Sheriff's office, open the door now. If you don't open the door, we're going to write a warrant and kick your door in. Step out now. Why? This police officer in Florida pulled an autistic kid right out his own front door, flings him on the ground, puts him in handcuffs, and arrests him. Put your hands behind your back now. Can I call my mom? Put your hands behind your back. Okay. Can I call my mom first headphones? I'm not doing anything. Why did he do it? Because he saw the kid walking in his own neighborhood. As you're wandering around in the middle of the road, which is the pedestrian violation. I was checking my mail. My car is literally a marked unit. You turn in front of me and walk towards your door. When the sheriff's department that employs this police officer found out what happened, guess what? They supported it. But when the public saw the footage, they were outraged. Then the sheriff's department began to backpedal. And now they've apparently suspended the officer. Let me point out their gaslighting and explain why just suspending him is not [Music] enough. Welcome back to the Civil Rights Lawyer channel, where the mission is to protect and defend your constitutional rights so that the things that you see in this video don't happen again to somebody else. This video is from the Pensacola, Florida area, Santa Rosa County, Florida. This involves the Santa Rosa County Sheriff's Office and Deputy Zachary McFersonson. The incident happened on January 29th of 2025 on Julia Drive in Milton, Florida. Two neighbors across the street from 20-year-old Alexander Cash say that he had just returned from walking his younger brother home from the school bus stop and he was checking the mail when Deputy McFersonson pulled up in his patrol car. He saw Alexander wearing a black hoodie over his head walking across the street and he said, "Come here." But Alexander just kept walking away from him back towards his house. Deputy McFersonson didn't know it at the time allegedly, but he later learned that Alexander was wearing headphones under his hoodie and he didn't hear the deputy because he was listening to music and he listens to music because he has severe ADHD and mild autism and headphones and music allows him to function essentially. It helps keep him focused. The deputy allegedly ordered him to stop several more times, but Alexander just kept walking towards his home and into his home. The neighbors said that it appeared to them that Deputy McFersonson became angry when Alexander walked back into his house and shut and locked the door. McFersonson then pounded on the door, demanding that it be opened or he would go and get a warrant and then kick the door down. Sheriff's office, open the door now. [Music] If you don't open the door, we're going to write a warrant and kick your door in. Open the door now. When Alexander eventually did open the door, Deputy McFersonson grabbed Alexander. Step out. Why? Step out now. Why? yanked him out of his house and onto the front yard and he began to sort of tussle with him on the ground. Can I ask what is going on? Put your hands behind your back now. And he put him in handcuffs. Can I call my mom? Put your hands behind your back now. Can I call my mom first? Put your hands behind your back. Okay. Can I call my mom first? [Music] We'll call her. I just want to know what's going on. I just want to know what's going on. Can I ask what's going on? Yes, sir. You can give me just a second. Make sure these handcuffs aren't too tight on you and I will explain in detail. [Music] What's going on? I don't understand. What's going on, sir? Is that I've ordered you to stop three times and identified myself as a sheriff's deputy while you were walking away from me. Then you can rush in your house and lock your door. Well, I was listening to my music, so I didn't. And when I tell you to step out, you're not doing it. I was listening to my music. I didn't How do I know what you're doing? You can listen to my headphones. But I couldn't see that. I have my head. I have my head. But I couldn't see that, right? I don't know what's I don't know what's going in the body cam footage, both neighbors can be heard yelling and cursing as both parties were recording. Hey, you're Hey, you can stand You can stand and record all you want, but if you keep it up, you're going in handcuffs next. That's it up. What's going on? I don't understand. You're being detained right now for failing to abide by my instructions to stop. It's very simple. He said, "Listen to my headphones. I'm not doing anything." I can see that through his hoodie. Somebody gives a [ __ ] what you're recording. Can I ask you why you I got a camera on my chest, too. Ask why you wanted to stop me? Yes. Because you were wandering around in the middle of the road, which the pedestrian violation. I was checking my mail. My mailbox is in his yard. My mom asked me, "Sir, I literally watched you from over there. You walked across. You were on your cell phone. You never looked any direction. You were standing in the middle of the road. I got out with you. Can I just tell you right quick? Give me just a second. You're asking me all these questions and I'm explaining them to you." Okay. Okay. So, I'm I get out with you right here. My car is literally a marked unit. You turn in front of me and walk towards your door and I am screaming at you to stop. Right. But I can't see you that you had music on your head. Right. Yeah. Because you had what on your head? Right. So when I go up there and I knock on the door and I say, "Sheriff's office, come out." And you answer the door and I say, "Step out of the car. Step out of the house." And you're like, "Why? Why? Why?" It's perfectly reasonable for me to believe that you're trying to run from me. But I didn't and that you're not listening to what I'm saying to you. I was, but I was wanting to know why before I stepped out my will, sir. When you abide by my instructions, I will explain everything to you, but I don't know who you are, and I don't know why you're failing to abide by my instructions. I didn't hear you, right? But I didn't know that. and we're trying to so I have every reason to put my hands on you when you're not listening to what I'm telling you to do because I have a lawful reason to get out with you. The neighbors subsequently posted those videos on social media. They went viral. This caused the Santa