Charges Against Good Samaritan Cyclist to Be Dropped

Police Commissioner Chester Williams says he will be ordering a withdrawal of a charge against Harrison Sutherland.  Last Friday, Sutherland was intercepted by Police and was charged for carrying a 5-gallon water on his bicycle.  It is a rare occurrence, but reportedly, such an infraction does exist in the law books.  Commissioner Williams, however, indicated that he believed Sutherland was doing a good deed for an elderly person who needed water.  With that in mind, the top cop indicated on social media that he would be ordering the officer to withdraw the charge against Sutherland. This morning the Police Commissioner spoke on the issue.

The story came to the forefront on Friday when Sutherland was taken to court on the charge of ‘carried article or load on a bicycle’.  The 34-year-old was granted a one-hundred-dollar bail.  He granted an interview to our court reporter after exiting the courtroom.

Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police: “The issue with Harrison Sutherland is one again that outrages the public and while I can say categorically that I do not act on public outrage, but I act based on what is reasonable and just. While there is a law indeed that speaks to the fact that you are not supposed to carry articles or load on a bicycle that disallows you from being properly able to maneuver the bicycle. That law did not contemplate a five gallon bottle of water, your grocery bags that you go to the store and buy and have to come riding on your bicycle with those items on your bike. One of my favorite judge, when I was at law school reading cases, is Lord Denning. And Lord Denning said the law is not______ in the sense that the law does not punish good deeds. We have to look at, even in the absence of the good gesture that Mr. Sutherland was performing, to arrest a person for carrying a give gallon water on a bicycle. is not reasonable and I think as police officers we have to apply best judgment. I’m not going to ridicule the police. He was doing his job but certainly I think it would have been best served if he had sought advice on the matter before proceeding with the charge. I wouldn’t want to see a society where every time someone tries to do something good we punish them. Because then what society are we going to be promoting? When it comes to our senior citizens, we all have elderly people in our family and if someone is out there helping my grandmother, or my mother, or my grandaunt, or something, and they’re punished for it then how does that make me feel? So on that basis, the fact that the law did not contemplate. a water bottle, a five-gallon water bottle, which we see every day when you go anywhere in the country people we’re not so fortunate all of us that we have a vehicle. The bicycle is what many people use as a mode of transportation and the law itself as I said to my commanders this morning, was to deal with those persons who would see, carry a fridge, carry a chest of straw, carry maybe lumber, large pieces of lumber extending out that impedes traffic things like that they contemplates dealing with not water bottles or grocery bags. So the matter will be withdrawn against Harrison Sutherland.” 

Reporter: And I know you don’t like getting into court matters but you think the judge should have thrown it out? 
Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police:“That’s a matter for the magistrate to have decided, I will not comment on that no.”

The Police Commissioner noted that he understood that the arresting officer was carrying out his duties but that there must be consideration and discretion as the department promotes a more peaceful and orderly society.