Then-Tampa Police Chief O'Connor should have kept mouth shut, Pinellas sheriff says
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- Опубліковано 27 вер 2024
- Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said the only person who did something wrong when his deputy pulled over then-Tampa Police Chief O'Connor was her.
O'Connor resigned from her position as top cop of the department after an internal affairs investigation into last month's golf cart traffic stop in which body camera video showed her displaying her credentials and saying, "I'm hoping that you'll just let us go tonight."
The Nov. 12 encounter in Pinellas County involving O'Connor's husband did not meet the level of "high standards for ethical and professional behavior that apply to every member of our police force," Tampa Mayor Jane Castor said in a statement Monday morning. O'Connor's husband was behind the wheel of the golf cart, which authorities say didn't have a license plate and was being driven outside a residential area.
According to the city, Castor made the request and received the resignation letter. O'Connor wrote, "I promised that I would serve the community I love to the best of my abilities, as I did for 22 years prior to retirement, and I feel that I've done just that."
More: www.wtsp.com/a...
At least she had the decency to resign. She showed poor judgement and a lack of integrity. A Chief with those faults has no place atop a police agency of any size.
This Sheriff has the absolute right of it. Most traffic stops result in warnings because the stop is mostly about correcting behavior not punishment of behavior. The deputy did nothing wrong. The Chief did and he spells out her failings.
“Decency to resign” resigning means that once this blows over and get swept under the rug she’ll be back doing this in some other town. Should have been terminated.
She didn't "resign". She was given an ultimatum.
At first she simply issued an apologetic statement. It actually said, "I can understand how the circumstances could be MISINTERPRETED." She didn't see how what she did was wrong. She was given a choice, and neither included keeping her job.
He failed to tell them how many of those 80,000+ stops resulted in arrests! He's not telling the whole story. Would be agree to be hooked up to a lie detector and asked about corruption? Would be ask his deputies to get psych exams and lie detector tests to see if any are or have been involved in criminal activity before working for him, and since? He has 110% confidence in his deputy. Would he get a lie detector test and be asked about crimes he's possibly been involved in? Are the deputies instructed to target minorities or those with a previous record, to push them out of town, by constantly stopping them for made up traffic violations? Since they keep stats, how many of those ticketed, were minorities; how many were low income drivers, who can't afford to fight back?
Will he release all those stats in a FOIA or sunshine act request?
You are clueless
@Jamie O'Connor retired from Tampa PD in 2016 and has been receiving $79,600 yearly in pension. So her eight months as Chief will increase her retirement. Cops lose their pension ONLY if convicted of a crime, not violating policy.
It's not about getting a break, it's the fact she used her position to gain favor
She said I’m hoping you don’t give us a ticket. Not you better give us a break
O'Conner should have faced the fact that she and hubby were in the wrong, paid the fine, and she would still have her job plus a better reputation. But, as they say, "Things happen for a reason." Maybe O'Conner was NOT top cop as she led herself and others to believe. Btw, I believe all of Tampa, Florida is in Hillsborough County which adjoins Pinellas County. I imagine that this incident may have initially been an embarrassment to officials in Tampa. Residents and taxpayers generally want to know that they are well served. It is satisfying that an investigation was conducted. Job firing or resignation had to come as a result of improprieties.
When she didn't even NEED to ask for a favor. Sheriff is saying here that NOBODY would be ticketed for what they did (drive a golf cart 100 yards without tags)
Just like the majority of the Thin Blue Line gang do ?!
@@Sondan1988 she did not ask for a favor she left it up to the officer who decided to give them a break she was not driving either so it shouldn’t have mattered who she was. The one thing she did that was not really a good move was she said if you need anything call . Ok
We investigated ourselves and found no wrong doing..............
That's literally the opposite of what happened lol, did you watch the video with sound on or CC?
@@silverblue73 the Pinellas department was saying their officer did nothing wrong. It's obvious he was complicite with the corruption. He didn't even give a warning. Had he at least did that ok, maybe.. maybe...he was just letting them off...... he also never reported it. You think you could tell a cop when u get pulled over where you work and he'd immediately say okay have a good night? Corruption on both parties.
