Utah nurse settles over rough arrest caught on video

Wubbel was following hospital policy when she told Payne he needed a warrant or the consent of the patient to draw blood after a July 26 car crash. The patient was not under arrest or suspected of wrongdoing.

Payne had neither. He eventually dragged Wubbels outside and handcuffed her as she screamed that she had done nothing wrong.

She was released without being charged but has said the incident left her feeling terrified and bullied. In a call for changes, Wubbel and her lawyer released the video they had obtained through a public records request.

Utah nurse settles over rough arrest caught on video

well it seems she did end up pursuing a lawsuit ,i had been following it pretty closely but with everything else going on it slipped my mind tell my friend sent me a link via facebook and as i hadn't seen it posted figured id give an update . seems to be a good chunk of change on a nurses salary but does seem to go against her earlier statements that she didn't intend to sue but i guess she was un satisfied with the outcome(officer Payne fired and his supervisor demoted). hopefully the hospital and the police force can get back to getting along now and hope that every one managed to learn a bit from the situation to prevent such mishaps in the future. also from source

Salt Lake City Police Chief Mike Brown has since apologized and fired Payne after an internal investigation found he violated department policies. Brown said in a disciplinary letter that he was "deeply troubled" by Payne's conduct, which he said brought "significant disrepute" on the department. Payne is appealing that decision, saying the firing was an unfair reaction to the negative publicity.

www.deseretnews.com...

SALT LAKE CITY — The University of Utah nurse at the center of a highly controversial arrest that was recorded on the officers' body cameras has reached a $500,000 settlement with all parties involved. In addition, Alex Wubbels announced Tuesday afternoon that she will use part of that money to launch a new initiative to make body camera video more accessible to all residents in Utah involved in a police incident.

seems shes using some of the money to help increase access to body camera footage in the future in Utah based on how much of a help it was to her in her case

a reply to: RalagaNarHallas

$500K isn't really a big amount. If she had really wanted to, I'm sure she could have gotten much more. I'm just glad that this scumbag cop isn't "protecting and serving" the community anymore.

a reply to: kelbtalfenek

eh he has appealed his firing but as of now nothing has changed on that front ,he also lost his job at an ambulance company for saying he was gonna drop off transients at the hospital and take the paying customers to different hospitals which did make him look pretty bad, it also came out that he didnt inform his CO of all the details of the case which is what led to his supervisor being demoted

originally posted by: kelbtalfenek
a reply to: RalagaNarHallas

$500K isn't really a big amount.

Say whaaaaat?

Those cops can rough me up for half the price. Hell, id take 20 grand.

a reply to: nightbringr

i got 1.2 million for my lawsuit (i am by terms of said lawsuit prohibited from naming the department) against a ca police force , so i know how well surprise money can be for long term plans ,id have been happy with 500k my lawyer got me more but i got them on tape threatening to plant coke on me that my security cameras captured . if she plans it out well it will def supplement her pension from being a nurse for many many years. i got into bounty hunting and being a half assed landlord but mostly am funemployed since. paid off my parents mortages (am adopted) and bought my self a modest house and have been pretty much living off it since 2005 and now thankfully enjoy a friendly relationship with local law-enforcement and mostly stick to my self

more on topic

www.nydailynews.com...

SALT LAKE CITY — A Utah police detective has formally appealed the decision to fire him after he was caught on video roughly handcuffing a nurse because she refused to allow him to draw blood from an unconscious patient, his lawyer said Friday. Detective Jeff Payne asked to appear before a Salt Lake City employment board to make the case that his termination went too far and happened because the body-camera footage drew widespread attention and criticism online, lawyer Greg Skordas said. The video shows Payne arresting nurse Alex Wubbels on July 26 after she explained that hospital policy wouldn’t allow him to take the blood for a car-crash investigation without a warrant or patient consent. Payne had neither, but he insisted. The dispute ended with him dragging her outside while she screamed that she’d done nothing wrong.

