ORR Officer Ransom Funches, Badge #6960 IA 11-20

7/24/2019 ORR Officer Ransom Funches, Badge #6960 IA 11-20

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Avi S. Adelman5620 East Side Avenue

Dallas Texas 75214

Telephone 214.824.5771 / Fax 214.292.9761 / [email protected]

TO Dallas Police Department

Internal Affairs Division

CC Chief John Lawton DPD Central Division

Alfreda Coffey DPD Central Division

Lonzo Anderson DPD Central Division

CC Mickey Osterreicher General Counsel

National Press Photographers Association

Date November 23, 2015

Re Dallas Police Officer Ransom Funches, Badge #6960

The attached document shall serve as a formal complaint against Dallas Police Department Officer

RANSOM FUNCHES, Badge #6960.

A signed copy will be mailed to Internal Affairs on Monday.

Sincerely,

Avi S. Adelman

Dallas



Statement by Avi S. Adelman

Submitted November 23, 2015

Regarding Dallas Police Department Officer Ransom Funches, Badge #6960

On Thursday, November 12, 2015, at approximately 230pm, Complainant was listening to his police

scanner when he heard radio traffic regarding a stolen vehicle which had been stopped at the intersection

of Lindsley Avenue and Valencia Street in East Dallas, in the Central Division.

Complainant arrived on the scene and parked his vehicle one street west of the accident scene, and

walked to the scene. On arrival he observed two DPD squad cars parked on Lindsley Avenue facing

east, two officers and a minor sitting on the curb in front of the crashed-out vehicle.

Complainant was carrying one large Nikon D300S camera with an 18/200 zoom lens, attached to a strap

and slung over his chest. Complainant was wearing a bright safety-green colored windbreaker, so the

black camera and strap were clearly visible. Complainant’s business card and NPPA membership cardare attached to the back strap.

Inside the squad car was a female civilian sitting in the front seat, and a male of unknown age (later

determined to be a suspect in the car theft) sitting in the back seat.

Complainant approached the vehicles but did not get closer than 50 feet. At this point, an officer – later

identified as Officer Raymond Funches – yelled at the complainant to get back away from the vehicles.

Complainant complied and proceeded to walk across Lindsley Avenue, where he took photographs of

the crashed vehicle and the unidentified minor sitting on the curb. Complainant walked up to the cornerof Lindsley and Valencia, then crossed the street again at the corner. Complainant stood on the lawn of

the corner property, identified as 801 Valencia Street, approximately 45 feet from the minor sitting on

the curb and the crashed out vehicle.

At no time did Complainant initiate a conversation with any of the officers or the minor. He simply

observed and photographed the scene.

During the course of his presence, Complainant noted that Officer Funches was looking directly at the

Complainant while leaning into a vehicle window. Whatever Officer was saying to the persons in the

vehicle or to the Complainant, if any, were not clearly heard over the noise of traffic or leaf blowers in

the area.

Complainant decided to test if Officer Funches was directly observing him, by stepping to his left a foot,

thereby allowing a tree on the residential property to block his view of Officer Funches and vice versa.

Immediately after this step was made, Officer Funches leaned back from the vehicle in order to see the

Complainant.



A few minutes later, Officer Funches and another officer were holding a conversation with the minor,

and between each other, which Complainant believes was in order to determine what action will be

taken to clear the minor from the scene, get his identification, etc.

By this time, Complainant had activated the voice recorder on his phone, anticipating that Officer

Funches would make some kind of statement to him. Within moments, Officer Funches began yelling at

the Complainant. The following summary was extracted from the phone recorder; the quality of the

recording was extremely poor, so Complainant has filed an Open Records Request for the bodycam

tapes so a complete and accurate transcript may be prepared.

(O)fficer Funches - Do you have anything better to do with your life?

(A)vi Adelman - You have a problem, sir??

(O) - Yeah, I have a problem with you pointing a camera at me...

(A) - That's a good deal, sir, I appreciate...

(O) - You don't have anything better to do with your time???

(A) - You have no right to say that, sir.

(O) - I said, do you have anything better to do with your time??

(A) - Sir, are you asking me to leave?

(O) - Yes, I am asking you...

(A) - Okay, I am not going anywhere...

Talking to the minor on the curb.....

(O) .... come out here... to irritate me.. when pointing that camera at me... have nothing better to

do than come out here and act like a child...

After about 30 minutes, Complainant left the scene.

Included in this package are copies of all the photographs shot by Complainant, and the Voice Recorder

file referenced in the above summary.

A complete set of photographs have been posted to my server, at this link

http://photographeronboard.com/funches/



Complaints against Officer Ransom Funches, Badge #6960

1. That Officer Funches displayed unprofessional behavior and conduct unbecoming a Dallas

Police Department officer;

2.

That Officer Funches was verbally abusive towards Complainant and spoke in an aggressive

manner towards the Complainant, with no reason for such a display of emotion;

3. That Officer Funches made statements and requests which contradict the Dallas Police

Department’s standards of conduct and behavior towards the public;

4. That Officer Funches made statements and demands which directly contradict the Dallas Police

Department’s policy regarding the exercise of the First Amendment, in this case, the taking of

photographs of officers carrying out their official duties in a public right of way;

5. That Officer Funches displayed emotional outbursts which caused the Complainant to believe he

could be subject to an illegal arrest, detention or other action designed to prevent further

photography of the scene;

6. That Officer Funches issued illegal requests to the Complainant to stop taking photographs of the

minor and himself;

7. And, that Officer Funches issued an illegal order to the Complainant to leave the scene.

Complainant requests the Department professionally and thoroughly investigate these complaints, and

should they be determined to be accurate, to mete out punishment(s) to the officer as Departmental

policy.

Complainant also requests the Department determine, upon review of the bodycam files and the

photographs, that any actions not listed above be documented and added to this complaint.

Regards,

Avi S. Adelman

5620 East Side Avenue, Dallas TX 75214 214.923.3562 [email protected]



Some of the referenced photographs are included below.

A complete set of all photographs is included on a disk with this complaint, delivered to the Dallas

Police Department.

ORR Officer Ransom Funches, Badge #6960 IA 11-20

Documents

Transcript of ORR Officer Ransom Funches, Badge #6960 IA 11-20