cop harms 70 year old for not watering her yard....

[strmrdr]

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=1444771

And cops wonder why everyone hate them......

 

[Ellen]

Wow. He ought to feel all puffed up over that one.

 

[poptart]

Welcome to the insanity of Utah ladies and gentlemen.

*M*

 

[poshpepper]

Good god... dont they have anything better to do?

 

[Love in Bloom]

Date: 7/9/2007 5:44:38 PM
Author: poptart
Welcome to the insanity of Utah ladies and gentlemen.

*M*

LOL, is that where Orem is? And I thought I lived in the middle of nowhere. I''ll be sure to put that on my list of places *not* to visit. That poor woman!

 

[poptart]

Date: 7/9/2007 5:52:45 PM
Author: Love in Bloom

Date: 7/9/2007 5:44:38 PM

Author: poptart

Welcome to the insanity of Utah ladies and gentlemen.


*M*

LOL, is that where Orem is? And I thought I lived in the middle of nowhere. I''ll be sure to put that on my list of places *not* to visit. That poor woman!

Yea, about an hour and a half from my hometown. Sadly the story doesn''t surprise me. Utah IS the middle of nowhere, hahaha. Rent SLC Punk and you will understand about the craziness that drives people there.

*M*

 

[Gypsy]

Oh to be a fly on the wall when this guy''s superiors yelled at him.

What are the chances, given the PR liability, that he will continue his employment with them in that town??

 

[Ellen]

Date: 7/9/2007 5:51:00 PM
Author: SanDiegoLady
To defend my husband''s status as a police officer, I can say with complete confidence........... not all cops are jerks and they don''t overstep their boundaries.

This one however, apparently is and did. He should be ashamed of his behavior.

I can show you a wall of SDPD officers who have sacrified themselves in the line of duty. I can think of a great deal of them who while they are upholding the law and carrying on in the line of duty, get their fair share of abuse... just because they wear the uniform doesn''t mean most don''t have feelings about the job they do. Most I know are proud to wear their badge and protect their communities..

Don''t judge cops by one... if you do, you will be sorely disappointed.

~Proud cop''s wife~
Michelle

I don''t. And I doubt that many do.

 

[musey]

Date: 7/9/2007 6:24:02 PM
Author: Ellen

Date: 7/9/2007 5:51:00 PM

Author: SanDiegoLady

To defend my husband''s status as a police officer, I can say with complete confidence........... not all cops are jerks and they don''t overstep their boundaries.


This one however, apparently is and did. He should be ashamed of his behavior.


I can show you a wall of SDPD officers who have sacrified themselves in the line of duty. I can think of a great deal of them who while they are upholding the law and carrying on in the line of duty, get their fair share of abuse... just because they wear the uniform doesn''t mean most don''t have feelings about the job they do. Most I know are proud to wear their badge and protect their communities..


Don''t judge cops by one... if you do, you will be sorely disappointed.


~Proud cop''s wife~

Michelle

I don''t. And I doubt that many do.

Indeed. Police officers with poor judgement and shaky tempers are certainly the exception, not the rule.

 

[belle]

Date: 7/9/2007 7:06:07 PM
Author: musey

Date: 7/9/2007 6:24:02 PM
Author: Ellen

Date: 7/9/2007 5:51:00 PM

Author: SanDiegoLady

To defend my husband''s status as a police officer, I can say with complete confidence........... not all cops are jerks and they don''t overstep their boundaries.


This one however, apparently is and did. He should be ashamed of his behavior.


I can show you a wall of SDPD officers who have sacrified themselves in the line of duty. I can think of a great deal of them who while they are upholding the law and carrying on in the line of duty, get their fair share of abuse... just because they wear the uniform doesn''t mean most don''t have feelings about the job they do. Most I know are proud to wear their badge and protect their communities..


Don''t judge cops by one... if you do, you will be sorely disappointed.


~Proud cop''s wife~

Michelle

I don''t. And I doubt that many do.

Indeed. Police officers with poor judgement and shaky tempers are certainly the exception, not the rule.

double ditto agree.

thanks to those who put their lives on the line to defend us everyday.

 

[Skippy123]

Wow, poor lady. Did she get warnings in the mail?

 

[snlee]

I agree we shouldn''t judge cops by one incident. I have great respect for the men and women who put their lives on the line to defend us everyday. However, this incident...seriously!? He should be ashamed of his behavior!

 

[CaptAubrey]

I think this part about says it all...