Rosa County Sheriff's Office to make a statement in response. This was their news release dated January 31st, 2025. This is what they said happened. A deputy made contact with a 20-year-old individual during routine patrol of Julia Drive in Milton. In other words, there had been no crime. Nobody had reported a crime. It was just some guy driving around who saw some kid walking towards his mailbox. After observing a potential law violation and the individual disregarding verbal commands, the deputy made contact at the residence. Based on the circumstances, the individual was detained as part of the investigative process. During questioning, it was determined that the individual may not have heard the deputy's commands due to wearing headphones, which were covered by a hooded jacket and not visible to the deputy. Following the investigation, no charges were filed. We asked the community to be patient as we complete the internal investigation. Until this investigation is completed, we are unable to provide further details. The Santa Rosa County Sheriff's Office, led by Sheriff Bob Johnson, launched an internal affairs investigation. Ultimately, they concluded that Deputy McFersonson did in fact violate the department's policy on conduct unbecoming of a law enforcement officer, specifically the standard of conduct/integrity, which prohibits actions that undermine the agency's reputation or an officer's integrity. In the end, McFersonson was suspended for 3 days. As a result, McFersonson himself expressed regret, admitting to the internal affairs investigator that he let anger influence his actions and he spoke discourteously to Alexander and the neighbors. And he felt that the video did not reflect who he aimed to be. Honestly, this just makes me want to pull my hair out. Why is there this much ignorance about basic constitutional law? It's not even mentioned in the press releases, in the media reports, anywhere. The actual problem here, just violating department policy because you're rude to somebody or you're using profane language, those are not constitutional violations. Those mean nothing. Everyone is either ignoring or missing the actual real problem here. Not just that it embarrasses your department or embarrasses a police officer to mistreat an autistic kid or curse at people who are filming them. At the very beginning of the body cam footage, Deputy McFersonson mentions that he does not have a warrant. If you don't open the door, we're going to write a warrant and kick your door in. He's making threats to go get a warrant if the door is not opened. Therefore, he does not have a warrant. What can police officers not do if they do not have a warrant? They cannot arrest you at your home, inside your home without a warrant. US Supreme Court Payton versus New York. Very, very basic constitutional law. But let's get more specific. This happened in Florida. Florida is in the 11th Federal Circuit. There's a good case there from 2015. Moore versus Peterson. Everything we need to know is discussed in that case. Like here, that was a doorway threshold arrest without a warrant. And that's a big no no, even to the 11th Circuit, which almost always sides with police officers. Internal affairs should go read that case because here's what it says. Police violate the Fourth Amendment when they affect a warrantless arrest at the threshold of a home where they lack probable cause and either exigent circumstances or consent. Generally, police can make an arrest without a warrant if they have probable cause, but not in a home. To arrest somebody in a home without a warrant, they still have to have probable cause, but then they also have to have either consent because anybody can wave their constitutional rights. Why would you do that? I don't know. That didn't happen here thankfully. Or the only other exception is exigent circumstances, which is some sort of emergency. The courts are pretty strict about that. like it's a domestic violence situation and somebody's in danger inside the house. It can't just be like, "Hey, I saw you cross the street. I think that's a crime. I have reasonable suspicion that some crime had occurred. Therefore, I'm detaining you or arresting you." Whatever. They can't do that. Moore versus Peterson specifically said that a reasonable, articulable suspicion of criminal wrongdoing is not enough when you're dealing with the home or the threshold of a home. Additionally, the court said when the police knock on a door and the occupant chooses to open the door and speak with the officers, the occupant need not allow the officers to enter the premises and may refuse to answer any questions at any time. But unfortunately here, Alexander was denied his Fourth Amendment constitutional rights. Who cares about the cussing? Who cares about the optics? I care about the Constitution. I care about the fact that nobody bothered to point out the real problem here. Yeah, an autistic kid was thrown to the ground, but it happened out of the threshold of his home, which even if it wasn't an autistic kid, if it was an unsympathetic criminal, it is just as serious. I'd love to hear the sheriff of Santa Rosa County, Florida, address that. And he probably parades around as a conservative to get votes. Why didn't internal affairs address the fact that this kid was pulled out of his house in violation of the Fourth Amendment? I want to hear the explanation. And if they can't explain that, he needs to go. Everybody involved needs to go. This police officer especially needs to go. They're sending a signal to other police officers in that agency, in that department. You don't need a warrant to pull somebody out of their front door. Just don't use obscene language when you do it. They're gaslighting the public is what they're doing. And the media doesn't know any better. But people need to see the footage and they need to know better. They need to know what the law is. You can help by making this go viral. Make sure that everybody sees it. Increase the pressure on them to give some sort of a response and spread the truth. Spread the real law. And let me know in a comment what you think about this. Hopefully I'll have an update. So you can follow along by subscribing both here and at the blog at the civil rightsawyer.com. You can follow me on XJBrianesq. Our rights don't end where your fear begins. Freedom is scary. Deal with it. [Music]