Soldiers, Sheriff's Deputy Clash in Fla.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) - Some Army reservists say they were disrespected by a sheriff's deputy who made racially derogatory remarks during a confrontation in a national forest……

……The soldiers, with the 351st Adjutant General Postal Company, said they were sent to Silver Lake Recreational Area to decide on a location for a family day picnic next month. They were in two military vehicles and one private truck…….

….The interaction between the soldiers, the sheriff's deputy and the Forest Service officer began when the soldiers drove by a drop box for a $3 entrance fee to the area…..

….The soldiers said Tuesday they didn't realize there was an entrance fee. But they also say that they were on official military business and were therefore exempt from the fee…..

….The soldiers who got the tickets were the ones driving the vehicles…..

…Russ said the deputy asked him if he could read on a ninth-grade level. Another comment that the soldiers and the two civil rights groups said had racial overtones compared the soldiers' actions to behavior of people "from the projects."….

Ok, you can read the whole story yourself and from a distance it’s impossible to really say what happened here.  But if these individuals ran though an entrance with a fee they are idiots and deserve the tickets.  The excuse that that were checking the site for a Unit party prior to deployment is weak.  First anyone with a brain knows you may be exempt but you would need to coordinate with the forestry service.  Had they simply stopped and talked to the officer at the entrance there probably wouldn’t have been any trouble at all.