You're one of those idiots that are going to lead us to the Idiocracy, aren't you?
Did you even watch the Goddamn video?
*wrongdoing
@@silverblue73 No, the cop who let her go because she was acop was found to have done nothing wrong, lol!!
The problem is she asked for and received special treatment.
If cops don't give tickets for golf carts like the sheriff is claiming, then why did a chief of police feel the need to ask for a favor? This sheriff is lying.
Exactly
She didn't receive special treatment. Absent an extenuating circumstance, no good cop is writing a citation for that offense.
She was a fool.
@@networkedperson Right.. So the 90,000 traffic stops versus 16,000 tickets (a ticket rate of 17%) doesn't count, right?
You're one of those anti-cop, conspiracy theory, nut jobs, aren't you?
MOST PEOPLE (EIGHTY THREE PERCENT!!) do not get a damn ticket.
Quit being a moron.
Exactly.
The Chief wasn't the driver of the cart. She should have just sat there and let the driver get what he was going to get.
My supposition has been that she had badgered her husband. When they had to go on the open road to get dinner, he said they should go back and get their car. She said, no, no, it will be okay, go on! They go back and forth over it.
Then they get stopped. She didn't want to hear I told you so, so she jumped into the encounter right away to keep her husband from being proved right.
Just my guess, though.
Yes but instead, she had to blabber about who she was. The sheriff said NOBODY would ever get a ticket for driving a golf cart 100 yds without tags and as an officer herself, she should've known this. A little showboating, I guess, and it cost her her job.
@Will and badge, and gun
@@barbeonline351 You're suspicion you mean? Which is a guess by you, get a life.
She couldnt help herself.
Yeah right. She handed him a business card and said if there was anything that he needed unbelievable
This Sheriff deputy gave the Tampa Police Chief special treatment and when it comes to Joe Public, they do not get special treatment but will be fined or arrested. How can the Pinellas Sheriff say that his deputy did nothing wrong, when his deputy body cam clearly shows shows that he did not do his job. The Tampa police resigned after an internal investigation, but the Pinellas deputy will allows a prominent public figure to go free. No way Sheriff, this deputy is the part of this scandal and the right thing you should have done, was to fire that deputy. It is clear that the Pinellas Sheriff covers for his deputies despite clear video footage is screaming the obvious facts.
If cops don't give tickets for golf carts like the sheriff is claiming, then why did a chief of police feel the need to ask for a favor? This sheriff is lying.
The deputy did do something wrong too.
If the sheriffs department is not giving tickets to every person they pull over that broke the law, because you can only pull someone over if they’re breaking the law, then the deputies are just as negligible at upholding the law as the police chief was.
The sheriff is wrong, stating “it’s a golf cart, who cares”. If no one cares, then why pull them over? If no one cares, does that mean anyone can just drive the golf cart on public roads? What a hypocrite sheriff
For reall are we kidding? She fired for a name drop. They better keep that same energy for everyone else.
She resigned.
my step-grandfather was a retired captain on the vernon police dept. it's in southern calif. near LA. He drove his car like a bat out of hell all the time, from light to light, ok and he drank so he's semi drunk and he would get pull over, the officer would ask for his license and he would take out his bill fold and flip it open and his badge, that said retired on it, would be visible, big time ok . the officer would ask if he had been a cop and he would tell them yes, they would let him go with a warning to just slow it down. it's a club just like the elks lodge, masonic temple, whatever. it ain't ever going to change ok, ever. that's what she was hoping for, probably was drinking and wasn't thinking clearly when she ask if his camera was on and still blabs her mouth to let them go ok. there are more dishonest cops out there than honest ones ok and that will never change. people with power abuse that power every day in this country. that's why she resigned before she was fired to keep her benefits and they all want this to go away cause it shines light on the entire police departments around the country. like cockroaches in the night.
And letting people go that are impaired can get them killed, or worse - impaired drivers kill other people - more often the impaired driver survives
“Step-Grandfather????” How far back do we “step” people nowadays? Can’t say I have heard many “Step Granfathers”
IMO, Karma follows people in all walks of life, not just cops.
