Cops cuss traffic offender, get fired

Photo: florida traffic attorney office

Having flung curse words at a traffic offender who provoked them by insults, veteran police patrol officers get sacked that very day. 

It got ugly. What the policemen didn’t know was that the alleged offender had switched his smartphone to recording mode.

Having received his ticket, the latter marched straight to police internal audit and then it got even worse for those who had just shown off their power.

A peculiar case indeed and a rare one, it all happened on February 12th, 9:10 am in Lasnamäe, Tallinn.

Having been cut off by a Volkswagen Transporter with its novice driver eager to make it to work at Tallinn Airport on time, the cops in their Škoda Octavia judged the manoeuvre to have been hazardous. Thus, the blinkers went on to bring the VW to a halt.

Toe policemen claimed the guy had safety belt unfastened while driving – that he only fastened it after being ordered to stop. Also, the VW was missing the new driver green maple leaves.  

The debate, an hour all in all, got heated as the driver maintained the unfastened belt was fiction to justify a fine. There came a point when the VW guy called 112 to find out what to do when harassed by police. He was advised to file a written complaint.

It was after that very call that the dictaphone was «on» and the ten minutes recorded* were revealing enough – the officers obviously went way too far.

The offender later got his fine cancelled as not proven. Even so, he admitted he acted bad – but as provoked by ill manners of cops.

Summonsed to internal audit the day after, the officers confessed to behaviour not acceptable to their profession, and vocabulary to be avoided when working. Meanwhile, they claimed they came unglued having been insulted by the driver. «Before recording, the individual was intentionally very ill-mannered towards us, desiring to via us to tarnish police reputation,» declared one.

So what would the guy have said?

«He said God help such have babies. At the moment, my woman was pregnant in the 9th month and this really got me going,» said the senior inspector. «This in no way justifies my behaviour, of course. No matter the individual and the situation, one must ever stay professional and civil and from now on I will be more careful choosing my vocabulary,» he promised.

«I admit that in the eyes of that individual I have hurt the reputation of Police as such, probably, and I am willing for that to undergo punishment,» agreed the chief inspector. «I am sorry and stand ready to ask for the individual’s forgiveness.»

Probably, the policemen thought they’d get reprimanded or served some other slighter punishment. Both had excellent careers under their belt, and assessments supreme. They were described as teachers and mentors of younger colleagues, ones showing initiative at work.

Both did have one prior disciplinary investigation – and both involving curse words allegedly uttered to individuals. With one, it went unproven. With the other, though judged guilty, no punishment followed.

This time, internal audit relented not and advised that the director-general hand the pink slip. At the start of this summer, both were sacked.

* The readers of Postimees in Estonian were treated to full-length and unedited transcript of the recording with occasional words only partly shown. While it would be futile to attempt a translation as juicy, and the precise words come without close English «comrades», let us note that the driver’s language contained no curse words during bulk of the exchange (while indeed accusing the cops of finding fault with him, refusing to comply, and irritated at being late for work) as the policemen went vulgar from the start – edit.  

COMMENT

Northern prefect Kristian Jaani

It is such a pity that the experienced policemen behaved so ugly and thus lowered the credit trust for law and order. Obviously, people expect to be treated with dignity and obviously the expectations are mutual. Still, those who wear the uniform are under obligation to solve differences in a worthy manner, leaving emotions aside. A policeman must set an example and it goes without saying that communication needs to be correct and geared towards solving the problem at hand.

Though the patrol policemen involved in the incident have, as assessed by colleagues, thus far proven to be professionals and made a vital input into provision of security, nothing will justify such an aggressive exchange of words and unacceptable vocabulary.