AMC Rainbow Promenade in Las Vegas will be holding a theater screening of "What Happened in Vegas" on March 19th
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As has been noted here numerous times in the past, the documentary “What Happened in Vegas” by director Ramsey Denison exposes the corruption, racism, and violence prevalent throughout the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. It also puts on display the cover-ups and character assassination of their victims that the LVMPD employs to hide such behavior from the public.

In order to do so, it focuses primarily on the cases of Trevon Cole, Erik Scott, Stanley Gibson, and Tashii Farmer-Brown. All four of those men were killed by Las Vegas police officers under extremely questionable circumstances and reasoning. However, very few if any questions were asked at the time by local media or politicians.

Although each of those killings received pretty substantial local attention from the public, the lack of critical media coverage prevented much of that indignation from reaching many people outside of Las Vegas. This in turn also allowed the LVMPD to move quickly past them without any real accountability for the officers involved.

In highlighting these and other similar, but non-fatal, cases, “What Happened in Vegas” shows how and why Metro has been able to so easily cover-up and deflect blame from the department and its officers, in spite of such egregious violence. One of the more obvious reasons why the media and politicians are so willing to “play along” is that the city is extremely dependent on the casinos and tourism industry. As a result, there is tremendous pressure to ensure potential visitors aren’t concerned that Las Vegas is unsafe.

Note: If you have videos, stories, upcoming events/protests, or personal interactions with the police (and/or “justice” system) that you would like to share, send them to us and we will do everything we can to bring it to the attention of the world. In addition, you can visit the Nevada Cop Block resources section for information and links to the rights of citizens when dealing with police, during which you should always be filming.

In addition, after the Route 91 Festival mass shooting that took place October 1st on the Las Vegas Strip, “What Happened in Vegas” was updated to include issues with the LVMPD’s subsequent investigation of Stephen Paddock and the Mandalay Bay (MGM Resorts International). Director Ramsey Denison shows how the lack of information and falsehoods that have been exposed within what information has been released are really a microcosm of the way the LVMPD has conducted itself in all of those previous cases.

Also, the motivations behind the botched investigation of the Las Vegas mass shooting are essentially the same. On one hand, the police were covering up for and minimizing the liability of a casino (and their own incompetence). While on a more broad level, it was an effort to ensure potential tourists feel safe coming to Vegas. However, as the movie shows, the fact that Sheriff Lombardo and the LVMPD were dealing with national, rather than the local, media prevented them from so easily covering up the many inconsistencies within their narrative of what happened that day.

“What Happened in Vegas” is a very fast paced movie that covers a lot of ground. If you have the opportunity to see both of the screenings detailed below I would encourage you to do so. Also, if you live outside of Las Vegas and therefore can’t attend these screenings there are other options to see the movie that you can (and should) take advantage of.

At the official website, WhatHappenedInVegasTheMovie.com, you can order the DVD, stream the movie via video on demand (VOD), or set up a theater screening in your own city. There’s also an option for schools and community organizations to set up an educational screening.

Monday, March 12th Screening with “SURJ”

On March 12th, a free DVD screening of What Happened in Vegas will be hosted by members of Showing Up for Racial Justice, Las Vegas. This screening will take place at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Las Vegas, which is located at 3616 East Lake Mead Blvd, Las Vegas, Nevada 89115.

Via the description on their Facebook event page:

Join SURJ LV as we view and discuss the award-winning documentary, What Happened In Vegas by filmmaker Ramsey Denison. After the film Kelly W. Patterson from Nevada Cop Block (NVCopBlock.org), who appeared in the film, will be on hand to answer questions as we discuss what we’ve watched.

This is the film that the police don’t want you to see.

Mr. Denison has graciously given SURJ LV permission to show the film free of charge, but he encourages everyone to bring donations for NV Cop Block to further the work they are doing in the community.

As is stated in the invite, SURJ LV  has asked that I do a question and answer session as part of the discussion that they will be holding at the conclusion of the screening. I very much appreciate them setting up the screening and, based on my own personal experiences at events they have held, I fully expect that discussion to be a very valuable addition to the movie itself.

“What Happened in Vegas” Trailer

Monday, March 19th AMC Theater Screening

Exactly one week later, on March 19th, What Happened in Vegas will premier in a Las Vegas theater for the first time outside of a film festival. (Last year it showed at the Las Vegas Black Film Festival, for which it was awarded “Best Documentary,” and at the Anthem Film Festival, where it won the grand prize award.)

That screening will take place at the AMC Rainbow Promenade 10 theaters, which is located at 2321 N. Rainbow Promenade, Las Vegas, Nevada. One thing that should be noted is that the movie screening is being held independent of the AMC theater group (essentially, the theater is being rented for the screening) where it is being hosted. Therefore, tickets are not being sold through the theater box office and must be purchased online, via Tugg.com at this link.

“What Happened in Vegas” Filmmaker Intro

Police Interference with Las Vegas Showings

As previously mentioned, outside of the two festival showings, audiences within Las Vegas have yet to see What Happened in Vegas. The reason for that is very much not because of a lack of interest. In fact, three different commercial theater chains had at one time expressed interest in showing the movie here in town.

After the Eclipse Theater in Downtown Las Vegas expressed interest in showing What Happened in Vegas, “some (LVMPD) officers stopped by” and that interest suddenly disappeared.

However, in all those cases that initial interest waned due to the controversial nature of the film and potential fallout from it. It’s even been reported that they received visits from representatives of the LVMPD to help them make that decision. Sources I’ve been in contact with have also told me that Metro has issued a memo to all of their officers directing them not to discuss What Happened in Vegas publicly.

Once you see the movie, you will very much understand why Metro desperately doesn’t want it to be shown theatrically within the city of Las Vegas. It very clearly, convincingly, and dramatically lays out the criminal nature of Sheriff Lombardo and others at the top of the LVMPD and the real consequences of it for the residents and visitors of Las Vegas.

Body Cam Video of Tashii Farmer-Brown Murder by Officer Kenneth Lopera

The LVMPD’s Shifting Timeline for the Oct. 1st Las Vegas Mass Shooting

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Kelly W. Patterson

Kelly is a lifelong resident of Las Vegas, who’s been very active in local grassroots activism, as well as on a national level during his extensive travels. He’s also the founder/main contributor of Nevada Cop Block, served as editor/contributor at CopBlock.org and designed the Official Cop Block Press Passes.
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