespassing at the stadium and typically doesn’t receive them until 10 to 14 days after tickets are written. First-degree trespassing is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $500 and imprisonment of up to six months.

Also upset with the arrests is the Missouri Students Association, the undergraduate student-government organization on campus.

“We have to stand up for the students,” MSA President Tim Noce was quoted in the Columbia Missourian newspaper.

Chris Deem, a sophomore majoring in business and one of the Faurot 30, recalled watching the game from near the back of the student section at Memorial Stadium and following the crowd after the game ended.

But he said he didn’t even make it onto the playing field before a police officer placed him under arrest. When he asked the officer why he was being arrested when so many other fans were milling about the field, Deem said the officer replied that “he didn’t have that many handcuffs.”

Deem said he was taken to a holding area outside the stadium, photographed and ticketed before being allowed to leave.

He said he hasn’t heard anything from the university or the city prosecutor’s office since. His mother said she was told by university administrators this week that the students will be prosecuted for trespassing and fined between $100 and $150.

“I don’t think it’s really fair to arrest 30 people when 30,000 are out on the field,” Chris Deem said. “How can you say 30 people did something wrong, but not everyone else?”

The arrest leaves Deem, who his mother said has a 4.0 GPA, nervous about his prospects after graduation. An employer could run a background check and find a conviction without the context of an exuberant college football game.

“I don’t want them to see a first-degree trespassing charge,” Deem said of prospective employers. “They could think that means anything.”

While Schaefer believes those arrested should face some punishment, the legislator is calling for some “leniency.”

“I’m not saying drop everything,” he said. “I’m saying don’t process them through the criminal justice system … and give them a potential criminal mark on their permanent record.”

Schaefer said he met Wednesday with “university officials,” whom he wouldn’t identify, and came away hopeful that they’ll “do the reasonable thing.”

However, university spokeswoman Banken said earlier that rules against entering the field need to be enforced.

“While we do understand the emotion felt in the stadium on Saturday night, we simply cannot ignore our safety policies and procedures and in doing so inadvertently put students at risk,” she said.

Rules against coming on the field are made clear both in writing on game tickets and through public address announcements at the stadium, she noted. Not enforcing them would “set a dangerous precedent for future MU events.”

Immediately following the game, however, officials lowered the goal posts to the field. Revelers were allowed to carry the goal posts out of the stadium and across campus to a downtown bar, where they reportedly were cut into pieces for souvenirs.

In a story Monday in The Kansas City Star, Missouri Athletic Director Mike Alden explained that his staff had expected fans to storm the field.

“It’s an historic moment. You sense the emotion. You know what’s going to be happening. Your staff is ready to go. But you just let them come on,” Alden said.

Schaefer said that admission raises doubt as to whether the fans’ presence on the field actually constituted trespassing.

“There’s a real question if they really were trespassing,” said Schaefer, who is a lawyer. “It’s legal if there was an invitation onto the field.”

Accusations also have been leveled that the university is trying to have it both ways — to appear concerned about fans’ well being, while also profiting from the publicity of a major athletic achievement.

Bonnie Deem pointed to an e-mail sent to students and alumni on Monday evening advertising photos from the game.

The message, obtained by The Star, comes from the “Tigers Photo Store” of the “Official Athletics Site of the University of Missouri.” It includes an image of thousands of fans on the field after the game, and leaves the impression that the image is available for sale.

But as of Wednesday, no images of fans swarming the field of play were available for sale on the team store site.

“It is the height of hypocrisy that the athletic department is selling photos of these people,” Deem said. “They’re selling photos of people they’re saying are lawbreakers.”

Schaefer noted a similar situation in which an image of the fans on the field was displayed prominently on the University of Missouri homepage earlier this week.

“You’re promoting the university by saying, ‘Be a part of our team,’ ‘Look at what we can do,’ ‘Be a part of this,’ ” he said. “But then you’re prosecuting the people who engage in the activity you’re using for promotion.”

[Chiefnj2]

I don't really understand the argument of "is it fair to single out those 30". Do you want the State to send 100 more troopers per game to arrest more people? Is it fair when you get pulled over for speeding when 1000's of other cars are going over the speed limit on the same road?

It's not a big deal. They'll most likely get community service, and then the charge will be dismissed. 30 people x 40 hours community service = one nice big clean campus, and a bunch of nice shiny police cars.

[DJ's left nut]

Let's say you're out duck hunting. A slew of ducks comes overhead and you put a blast of shot into it.

How many of those ducks are going to drop? They were all flying in the same direction at the same time, but only one's coming out of the sky. Sorry, Daffy - wrong place, wrong time.

