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http://www.mysuncoast.com/news/troop...d7ee2eefd.html

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Editorial: Report on crashes hurts FHP credibility
heraldtribune

Law enforcement officers are routinely required to make snap judgments that, under unique circumstances, can be difficult for civilians to second-guess.

The Florida Highway Patrol’s handling of a pair of vehicular crashes — allegedly involving a now-former state prosecutor, who had been drinking alcohol — is not among them.

An FHP inspector general’s report, recently obtained by the Herald-Tribune, confirmed what seemed apparent from initial media reports about the wrecks: Troopers on the final incident scene failed to perform the most basic of tasks to determine the causes of the crashes, liability for damages and whether a driver, Jessie Weissman, was intoxicated.

Weissman was summarily fired from her post by State Attorney Ed Brodsky, who cited testimony that the assistant prosecutor had been drinking at multiple bars in Punta Gorda on July 17, 2016. The dismissal occurred about two weeks after the so-called pub crawl, not long after the incidents were reported by the Herald-Tribune.

“I am not convinced that alcohol did not contribute to your actions that evening,” Brodsky wrote to Weissman.

The FHP’s lead investigator, Trooper Joshua Flow, either thought otherwise or ignored evidence and widely understood protocol in order to protect Weissman, whom he recognized as a prosecutor.

For instance, as Michael Moore Jr. reported this week in the Herald-Tribune, the Office of Inspector General found that Trooper Flow failed to photograph vehicle damage, failed to collect and preserve evidence, failed to utilize his mobile video recorder to document interactions with witnesses during the alleged hit-and-run traffic crash investigation, and failed to investigate whether Weissman was driving drunk.

Those are a lot of inexplicable, fundamental failures.

The findings were, and are, especially troubling when there were conflicting reports, from other law enforcement officers on the scene about whether Weissman appeared to have consumed alcohol before crashing into an inanimate object (a big brick sign) at the intersection of Fruitville and Cattlemen roads near Interstate 75 in Sarasota County.

What’s more, the driver of a vehicle who reported that his car had been rear-ended by Weissman’s on I-75 followed her to the intersection and complained loudly to law enforcement officers about her condition.

As a letter to the Herald-Tribune editorial page noted after the July 2016 reporting: “Considering drivers can be detained, sobriety tested and arrested for a DUI as a result of a burned-out tag light in Sarasota, Weissman’s firing does not balance the scales of justice.”

Indeed, it’s common for law enforcement officers to state that drivers whom they stop smell of alcohol or have red eyes, and then proceed with further investigation.

Yet, with all the evidence available when Weissman crashed at Fruitville and Cattlemen, no significant investigatory measures were taken.

Despite the circumstances and Flow’s failures, as documented by the FHP’s internal review, the trooper’s discipline was a 24-hour suspension without pay.

Troopers in Florida are overworked and underpaid, so the loss of pay no doubt hurt Flow financially.

But this whole, long episode has also hurt the credibility of the Florida Highway Patrol and undermined public faith in the FHP’s ability to perform effectively and without favor.

[Unregistered]

Editorial: Report on crashes hurts FHP credibility
heraldtribune

Law enforcement officers are routinely required to make snap judgments that, under unique circumstances, can be difficult for civilians to second-guess.

The Florida Highway Patrol’s handling of a pair of vehicular crashes — allegedly involving a now-former state prosecutor, who had been drinking alcohol — is not among them.

An FHP inspector general’s report, recently obtained by the Herald-Tribune, confirmed what seemed apparent from initial media reports about the wrecks: Troopers on the final incident scene failed to perform the most basic of tasks to determine the causes of the crashes, liability for damages and whether a driver, Jessie Weissman, was intoxicated.

Weissman was summarily fired from her post by State Attorney Ed Brodsky, who cited testimony that the assistant prosecutor had been drinking at multiple bars in Punta Gorda on July 17, 2016. The dismissal occurred about two weeks after the so-called pub crawl, not long after the incidents were reported by the Herald-Tribune.

“I am not convinced that alcohol did not contribute to your actions that evening,” Brodsky wrote to Weissman.

The FHP’s lead investigator, Trooper Joshua Flow, either thought otherwise or ignored evidence and widely understood protocol in order to protect Weissman, whom he recognized as a prosecutor.

For instance, as Michael Moore Jr. reported this week in the Herald-Tribune, the Office of Inspector General found that Trooper Flow failed to photograph vehicle damage, failed to collect and preserve evidence, failed to utilize his mobile video recorder to document interactions with witnesses during the alleged hit-and-run traffic crash investigation, and failed to investigate whether Weissman was driving drunk.

Those are a lot of inexplicable, fundamental failures.

The findings were, and are, especially troubling when there were conflicting reports, from other law enforcement officers on the scene about whether Weissman appeared to have consumed alcohol before crashing into an inanimate object (a big brick sign) at the intersection of Fruitville and Cattlemen roads near Interstate 75 in Sarasota County.

What’s more, the driver of a vehicle who reported that his car had been rear-ended by Weissman’s on I-75 followed her to the intersection and complained loudly to law enforcement officers about her condition.

As a letter to the Herald-Tribune editorial page noted after the July 2016 reporting: “Considering drivers can be detained, sobriety tested and arrested for a DUI as a result of a burned-out tag light in Sarasota, Weissman’s firing does not balance the scales of justice.”

Indeed, it’s common for law enforcement officers to state that drivers whom they stop smell of alcohol or have red eyes, and then proceed with further investigation.

Yet, with all the evidence available when Weissman crashed at Fruitville and Cattlemen, no significant investigatory measures were taken.

Despite the circumstances and Flow’s failures, as documented by the FHP’s internal review, the trooper’s discipline was a 24-hour suspension without pay.

Troopers in Florida are overworked and underpaid, so the loss of pay no doubt hurt Flow financially.

But this whole, long episode has also hurt the credibility of the Florida Highway Patrol and undermined public faith in the FHP’s ability to perform effectively and without favor.

Were their FHP supervisors on the scene of this crash? If so what actions did they take?

[Unregistered]

Were their FHP supervisors on the scene of this crash? If so what actions did they take?

Fair question. Another fair question would be-did the trooper even call their supervisor to inform them what he has, his observations, witness statements etc.

[Unregistered]

And folks, now you know why it's called the "Jew-dicial system".

Back to your two per hour !!!