Posted on 12/05/2022 12:55:18 PM PST by Impala64ssa
O’Connor tells Mayor Jane Castor she made a ‘personal mistake’
The Tampa Police Department chief who was caught on video flashing her badge during a traffic stop in hopes a deputy would "let her go" has resigned from her position Monday, telling the Florida city’s mayor she made a "personal mistake."
Mary O’Connor and her husband were pulled over by a Pinellas County deputy for driving a golf cart without a license plate tag on Nov. 12. O’Connor was sworn into the position in March after serving the department 22 years and was placed on administrative leave Saturday.
"I would never want my personal mistake to stand in the way of the progress I have made in mending relationships between the police department and the community, so for that reason, I am resigning," O’Connor wrote in a letter penned to Tampa Mayor Jane Castor.
"Whether I am wearing a badge or not, my commitment to service and oath of office will remain a part of my everyday life," she added. "I plan to use this time to reflect and spend time with my family and children before moving on to any future endeavors."
Castor tweeted that she had asked for O’Connor’s resignation and now "Assistant Chief Lee Bercaw will serve as acting chief while a comprehensive national search is conducted" for her replacement.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Totally awesome outcome.
These “power players” are probably in the habit of requesting and receiving total treatment.
Actually, the former Orlando Police Chief did far worse and was cleared (by her own department - heh heh heh). That was Val Demings who left a department issued firearm in her department vehicle.
Demings broke the rules right there. But it only came to light because firearm was stolen while the vehicle was parked at her home.
How many times had Demings (and/or others) done the same and just been lucky?
How do we all know if she’s “guilty”?
It was a stupid thing to do. But people do stupid things all the time.
I had a friend in HR once tell me that the thing that REALLY amazed her was the number of people fired for stealing; and it was almost always something utterly trivial. A package of batteries, a wall clock, a small cheap router. Not even something like a computer or monitor, usually things not even worth their hourly pay!
Show me a cop who calls us ‘Civilians’ and I’ll show you someone who needs to be fired and prevented from ever owning a firearm again.
You are spot on. In fact, you make a big deal about how you screwed up and tell them what a great job they are doing. Then behind the scenes, it suddenly goes bye bye.
She is seriously guilty!
You lose the right to do ‘stupid’ stuff (without severe penalty) the second you pin on that badge and strap on that gun.
The State gives you authority, even life and death power over your fellow citizens; your fellow citizens expect you to make exactly the right call in any and every circumstances or find other employment before an innocent taxpayer dies.
OK, I clicked through, I can’t unsee it, ouch! :-)
Next time just take my word for it. LOL.
Absolutely. That’s why I can’t understand why people (with positions of power) are this stupid.
Exactly. Her flashing her badge is the LEAST of my concerns. Really. Whatever. A golf cart? Please.
She did. From the article:
Castor (Tampa Mayor) tweeted that she had asked for O’Connor’s resignation and now "Assistant Chief Lee Bercaw will serve as acting chief while a comprehensive national search is conducted" for her replacement.
V_TWIN wrote: Her action in resigning seems a bit draconian.
She was asked to resign by the Mayor. IOW, she was fired. But, because she was asked to resign and complied, she can tell the next department that she quit of her own accord. Pretty slippery.
How do all these police departments decide what to put on their collars? Inquiring minds want to know.
“professional courtesy”
Speaking of why sharks do not eat lawyers :D
*old joke but still a good one
I'm more surprised the deputy who stopped her didn't simply turn off the camera, then let her go. Instead the footage was released to the public.
As someone wrote above, there might be some friction between the county and the city and the deputy decided to make an example of her.
If a Police officer does not remark the first thing out of the box during a traffic stop, by words or by showing the Badge, they are derelict in their duty. It is like showing your Concealed Carry card or notifying the officer that there is a weapon in the vehicle.
You open your wallet in getting your license. The id is visible. You retrieve your license, close the wallet. Your id was seen or not seen , whatever.
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