By Police1 Staff
LIBERTY, Maine — After a man accused a Maine State Police trooper of racial profiling, the department took to social media to defend themselves, WGME reported.
The incident occurred on Jan. 7 as Orson Titus, known by the alias Toussaint St. Negritude, was walking on the side of the road in dark-colored clothing, according to the department’s Facebook post. Trooper Sarah Ferland had to swerve to avoid hitting him and turned her patrol vehicle around to instruct Titus to walk while facing oncoming traffic for his own safety.
After a friend of Titus came into the station to file a misconduct complaint on Ferland, a sergeant reviewed the footage and found “the video showed a completely different scenario.”
Dash cam video captured the five minute interaction between the trooper and Titus. Upon review, the sergeant found the trooper was polite and cordial.
However, at a Jan. 19th City Council meeting, Titus addressed the community and said “his life was threatened,” he was “held for over half an hour” and the trooper “repeatedly asked the same two questions over and over and over again.”
The department released links to the dash cam video and Titus’ statements on social media. They said Ferland’s handling of the situation was “well within standard police operating procedure.”
“It is unfortunate how one person’s version of the events are completely different from what the trooper’s dash cam shows,” the department wrote. “We are disheartened that Mr. Titus would use a public forum to impugn the reputation of a hardworking and dedicated Trooper and the Maine State Police by telling a story that is not supported by facts.”
The police encouraged the public to view both videos and come to their own conclusion.
Police also reported there were 19 pedestrian deaths in the state during 2015, the highest number since 1994.