TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Clearwater Police: Woman's Arrest At McDonald's Justified

ADVERTISEMENT

By STEPHEN THOMPSON, The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 5, 2008

CLEARWATER - A Clearwater police officer accused of wrongly arresting a 75-year-old woman at a McDonald's drive-through last month has been cleared of wrongdoing by his supervisors, according to an internal affairs file released Monday.

Patrolman Matthew Parco was not discourteous while dealing with Jean Merola, police administrators concluded after reviewing witnesses' statements. Only one of about 10 witnesses said Parco acted inappropriately.

"It just seemed like he was doing his job," witness Susan Grimm-Mastandrea told internal affairs investigators.

On Jan. 17, Merola was at the McDonald's drive-through, 1934 Hercules Ave. N., when she asked for an order of french fries without salt, which takes about 3 1/2 minutes to prepare, a manager told investigators. Merola was told to move her Lincoln Town Car off to the side and wait until an employee brought her order.

Car Blocked The Way

Parco, waiting behind, had received an iced coffee but could not leave because the Town Car blocked his way. Witnesses said he motioned her to drive out of the line. When she didn't, he got out of his squad car, walked up to the Lincoln and asked her to move, the documents state.

The ensuing back-and-forth lasted 20 minutes, with more cars backed up in line and employees forced to deliver orders to vehicles.

Parco told investigators Merola started yelling at him immediately, saying she was where she was supposed to be. With his hands folded in front of him, he let her yell for one to two minutes, but when he started to speak, she interrupted him. After she was given her order she still refused to leave, witnesses and Parco told investigators.

"She was being rude," said Sarah Curtis, a McDonald's manager, "saying, you know, she's prominent, she knows people. And saying that she's 75 years old, and that she could die tomorrow, and that the officer should be ashamed" of himself.

Parco said Merola also claimed to know police Chief Sid Klein and demanded he come to the scene.

"He said to Merola that all he was trying to do was tell her to move up so that he could get on his way," Curtis said.

Parco retrieved Merola's driver's license and ran a check, mainly to see whether she had a history of mental illness, the documents say. When none turned up, he gave her a piece of paper with his name, identification number and a telephone number on it so she could file a complaint against him if she wanted. Then he told her to leave.

Insults Follow Order

She again demanded Klein be called to the scene, and called Parco a brat. She also told him that if he had a wife or children, his wife was going to divorce him and his children would hate him, Parco told internal affairs investigators. He again told her to leave and went back to his squad car.

Ashley Jones, another McDonald's employee, said she then saw Merola walk to Parco's squad car and yell at him. Jones remembered Parco saying, "I asked you to sit in your car and just leave."

He said he then told Merola four times that she should leave. She again refused, saying she wanted Klein there. Parco said he noted the backup in the line and the danger to employees, so he decided to press charges against Merola.

Originally, Parco, who consulted with a supervisor, wanted to give Merola a notice to appear in court so he wouldn't have to take her into custody, but he was willing to do that only if he could contact one of her family members. Merola refused to give him any of their names or telephone numbers.

The end of the arrest - with Parco calmly directing Merola into the back of his squad car - was captured on video by one witness.

Merola did not cooperate in the internal affairs investigation. The disorderly conduct charge Parco filed against her is winding through the judicial system.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT