CA: Dr. Dre, Billionaire, Citizens Arrest for Brandishng a Gun, with no Evidence of Gun? by Police

Dr. Dre is an extremely successful business man and music mogul.  He has built  an empire on music, video, movies, and a sale to Apple.  He may have a net worth of over a billion dollars. He is the black man in handcuffs in the white t-shirt.  Seem bizarre?  So is the story.  A person who is unnamed claims that Dr. Dre displayed a gun while asking him to leave. Dr. Dre has a different version of events. From cnsnews.com:

Dre, whose real name is Andre Young, told sheriff’s deputies he didn’t have a gun and that the man was blocking his driveway. He says the man moved his car but parked nearby. He says the man drove off after Dre recorded video of him.

Dre was briefly handcuffed while deputies investigated. No weapon was found at the scene, but deputies say the man initiated a citizen’s arrest for misdemeanor brandishing a firearm.

More information was available at atlantablackstar.com.  Everyone is hyped about threats to black men and to police officers.  The last month has been a media frenzy following to police shooting of two black men and the assassinations of eight police officers.  This situation was handled with a minimum of muss or fuss. From atlantablackstar.com:

 Officers say the music producer was cooperative and consented to the search. He denied all allegations of the gun, informing police the man was parked directly in front of his driveway and blocking him in. The rapper asked him to leave – and he did – but immediately came back and parked in almost the exact same spot at the median in front of the home. Dre pulled out a cellphone to record what was going on and then the man drove off.

Pigeons and Planes reported that even though no weapon was found, the driver filed a police report. The case will go to the District Attorney, who will then decide if there is a legitimate case against the hip-hop artist.

Dre said the driver had previously engaged in a road-rage-type incident on the highway and followed him home, according to an LA Times source close to the investigation.

There is a video at atlantablackstar.com that shows some of the handcuffing.

 Link to video

At first glance, it appears as though the police overreacted.  A simple allegation by someone about a gun, and the police handcuff and search you at your home?

It fits into the idea that  “California has gone crazy on guns so I expect the police there to ignore the Constitution, no matter a person’s color”.

But I think something a bit more clever may be going on.  Dr. Dre is a very successful business man, known in the community.  Maybe he has a problem with a stalker/fan.  

But the police cannot just give him the name of someone who accused him, if there is no case.  And the police have no case.  They know that. Instead they talk to Dr. Dre about it.  If he consents to a limited search outside of his home, (it appears it was just outside he property line) the police can truthfully report that they searched and did not find any firearm.  That means absent other witnesses or video, the “brandishing case” is kaput.  It is a “he said” “she said” and the police report comes down on Dr. Dre’s side.

Now for the clever bit.  The person who complained has filed a “citizens arrest” report.  This makes that person an official accuser. 

The whole thing will be thrown out. But with an official complaint, doesn’t Dr. Dre have the right to know the name of his accuser?  Maybe Dr. Dre will be able to obtain a restraining order.

There is another cynical, off the wall, possibility.  Dr. Dre is in the entertainment industry.  That industry lives off of media attention.  Dr. Dre’s situation just created millions of dollars worth of media attention.

©2016 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.
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