On Saturday, Labour Senator Glenfield Dennison was held up at a police checkpoint.
Ironically, it's the same thing he spoke about four weeks ago in the Senate.
And it played out in real time on Orange Street on Saturday.
Tonight Jaleeza Roberts takes a look at what went down between the officers and the senator.
He warned about it in the Senate just a few weeks ago:
Glenfield Dennison, Union Senator
"What I find with people who are enforcing the motor vehicle and road traffic act and the regulations thereunder is that they don't understand necessarily the constitutional context within which they're enforcing the pieces of legislation."
And on Saturday May 23rd he lived the nightmare:
Officer 1
"What did you ask him for?"
Officer 2
"The vehicle documentation, the license and the certificate?"
Officer 1 "You don't have the certificate of your vehicle sir?"
Voice of Glenfield Dennison Speaking With Officers
"Yes I have it."
Officer 1
"Make the process easier and then you go about your business, to show what you have?"
Voice of Glenfield Dennison Speaking With Officers
"I will teach you today that you cannot ask for that, that is what will happen today, you will learn you will not ask for it."
Officer 1
"So who should ask for it? No I'm asking you, who should ask for it?"
"Who should ask for it."
"Just take him to the station."
Voice of Glenfield Dennison Speaking With Officers
"Get somebody with a rank you know."
Officer 1
"We don't need nobody with a rank, rank?"
Voice of Glenfield Dennison Speaking With Officers
"You can't ask for a title brother, you need to have a reason to ask for my title."
Officer 1
"So who should ask you for it, God?"
And that was the exchange but not before one of the more senior officers realized that he was addressing Senator Dennison. But he had already taken the matter into his own hands
Police Officer
"My apologies Mr. Dennison, how are you, you're from the DPP office? Go through Mr. Dennison, my apologies."
Voice of Glenfield Dennison Speaking With Officers
"No I am waiting for the COMPOL to call you. I done call the compol."
But this occurrence proved his point within the Senate that many officers at these traffic stops violate the rights of civilians who do not know better. That day in the Senate, Dennison encouraged Belizeans to do this:
Glenfield Dennison, Union Senator
"Invest a little 7, 14 12 dollars on the little things to put your cellphone on your dashboard and put your cellphone in there and press record whenever you're approaching or having any interactions at a checkpoint with traffic wardens or police officers and so."
Many of those don't know their rights but Dennison did and that prevented him from being detained.
Jaleeza Roberts, 7 news.
