Bogota Officer May Be Fired For Stopping Beatdown

[Yogi]

Time for a heartwarming story of a Police Officer doing the right thing.

By KIRSTIN COLE
pix11.com | @colekirstin
9:14 p.m. EDT, April 16, 2012

Plenty of cop "beat downs" can be found online, but how often does the officer who stops others from handing out the beating get fired for it? That's exactly what's happening to Officer Regina Tasca in the Bogota Police Department.

Tasca's dashboard camera captured her as she attempted to stop two officers from beating an emotionally disturbed young man. Just days after the incident, she was told she was being suspended with pay. A year later, her trial is about to begin as the Bogota PD seeks to fire her.

In Bogota, officers control whether or not their dashboard camera rolls. Fortunately, when Officer Tasca responded to a call in April 2011, she clicked her unit "on." The black-and-white tape captures it all--a mother, Tara, screaming for police to stop punching her son on their front lawn. She had called to have her emotionally disturbed son Kyle taken to the hospital. Bogota police responded while waiting for the ambulance. Tasca was the sole officer on the road that day, so she called for back-up according to protocol. Ridgefield Park police then sent two officers. Tasca had just completed her state-mandated training for working with emotionally disturbed citizens.

Tasca described what we see on the videotape: "The Ridgefield Park officer automatically charges and takes him down to the ground. I was quite shocked. As he's doing that, another Ridgefield Park officer flies to the scene in his car, jumps out and starts punching him in the head."

On the tape you can hear Tara, the mother, and Kyle, her son, screaming, "Why are you punching him?" and "Stop punching me!"

The two Ridgefield Park Sergeants are never heard refuting the claims that they punched the 22 year-old man as he was waiting for an ambulance.

Even worse, Kyle was never charged, nor arrested, for any offense. Tasca says it's because he never threatened, did not have a weapon, and indeed never resisted and was not violent. Eventually Tasca was able to pry the punching Ridgefield Park officer off Kyle, as seen in a picture taken by the Kyle's mother, who also later commended Tasca in a phone call.

The call came in to Tasca's answering machine and was kept on a recording: "Thank you Regina. I appreciate you standing up for him, for protecting him while the officer attacked him. I can't figure out what i would have done without you at the scene."

Catherine Elston is the attorney helping Tasca prepare for a week-long departmental trial. Elston is also a former police officer.

"This was excessive force used against an emotionally disturbed person," she said. "This was an unlawful tackle, this was a punching an emotionally disturbed person whose arms were pinned under his chest with his face pushed into the ground."

What happened next is so baffling to so many.

Tasca's voice began to waiver as she recounted the meeting with her superior officer:

"The next thing I know he asks me to turn over my weapon and be sent for a fitness for duty exam," she said.

Bogota PD, after hearing Tasca's story, believes she is psychologically incompetent to be a police officer, and she is being sent for testing. The Ridgefield Park Police officers seen tackling and punching an emotionally disturbed man waiting for an ambulance are never questioned. never interviewed by an Internal Affairs Investigator, and are still working the streets today.

Bogota Police chose to suspend Tasca, an 11-year veteran with numerous commendations. There are photographs from the hospital documenting the bruises on the 22-year-old's head, back, arms and wrists.

Tasca says the real reason she's being called out on these charges is she crossed the "blue line" by refusing to support another officer even when he used excessive force. The other problem? The Bogota Police Department is very small--fewer than 20 officers. And there, she is a definitive minority.

Tasca spells it out: "I'm the only female--the first female ever--and the first and only gay female also." When asked if she feels targeted because of her sex and her sexual orientation, she doesn't hesitate in here answer: "Yes."

The trial, to be in front of a retired judge who will be the sole decision maker, starts Tuesday.

"If another officer is using excessive force, it's my duty to make sure you stop it. and that's what I did," says Tasca about her actions.

But attorney Elston, a veteran of "the job" knows even more. "They're not just terminating her. They're destroying her reputation."