so as xcehedra (sorry for spelling it wrong) said that aspect is far from over and he did rightfully call that the officer would appeal his firing so hoping he will offer input on how he thinks this is gonna go from here

www.sltrib.com... it seems he feels his demotion was excessive and as he said and the reports confirmed that he was not fully informed of what was going on in the situation hey may have a case but not my area of expertise

The watch commander who was on duty when a Salt Lake City police officer arrested a University Hospital nurse last summer is appealing his demotion, claiming it was “excessive discipline.” Lt. James Tracy was demoted to the rank of officer last month after the police chief determined Tracy made the “completely unreasonable” order that Detective Jeff Payne arrest nurse Alex Wubbels on July 26, after she refused to allow Payne to draw a patient’s blood. The encounter garnered national outrage after body camera footage was released by Wubbels’ attorney in August. Tracy’s attorney, Edward Brass, filed documents Oct. 13 appealing Chief Mike Brown’s decision. He provided a copy of the documents to The Tribune on Wednesday.

so on this its also not done but i give him better odds then payne

a reply to: RalagaNarHallas

500k of tax payers money, not good enough. We the people should not be paying for corrupt cops to be... Well corrupt.

Wasn't it said that the patient was an innocent driver, injured in a police chase?

Supposedly, they wanted to put him at fault with the blood sample.

a reply to: SlowNail

that was one of the theories but it never ended up being proven or disproven perse it was kind of the tinfoil for this one

a reply to: RalagaNarHallas

Footage of a crash was knocked around, but never saw it verified

Dear ATS Readers, Writers,

Well, some good news after all! S&F for this one mate.

I think she could have got more, but the lesson is out there, and the legal precedent set.
Firing of the police officer was the correct move.

It was not long after 9-11 that the cops where I was from in the USA started "changing".

All of the good cops, the ones that you could talk to for years in the stores etc, all started retiring early, or, becoming store security, or private Detectives, or Court Bailiffs, et, etc.

I asked a lot of them, but two told me they were being asked to do things to citizens that "went against" their old time cop beliefs..

When I was a kid, in the late 60's, it was OK to talk to a policeman, and they were nice and friendly folks. Compare that to these times.... you call the police because you need them for to help you, and you stand a good chance of getting killed by the police you called for help!

Let's just say, it is a much more dangerous situation in these times. But, to give credit it's due too, the police are up against a much more dangerous environment than the late 60's...

Heck mate, at times a few years ago there were ice zombies eating peoples faces, or bath salts or some crazy stuff they were taking. In the 60's cops broke up fist fights after school, brought home kids caught shoplifting to their parents to be punished...instead of locking them up...they still got in trouble, had to go to court, but didn't get all drug through the scum, locked up and bad food etc, etc. Normal crimes, burglary, traffic tickets, drunk drivers...not trying to stop someone running over people with his/her car for example.

Anyhow, the "good cops" got out of the field work, after 9-11, in my opinion. The ones left over, and most new recruits are willing to be much more physical, and use basically military tactics, because crimes and incidents take on a more military feeling and casualty rate.

Need an "army" to defeat and army of extremists, god forbid..but this is one reason why they have gotten so "mean".

But it still is no excuse for how this nurse was treated; especially when she was in the right all along! Grrr...

Being a policeman these days would be a very difficult job I reckon at times. You really can't afford to make any mistakes as a police officer. Danged if you do, and danged if you don't.

The police in Oz are still most all pretty friendly folks...then again I haven't been pulled over either..Ha! We get those random breath tests and etc here...especially during holiday seasons... keeps the drunks off the road.

Thanks for this post and thread on the follow up on the nurse!

Pravdaseeker


a reply to: RalagaNarHallas

a reply to: RalagaNarHallas

I am not surprised the nurse sued however I am skeptical about plans for part of the money and police video. There are laws that govern the release of video footage so trying to set something up locally for that process seems like a dead end to be honest.