@@dirtydingus5465 Guess it's more prevalent with divorce rates and grand parents doing parent's roles more often.
You said the magic word, California, enough said. We do things differently in the rest of the country
How silly to pull over a golf cart
It was a violation of traffic code.
I agree
golf cart, atv whatever it maybe, no tags means it's not road legal.
For the chief to ask for a "break" was dead wrong. For the deputy to not issue a citation was a judgment call.
If it can be shown that he has cited every other golf cart driver for the same violation, you can say he demonstrated preferred treatment to the chief by not citing the driver, her hubby (also a retired asst chief). If the deputy wanted to issue a warning for a violation that isn't worth issuing its his option.
No need to jeopardize a career over something so simple. Stupidity is no reason to end a career.
And if they did get a citation, simply pay the damn thing and get on w life. I'm certain they could afford the fine.
Speaking power to truth! Thanks for the blunt honesty, double fund the police, my nose is clear, I picked it, I can breathe!
Officer discretion. Plain and simple.
Only few will understand
Get your boots on it starts with the bullshit being pretty deep
“Rules for thee, but not for me”.!!! Plain & simple!!!
91k traffic stops only 16k get tickets? Why are you harassing 75k people for no apparent reason? Don't say these were only warnings.....
Cop covering cop
No one's being 'covered.'
@@DRKrust492 why no ticket for no plates?
"We only ticket 20% of the Folks we pull over" Begs the question, then why were the other 80% pulled over.
The cop that pulled them over should be fired as well for 1. releasing the video that screws over a fellow LE over something so minuscule 2) accepting bribes.
They obviously made her resign and it’s overboard because she barely did anything wrong… people must have been waiting on her to slip for other reasons
is this the same Florida where cop shoots a crackhead carrying a bb gun and kills partner?
Tampa Mayor Jane Caster new statement should read: Former TPC Mary O'Connor is now standing out in disgrace across our nation.
Fire the cop that let her walk.
The police in FLA are bred differently. Must be the water.
Floriduh
…it’s almost becoming a guarantee that any time you hear “he (or she) did nothing wrong!” it’s literally because he (or she) did something wrong. That was a horrible look. Your officer was clearly intimidated, but you’re acting as if there’s no higher standard for LAW ENFORCEMENT in a country where the Constitution has an entire amendment devoted to equal protection under THE LAW.
I don't doubt the numbers & statistics cited. I'm sure the deputy would have let an affluent couple living in a gated community off with a warning even if she didn't produce her badge. I'd love to see how those citation statistics match up across income divides or along racial lines.
It would be interesting if a department internally tracked race of those stopped and compared it to the race of the officer
There aren't many persons driving golf carts on roadways who aren't doing well. Good luck finding the example you're looking for.
Hella facts
Nothing is race based stop your shit you racist
Nothing like getting some statistics and still questioning. I imagine you are a perpetual doubter in most things.
Every cop that ever lived flashed the badge when getting pulled over. Not saying it is right but they were on a golf cart folks.
The officer that let her off should also be FIRED!!!!!!!! Sheriff Bob Gualtieri is completely wrong! The people Sheriff Bob, have a right to question this situation and what you and your officer did in this situation. This is why people distrust the police! Just for that fact alone!!! The officer should have been disciplined over this period!!!!!!!
It was an unlicensed golf cart, against the law. The officer was in the wrong. The male (presumably the husband) was in the wrong, she had nothing to do with the stop, should have kept her mouth shut. The male(husband/boyfriend) looked like he may have been drinking, did the officer smell alcohol on his breath?
The last 75 years no police chief has ever gotten a ticket from my Trooper
The deputy DID cut her a break. His shock in his voice when he hears who she is was followed by a hello how are you attitude she was not given when he approached initially. You have no way of proving he didn't cut her a break and all the actions suggest he did. He should have wrote the citation because she is an officer of the law.
I'm willing to bet he was drinking and driving and got a pass, why use a golf cart?
Bet he punishes the cop that pulled her over
he should be charged with corruption
Evidently you didn’t watch the video
This dude making excuses. They would have treated all of us differently. It's a DUI. Any of us woulda been put in jail.