That line of thought just doesn't fly. If the troopers could've barred the gates and arrested the whole lot of them, they would've. Just because you didn't get caught doesn't mean the people that did were any less wrong for it. Basic logistics ruled the day; so many cops can only arrest so many people.

I suppose I also don't really have a problem with the arrests either. Were I king of the world, the rules wouldn't be in place forbidding students from storming the field. However, I'm not king of the world, the rules are in place and everybody knows them. You voluntarily risked being arrested, thems the breaks.

I'd have been down there with them, but I'd have had no problem acknowledging the risks I took. I'd pay my fine, frame the citation and put it in my office. Sometimes you just have to pay the piper.

Finally, as I've noted on here a few times, the new prosecutor in Boone County is a pole-smoke. I'd imagine he'll be unusually dickish about this thing and probably seek something ridiculous like probation. I hope he's reasonable about it and just goes with either a fine and/or community service.

[Bambi]

Did the KU website sell pictures of Jayhawks fans storming the field after they being Georgia Tech?

I don't think so.

Is that supposed to be an insult?

Cause it didn't work.

[Sully]

Let's say you're out duck hunting. A slew of ducks comes overhead and you put a blast of shot into it.

How many of those ducks are going to drop? They were all flying in the same direction at the same time, but only one's coming out of the sky. Sorry, Daffy - wrong place, wrong time.

That line of thought just doesn't fly. If the troopers could've barred the gates and arrested the whole lot of them, they would've. Just because you didn't get caught doesn't mean the people that did were any less wrong for it. Basic logistics ruled the day; so many cops can only arrest so many people.

I suppose I also don't really have a problem with the arrests either. Were I king of the world, the rules wouldn't be in place forbidding students from storming the field. However, I'm not king of the world, the rules are in place and everybody knows them. You voluntarily risked being arrested, thems the breaks.

I'd have been down there with them, but I'd have had no problem acknowledging the risks I took. I'd pay my fine, frame the citation and put it in my office. Sometimes you just have to pay the piper.

Finally, as I've noted on here a few times, the new prosecutor in Boone County is a pole-smoke. I'd imagine he'll be unusually dickish about this thing and probably seek something ridiculous like probation. I hope he's reasonable about it and just goes with either a fine and/or community service.

I think, though you are right about the "only thirty" argument, that there are a few other facts in play here:
1) Alden's comments.
2) The sale and promotion of rushing the field.
3) The fact that they lowered the goalposts for the fans to take.

It makes it a little muddier than you portray.

Also...
Didn't this exact same story take place after that first big Nebraska win? Poster sales, and all?

[BigCatDaddy]

Fry all those little bastards.

[Phobia]

There weren't any receptacles around. I guess the inside of the stadium is all no smoking. Not too many signs around to tell. Anyways my brother didn't give him any trouble. The trooper just had it in his mind that he was going to throw one of us out. Said he watched us smoke the whole cigarette and was just waiting for one of us to do something stupid. He could have easily come up to him before he threw it and told him it was a no smoking section and asked him to put the cig out. The guy was just being a dick. Plain and simple. No reason to throw someone out for that with a $75 ticket in hand to the biggest game of the season. Oh well. He got back in so it's really not that big of a deal.

Well, do with cigarette butts like they used to do when people had manners... field strip them and put it in your pocket until there's a good place to throw them away. I hate smokers who think the world is their personal shit-can.

[teedubya]

Maybe they were extra MUron-y?

[Saul Good]

I have 2 issues with this.

1. You don't press charges after you put the photo on you website and distribute it to the media.

2. It sounds like they arrested at least one before he actually left the stands. Where is the tresspassing?

[DJ's left nut]

I think, though you are right about the "only thirty" argument, that there are a few other facts in play here:
1) Alden's comments.
2) The sale and promotion of rushing the field.
3) The fact that they lowered the goalposts for the fans to take.

It makes it a little muddier than you portray.

Also...
Didn't this exact same story take place after that first big Nebraska win? Poster sales, and all?

1) Alden's comments aren't really relevant - he's not a cop. The field is state property and the university AD has nothing to do with whether or not it's legal to go on the field. The policy is common knowledge among fans and students in Columbia. We joke about it in the stands all the time. I'd say most of the folks on that field never even heard Alden's comment, but even if they did - they knew otherwise. At that point, it's in the prosecutor's hands; the MU administration can't just drop the charges.

2) The sale and promotion could be seen as in poor taste or hypocritical, but doesn't at all impact the legality of the activity. There are sales of posters that glorify street racing or trick riding all the time, none of that is legal. And once again, the University's PR department has nothing to do with the Boone County prosecutor's office. The two are separate animals.

