The lawsuit filed on behalf of 21-year-old Korie Hoke of Mesa contends her drunken-driving accident and resulting injuries, said to include brain trauma, could have been prevented if not for police negligence for leaving her unattended.
Officer Lateef Hampton found Hoke hysterical and sitting in her car, according to a taped March interview that Hampton gave to an attorney for Hoke. Hampton said he eventually persuaded Hoke to open the car door after she initially refused to do so for him and people whom he found surrounding the car.
Hampton said Hoke acknowledged drinking and that he cited her for underage drinking because she was 20 at the time. He said he did not conduct field sobriety tests because both Hoke and her boyfriend told him that the boyfriend had taken her keys. Hampton to tried to make sure Hoke didn’t have any keys, having her empty her purse and searching parts of the car.
She called her parents to pick her up, and Hampton said he spoke to her parents, who assured him they would be right there. Hampton said he decided to leave her to wait for her parents because she was an adult. Hoke’s parents arrived minutes later, but she was already gone, having used keys she hid from Hampton.
This is the kind of story that drives me crazy. How can Karen Hoke take absolutely no personel responsibility in this case? The officer did everything short of strapping her to a lie detector to verify she did not have car keys. While a police officer’s oath generally includes “to protect and to serve” I don’t think the word babysitter is included anywhere.
This is how you know the whole thing is bullshit. Replace the cop with her boyfriend. If the boyfriend had taken her keys and she lied to him saying she didn’t have any other keys but then got in a wreck would she be sueing her boyfriend? I highly doubt it. But because both her and her lawyer think they can get some money out of the city they bring up this lawsuit.
Nobody wants to take responsibility for their actions anymore. There is always somebody else they try to blame it on. Did the officer put a gun to her head and force her to drink? Did he force her to lie about her car keys? Did he force her to drive off? I think the answer to all of those questions is no. Everyone knows that driving drunk is against the law no matter what the circumstance. Be honorable and take responsibility for your actions. If you need lessons on honor ask Hank Yerzimbeck, he’s the most honorable man I know.
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I sure hope you post a follow up to this story after this thing goes to court. I’d be surprised if she gets a single penny, but hey, this IS America. What a selfish brat.
No one has any personal responsibility anymore–it’s amazing, really.
I kind of hope this girl wins the case if only for the legal precedent it would set. We can all go get drunk and commit crimes with impunity! And after we get drunk, commit a crime, and get arrested…we can sue the police! It’s brilliant!