The following video and story was submitted VIA the submission tab. Andrea Brookins has been harassed by the police in her community for several years. Regardless of the amount of complaints she has filed, the harassment never stops and she believes she is being retaliated against by law enforcement for exercising her rights. If you have a story of police brutality or misconduct, please share it with us using the submission tab or consider joining the CopBlock Network.
Date of Incident: July 25, 2015
Officer Involved: Sergeant Roger Schlude
Department Involved: Columbia (Missouri) Police Department
Department Facebook Page: Columbia PD
Department Phone No.: (573) 874-7404
Department Email: policepio@como.gov
Department Address: 600 E. Walnut St. Columbia, MO 65201
My Name is Andrea Brookins. I have been dealing with a segment of the Columbia Missouri Police Department who have been targeting my family and I for several years now. I have filed numerous complaints against them since 2012 and believe I am being retaliated against for exercising my right to petition the government for redress of grievances.
All of this culminated in two events involving Sergeant Roger Schlude in 2015. Schlude pulled up to an area where my son, Cezan “CJ” Stock was hanging out with his friends. CJ and several of his friends began filming Schlude and a fellow officer. Schlude responded by pulling his service gun and pointing it at my son. As this occurred, Schlude’s partner hurled insults and threats at my son.
In a separate incident that occurred later, officers attempted to pull my son over while he was on his lunch break from work. My son was scared because of the previous situation and chose to drive to my house where he would peacefully surrender as I filmed to ensure he was not hurt by the police.
As I filmed, Schlude charged me, yelled “get back!” and shoved me. I was eight weeks pregnant at the time. (Video below, along with hospital pregnancy results)
I was arrested for Obstructing a Government Operation and Resisting or Interfering with Arrest. The Boone County Prosecutor’s Office would later dismiss all charges against me related to the arrest. I am including the letter from the prosecutor’s office indicating the charges would not be pursued.
I believe that there are numerous videos related to my complaints and I am attempting to retrieve them using the Missouri Sunshine Law (Open Records Laws).
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I filed complaints for both situations, however Internal Affairs found no misconduct had occurred. I believe there is body cam and/or dash cam videos of both situations. In response to an open records request for the reports and videos from these incidents, the Columbia Police Department demanded $490.54, which I believe is an exorbitant amount of money and is being used to shield officers from accountability.
I have been speaking at public meetings involving the city to try to gain some accountability and retrieve the videos of these incidents. The City Manager promised on the record to ensure that I receive these records at a reasonable rate, but I haven’t heard anything back from him. (Article below)
I also believe my situation may have pushed the city to institute a new transparency policy related to open records. (Article below)
Any and all publicity on this situation would help me to pressure them into releasing further videos that will show the lack of accountability, level of aggression, and all around unprofessional behavior that some of these officers exude.
Documents of Proof:
*City of Columbia emails related to my records request
*Letter from prosecutors indicating charges would not be pursued
*Hospital pregnancy results
From the Columbia Tribune:
“Resident Andrea Brookins said she has a problem with how the Columbia Police Department charges residents for Missouri Sunshine Law requests. After an altercation with an officer, Brookins made an open records request for body camera footage with the department, who wanted to charge her nearly $500 to fulfill the request.
The cost “was to push me under the rug,” Brookins said. “You are making the money for the records so expensive we can’t even hold” the police “accountable.”
The city is looking into the Sunshine Law issue, City Manager Mike Matthes said, and he promised to see what he could do to fulfill her request.
From the Columbia Tribune:
Resident Traci Wilson-Kleekamp said she was pleased with the transparency ordinance but would like city staff to respond more quickly to information requests. The city sometimes charges too much money for public access to government data or files, she said.
“I think six weeks to get a file is too long, and I think $500 is too much,” Wilson-Kleekamp said, referencing a request a resident made recently for police officer body camera footage. “Particularly with police, I think when we delay and deny,” it harms public trust.
If you have a problem with the behavior of Sergeant Roger Schlude. Please consider calling the Columbia Police Department and voicing your concern with the aggressive actions of their officers. Or leaving a comment on their Facebook Page.
- Columbia Police Department – (573) 874-7404
- Columbia PD Facebook Page.
Columbia Police Officer Shoves Pregnant Mother Filming Son’s Arrest is a post from Cop Block - Badges Don't Grant Extra Rights