One expensive cheeseburger.
Ailing woman challenges officers
Police arrest woman with Parkinson's
'The line was long as Arleen Avila pulled her 2002 silver Mercedes SUV into the drive-through lane of a Visalia fast-food restaurant.
Avila, 46, says she has suffered from Parkinson's disease for 11 years and takes several medications for the condition. While waiting for her lunch at In-N-Out Burgers on Mooney Boulevard, she dozed off.
It was an expensive nap.
The Visalia woman, after being rousted by another driver, ordered her food and picked it up — only to be met by Visalia police.
"The officer told me to get out of the car, but I couldn't," Avila said. "I spend most of my time in a motorized wheelchair, and it's hard and painful for me to get out."
Avila was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of a controlled substance and resisting an officer, Visalia Police Sgt. Shawn Delaney said Monday. Delaney said alcohol was not involved but offered no further details.
It was the way the arrest unfolded that concerns Avila, who believes someone in line or at the restaurant called police when she fell asleep.
Avila said that, because she would not exit the car as instructed, officers started to remove her from the vehicle — at which point she yelled for help from passers-by. Because of her Parkinson's symptoms, she says, her speech was slurred, making her difficult to understand.
"[Bystanders] had no idea what was happening," Avila said.
Police then cuffed Avila, placed her into a police cruiser and had her taken to Kaweah Delta Hospital for a medical evaluation. That's standard procedure, Visalia Police Department Assistant Chief Dennis Swiney said.
"If there is any indication that a suspect has a medical condition," he said, "we first get a medical clearance that he or she can be booked."
Avila said that, upon arrival at Kaweah Delta, she was placed into a small room with three Visalia police officers, one of them female. Later, two vials of blood were drawn for unspecified tests, she said.
"They were asking me all kinds of questions and trying to get me to admit I had been drinking," Avila said. "I was not drinking. I don't drink. They never gave me a [alcohol] breath test or anything."
Swiney said that, normally, the drawing of blood for tests occurs at the police station when suspects show signs of drug use but display no evidence of disabilities or illness. After getting the required medical clearance from hospital officials, Visalia police took Avila to the Tulare County Main Jail, where she was photographed and booked.
Avila's says the police mistreated her.
"They never offered me a wheelchair at the jail and when I told them I needed one," Avila said.
Instead, she said, she was made to sit in a regular chair with her hands cuffed behind her. The cuffs cut into her wrists, she said, and her right shin was bruised during the arrest.
Avila considered her injuries serious enough that she went to Tulare District Hospital after being released by Visalia police about 4 p.m. Tulare District Hospital discharge instructions provided by Avila confirm that she was treated for contusions to the upper and lower extremities and was prescribed a pain reliever.
She was released at 5:03 p.m., Tulare hospital records show.
Avila said she has asked Visalia attorney William Romaine to represent her in case she decides to take legal action. Among other things, Avila said, she had to pay $250 to have her SUV released from the police department's impound area after it was towed away during her ordeal.
Romaine said he has represented Avila in the past.
"Sometimes people afflicted with Parkinson's and similar diseases do not have the patience that most people have," he said, "and misunderstandings can occur quite easily."'
Police arrest woman with Parkinson's
'The line was long as Arleen Avila pulled her 2002 silver Mercedes SUV into the drive-through lane of a Visalia fast-food restaurant.
Avila, 46, says she has suffered from Parkinson's disease for 11 years and takes several medications for the condition. While waiting for her lunch at In-N-Out Burgers on Mooney Boulevard, she dozed off.
It was an expensive nap.
The Visalia woman, after being rousted by another driver, ordered her food and picked it up — only to be met by Visalia police.
"The officer told me to get out of the car, but I couldn't," Avila said. "I spend most of my time in a motorized wheelchair, and it's hard and painful for me to get out."
Avila was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of a controlled substance and resisting an officer, Visalia Police Sgt. Shawn Delaney said Monday. Delaney said alcohol was not involved but offered no further details.
It was the way the arrest unfolded that concerns Avila, who believes someone in line or at the restaurant called police when she fell asleep.
Avila said that, because she would not exit the car as instructed, officers started to remove her from the vehicle — at which point she yelled for help from passers-by. Because of her Parkinson's symptoms, she says, her speech was slurred, making her difficult to understand.
"[Bystanders] had no idea what was happening," Avila said.
Police then cuffed Avila, placed her into a police cruiser and had her taken to Kaweah Delta Hospital for a medical evaluation. That's standard procedure, Visalia Police Department Assistant Chief Dennis Swiney said.
"If there is any indication that a suspect has a medical condition," he said, "we first get a medical clearance that he or she can be booked."
Avila said that, upon arrival at Kaweah Delta, she was placed into a small room with three Visalia police officers, one of them female. Later, two vials of blood were drawn for unspecified tests, she said.
"They were asking me all kinds of questions and trying to get me to admit I had been drinking," Avila said. "I was not drinking. I don't drink. They never gave me a [alcohol] breath test or anything."
Swiney said that, normally, the drawing of blood for tests occurs at the police station when suspects show signs of drug use but display no evidence of disabilities or illness. After getting the required medical clearance from hospital officials, Visalia police took Avila to the Tulare County Main Jail, where she was photographed and booked.
Avila's says the police mistreated her.
"They never offered me a wheelchair at the jail and when I told them I needed one," Avila said.
Instead, she said, she was made to sit in a regular chair with her hands cuffed behind her. The cuffs cut into her wrists, she said, and her right shin was bruised during the arrest.
Avila considered her injuries serious enough that she went to Tulare District Hospital after being released by Visalia police about 4 p.m. Tulare District Hospital discharge instructions provided by Avila confirm that she was treated for contusions to the upper and lower extremities and was prescribed a pain reliever.
She was released at 5:03 p.m., Tulare hospital records show.
Avila said she has asked Visalia attorney William Romaine to represent her in case she decides to take legal action. Among other things, Avila said, she had to pay $250 to have her SUV released from the police department's impound area after it was towed away during her ordeal.
Romaine said he has represented Avila in the past.
"Sometimes people afflicted with Parkinson's and similar diseases do not have the patience that most people have," he said, "and misunderstandings can occur quite easily."'
posted by Big Daddy at
Friday, May 18, 2007
Denver
1 Comments:
Interesting.
It's very possible (likely, even) that the cops mistreated her in some regard. But she deserved to be arrested for DUI. My dad has Parkinson's, and he knows when he can and cannot drive based on his medication schedule. Sounds like she shouldn't be driving at all.
Messy.
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