WATCH: Police Confront an Idaho Man for Putting Racist Flyers Near Schools
Know that look a kid gives when he’s totally taken cookies from the cabinet but there’s nothing in the world that’s going to make him admit it?
Replace “a kid” with “a grown Idaho man” and “taken cookies from the cabinet” with “going on school grounds to distribute CDs and flyers espousing racist views,” and you have Scott Rhodes’ face when police came to his door.
Sandpoint Police Department officers confronted Rhodes about allegedly distributing racist flyers, and, in a move that absolutely makes a guy seem innocent, Rhodes simply responded: “No.”
When police asked him to elaborate, he gathered himself somewhat and said: “No, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
One of the police officers explained to Rhodes that the department obtained footage of him driving a red Jeep – with a license plate linked to Rhodes – and placing said CDs and flyers on several cars on school property.
“No, I don’t think you do,” Rhodes responded. “I’d be happy to take your number and have my attorney call you.”
This was far from the first sighting of Rhodes in the red racist-mobile. Last summer, Sandpoint business owner Lee Hardin contacted police about a number of racially harassing letters sent to him. Hardin, a black man, told The Sandpoint Reader: “I was going to my car, and there was a red Jeep pulling out. He was pulling out and looked and saw me … and screamed the N-word at me. I said, ‘What?’ and he screamed it again and peeled out.”
The thing is, Rhodes isn’t actually in much trouble: the officers only paid him a visit to give him a trespass from the school district superintendent, which forbids him from entering school property for one year.
Stymied and perhaps mildly amused, the other officer asked: “Nobody else drives your Jeep or anything?” Rhodes again refused to answer and deferred to his lawyer.
They continued to discuss the flyers, and when Rhodes once again denied knowledge of them, one of the officers had had enough.
“Look, we know that it’s you, we’ve had you on our radar, ‘kay?” he said. “We know you’ve been handing out the flyers, putting them on the lawn, we know you’ve been to the school, gotcha on video, have your Jeep, your license plate number.”
“I have four cameras out to the front,” the other officer added.
In a master class of sticking to your story despite overwhelming evidence against you, Rhodes simply said: “I never handed out any flyers.”
Perhaps realizing the futility in arguing with a man who believes only the truth he concocts in his mind, the officers shrugged, handed him the notice of trespass, and left.
Watch above, via Facebook.
