Posted by: Blue
Today, my Sergeant sent me a message in the car; "There's an envelope for you in the shift bunk".
It is a formal complaint which has been lodged with the police "watchdog" agency over the conduct of myself and a couple other officers on my shift.
The complainant was arrested for driving impaired and had to be handcuffed and shackled and at times held down to keep her from smashing her head on the cement floor of the cell.
Her children were put into temporary foster care while she was in jail awaiting bail approval.
I try not to take it personally, but every time I think of her, I think of the state that I found those children in; sleeping in a room full of dog shit all over the floor, nothing but rotten food in the fridge and empty cereal boxes on the shelves, dirty, un-bathed and no proper winter clothing to be found.
Her 7 year old girl was in the vehicle with her as she sped drunk and high through residential areas. The poor sweetheart wasn't buckled in and kept rattling around in the trunk area of the van along with all of the empty liquor containers. My Sergeant and I gave her chips and soda while she played games on my iPhone and her mother screamed away in the cell on the floor above us.
I hope she goes to jail for a long time.
At the same time, I hope she doesn't, so her kids never have to enter the foster system permanently. It's worse than all of that because they will likely never have each other again and each other is their only salvation from their mother.
Some people must be stopped from having children. But personal "rights" take priority, even if they infringe on other good and innocent people's rights and freedoms.
Whew! Does that bring back memories from my patrol days of a severely unkempt male kneewalking drunk and driving with his son in the back seat. As we were getting him out of the car, he slid to the ground and began crawling trying to grab me around the legs to beg me not to arrest him or he'd lose his son. He went from unbathed, unshaved in urinated on pants to clean shaven in a suit saying I was at fault for him losing custody of his son. I wish you good fortune on being cleared and the children being placed in a safe, loving environment.
ReplyDeleteThank you Juli. I am confident that between the reports, the notes we have made, and the general demeanour of this woman, that there will be no issues in both clearing ourselves and getting a conviction. I have dealt with both her and her children on a few occasions now and it has become clear that the 12 year old is the real mother in the house.
DeleteAnd you're right. It's amazing how sterilized the issue becomes in court when there is only a report of a suited "gentleman" acting like an animal and all of the sights and smells have been left to be articulated by a cop.
That is great to hear! You aren't kidding that documentation is everything! I am really enjoying your blog and appreciate the compassion and perseverance you display. It is a hard slog out there and I for one appreciate the effort it takes to maintain that level of compassion. Hat tip to you!
DeleteCheers
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