Was the officer's conduct acceptable in the video showing his interaction with the Virginia police?

“We can’t see your tag”
“ it’s in my rear window”
“ can’t see it, it’s tinted”
“ OK, I will fix it”
EOM

I have had multiple interactions with the police. Multiple. Never anything like this. Yes, it is possible the LT could have been more compliant. Yes, he DID drive a SHORT period extra to get to a well-lit area. Both are true. BUT....

The LT was overall compliant, his action to drive to a well-lit area is ROUTINE and even encouraged by most PDs. The LT never once escalated anything nor did he return the Officers' escalation. He remain calm throughout and the only "struggle" he provided was resisting being thrown to the ground - which I think is a pretty natural reaction.

It is a popular opinion that we should just comply with the police, no matter how badly they abuse us or violate our rights. I do not happen to agree with that opinion. I have absolutely nothing to hide in my home. When the cops come by, they do NOT have permission to enter. I have absolutely nothing to hide in my vehicle. When I get pulled over, they do NOT have permission to search. And they get nothing other than license, registration, and insurance. I am polite, but volunteer no information. "Do you know why I pulled you over?" "Why don't you tell me, Officer?" "Show me your hands." "They are right here, Officer." "Do you have any weapons?" "I have no firearms, officer, if that is what you are asking." If they ask me to exit the vehicle, the first thing I am going to do is ask them why. If they tell me again, I am going to ask if I am being detained, and why I am being detained. And I will comply, but announce my actions. - "I am going to remove my seat belt now. I am opening the door now." And I will move slow as hell while doing so.

No law requires us to be complicit in our own abuse or in the violation of our own rights. Period.
You seem to be implying that if this LT had just went along with being racially profiled, abused, and having his rights completely trampled, he would have been fine.

No, I do not think - based on what little is shown - that he did anything wrong.

His conduct was a disgrace to the uniform. He acted ignorant and used his uniform as an attempt to better his position because he knew he was in the wrong from the time he got told about the plate the 1st time he was caught doing 54 in a 35mph zone on a foggy morning.
When the police attempted to stop him he should have stopped. Because he didn't the officers assumed he was fleeing from them. This changes the entire dynamic of the stop from a simple license plate violation to a felony traffic stop. This is done because it is possible that a person fleeing the police has done something bad.
Once he finally pulled into the gas station and stopped. All he had to do at that point was obey the officers commands, had he done this it would be a non-event. The cops would have asked him why he didn't stop and he would have told them. They would have told him that was a bad idea and that was why he had guns pointed at him. They then would have given him a verbal or at worst a written warning about his tag. He would have gone on his way better educated to avoid those things in the future.
I honestly believe the whole thing was an attempt by him to get a big payday for himself. Also, he is a National Guard soldier working in VA but from GA. Maybe he's on orders to the National Guard Bureau. The video from the 1st traffic stop shows his arm patch clearly with ARNG Honor Guard which is the Army National Guard Honor Guard.

This 2nd lt would lose his shit if a subordinate in uniform responded to him, like he responded to those cops.
That being said, the cops were unprofessional as the 2nd lt escalated his unprofessional, childish reaction to the police.
I hope the 2nd lt is disciplined appropriately for his misconduct.

NO! The man should have got out of his vehicle instead of arguing with the cop!
Why not comply right away? WHY? saying WHAT DID I DO WRONG is not listening to ORDERS is it??? He should be fired from all duties for not following directions. Is this the way he would act on the front lines. "what sir?, Do you really want me to set these cannons off now? Maybe we could wait and see if the enemy STOPS coming at us." WHY all the BS. Race bate bad news. Just keep on hating one another instead of pointing out Democrat mass failures!

My family & I evacuated the MS Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina & went to stay with my parents. When we got back, it was late & there was a curfew in effect (I didn't know about the curfew). We got pulled over about 2 miles from our house. The main road we lived off of was 2 lanes, no shoulders. When I saw the bubblegums, I turned on my hazards & drove to an old business parking lot about 1/4mi away. As soon as we pulled in, I turned on the dome lights so the cops could see inside the vehicle, turned off my car, took the keys & hooked the keyring on my left hand fingers & held it outside the window. Put my right hand up on the interior roof of the car, and waited. I didn't try to get out or do anything, & I didn't play the AD svc member card.

When the officer told me to put my right hand on the top of the steering wheel. . . I put my hand on the steering wheel. When they asked for my license & registration, I told them what I was going to do (put my keys on the dash, and reach for my wallet in my front left pocket; he did ask me to open the door, which I did). I told him my wife was going to open the glove box & get the registration.

In the end, I never had a gun drawn on me, never got tazed or pepper sprayed, and the over-worked & over-stressed cops let me continue on with nothing more than, "Hey, curfew's from 2100 - 0500, just so you've been made aware. Have a good evening."

Stressful situations take two to make them less-stressful.

I'm going to have to disagree the LT was totally out of line in his actions and behavior! As a prior Military Police Officer in the USMC i found the LT's conduct to be condescending and arrogant.. i suggest you watch Officer Tatum's video where he breaks it down as a former police officer! Tatum gives insight that would otherwise be ignored! I dont think that officer should have been fired and I hope he sues the department for wrongful termination! Lastly it was discovered that the LT had a gun hidden in his right leg, so this could have easily turned into a disaster! Traffic stops have become inherently dangerous for law enforcement so I can understand why the stop was escalated to a high risk traffic stop! I wish the LT well but if he takes that same attitude to work he will not earn the respect if his subordinates

One action the LT should have taken before putting on his uniform was to shave off his soul patch and goatee. Big time violation of AR 670-1. And no, that's not due to a shaving profile.

You can agree with the firing of the Latino officer but the LT's actions for non-compliance, flagrant disrespect for the officer's commands and pushing his hands away when trying to open his door were uncalled for and I do not agree with the SMA of the Army chiming in on social media and going on CNN providing commentary on the issue. I am 30 years military, former MP and former federal agent and grew up in the hood where there were no white people. I have provided sworn statements on officer's misconduct but I tell LEOs; it is open season on cops and with body cams and phone cams, you have to be extra alert and on your Ps and Qs. It is not worth it losing your career or going to prison over a non-compliant subject. My cousin (who is half Puerto Rican and half Bahamian (and did not look white) was murdered and burned by people who were not cops or white in the South Bronx. I wish people would protest over the senseless murders of non-whites in our inner cities daily. And if we want cop encounters to go down; then do not break the law and you will live in peace in this country; no matter what your skin color.

Bottom line, you MUST listen to commands given by law enforcement!! I don’t think he did (at least from what I saw in the video posted on the news). As a military retiree, I personally wouldn’t “use that card” to expect any different treatment than any other law abiding citizen. When you don’t listen yo commands given by law enforcement, you create doubt and suspicion. My 2 cents!!