Man stopped by police for dancing in public to face trial by jury

Steve Unger, who dances on sidewalks in Holladay and Cottonwood Heights, Utah, faced the music in court on Wednesday afternoon after some police officers on the beat apparently did not appreciate his act. Following the court appearance, he has a Nov. 18 jury trial to face disorderly conduct charges. For Wednesday's court appearance he wore a suit, saying he has never worn one before and never will again.

"What happened to me is pretty absurd," Unger said. "I'm hoping the judge issues a reprimand to the people who did this to me." Nearly every day, the 68-year-old retiree dons selections from his brightly colored wardrobe, ties a bandanna around his clean-shaven head, throws on the ear buds, plugs into his smart phone packed with tunes, and heads outdoors. He walks and dances up to 10 miles, sometimes bouncing a rubber ball as he "glides" along streets, avenues and lanes.

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Children from the local junior high say hello, and passers-by in cars wave. But in late August, Unger's dancing hit a sour note. His improvised moves attracted the attention of Cottonwood Heights police, who said he was blocking traffic. A police officer was dispatched, said she observed him for a time, and then later approached with two others officers. Unger said they asked for his identification, which he initially declined to provide. He was cuffed and given a citation, charging him with disorderly conduct, failure to identify himself, and interference with an arresting officer.

"Everything I did was cooperative," Unger said. "A 160 pound, 68-year-old man is going to fight with three police officers?" Cottonwood Heights police chief Robbie Russo was in the courtroom on Wednesday and said his officers acted appropriately dealing with Unger and said there are two sides to the story of his charges. Unger said he is not "as angry as a lot of people are about it." Still, he maintained there's a "need to underline accountability for police officers." Before court, Unger said expected the case to be dismissed, adding, "If it's not dismissed, I'll ask for a jury trial."
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