Guessing on his counts that many of the stops were multiple tickets to the same person. So that is an even lower percentage.
Another incompetent 👮♂️cop!!
She needed not to ask, " Could I? " but, " Should I? "
I actually felt bad for the officer, watching the video because she put him in a bad position!🤷♂️🙄
Except he didn’t ID them or do field sobriety by a guy who looked to potentially be intoxicated
Exactly!
Why did he stop them to begin with? It's ridiculous.
Lol, the only right thing for the deputy to have done was to arrest her on the spot for the bribe.
There was no bribe. She didn’t offer him anything in lieu of a citation.
Then why did he stop them if it wasn't an issue???
I respect you Sheriff but saying the Deputy handled it 100% like he would any other stop is just plain wrong. No officer would let a regular citizen go just because their spouse requested they do. They deputies, at least would run the their names. Your deputy did none of that. Didn't even ask the drivers name.
Absolutely goddamn right
That’s what happens when someone loses themselves to their position and power. Professional courtesy should be illegal.
@@will9578 great point! I’m sure her former subordinates were well trained in using the badge for a free pass.
If you want to enforce the law, become a cop. if you want to break, the law become a cop.
@@will9578 I know unfortunately all too well. I worked with two of the best people I ever knew until they became a state trooper, and the other one is sheriffs deputy. They won’t even talk to me now.
more so in law enforcement
Walk inside any government office building it’s full of those kind of people.
@@jamesweir2943 yes, for the most part. My county clerk, and the judge actually act like human beings and have always treated very well.
even if this "less than 20%" figure is right, one has to then wonder "who" get the tickets as a "brown" person i have been pulled over time after time, and i seriously doubt i have been "educated" more than twice, the rest i have been ticked (and in some case, i was NOT doing anything wrong, they just made up the traffic violation. as if i would run a red light in DC at 11pm whilte the cruiser is behind me, and more cases)
Driving a golf cart on a Florida road is illegal.
The sheriff said she would not have gotten a ticket for what she did, period. He said nobody would get a ticket for driving a golf cart 100 yards without a tag. It is the fact that she asked for a favor because she was chief of police. She is not to be using her position for favors. My question is: if she was police chief, why didn't she know that she wouldn't have been ticketed for what they did?? She should've known that, as a police officer herself, and known to sit there and shut her mouth.
Never trust someone who lies so freely
At least they didn't use golfcart to ram a gun store,whoever pulled over golf cart should be proud to have stopped a DANGEROUS criminal
She could've been more subtle with it. After she handed her license and registration I'm sure the cop would've ran the info and find out who she was. Then he would've let her go
The mere act of driving the cart, even if while obeying all traffic laws, was the infraction. The golf cart was not road worthy. He should not have let them go on their way. It was a mandatory impound. The deputy absolutely did do O'Connor a favor by letting them resume driving. That was intentionally allowing them to resume committing the infraction.
They all do it. Ask for special treatment. I don''t know why all of the hoopla. This country has much bigger crime issues and problems they should be dealing with other than a traffic ticket in a darn golf cart for goodness sake!
Every single LEO acknowledges they are law enforcement at every single interaction with other LEOs. Why should this woman have resigned?
Officer should have asked for ID of the driver.
He was too busy being mesmerized by the chief's identification..And if the chief had then exited the golf cart and turned quickly to the right or left, the deputy's nose would've broken.
I find it interesting he got all these stats on normal stops but how many tickets have you issued to people operating golf carts?
I’m willing to bet it’s almost 0
To claim most stops don't result in tickets is ridiculous. I've never received a warning in 40 years driving
He did Tampa a favor. Now maybe he could work on Mayor Castor.
what about the corrupt cop who let her go /
Gualtieri--"We investigated ourselves and found No wrongdoing!". Next year, "Every dept has a few Bad Apples".
3 years later, "The FBI & this Consent Decree is waaay out of line. We've been addressing these problems IF we find them."
Most of us think when we are stop by a cop we are going to end up DOA.,and that's why we run and still ended DOA
For him to even have the stand up there and make a case for the deputy? smells fishy.