Actually the release of the video footage is part of Det. Payne's complaint against the city and SLCPD. The fact it was released before the conclusion of any criminal, internal or 42 USC investigations were complete. He also claims the release of the IA / CPRB investigations were released before that process was completed violated the CPRB, Salt Lake City and SLCPD policies.

Essentially it created an environment that allowed the media to run with their own version of events based on partial information all the while he was prohibited from responding to any of it. The backlash from that created pressure on the city and PD to take actions against the officer that were based on public outrage instead of established procedures.

If I understand the facts correctly in regards to his challenge to get his job back their is a chance it could happen, again if reporting is accurate, that policies were violated in releasing the CPRB / SLCPD / SLC reports before the instigation was completed.

Essentially the argument is -
You are going to fire me for violating policy while at the same time ignore the fact you also violated policies in order to fire me.


As for the Lt.'s demotion I am not familiar with SLCPD internal policies so im not sure how that will go. I will say based on experience some departments have policies in place that prevent a person from being demoted multiple ranks at once. If the Lt. was with an agency in my state / neck of the woods he could only be demoted back 1 grade (so Sgt / Sgt equivalent depending on the division he was over / a part of).

What I find interesting is the city paying out before all proceedings are complete (internal affairs, civil rights and criminal). The Detective, if his termination is upheld, could have been on the hook for paying the nurse the money and not the city or PD. Termination for violating policies usually means the City can "disassociate" themselves from the officer and his actions, laying full blame on the officer alone for all civil amounts.

Opinion - Cities are way to quick to offer pay outs. They do it because of their public image only and it underscores the problem of city officials not understanding law enforcement and what their actions create by paying out so early.

As for an outcome -
No idea. This situation has been so mismanaged by all sides involved it is difficult to say.

originally posted by: SlowNail
Wasn't it said that the patient was an innocent driver, injured in a police chase?

Supposedly, they wanted to put him at fault with the blood sample.

There has never been a question about the validity / legality of the pursuit. It was Utah Highway Patrol who engaged in the pursuit and the pursuit and all Troopers involved were in compliance with state law and policies of their agency. I am not sure where people come up with the mindset that they are trying to blame other drivers for what occurred.

Highway Patrol did nothing wrong and the law is on their side on that fact.

Generally speaking Highway Patrol / Stare Police (depending on the state you are in) undergo advanced training for pursuits. More training than most departments put their officers / deputies thru. That training usually involves high speed pursuits (100+ mph) and the training facilities they use have all weather condition areas to simulate pursuits under adverse situations (skid pads / obstacles / reduced visibility / etc etc etc).

As has been pointed out numerous times -
The driver in question was a truck driver and the Lt. made notice of that when talking to the nurse in the car. It was also noted than it was standard procedure to obtain blood samples of all drivers involved in fatality accidents. Also, yes, Law Enforcement is also required to provide breath blood or urine in these situations as well.

originally posted by: pravdaseeker
Dear ATS Readers, Writers,

Well, some good news after all! S&F for this one mate.

I think she could have got more, but the lesson is out there, and the legal precedent set.
Firing of the police officer was the correct move.

It was not long after 9-11 that the cops where I was from in the USA started "changing".

All of the good cops, the ones that you could talk to for years in the stores etc, all started retiring early, or, becoming store security, or private Detectives, or Court Bailiffs, et, etc.

I asked a lot of them, but two told me they were being asked to do things to citizens that "went against" their old time cop beliefs..

When I was a kid, in the late 60's, it was OK to talk to a policeman, and they were nice and friendly folks. Compare that to these times.... you call the police because you need them for to help you, and you stand a good chance of getting killed by the police you called for help!

Let's just say, it is a much more dangerous situation in these times. But, to give credit it's due too, the police are up against a much more dangerous environment than the late 60's...

