Saturday, July 14, 2007

I Could Learn to Hate Cops

Despite the turn of events, McKimm said he hopes the community and nation aren’t quick to judge any law enforcement agency “by the isolated acts of a rogue officer. “Doing so denigrates all of the many, selfless acts of law enforcement personnel who daily put their lives on the line to protect and serve the citizens in their communities,” McKimm said. -- Dean McKimm, City of Canton Police Chief on Bobby Cutts, accused murderer of Jessie Davis and a Canton City Police officer..

This morning I'm giving damned little credence to anything this man says because I had an encounter with one of his officers last night. After listening to my neighbor and her live-in screaming and banging around for hours, I finally called the police as per my landlord's instructions when I called him a couple days ago. Unfortunately, by the time he came they'd stopped and, of course, denied a problem. The officer came to my place and yelled at me and told me that the problem is my landlord because he doesn't have things sound-proofed properly and that I have to deal with it or move.

I'm sure my landlord will be delighted to hear this when I call him. This is a big old house built back when buildings were built solid as rocks. When I'm in my dining room, I can barely hear my television in the living room so tell me what the officer knew what he was saying.

When I told him that this was my home and that I have a right to peace, he said, "No it isn't, you rent. If you want peace and quiet, buy a house." Excuse me? Yes, I rent and this place is my home as long as I rent it. So I woke up, after very little sleep, to my neighbor screaming "Shut the f--- up repeatedly.!" Thank you, officer.

I have long been a defender of our law enforcement officers here but that is on shaky ground at this time. I refuse to be blown off by a smart-assed cop. I like my apartment and my neighborhood. I'd like nothing better than to buy a house here if I could afford it and could maintain it. I am a good citizen. I am an active member of our neighborhood association and an officer of the Neighborhood Leadership Council for our city. Our motto is "You don't have to move to live in a better neighborhood." My motto is I can't afford to move every year.

This morning I called I called the police department and told the lieutenant what happened. He was very polite, seemed to understand my being upset and said that the officer shouldn't have said those things. He also said he would refer it to the officer's supervisor. In the meantime, I'm tired and frustrated and angry because I can't have peace in my home. And my respect for the police is tarnished. Wish me luck when I get in touch with my landlord!


Happy Blogging!!!!!

Kay

6 comments:

  1. yeah, I had a bad encounter with a rookie type of a cop last year. As she unjustly threw her weight around, it was scary to to realize that she had discretionary use of deadly force, and yet was afraid to make a decision on her own.
    to make a long story short, she impounded our truck, even though she could see that the mistake we had made (accidentally switching our inspection stickers between two vehicles both of which we owned) was a pretty easy one to make, and left two elderly people standing on the side of the road with all our possessions removed and sitting on the grass beside the road, as we waited for our daughter to come get us at midnight. We were 150 miles from home.
    Later I found out from a friend who is also a cop, that she could have given us a warning. Instead, we had to borrow a car from our daughter, drive 150 miles home on a Saturday night, turn around on Monday (because the impound lot isn't open on Sunday) and come back up the 150 miles and pay for towing, impounding, a ticket for not having a proper inspection sticker in order to get our truck back. My husband had to take time off work. I have a rather sour feeling about cops too. Especially since later we found out our other daughter's car had been broken into and the stereo stolen while she was at work that same night. Why couldn't they have been patrolling the place where her car was parked, instead of pulling over two older people, one of which has an absolutely perfect driving record (NO TICKETS IN HIS LIFETIME).
    we just shake our heads.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi, Kay, just catching up and always enjoy reading about your interesting life.

    ReplyDelete
  3. That sounds like a miserable problem and it's good you followed up by calling the police department. I hope you find a solution but sounds like your landlord should be the one encouraging the out of control people to move.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Oh my God, Annr -- this was really an ordeal for you! I'm so sorry!

    Rain: I've spoken to my landlord several times. He us sympathetic but hasn't done anything about it. The worst part is, they (the neighbors) heard the cop yell at me and kicked it up a notch last night. I think they think they can get away with anything now. They will see -- I'm calling the nice lieutenant & telling him what happened. Sigh.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Suzz? My life is really rather boring. Sometimes it just gets weird and lately it's gotten weirder than usual.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous5:20 PM

    My respect for almost all cops was tarnished about 40 years ago, at the young age of 20. (Long story but it had to do with domestic abuse...two words with no definition back in 1968)
    Sooo....your story here doesn't surprise me, but it sure as hell makes me angry! WHAT a nerve he had, telling you that's NOT your home! Whew...talk about an arrogant attitude! Sure hope this all works out for you.

    ReplyDelete

I love your comments!!! If you wish to post as Anonymous, please leave a name in your comment otherwise your comment will not appear.