"She asked for special treatment and she didn't get it." Whoa. Wait a minute now. Did he look at the same video as the rest of us? All that talk about Jacoby doing exactly what he was supposed to may have turned out true had the chief not "implied" a sort of professional courtesy privilege. But the fact is, as soon as she brought up that she was police chief, the tone and tenor of the deputy completely changed and he immediately went into an accommodating mode instead of, as the sheriff above suggested, an "educational" mode. And I'm okay with that. Everybody knows that cops give other cops a break especially on minor traffic violations. And that's fine. Every job has it's perks. But for this sheriff to stand there and boldly claim that doesn't happen is simply a lie. I'm sorry, but a lie is a lie and there's just no polite way to say that.
Everybody does not know cops give other cops a break. People SUSPECT cops give other cops breaks, but you don’t KNOW they do (and yeah some probably do in some cases) The sheriff stood there and to all intents and purposes told the truth about this guy and lady wouldn’t have gotten a ticket for driving a golf cart. Have you gotten a ticket for driving a golf cart in that county? Do you know someone that did? Does you tone change when you talk to someone in an important position of power? I suspect the answers are : no, no, and yes. To say anything else it is you that is lying.
@@tarn1135 you are exactly what is wrong with this country, boot licker.
@@tarn1135 Okay officer Karen. WhatEVER you say! Just keep on believing your own hype.
@@viking956 😂 officer Karen. That’s funny. Show the proof you have that specifically says that cops give cops breaks. I personally have seen cops give me a break while bringing the hammer down on fellow cops. Like I said I’m sure some do but the they don’t all do it, and let’s be honest here I’m positive in your neck of the woods you know one or two that do exactly what you say they do I’m sure one or two by me do or did also especially back 10 or 20 years ago. But I don’t see the lie from this sheriff and if he wanted to lie do you really think he would’ve released the damn video? Really don’t see the “ok officer Karen” part. Do you even know what that term means? I’m guessing you’re bit clueless on it but because you see everyone else saying it you think you can also regardless of if you’re right or not.
@@tarn1135 You want proof? Here's one, just one example. My brother used to be a cop. Medically retired after getting shot. One day (during the period he was an active officer) I was pulled over by a member of his department for going 68 mph in a 45 mph zone. When he comes up to my window I said "Oh man, I thought you were my brother." He asked who my brother was and I told him. He knew my brother even though they worked on opposite shifts at that time. So he told me "well, let me get you to ease off a little. You were going pretty fast there." I said something silly like I wasn't paying attention and I'd be sure to be more careful and we left it at that. No ticket. No warning. He didn't even ask to see my license or verify my registration and insurance. And where I live, 23 mph over the speed limit is a BIG DEAL, especially in a school zone.
So there my friend. One specific instance of a cop giving another cop a break through familiarity.
what about the people " Traffic Stops" that were taken to jail??? I get it they may not have gotten a ticket. But your numbers do not tell the REAL story, True they fit your narrative!
The deputy and the former top cop were BOTH wrong! This sheriff covering for him publicly is disgusting!💯
OKAY WHAT THE HELL AM i MISSING.... professional courtesy. WTF. HIS HYPOCRISY IS AMAZING. He never spoke on behalf of a friend or family member to another cop.
Even if she mentioned she was the police chief when he was taking their IDs, that would have been fine. It's the suggestive way she said Im hoping you will just let us go is where she messed up. Nothing wrong with letting the officer know you are a cop too, but asking for a favor and offering one in return if he needs it is just gross.
I heard him say ~ she was only ___ yards from her house. Something like this - But we do Not know if they were about to stop riding in their golf cart or they were going further for an evening drive.
The sheriff has a great suntan for a working executive. Maybe he's got a rooftop deck on the SAB.
That deputy let her go and thanked her for her service the instant he found out she was a chief. The golf cart was a big problem up until he found that out. It’s obvious but this chief is of course defending his deputy.
listen to this cop lying ..
I got a ticket for the light over the rear license plate was out !!
Liar
She should not have been fired for such a menial grievance.
