No slammer time for Rod Bryan, the 2006 independent candidate for governor, who was ticketed by Little Rock cops last week for shouting at a pair of speeding cruisers to turn their lights on after they rocketed past his bike on Seventh Street.
When Bryan showed up to answer the disorderly conduct charge in district court this morning, the judge told Bryan the charge had been nolle prossed. Police and prosecutors apparently decided — with good reason — that nothing good could come of putting on a cop’s testimony that he’d charged Bryan with a crime for, as the police report said, expressing displeasure at how the cop did his job.
It might have been nice if somebody had informed Bryan of the decision before he took a day off from work at Boulevard Bread to appear in court. Now he’s going to have to work Saturday to make it up. A little apology might be in order, too.
Bryan expressed a little regret at not being able to tell his story in court. Mostly, though, he said, “I feel sorry for all the people who might not have the gumption to speak up.”