I've talked today and recently about the fact I had a fire in my house. I have NOT talked about the police response. I find this the most painful thing now the dust has settled. I've only told this to one person/couple. It hurts. I will say it here.
I was asleep when the fire started. It burned so hot. I tried to find my cat. I tried to get my disk drive with my life on it. I tried. The fire fighters had to carry me out of the place and stop me from going back in.
Put into a police car. Not let out of it for 2 hours. The police officer kept saying to me you started the fire, you did. You are drunk. I at one point shut down and just said, "I don't know," "I don't know," I don't know" to his questions no matter what they were.
City's fire department and the person Allstate hired have said I had no part in starting the fire.
And this happened.
The cop took me to a hotel 8 miles from home, no shirt or shoes. No wallet or credit cards, all lost in the fire. Left me there. I did have the cash to pay in my pocket. My last money. I know now three neighbors were begging the cops and firefighters to know where I was, they'd take me in, how was I?
The next morning at like 5:45 AM I started to walk without shoes to my house on a rural highway. I didn't know who to call, since every number is on my phone. Hotel, since I didn't give them a credit card because they were all lost in the fire, wouldn't let me call to my brother or somebody else via 411.
I get stopped from another cop. Says a person on the road called in a welfare check on me. No shoes. No shirt walking. I am like dude my FUCKING HOUSE BURNED AND YOUR DEPARTMENT LEFT ME HERE. What am I supposed to do? I was beside myself and confused!
Feel like I was still in shock. Lost about all the reason I did this/that. All I could think about was getting home for my cat. I did't care what people thought about me, I knew it had to look strange me walking down the road like that, but I had to get home to get my cat.
Since then had a converation with city governnment that are stuned by it all ....
If there is one thing Cenk says on The Young Turks the biggest disrespect at least in their mind, you can show a cop, is to invoke your rights. Stand up for yourself. I did that ages ago with this cop. He tried to give me a ticket for Jaywalking. This in a town where we got our first stop light a few years ago. I stood up to him. He didn't like it so much.
I did again this night of the fire, and he really didn't like it.
He had to know what he was doing.
I am about the most laid back person you can find. You can kick me in the teeth and I will ask if your foot is okay.
Right now all I can think of is my house. But I have not forgotten about how I was treated. In the not to distant future I will pivot to how he treated me. Pretty sure it isn't policy to leave a victim with no shirt, shoes, or wallet long away from home when others offered to take him in. He knew what he was doing. I will know what I am doing when I come for his badge!