Orem police spokesman Lt. Doug Edwards said, "Every officer in his career has situations they find themselves getting into, at the end of it they scratch their head and say, ‘gosh, how did this happen?'' Today, I think, was one of those days. Clearly there were some other options available."

 

[Shay37]

Date: 7/9/2007 8:05:13 PM
Author: SanDiegoLady

Date: 7/9/2007 7:26:27 PM
Author: belle

Date: 7/9/2007 7:06:07 PM
Author: musey

Date: 7/9/2007 6:24:02 PM
Author: Ellen

Date: 7/9/2007 5:51:00 PM

Author: SanDiegoLady

To defend my husband''s status as a police officer, I can say with complete confidence........... not all cops are jerks and they don''t overstep their boundaries.


This one however, apparently is and did. He should be ashamed of his behavior.


I can show you a wall of SDPD officers who have sacrified themselves in the line of duty. I can think of a great deal of them who while they are upholding the law and carrying on in the line of duty, get their fair share of abuse... just because they wear the uniform doesn''t mean most don''t have feelings about the job they do. Most I know are proud to wear their badge and protect their communities..


Don''t judge cops by one... if you do, you will be sorely disappointed.


~Proud cop''s wife~

Michelle

I don''t. And I doubt that many do.

Indeed. Police officers with poor judgement and shaky tempers are certainly the exception, not the rule.

double ditto agree.

thanks to those who put their lives on the line to defend us everyday.

I agree, Ellen, Musey, Belle & Snlee. Its those officers who do this stupid things who make it look bad for others..

Half of my family is or has been in law enforcement. I do not hate all police officers. As a matter of fact, I don''t think that I hate anyone. I work with a number of them in my job. Most are just trying to do a difficult job in a safe manner for themselves and those around them.

Every time that something like this is reported on across the country, it really is an embarassment and a black eye to the law enforcement community. It''s a shame. I don''t judge all postal workers because of the insanity of one. I certainly wouldn''t judge all police officers by the actions of a few either. People are people. Sometimes people become police officers because they like to abuse and hurt people. Just remember that''s a very small percentage of people. Kind of like the percentage of people out there breaking the law. Most people wouldn''t dream of it. Most police officers wouldn''t either.

Shay gets off her soap box.

shay

 

[asscherisme]

First off, I agree with SDLady, there are definately some good cops out there and I''m thankful that I feel safe in the town I live because we have a great police force. I am happy to pay my taxes for their salary.

Now, that being said, the guy who arrested that poor woman overstepped for sure.

If she was having to decide between eating and watering her lawn, hmmmm, she could have starved but she sure would have had a pretty green lawn.

Ironically in my town, they have watering restrictions due to drought. They are discouraging people from watering so the water can be used by the farmers. So they have alternating days assigned when you can water, and even times assigned based on your street. But if you violate those you will get a fine/ticket. Certainly not hauled off to jail!

 

[poptart]

Date: 7/9/2007 11:42:10 PM
Author: asscherisme
First off, I agree with SDLady, there are definately some good cops out there and I''m thankful that I feel safe in the town I live because we have a great police force. I am happy to pay my taxes for their salary.


Now, that being said, the guy who arrested that poor woman overstepped for sure.


If she was having to decide between eating and watering her lawn, hmmmm, she could have starved but she sure would have had a pretty green lawn.


Ironically in my town, they have watering restrictions due to drought. They are discouraging people from watering so the water can be used by the farmers. So they have alternating days assigned when you can water, and even times assigned based on your street. But if you violate those you will get a fine/ticket. Certainly not hauled off to jail!

Orem actually has these same drought laws, I believe, as does the entire state of Utah since it is one big desert. That kind of caused me some confusion as well since there are strict guidelines as to how much and when you can water your lawn.

*M*

 

[monarch64]

Another case of one bad apple ruining the whole barrel (I think that''s the saying, anyway). I certainly don''t hate police, in fact I respect them and have been fortunate enough to have never had a negative experience with law enforcement unless you count speeding which was my fault! My heart goes out to this woman, though...I can''t imagine being 70 years old and having to spend even one minute in jail with scrapes and bleeding from an "altercation" with a police officer over something so silly as a dried-up lawn. Heaven forbid that ordinance ever goes into effect where we live...half the neighborhood will be arrested! Once the grass dies after a hot spell here there''s nothing you can do til the next year. And yes, we all water our lawns faithfully and also observe water conservation ordinances. Yeesh. No wonder my parents always thought living outside the city-limits was better, they didn''t have neighborhood associations and whatnot breathing down their throats over every little thing, but they have always kept up their property meticulously. Stepping off soapbox...lol.

