MC Hammer arrested and charged with obstructing police officer in California
Rapper turned preacher MC Hammer was arrested on Thursday after he was charged with obstructing an officer in the performance of their duties in Dublin, California.
MC Hammer, 50, who legally changed his name from Stanley Kirk Burrell, was booked into Santa Rita Jail on Thursday night before bring cited and released, KTVU TV Oakland reported.
He was arrested after a verbal altercation between him and a policeman at a local shopping centre.
MC Hammer took to Twitter on Friday and then again on Saturday to explain his side of the incident, suggesting he was unfairly treated because he is African American.
“Sometimes in life you choose to <<Fight>> and other times the <<Fight>> chooses you. Dignity is not a crime,” he posted after his release.
According to the star the incident started when a “chubby Elvis looking dude was tapping on my car window, I rolled down the window and he said, <<Are you on parole or probation?>>”.
“While I was handing him my ID he reached in my car and tried to pull me out the car but forgot he was on a steady donut diet.
“It was comical to me until he pulled out his guns, blew his whistle and yelled for help (MallCop)!!! But make no mistake he’s dangerous.”
MC Hammer explained he felt threatened and believes he was racially profiled.
“Only thing more dangerous than a scared man with a gun, is a scared man with an agenda, a gun and a badge. I was citied [sic] for obstruction.
“I will now answer his question, contrary to his personal beliefs, all people of color are not on parole or probation fat boy!!!”
MC Hammer, who now travels the world as a Christian preacher, said he was telling people about his experience so they can learn from it.
“Instead of being bitter, I’m taking the opportunity to make this a <<teachable moment>> and <<eye opener>> for my many friends & colleagues,” he tweeted on Saturday.
The rapper also revealed he had been subjected to medical tests when he was booked into jail.
“My biggest concern? What was it that they injected into my arm under the guise of a <<Skin Test>>?”
Ironically MC Hammer was on his way to San Quentin Jail as part of an inmate outreach program that helps inmates transition from incarceration to life post release.
“Disappointment? I was on my way to San Quentin Friday morning to congratulate a group of inmates in The Last Mile,” MC Hammer tweeted yesterday.
The Alameda County Sheriff’s Office on Saturday refused to release the rapper’s mug shot, KTVU reported.
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