We look to law enforcement officers to protect and to serve our communities. As a society, we also have a reasonable expectation that they won’t engage in behavior that would land anyone else in trouble.
KTLA in Los Angeles reported on Thursday that a Denver, Colorado police officer was found passed out in his patrol cruiser. Even though he admitted that he had been drinking, he won’t face charges due to lack of evidence.
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18th Judicial District Attorney George Brauchler cited fellow officers within the Denver Police Department, giving Officer Nate Meir special treatment because they treated it as a medical case rather than an incident of DUI. Even though other officers smelled alcohol on Meir, Brauchler said in a statement that ultimately, he was prevented from obtaining the necessary evidence to prosecute the case.
“I do think he beat the system,” Brauchler affiliate KCNC-TV in Denver. “I just think it was part of the system that helped him do it.”
Meir was found passed out in his patrol cruiser on March 29, 2019. Meir was taken to an area hospital where it was discovered that he had a blood-alcohol level of 0.43 percent, which is significantly over the legal intoxication limit of 0.08 percent.
In a recently released bodycam video taken from one of the police officers who were there at the time, one officer admits, “he’s a little intoxicated.”
During an internal affairs investigation, Meir admitted that he had been drinking vodka before getting behind the wheel of his police cruiser.
Interim Police Chief, Vanessa Wilson said in a statement that the case was not handled correctly and that an internal affairs investigation from an outside agency will be ordered in the case.
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