 

[diamondfan]

And guess what? During the droughts in California years ago you got a ticket if you DID water it, or washed your car, wanting and or having a green lawn or clean car was a big no no back then. I can understand no one wanting to look at an eye sore, but why not ask WHY she did not maintain her lawn and maybe see if someone can help her? Maybe eating is her priority right now. Poor woman, she must have been scared out of her mind. It is cruel beyond comprehension to me. Any and all professions have their share of dirtbags. I like to think most people in law enforcement are skilled and professional, and I appreciate that they risk their lives for us. There will always be a few rotten apples in the bunch in any field, unfortunately.

 

[ljmorgan]

Guess I''m alone here... I think the lady acted like a brat. He asked for her name, to write a ticket, which should could have appealed, and she refused to give her name, which is disobeying law enforcement. She was arrested because she would not cooperate, which was her own choice.

 

[iheartscience]

Date: 7/10/2007 8:29:16 AM
Author: *Lindsey*
Guess I''m alone here... I think the lady acted like a brat. He asked for her name, to write a ticket, which should could have appealed, and she refused to give her name, which is disobeying law enforcement. She was arrested because she would not cooperate, which was her own choice.

I wouldn''t give my name out to an police officer if I didn''t know what they wanted it for, either. This is America-you don''t have to do everything a police officer demands. If you got pulled over by a police officer on a deserted street and he wanted you to get out of your car, would you do it? I know I wouldn''t. I don''t obey anyone for the sake of obedience.

A 70 year old lady got handcuffed roughly enough to get knocked down her steps and was scraped up enough to bleed all over her floor. And you think she''s a brat? Wow.

 

[musey]

Date: 7/9/2007 8:05:13 PM
Author: SanDiegoLady

Its those officers who do this stupid things who make it look bad for others..

It''s really such a shame... it seems to happen in every profession, but even more so with the police force. It bothers me to hear general negative remarks about police (seemed to happen a lot in high school and college...), because it is truly one of the most selfless professions, and I just wish everyone (especially kids) would have more respect for what they do for us.

My dad is an ER doc and always had such wonderful stories about the local PD. He had so much respect for them and their constant sacrifices. My cousin just went into police training last month and the whole family is so proud

Okay off my little rant now

 

[Christa]

Date: 7/10/2007 8:29:16 AM
Author: *Lindsey*
Guess I''m alone here... I think the lady acted like a brat. He asked for her name, to write a ticket, which should could have appealed, and she refused to give her name, which is disobeying law enforcement. She was arrested because she would not cooperate, which was her own choice.

She could have handled it better, I suppose, but she''s 70, all alone, and wanted to call her son for help. And it was for not watering her lawn. It''s not like she was cooking meth or something.

I agree with the others that this idiot was definitely not representative of cops in general. We just tend to hear about the bad ones. "Local Cop Did His Job Well Today" just doesn''t make an eye-catching headline.

 

[lumpkin]

Where I think this story is terrible, no one ever reports on the wonderful things police officers do. There are always officers on duty, no matter what holiday, day of the week or time of day. They help doing such invluable, but thankless tasks like directing traffic and keeping the peace at huge parades and events, as well as investigating murders and crimes. We would not have civilization without police officers, because there are too many criminals and horrible people around who make it impossible. Police officers are domestic soldiers who are called on to do a myriad of duties. That just doesn''t sell as many newspapers or get as many web sponsers as stories like the one here.

The officer here, in this story, bad, bad, bad and should be ashamed for the light he has shed on his department and police everywhere. But I don''t think he''s the general rule.

 

[Christa]

Date: 7/10/2007 1:31:54 PM
Author: lumpkin
Where I think this story is terrible, no one ever reports on the wonderful things police officers do. There are always officers on duty, no matter what holiday, day of the week or time of day. They help doing such invluable, but thankless tasks like directing traffic and keeping the peace at huge parades and events, as well as investigating murders and crimes. We would not have civilization without police officers, because there are too many criminals and horrible people around who make it impossible. Police officers are domestic soldiers who are called on to do a myriad of duties. That just doesn''t sell as many newspapers or get as many web sponsers as stories like the one here.

The officer here, in this story, bad, bad, bad and should be ashamed for the light he has shed on his department and police everywhere. But I don''t think he''s the general rule.

Very, very, very well said. I agree completely.