Welp, once again I shouldn't be surprised at this stuff any more. This does show, however, the truth behind "it's just a few bad apples." The actual full saying is "A few bad apples will quickly ruin the whole barrel" in reference to farmers having to quickly remove bad apples from barrels in storage. Here, two bad officers are dragging down the entire police force.

[Eulogy]

Yet another damn good reason why police should be filmed. She should put that video on Youtube (if it isn't already), and do everything she can to make sure the Bogey Police's PR guy can't spin this as anything but the travesty it is.

She should get a lawyer, too, to work with the lawyer of the one who was beaten by the brutes. She has a very good chance of punching the PD in their wallets and public goodwill.

[Grumman]

Bogota PD, after hearing Tasca's story, believes she is psychologically incompetent to be a police officer, and she is being sent for testing.

I'm noticing a theme here. Man acts like psychopath, woman objects, authorities decide woman is fundamentally psychologically unsuited for the job.

Welp, once again I shouldn't be surprised at this stuff any more. This does show, however, the truth behind "it's just a few bad apples." The actual full saying is "A few bad apples will quickly ruin the whole barrel" in reference to farmers having to quickly remove bad apples from barrels in storage. Here, two bad officers are dragging down the entire police force.

There are more bad officers involved than just those two. It's necessary to get rid of not just the two who committed the crime but also every one of their superiors who decided to protect the criminals at the expense of the innocent.

[madd0ct0r]

Yet another damn good reason why police should be filmed. She should put that video on Youtube (if it isn't already), and do everything she can to make sure the Bogey Police's PR guy can't spin this as anything but the travesty it is.

She should get a lawyer, too, to work with the lawyer of the one who was beaten by the brutes. She has a very good chance of punching the PD in their wallets and public goodwill.

might that not cause her difficulties at the trail? judges don't tend to be fans of trial by media.

[Haruko]

Reminds me of the Israeli soldier who reported wrongdoing and was no longer considered part of the "club" (i.e., a good member of the Israeli Defense Forces) by her fellow soldiers for at least several weeks, until she felt bad about letting down everyone with that moral conscience bullshit.

It warms my heart to see the police taking care of another one of these moral conscience traitors.

By the way...

Tasca's voice began to waiver as she recounted the meeting with her superior officer:

"The next thing I know he asks me to turn over my weapon and be sent for a fitness for duty exam," she said.

Bogota PD, after hearing Tasca's story, believes she is psychologically incompetent to be a police officer, and she is being sent for testing. The Ridgefield Park Police officers seen tackling and punching an emotionally disturbed man waiting for an ambulance are never questioned. never interviewed by an Internal Affairs Investigator, and are still working the streets today.

Remind any of you guys of that article posted earlier in this forum about women in the military being raped and then diagnosed as crazy after trying to report it:
http://bbs.stardestroyer.net/viewtopic. ... 2&t=154638

I am starting to see a pattern for how these psychological examinations are being utilized.

It warms my heart even more.

[loomer]

I'd like to see their specific rationale for having her sent for a psychiatric evaluation, in writing, with the officers involved explaining why they feel that an officer who actually performed her duty as she's meant to was suspected of being psychologically unfit.

[Ziggy Stardust]

"Well, obviously they were justified in beating the kid. It was reasonable force because he looked at them, and they feared for their life. He was stupid for looking a cop in the eyes, which can be perceived in a threatening manner. Those officers were acting in self-defense, I tells ya!!"

[Yogi]

Yet another damn good reason why police should be filmed. She should put that video on Youtube (if it isn't already), and do everything she can to make sure the Bogey Police's PR guy can't spin this as anything but the travesty it is.

You can see part of the video on the actual news site.

[Ekiqa]

"Well, obviously they were justified in beating the kid. It was reasonable force because he looked at them, and they feared for their life. He was stupid for looking a cop in the eyes, which can be perceived in a threatening manner. Those officers were acting in self-defense, I tells ya!!"

So true. In Canada, holding a stapler is grounds for execution via taser.