(picture credit AP)
The Daily News reports on an incident that cost one deputy his job and three others a suspension.
An embarrassed Sheriff Gary Painter fired one Midland County deputy and suspended three others without pay after a scantily dressed waitress holding a rifle posed for photographs on the hood of a patrol vehicle.
Round Rock officers were dispatched to the restaurant after someone reported the waitress with the weapon, which had been given to her by one of the deputies who had been attending a training session near Austin.
The incident occurred last week in the parking lot of a Twin Peaks restaurant, which promotes its "fun, friendly and sometimes flirty atmosphere!"
The deputies told Painter that they had about three to five beers each.
A fifth deputy who remained inside the eatery got a letter of reprimand.
Now, I'm the last one to want to give the cops a break. I believe they should be held to a higher standard. But losing your job over a stupid stunt like this, to me seems ridiculous. What is wrong with these people? Every day in the news there are reports of cops abusing their power, even shooting people in the back, and for the most part they get away with it. But in this case one guy is fired and three suspended without pay. Does anyone else think something's wrong with that?
They admitted drinking "about three to five beers." That means they probably drank more than that, who tells the truth to that question in that situation? Then they started playing around with the gun and the waitress. Very stupid, very irresponsible, but is it criminal enough to get fired over?
On the other hand, maybe this is exactly the way we can weed out the least qualified cops. If a guy demonstrates such poor judgment as this in a fairly innocuous situation, perhaps he's a risk when things get dangerous. What's your opinion?
But he was so highly trained with firearms. (wah....)
ReplyDeleteMikeb, I have no problem with the cop getting fired (besides, I thought you supported the idea that guns and alcohol don't mix). Perhaps your idea of more psychological testing for cops would have weeded him out. Or not.
The officer did something stupid, really stupid. Then, he was boneheaded enough to take a picture of it. Then, to top it all off, he probably emailed the picture to his friends and presto it is on the internet. Frankly, I am suprised that the other three didn't get fired as well.
One of the things that law enforcement does get extensive training on (far more than how to use a firearm) is judgement. When to give a ticket, when to give a warning, heck, even when to put your hand on your sidearm, when to unstrap it, and when to draw it. All four officers (and the one who stayed inside if he knew about it) failed. We should hold law enforcement to a higher standard than the general public.
At least the waitress was cute though.
The report doesn't mention whether or not the cops were on-duty or off-duty.
ReplyDeleteDrinking on the job for an LEO is a definite no-no.
Without knowing this critical piece of info, I can't say whether this was justified or not.
"Very stupid, very irresponsible, but is it criminal enough to get fired over?"
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely! IF these cops were drinking on the job. (doesn't say they were on duty) That alone is enough to get fired over. On top of that they gave their patrol rifle to a civilian while they were on duty.
If any of the cops in my family did that I'd fully expect them to be fired.
You guys are right. I really have no problem with his being fired either. It's just that juxtaposed with some of those other stories about what I see as police brutality where the cops are exonerated, this seems a bit severe. But, as I say so often, cops should be held to a higher standard, and that means this guy has to go.
ReplyDelete