Guy driving the golf cart was drunk. Officer needs to grow a pair and write the ticket!
01:31 - "So, the outcome wouldn't have been any different if she had just kept her mouth shut." ...after she found out the camera was on.
There, fixed it for him.
That made no sense.
@@DRKrust492 Well you know, I tried, and that is what matters.
Police officer should’ve just kept his mouth shut and issued the golf cart driver a ticket for the fine. Don’t become a sissy just because she flashed her badge. End of discussion. Don’t say he did just fine. He did not finish his duty.
So you're saying you've unnecessarily pulled over 74,000 people this year! Worst Sheriff ever!!!!!!!
The Sheriff is wrong! If she weren't a cop, they most likely would have escalated the stop in order to beat up and arrest someone!
to jail for a kid riding anything in the street...
I don't get to tell any police officer "If you need anything let me know, wink"...
Those words sounds like a personal bribe or an "under-the-table" promise which carries a creepy, slimy vibe!
she showed her character with such a petty offense that resigning was a good idea.
I agree the officer did nothing wrong. I don't think she should have lost her job over what she did. She should publicly apologized and that should've been it.
The officer didn’t have probable cause to pull her over
Even fewer times that you get pulled over and told you were driving extremely well. 😂
I can't believe Tampa police gave time to chase golf carts.
Or make it a law to tag golf carts . I bet some old people start with some sticker in a community. The it went amuck to tags . Tagging a golf cart . I bet they pay taxes like a car to get the tag . They’re suckers
D.U.I. isn't "aggravating circumstances?" I don't think the cop would have let an ordinary citizen go without an arrest or a ticket at the very least. So yes, he did do her a favor. He didn't ticket or arrest her husband.
Then why so many traffic stops? Aren't you at a minimum supposed to have a reason to pull someone over. Legal articulable suspicion of a crime or infraction? Sounds kinda random that 80% are pulled over for nothing? Why were they pulled over then? Why did he stop her? Just to tell them they weren't committing a crime? Wtf sense does that make? Nah, I think he was ready to give a ticket until she identified herself as "one of you". I'm still curious as to why so many are pulled over without charge? Fishing? If I get pulled over, I better be charged with something or I'll ask why.
He let her husband off. Whether or not by her statement as being "chief" the appearance of getting a favor from a fellow cop is there. He should have issued the ticket to remove all shadows of doubt.
2022 & they have still not figured out that we cannot hear the questions coming from the reporters. So half the time they answers a question we have no idea what they are talking about when they answer. The other half of the time we end up having to guess what they are talking about. You would think at least one news station would figure this out by now.
How many of the 82,000 traffic stops were dealing with violent people?
It’s a golf cart, not a dangerous felon.
The right thing for Jacobi to do would have been.....to investigate the "indicators" of a DUI....
I believe she should have just sat there and said nothing. By pulling out her badge and asking for a quid pro quo and on camera no less she signed her termination papers.
Yeah she's on her yacht now all depressed......
She shouldn't have been hired in the first place. Toxic hire who was fired in the 90s and never should haven't gotten her job back. She was also required to live in Tampa not in a gated community in Pinellas county.
She didn’t do anything any other cop does when they get pulled over ..
Based on the numbers, this is a police force that uses traffic stops for education, not revenue generation.
She told him who she was asked to be let go and he did and made sure she knew his name. Seeing this guy up here defending that makes you wonder if any of the police in Tampa have any integrity.
He’s right. But good luck trying to shut her up. She likes to hear herself.
That’s entirely too many traffic stops!
I love that he said the camera wasn't on, when it was 🤣🤣
cops are allowed to lie all day long
@@silverblue73 good point
he said it was on... she asked if it was on and he said "it is"
Your listening skills need improvement. 🤣🤣🤣
@@badeugenecops4741, yes I'm nearly deaf. Thank you for pointing that out when nobody else did. You must be so proud to put your observation here instead of just scrolling by ❤☮
Oh he did exactly what his job was? I'm sure nobody else would ever say hey I'm the sheriff to this officer and then the officer would just walk away with her business card. While thinking in the back of his head boy I got a favor from the sheriff