In a perfect world, all law enforcement would act in ways that benefit society, but this isn’t a perfect world, and neither are Tennessee’s cops, according to Reddit user Hospitalitychick. She posted a photo of a patrol SUV parked outside an apartment building, directly in a no-parking zone. Police officers can typically park wherever they need to when on duty, but this particular officer is allegedly not on duty.
“He is not on a call, not on duty. Dude is probably sitting on his couch in his skivvies, munching Doritos and playing Call of Duty,” Hospitalitychick remarked in frustration. She explained how the officer has been parked in the no-parking area all weekend and even moved out of a parking spot to be there. Apparently, he lives in the apartment, so he’s allegedly not there for work.
OP Believes This Cop Is Blocking Emergency Access to the Apartment
“When there’s a car in the empty spot, there’s barely enough space to get through. If someone has a medical emergency or there’s a fire…we’re screwed,” Hospitalitychick wrote. In other words, the OP believes the officer is doing whoever lives in the building a disservice by adding to the parking inconvenience and taking space needed for potential emergency vehicles. She added that he has his own personal vehicle, too.
Thousands joined Hospitalitychick in her frustration with the Tennessee officer, with many feeling rather helpless about the situation. “This is just an example of entitlement and the fact that internet outrage won’t change the fact that little or nothing can really be done about it by us laypeople,” sighed a user.
“This kind of thing is only allowed if it’s in the line of duty. This is just him being lazy and entitled. Send a pic to the precinct,” suggested a second. “The problem is, he can,” remarked a third, to which OP replied, “What gives him the right? He is off duty, at his home.”
While plenty of people agreed with OP that this cop is in the wrong, one person suggested that perhaps the apartment’s owner wanted him to do this to deter crime. Still, that doesn’t change the fact that Hospitalitychick believes the officer is causing an inconvenience to the residents.
That said, she says that she plans to call the police department to report the officer, though she wonders whether to ask the complex first about whether he was given permission.
