Scary encounter transforms St. Louis student into police watchdog

The Associated Press

ST. LOUIS -- College student Brett Darrow has become a one-man police watchdog in the St. Louis area, videotaping encounters as he cruises town with a camera installed in his car.

The 20-year-old posts his police videos on the Internet, feeding a growing virtual community of activists.

Darrow gained notoriety earlier this month when he taped a suburban St. Louis police officer who threatened to arrest him on fake charges because he didn't like Darrow's attitude. The video was a sensation on Internet sites like YouTube, and the officer has since been fired from the St. George Police Department.

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While he might have his fans, Darrow's name has been transformed into a short-handed warning for police.

"Stay on your toes. We don't know how many other Brett Darrows there are out there," the St. George police chief has said.

Darrow said he became motivated after a March 2005 encounter with an off-duty police officer. Before that night, Darrow, who was 17 at the time, had never been in serious trouble.

According to a police report, an off-duty officer claimed Darrow was driving recklessly, so he followed the teen as he pulled into a lot.

Darrow said the man yelled at him, while pressing a gun to his head and claiming to be a cop. The stranger wearing a uniform or carrying a badge.

Darrow admits he swung a metal baton at the man.

"He told me if I hit him again he'd blow my brains out," Darrow recalled.

Darrow fled home in his car, and was arrested and charged with a weapons felony and third-degree assault. But the grand jury chose not to indict him after listening to him recount what happened.

The officer left the force the next month.

"It was an eye-opener," Darrow said. "It really did change me."

Darrow said he wanted protection from the police. He found it in the form of a $500 video camera, which he installed inside his car.

On Sept. 7, Darrow videotaped the now famous exchange with St. George police Sgt. James Kuehnlein. The officer became curious after Darrow pulled into a commuter parking lot in south St. Louis County.

In the videotape, Darrow asks whether he did anything wrong, and Kuehnlein orders him out of the car and starts shouting.

"You want to try me? You want to try me tonight? You think you have a bad night? I will ruin your night. Do you want to try me tonight, young boy?"

Darrow responds with a "no."

"Do you want to go to jail for some (expletive) reason I come up with?" officer Kuehnlein continues.

Later, Darrow says "I don't want any problems, officer."

The next day, Darrow uploaded the video to the Web, calling it "Cop Gone Wild." Since then, the video has been viewed more than 500,000 times online.

Last Friday, Kuehnlein was fired. Prosecutors now are investigating.

Kuehnlein's attorney, Richard Sindel, said his client was a victim of a setup. "That's what this kid likes to do," Sindel said.