Chicago cop sued for asking woman on a date

[buckweaver]

Batman is three posts away from calling the woman uppity.

How dare she not appreciate a cop who gave her a ticket illegally looked up her personal information and left her a note when she wasn't around!

Not the direction I was going at all. Just being sympathetic as a one-time single loser who had a hard time meeting women (and was pretty hamfisted in his attempts when the opportunity did arise).

As a one-time single loser myself, I appreciate the direction you're going. But I think you're very strongly underestimating the fact that he committed a serious crime in his "hamfisted" effort at asking a woman out.

No matter how innocent his intentions may have been, I think most women would see this for what it really was: an abuse of power that borders on stalking. That's Jason Voorhees territory, not Lloyd Dobler.

 

[dooley_womack1]

It sounds like somebody just saw Bridesmaids.

Did the officer have an inexplicable Irish accent?

Damn straight! That did bother me

 

[I Should Coco]

And FWIW, here's the text of the note according to the story:

"It's Chris … that ugly bald Stickney cop who gave you that ticket."
"I know this may seem crazy and you're probably right, but truth is I have not stopped thinking about you since," it continues. "I don't expect a girl as attractive as you to … even go for a guy like me, but I'm taking a shot anyways."
The note goes on to say he would understand if Paredes did not get in touch.
"But hey," it continues apologetically, "I did cost you $132 — least I can do is buy you dinner."

Am I the only ex-Chicagoan who laughed about the cop being from Stickney?

I think that town might be tied with nearby Lyons for most dive bars (and creepy dudes drinking in them) per square mile.

 

[dooley_womack1]

If he would have thrown in a reference to handcuffs, he might have had a better shot.

 

[Iron_chet]

Doesn't see the problem

 

[Tarheel316]

What the cop did was wrong. He used his position of power in an improper manner.

Bill Clinton calls bull****.

Blue font?

 

[Bubbler]

Cop should be fired. That is abuse of his position. Also could be construed as threatening by a woman.

You're going to set my country music award on fire?

 

[KJIM]

I'm a woman and I don't see the big deal whatsoever.

I'm fairly confident the cop could have found all her personal information on the Internet. Maybe using DMV records was a shortcut, maybe it was a straight search one of the Internet sites anyone can use. The story didn't really specify, but it's all out there.

Rip up the letter and forget about it.

 

[deskslave]

I'm a woman and I don't see the big deal whatsoever.

I'm fairly confident the cop could have found all her personal information on the Internet. Maybe using DMV records was a shortcut, maybe it was a straight search one of the Internet sites anyone can use. The story didn't really specify, but it's all out there.

Rip up the letter and forget about it.

The big deal is that if it's not for his position of authority, he never even knows the woman exists. He didn't meet her in a bar and get her name from the bartender.

It's not a great leap to think that the woman could have felt implicit pressure to agree to the date, either to mitigate the existing ticket or to avoid problems in the future. If he knows how to look her up in the DMV database, then he can find her license plate number, etc. Who's to say she doesn't think "If I say no, I'm gonna get pulled over every week."

 

[waterytart]

Exactly. Having a cop who's already pulled you over leave a note at your house would be like having your boss show up at your local bar. "Well, I just thought I'd hang out here until you say Yes."

Very creepy.

 

[buckweaver]

Yeah, the car bit is even creepier than the note.

If he'd found her address via 411 (or any other publicly available service) and mailed her a letter ... still a sloppy pickup attempt, but at least it doesn't give off the "I've been waaaatching you" serial-killer vibe like this move did.

 

[Double J]

Also doesn't see the problem.

 

[KJIM]

The big deal is that if it's not for his position of authority, he never even knows the woman exists. He didn't meet her in a bar and get her name from the bartender.

You run into people every day through the course of work. Could have been a plumber, a cable repairman, an IRS auditor, a financial adviser or anything else. Again, I don't see the big deal. Maybe I have a different view of authority, stalking and harassment, but I'm allowed to hold my opinion. I would have ripped up the note and never thought about it again. Had it continued, though, that'd be different.

OTOH, if some bartender gave out my information, I'd be upset. At the bartender, though. Not the guy.

 

[deskslave]

The big deal is that if it's not for his position of authority, he never even knows the woman exists. He didn't meet her in a bar and get her name from the bartender.

You run into people every day through the course of work. Could have been a plumber, a cable repairman, an IRS auditor, a financial adviser or anything else. Again, I don't see the big deal. Maybe I have a different view of authority, stalking and harassment, but I'm allowed to hold my opinion. I would have ripped up the note and never thought about it again. Had it continued, though, that'd be different.

OTOH, if some bartender gave out my information, I'd be upset. At the bartender, though. Not the guy.

You can fire a plumber who makes untoward advances. Same with a cable repairman (well, sort of, anyway) and a financial adviser, although not an IRS auditor.

That's the difference, to me: Were it any of the ones I listed above, she can make him go away. You can't make the police go away.

 

[Football_Bat]

I gotta tell you, if that were me, I would be bothered by it as well. Would I sue for "great fear and anxiety"? No, but there better be some disciplinary action for the officer. Tracking a person down like that is creepy and borders on stalking.

I agree with this.

I asked this on my FB once - If you're covering a story, is it appropriate to ask out someone you've interviewed? The general rule of thumb seemed to be that it's OK as long as it's not someone you're really going to have a working relationship with that much (i.e. a teacher vs. a town council member), and that you should try to do it on two separate occasions (i.e. don't ask them out the same day you interview them).

A guy I used to work with ended up marrying a woman he covered when she was in high school.

I dated a girl I covered while she was in high school. But we were in college at the same time, so it was OK.

 

[Ace]

If the cop was smart, he would have found out where she lived and "accidentally" bumped into her. Leaving a note is dumb.

 

[outofplace]

The big deal is that if it's not for his position of authority, he never even knows the woman exists. He didn't meet her in a bar and get her name from the bartender.

You run into people every day through the course of work. Could have been a plumber, a cable repairman, an IRS auditor, a financial adviser or anything else. Again, I don't see the big deal. Maybe I have a different view of authority, stalking and harassment, but I'm allowed to hold my opinion. I would have ripped up the note and never thought about it again. Had it continued, though, that'd be different.

OTOH, if some bartender gave out my information, I'd be upset. At the bartender, though. Not the guy.

You can fire a plumber who makes untoward advances. Same with a cable repairman (well, sort of, anyway) and a financial adviser, although not an IRS auditor.

That's the difference, to me: Were it any of the ones I listed above, she can make him go away. You can't make the police go away.

Exactly. Also, he broke the law to do this. I don't understand how anybody thinks what this cop did was ok.

 

[Sam Mills 51]

Also doesn't see the problem.

Wrapped around her finger?

Did he ask her to tea in the Sahara?

:D

 

[KJIM]

What law did he break?

 

[The Big Ragu]

What law did he break?

It may not ever be prosecuted, but unauthorized use of the DMV database is illegal.