Black man pulled over by cop for air freshener dangling from mirror

A black Rhode Island man was pulled over because of the air freshener hanging from his rearview mirror.

A black Rhode Island man was pulled over because of the air freshener hanging from his rearview mirror.

As soon as he was pulled over, Dana Harris Jr. began recording, and the video has since been posted to YouTube.

“What’s the problem, big dude? What’s the problem?” Harris asks the officer, Brian Murphy, when he arrives.

“You seen me come out of my driveway. What did I do wrong?” Harris asks, adding, “I have a cousin who’s a Providence police officer for 23 years. What’s the problem? … I’m tired of this. I’m not a gangster. I’m not a thug.”

Murphy ignores Harris’ questions and asks for his insurance information. After Murphy looks over the paperwork, he hands it back to Murphy and says, “You can’t have this obstructing your view,” as he points at the air freshener.

“Come on, are you serious?” Harris replies.

“Yeah, I’m serious, you can’t have that there.”

“Air fresheners? … That’s the reason you pulled me over?” Harris asks.

“Yup,” the officer says, not giving a ticket and the returning to his cruiser.

“You’re bored, I can tell you’re bored,” Harris says to Murphy as the officer is walking away. “Have a good day, man.”

The video has since gone viral, and police authorities have since explained that Murphy was watching the house for Harris’ 18-year-old brother, Justice McLaren. Murphy had pulled Harris over to look for his brother and was unsure if he could tell Harris about the warrant, so he pointed out the air freshener instead.

 

SHARE THIS ARTICLE