 

[diamondfan]

Unfortunately, nice things that occur all the time are not NEWS so one rarely hears it. (though in this world the nice stuff is really more rare and should be news!!!)

She was older and afraid, and I think she maybe could have just given the name, but I understand she might have been afraid. He might have been a more more compassionate, we are not talking a criminal act here.

My mother in law got pulled over for speeding many years ago, and the cop wanted to know what her middle initial stood for. She told him it was none of his business and refused to tell him. He threatened to arrest her, and my hubby and his sister were in the car freaking out. He got mad and exercised authority cause she was being weird, and the kids were screaming, just tell him your middle name for pete''s sake!

 

[AGBF]

Date: 7/10/2007 5:08:27 PM
Author: diamondfan
My mother in law got pulled over for speeding many years ago, and the cop wanted to know what her middle initial stood for. She told him it was none of his business and refused to tell him. He threatened to arrest her, and my hubby and his sister were in the car freaking out. He got mad and exercised authority cause she was being weird, and the kids were screaming, just tell him your middle name for pete's sake!

Police are not always the good guys. Defense attorneys have to ask potential jurors whether they will more readily believe a witness because he is a police officer...and the answer if often, "yes". Police officers are no more credible than the general population.

The above incident reminded me of a very nasty one in which my friend got a flat tire and almost wound up arrested because a police officer was so in love with his own power. She and her husband, who was with her, were attorneys who knew their rights. They complied with every request from the police. In fact her husband was (and is) a retired police detective from a large city in Connecticut (the state where the incident took place).

Luckily some of this was videotaped. My friend's husband and she wrote it up in a six page report and, in the end, the maniacal officer was disciplined. Most people don't have the time, emotional strength, or resources to take on a policeman. Even my friend, an attorney, was in tears although she had the support of her husband who was a retired cop/attorney at her side. I think policemen are vulnerable to the lure of power. I think it sings a siren song to them and they start to demand respect and obeisance from everyone. That doesn't mean there are no "good" policemen. I just think that their job has a side to it that can lead them to become tyrannical.

Betty Perry (the victim of the the above officer's abuse) came to realize that the police have the power and that might makes right. The article states, "After being arrested, Perry is now scared of the police. She says, 'Don't ever say no when the police tell you do to something. You better do what they tell you no matter what, even if you don't have anybody to help you. You've got to do what they tell you or they will hurt you.'"

When I think of heroes, I think of firemen. On 9/11 when everyone else was running out of burning buildings, it was the firemen who started up the stairs in heavy gear.

Deborah

 

[treysar]

There are bad people in EVERY job, that doesn’t mean everyone in a certain job is bad. Generalizations like this drive me crazy.

This guy absolutely was out of line – there’s no doubt about it. But how does a grown woman with 70 years of life experience think it’s OKAY to go back in their house when a police officer is writing them a ticket, and refuse to give their name? If you were driving and got pulled over and pulled that cr-p, what do you think would happen? And she was in fact going against the town ordinance. No, I don’t think she should be arrested, but I do think that she needs to be treated like any and every other person would be in the same situation – just because she is older doesn’t mean she should be treated any differently. A law is a law.

There is nothing wrong with him writing her a ticket. Handcuffing her on the other hand – that’s ridiculous.

But your title, cop harms woman – what does that mean? She fell down the stairs – he didn’t harm her. He did a stupid thing, for sure. But he didn’t harm her.

 

[strmrdr]

I spose I could have worded the post better.
I don''t hate cops just don''t have a lot of use for em because you never know if your going to be dealing with a good one or a bad one so I would much rather not deal with any of them for any reason.

I went shooting with one for a couple years and was pretty good friends.
He seemed like a good guy and helped a lot of people.
Then one bad guy resisted arrest, had one cop down and was pounding on him, another cop hit him over the head with a flashlight knocking him out.
Its kewl so far I''d have done the same.... but....
They took him down to the jail and locked him up with no medical check, when he was bleeding from the head and was not coherent.
He died.
My ex-friend said that the other cops did nothing wrong...
After that I didn''t want anything too do with him.
The cops were not charged with anything and the city paid out millions to the guys family.
Where is the justice?

 

[treysar]

SanDiegoLady, I agree with you.

strmrdr, you sound really YOUNG.

 

[strmrdr]

Date: 7/11/2007 9:12:01 PM
Author: treysar

strmrdr, you sound really YOUNG.

well I''m old enough that that is a compliment :}
Iv mellowed in my old age just a little.
There are a few people around the board older than me but im older than the average.