Posted on 01/23/2008 11:31:08 AM PST by HD1200
CLEARWATER - The 75-year-old grandmother who was arrested Thursday at a McDonald's on a charge of disorderly conduct gave an officer lip, according to a police report. Jean Merola swore at the officer and said, "You are an evil man. Your wife is going to divorce you. Your kids probably hate you too. You are going to hell," according to the report.
Officer Matthew Parco was behind Merola in line and had received his drink; he asked her to move up so he could get around her but she didn't respond. Parco spent about 20 minutes asking Merola to move the car before she was arrested.
(Excerpt) Read more at msnbc.msn.com ...
I loved my grandmothers very much and I remember them every day in my prayers.
But good thing you aren't rude or insensitive or selfish.
There’s a lot of hatred on this thread for people perceived to be “elderly.”
Do you honestly believe that if it was a 17 year old boy mouthing off about the cops wife and kids instead, the posters here would be vociferously championing the cause of an annoying young punk?
We all know people like this horrible woman: they are the ones who get in a long dispute with the only cashier at the store over whether the store let him or her slide with an expired coupon last time.
They are the ones who, at a gas station, pull up around the line, drive over parking spaces and then back into the open pump from the front.
They are the people who, rather than wait for the next subway train or bus spend ten minutes pushing and shoving trying to wedge in.
They are the people who when sales are limited to two items apiece take four and refuse to let another customer have any while they wait for the friend they just called on their cellphone to arrive and buy the two they are hoarding.
They are the people who, when their meal doesn't come out as quickly as they want at a drivethru, block everyone else in until they get their food.
What a wimp, you can’t wait 3 minutes.
Reading isn’t that hard
Officer Matthew Parco was behind Merola in line and had received his drink; he asked her to move up so he could get around her but she didn’t respond
She was conducting business with this establishment which gives her the legal right to be there until they advise her she is trespassing and request she leave. Are you a lawyer and a game warden?
The key part of the ordinance “so as to endanger the safe movement of pedestrians or vehicles thereon”
She was not endangering pedestrians or vehicles so that code does not apply. Nor was she blocking the entrance to prevent free access.
You realize that you’re spending a lot of time annoying people by your refusal to budge. Does that sound familiar?
One thing I don’t think has been brought up. What was the police officer doing at McDonalds? Was he on an official break? It would seem like if he was on break, he’s just a customer like anyone else, and should have no more rights than another customer.
I suspect that the personal injury lawyers are contacting this grandmother as we speak. She’ll get a big settlement from McDonalds. The police officer will get a reprimand for acting like a cross between Eric Cartman and Barney Fife. All McDonalds and police procedures leading to cases like this will be reviewed and changed. There will be new McDonalds and police training sessions to train employees to defuse these situations before they escalate.
And we have a winner!
“Those facts weren’t in evidence in the original article posted which I was commenting on, however.”
Its been posted in numerous other articles.
Good Lord. Please tell me you are not a lawyer.
First, she refused to move up one foot so the cop (and others behind him) could drive around her giant Medicare Sled. But no. The cop can't tell her what to do; she was told to park there and won't budge. And how dare he tell her what to do like that; why she knows the police chief!
The incident could have ended there, very shortly after it began, when she got her salt-less fries. She could have driven away, as the cop suggested she do. But instead, she insisted on continuing to block the drive-thru and insulting the cop for 20 freakin' minutes.
I'm quite sure this old battleaxe's husband is long dead and, whereever he's looking down from, is glad of it.
Good point. And now, he will possibly think twice about accosting female senior citizens....*Grin*.
I haven't seen "the numerous other articles".
Do me a favor and link one.
“Reading isn’t that hard”
DARRRRRRRRRR!!!
“Officer Matthew Parco was behind Merola in line and had received his drink; he asked her to move up so he could get around her but she didn’t respond”
His boss indicated he approached her because she was parked illegally and not because he couldn’t move. The right side of the drive thru is open, unless it was blocked by other cars thereis no reason he could not have gotten around her.
If you look at the sat image (just googlemapping 1934 north hercules clearwater fl), you will see that the drivethru lane has the drivethru windows on the left as you drive toward the road.
The drivethru lane itself is wide enough to admit two good sized automobiles.
On the right side of the drivethru lane there are slotted parking spaces. Past the parking spaces on the right are trees and landscaping.
The parking spaces are likely staff parking spaces if this McD follows the typical setup, meaning that the cop had a wall on his left and parked cars on his right.
Just leave your car unattended in the drive through while you can go inside for awhile...
Your as bright as the old lady which is the subject of this thread.
This seems pretty hard for you comprehend, McDonalds is a business on private property. You don’t have a right to block their normal business activities. When the lawful representative of the property owner tells you to move your car - because you are blocking their business -, you are legally obligated to do so.
She refused. She continued to refuse even after a cop told her to move.
Now she’s dealing with the consequences. Duh...
Post proof or retract.
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