How did he "question their authority" when the police weren't even at the scene when he committed his "crime"?
Now if you look at an officer or say "How are you", or say "why" to them you question their authority. This I learned the hard way.
I once beleved that so long as you did not violate the law, the police were your friends. This is what I taught my children and grandchildren. In the last two years I have had to rethink that. Now I just let them alone.