There was no shortage in reaction to the developments regarding Jason Russell, the filmmaker behind the documentary Kony 2012.
According to co-workers at the San Diego-based organization Invisible Children, Russell is seeking medical treatment after he was detained by San Diego police Thursday.
The 33-year-old producer did some irrational things, his wife Danica Russell admitted in a statement, bt those actions were not caused by substance abuse or a drinking problem.
Instead, she wrote, they were “brought on by extreme exhaustion and dehydration."
Police said they received several calls Thursday at 11:30 a.m. of a man in various stages of undress, running through traffic and screaming on the corner of Ingraham Street and Riviera Road.
An SDPD spokesperson said the man detained was acting very strange, some may say bizarre. Video: SDPD statement
"Due to the nature of the detention, he was not arrested," Lt. Andra Brown said. "During the evaluation we learned we probably needed to take him to a medical facility because of statements he was saying."
Video shown online appears to capture the moments before Russell’s interaction with police on Thursday.
The popularity of Kony 2012 grew through its huge social media following. Soon after, critics started rejecting the film and its creator including the people of Uganda.
"While that attention was great for raising awareness about Joseph Kony, it also brought a lot of attention to Jason-and, because of how personal the film is, many of the attacks against it were also very personal, and Jason took them very hard,” Danica wrote.
Local
Russell's public downfall has followed a similar path of communication with the news moving through social media at lightning-quick speed just a short time after NBCSanDiego broke the news.
By Saturday, most locals said they had heard about Russell’s troubles.
Some were not impressed.
“I think a lot of people are under pressure but that's no excuse for running around town with your pants down,” said San Diego resident Darren Moe
Some said Thursday’s incident meant very little compared to the atrocities brought to light by Russell's documentary on Ugandan warlord Joseph Kony
“For him to be out there in the middle, being naked or being arrested, it's nothing compared to what's really happening,” said Chula Vista resident Rene Galindo .
Moviegoers in Mission Valley said the focus should still be on the charitable organization, Invisible Children and their work in Uganda.
“I think the mission is still favorable, positive, and it's making a difference in the world in some capacity,” North Park resident Bruce Hartman said.
Jared Jacobsen of Point Loma agreed.
“To me, that shouldn't change the fact that he seemed to be doing extremely good work in a part of the world that desperately needs people to do good work,” Jacobsen said.
NBC 7 chose not to air the home video of Russell seen in Pacific Beach Thursday because it appears he had a mental breakdown.
The video "Kony 2012" calls for the capture of the Ugandan LRA leader whose fighting tactic involves kidnapping and torturing the country's innocent children.
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