Joseph Rosa - getting started on the crazy

[ArthurWankspittle]

http://www.clickorlando.com/news/centra ... l/26308906

The man is claiming he is a sovereign state and not bound by U.S. laws.

Joseph Rosa, 37, refused to answer questions during his trial Monday.

My gut feeling is that this girl won't be going to school and this will escalate.

[notorial dissent]

I think you are quite right about this escalating, but what will most likely happen is that he will go to jail, possibly repeatedly, and Social Services will become an integral part of that family's lives until he either grows some brains, or the child will be removed and placed somewhere else, the child will be back in school shortly though I'm betting.

I suspect there is also a good deal more here that didn’t make the new article.

[Judge Roy Bean]

No wonder this has gone on this long - he's gotten away with it. 'Round here, a sheriff's deputy would have had him cuffed and taken in for refusing to identify himself and being a possible danger to himself and others. A few trips to jail can be a learning experience.

[Arthur Rubin]

No wonder this has gone on this long - he's gotten away with it. 'Round here, a sheriff's deputy would have had him cuffed and taken in for refusing to identify himself and being a possible danger to himself and others. A few trips to jail can be a learning experience.

Hmmm. Perhaps "being a danger to himself and others", but, at least here in California, refusing to identify yourself is not a crime.

There's a story published in one of the "Legends of CalTech" books, which recounts the city of San Marino enacting a vagrancy ordinance, defining "vagrancy" as not having $20 with you. A number of CalTech students went wandering around San Marino (one of the neighboring cities), got picked up, taken to the police station, then showed ID, so the police had to take them back to where they were picked up.

Needless to say, the ordinance was shortly repealed.

[grixit]

California has a supreme court decision that says that if the cops ask you for id when you're just walking down the street, and you refuse, that's it for them, they are not allowed to arrest you. Personally, i'd like to have a law that says that have to dance and thank you for asserting your rights, but, hey, it's an imperfect world.

[Jeffrey]

I had a discussion about that IRL the other day. The Wikipedia article on it is very enlightening.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stop_and_identify_statutes

I think it's best summed up with the advice the ACLU gives at the end:

give your name and the information on your drivers’ license. If you don’t, you may be arrested, even though the arrest may be illegal.