3) The goalposts weren't lowered to be taken, they were lowered to be secured. They usually try to lower them and get them off the field before the rush. They simply weren't fast enough this time.

It's a stupid issue to really press, but the bottom line is that the students and fans know it's against the rules. Ask any one of them in a moment of 100% honesty and they'll tell you the same. Everyone down here knows you can't rush the field and everyone knows they run a risk of being arrested. Even if you try to argue that constructive awareness is 'muddier' than believed, actual awareness isn't. These kids actually knew better, they just didn't care.

Like I said - I wouldn't have cared either, but I'd have lived with the consequences if I got caught.

Hopefully the prosecutor doesn't go all gung-ho about it (I have my concerns), but there's absolutely no reason to get Amnesty International involved either.

[Inspector]

Thanks God we have our officers to make us feel protected from criminals.

[Sully]

I do agree that the school has to press charges to cover their ass. But ultimately I see this as akin to shooting off fireworks on the 4th where they are illegal.

[Rausch]

Well, do with cigarette butts like they used to do when people had manners... field strip them and put it in your pocket until there's a good place to throw them away. I hate smokers who think the world is their personal shit-can.

Always know your position and your place.

America hates smoking. We are in the minority.

Any time you're allowed to smoke be as polite, considerate, and cleanly as possible...

[Rausch]

I do agree that the school has to press charges to cover their ass. But ultimately I see this as akin to shooting off fireworks on the 4th where they are illegal.

It is.

EXACTLY.

But someone always WILL get busted.

Sucks, but it IS illegal and you know that going in...

[LoneWolf]

It's equivalent to arresting someone for indecent exposure at a nude beach. These charges will be dismissed.

[Hug it Out Dan]

Well, law enforcement in that area is just fucking nuts anyways. Whether its MUPD or CoMoPD or the fucking prosecutors office, they will literally go out of their way to fucking throw the book at someone.

No place else like it in the state of MO. Not even springfield (another big college town).

[DJ's left nut]

Thanks God we have our officers to make us feel protected from criminals.

So just out of curiousity - where would you have put Columbia's police officers during the game? I mean we have a town of approximately 90,000, with 70,000 folks in one building and another several thousand in the blocks immediately adjacent to said building. What to do...what to do....

Yeah - I'd probably station a handful of them at/around the stadium as well.

And if they're there already, well they may as well enforce the law while they're at it.

Give me a break. There's a time for righteous indignation, but this ain't it. The officers were where they should've been, doing what they should've been. Now it's up to the prosecutor not to be a ****wit about it.

That's it and that's all.

[Rausch]

Well, law enforcement in that area is just ****ing nuts anyways. Whether its MUPD or CoMoPD or the ****ing prosecutors office, they will literally go out of their way to ****ing throw the book at someone.

No place else like it in the state of MO. Not even springfield (another big college town).

I'd disagree...

[DJ's left nut]

But ultimately I see this as akin to shooting off fireworks on the 4th where they are illegal.

Analogy win!

It's equivalent to arresting someone for indecent exposure at a nude beach.

Analogy fail!

[Hug it Out Dan]

I do agree that the school has to press charges to cover their ass. But ultimately I see this as akin to shooting off fireworks on the 4th where they are illegal.

cover their ass for what? were there any injuries?

and how in the fuck did a dog get into the stadium? (celebration dog lol)

[Bugeater]

cover their ass for what? were there any injuries?

If you had actually read the linked article...

Thousands of people poured onto the field after the Homecoming victory over Oklahoma. They brought down the goal posts and carried them downtown. One person suffered a broken leg in the pandemonium.

[Pitt Gorilla]

The same thing happened in 2003.

[kysirsoze]

I hope they go to trial and MU loses thanks to the photo sales and the dumbass comments by the athletic director.

[Bugeater]

I hope they go to trial and MU loses thanks to the photo sales and the dumbass comments by the athletic director.
If you think those factors are relevant then you have no idea how our legal system works. And MU can't "lose" because MU isn't the one pressing charges here.

[DJ's left nut]

I hope they go to trial and MU loses thanks to the photo sales and the dumbass comments by the athletic director.

:facepalm:

[KcMizzou]

Mizzou not pressing charges.

The football game against Oklahoma presented officials with unique circumstances. After careful review, the university will not forward the summons for trespassing on the field at the MU-OU football game to the city prosecutor.

http://munews.missouri.edu/news-releases/2010/1028-statement-from-mu-chancellor-brady-deaton-3/

[Sure-Oz]

Mizzou not pressing charges.



http://munews.missouri.edu/news-releases/2010/1028-statement-from-mu-chancellor-brady-deaton-3/

Good, took them long enough