West Covina Pissed That Film Crew Used City Patrol Cars, Police Uniforms For Video Featured on Funny or Die

West Covina city officials are pissed that a film crew managed to convince its city employees to let them use patrol cars and police uniforms to make a dark spoof about police harassment that went viral and was featured on Funny or Die.

The film's producer told the San Gabriel Valley Tribune that one city employee has already been let go, and the city was pressuring the production group to take it down (it's no longer on Funny or Die). The city council members have launched an internal investigation into the matter.

"I'm just offended all the way around at the scumbugs who would do something like this," City Councilman Mike Touhey told the Tribune. "I don't care whether it's a worker or not, I'm going after everyone involved in this."

It's not clear whether the city council members are more worried that the video makes police officers or West Covina look bad or about the misuse of city resources (or more than likely: both). Touhey said he wants the city to file a lawsuit against the video's producer and any employees who were involved in its creation. He also wants the actors criminally prosecuted for impersonating police officers. Yikes.

The video shows a NPR-listening, latte-sipping, driving his hybrid under a shady grove, when several cops in patrol cars pull him over with their guns drawn. "Where's the little girl? Where is she? Show us the little girl" the officers repeatedly scream at him. One of them threatens him: "You're going away for a loooooong time."

Finally when the driver breaks down in sobs, and one police tells him, "There's the little girl." All the officers get back in their cars, and they drive away shooting their guns into the air.

It looks like the filmmakers have covered up most references that the uniforms or cars came from the city themselves — it seems that it wasn't intended to be a statement about police abuse in a particular city. And a quick scan of the films made by the company Zoochosis shows that police and firefighters show up in their other videos quite a bit. There are also lots of dogs and sheep that appear as women to men (yup, there's a bestiality joke in there). As twisted as it is, the police video shot in West Covina is one of the less surreal/disturbing videos.