Here's Gates' lawyer statement
no "race card" here, and whether or not the boston globe decides Al Sharpton is relevant to the story is not really his fault.
Henry Louis Gates Jr. Arrested
Now, regardless of whether or not Gates is a jerk (and he sounds like one), it is clear, even from the police report, that the officer overstepped his boundaries. As much of a jerk Gates might have been, as soon as it was determined that he lived there, the officer should have just left.