BERLIN – Ronshell Shockley was sitting on a picnic table in Henry Park, watching her son’s basketball game with her husband and a friend, when she saw a police officer approaching. Judging by his purposeful walk, she figured he was there to arrest someone — until he stopped in front of her.
“I said ‘hi there,’” she recalled this week. “He said ‘you need to sit on the bench the right way.’”
Though surprised by the abrupt admonishment, Shockley told him she didn’t realize she’d been breaking a park rule by sitting on the top of the picnic table. When her husband, Ernest Shockley, questioned the officer’s behavior, she said they were told to leave the park.
“He said ‘leave or you’re going to be arrested,’” Ronshell Shockley said.
That was June 30. Four months and several phone calls later, Shockley received a letter from the Berlin Police Department advising her that a violation of police department policy had occurred and corrective action had been taken.
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There are some out there, who if they feel they have been wronged, will take it to the highest level to file their complaint. Even try to get that person fired if possible. It's not just with the police, if you are a merchant, or in customer service, or even a call center, if a person doesn't like what you have to say, or these delicate flowers get their feelings hurt, they will try and make a federal case out of it. It's their form of revenge. Working in a call center, I see it a lot with Millennials and the younger black community. If they don't get their way, its either racial, or they don't like your attitude, because you told them something they did not want to hear!
ReplyDeleteI guess I will jump to conclusions with you and assume that the Shockley's are Black. Do you think that cop would have acted like that to 3 White adults? I can tell you the officer wouldn't.
DeleteAfter that officer ruffed up the Black juvenile in Salisbury for wearing headphones on a bike I did the same thing. I have logged 100+ miles in Salisbury with my headphones in and no one ever said a thing.
Or the young Black man who was shot and killed closing a work order at the State police barracks. I closed my work order there the next day and made sure I REEKED of marijuana. Nothing was said, nothing was done.
I am very happy to see the Shockley's response and I will tell you why. They weren't doing anything that the police needed to get involved in but got harrased anyway. These unnecessary confrontations don't protect the public, they only raise the possibility of an incident. I have seen myself how officers can sometimes use body language, tone of voice and choice of words to escalate a situation, only to take advantage of that escalation to make an arrest.
I COMMEND THE SHOCKLEY'S for not staying silent because this officer may look to harass someone in the future and escalate the situation to violence. They may have saved some future victims life.
We now live in a country where lying under oath, destruction of evidence, bribery, theft and racketeering go unchecked from a Presidential candidate but a family that sits on a picnic table for a better view of their sons game get threatened with arrest. If you truely believe in freedom and liberty and all your rights you talk about on this page then you should be supporting the Shockley's too!
She was wrong period on sitting on a park bench where people eat ,take some responsibility.
ReplyDeleteThey also sound like cop haters and challenge authority.
DeleteThe same outdoor picnic tables that birds defecate on, squirrels procreate on, and ants and roaches run around on picking at the crumbs of the last visitors meal. Don't act like this is about sanitation. I'm pretty sure the Shockley's pants were a lot cleaner than the bench they were sitting on.
DeleteMountain....Mole Hill.
ReplyDeleteEnough said?
Yeah on the womans end ,do as your told and MOVE ON.
DeleteTypical non compliant Libs.
ReplyDeleteReply to 2:43 PM:
ReplyDeleteWell said! You are absolutely correct. They feel as if people should bow down to them.
They baited the cop I'm surprised they didn't attack him.
ReplyDeleteYup typical liberal.
Delete5:35 Really ?? The cop had an attitude obviously. They should have sat where normal human beings sit. They were both wrong. It is when cops think they are enforcing their laws and not the law of the land we have problems.
ReplyDeleteReally a Attitude?? SO WHAT He should have invite me over to your next picknick and let.me sit on tje table your gonna eat on?
DeletePs ur correct.my comment was for the pro libs.
Delete654 BLM wants all camera removed from police because it's back fired on the criminals. I could careless he/she LE had attitude. You provoked it and now you got him written up. Congrats now shut your pie hole up.
DeletePeople are worried about her sitting on a table that is outside and animals can walk on and birds and fly over and poop on it. Granted she shouldn't be sitting on the table but don't act like it is for sanitary reasons when that table probably has never been cleaned since it was put there.
ReplyDelete9:42 I'm a very conservative white male and I agree with you that cop was looking for a reason to harass those people watching their son's game.First off is illegal to sit on a picnic table probably not so why did that cop have anything to say in the first place? That was a cop that thought his badge gave him the power to do anything he wanted,it is people like him who should have never been a cop in the first place he needs to be fired.I hope that family can sew because that cop needs to be made an example of.
ReplyDelete9:42 here. Thank you for agreeing. Just like any other group of people the good police vastly outnumbered the bad. They need to set the standards high and police themselves, without fear of backlash from the force.
DeleteAlso, we need States Attorneys who will throw out cases like this where a stop or "lawful" order is made with no grounds. That would put a quick stop to it.
The rest of you put your son, daughter, brother, sister, father or mother into this same scenario and think if you would still side with the officer on this one.
Wasn't there, can't comment one way or the other.
ReplyDeleteClaude Holland should be fired by the Mayor of Berlin for his rants and threats at the Wicomico County Council meetings. When you are sworn in with the Oath of Office you are a police officer 24/7/365.
ReplyDeleteThe mayor and council of Berlin should open an investigation and fire him. All council meetings are taped.