Heck mate, at times a few years ago there were ice zombies eating peoples faces, or bath salts or some crazy stuff they were taking. In the 60's cops broke up fist fights after school, brought home kids caught shoplifting to their parents to be punished...instead of locking them up...they still got in trouble, had to go to court, but didn't get all drug through the scum, locked up and bad food etc, etc. Normal crimes, burglary, traffic tickets, drunk drivers...not trying to stop someone running over people with his/her car for example.

Anyhow, the "good cops" got out of the field work, after 9-11, in my opinion. The ones left over, and most new recruits are willing to be much more physical, and use basically military tactics, because crimes and incidents take on a more military feeling and casualty rate.

Need an "army" to defeat and army of extremists, god forbid..but this is one reason why they have gotten so "mean".

But it still is no excuse for how this nurse was treated; especially when she was in the right all along! Grrr...

Being a policeman these days would be a very difficult job I reckon at times. You really can't afford to make any mistakes as a police officer. Danged if you do, and danged if you don't.

The police in Oz are still most all pretty friendly folks...then again I haven't been pulled over either..Ha! We get those random breath tests and etc here...especially during holiday seasons... keeps the drunks off the road.

Thanks for this post and thread on the follow up on the nurse!

Pravdaseeker


a reply to: RalagaNarHallas

What you are saying may be correct, I just wanted to add that here in Australia when cops pull you over they do it with a smile and with courtesy.

That may be because they are about to fine your ass and it's all good when everyone is smiling.

My point is however that it's really only U. S cops that are freaking out at the citizens. I'm sure parts of the U. S this does not happen, I'm simply addressing the ones that make the news.

a reply to: hopenotfeariswhatweneed

American media, just like Australian, only reports on law enforcement when something goes wrong. Given the population of the US and the number of law enforcement contacts that occur daily 99% of the time they are handled / resolved peacefully.

The New York City Police Department has about 50k employees and of that something like 35k+ are commissioned officers who are responsible for over 9 million residents and that doesnt include people who work in the city who reside outside the city or visitors to the city.

NYPD just had an incident where 2 officers raped a person they had in custody in their patrol vehicle. What doesnt make the news is the fact thousands of other officers on duty did their job with integrity / honesty and lawfully. Since that does not make good news the focus falls onto what goes wrong - and that is all people see.

That creates the problem of only seeing law enforcement in a negative light while ignoring the rest.

It creates a biased view and that creates problems. For instance the viewpoint that only US cops are freaking out on the citizens.

Your issues in the past with law enforcement in your own country coupled with your admission here that you only know about the ones that pop up on media has shaped your bias towars law enforcement. As an example you failed to take into account certain actions y citizens towards law enforcement.

Instead of looking at the whole problem you only focus on one side and even then its only the negative...

Respectfully. - if you are going to throw stones at law enforcement you should not do it from inside your glass house.

a reply to: RalagaNarHallas

Absolutely funtastic, this is the way to fight back, learn the law and use it back against them. More and more people this and thugs in uniform will smell like ...... to management after a while and be retired.

a reply to: Xcathdra

Fair call, the numbers are what makes it difficult. It's hard to make a realistic judgement call from a place of ignorance. I don't live that life, I judge it from a base that makes sense to me.

I'm trying to wrap my head around it, give me time I may even get it.

So to be non reactive let me throw pebbles from my glasshouse, at least they are not rocks.

originally posted by: hopenotfeariswhatweneed
a reply to: Xcathdra

Fair call, the numbers are what makes it difficult. It's hard to make a realistic judgement call from a place of ignorance. I don't live that life, I judge it from a base that makes sense to me.

I'm trying to wrap my head around it, give me time I may even get it.

So to be non reactive let me throw pebbles from my glasshouse, at least they are not rocks.

ok

Perth police stood down amid inquiry over violent arrest captured on video

The video of the December 2016 arrest in Hamilton Hill, in Perth, was played in court last month as the arrested pair faced charges of assaulting police, obstruction, and providing false particulars.

It showed the officers kicking the woman and punching the man up to 20 times.

The man involved was fined $100 for obstructing police, but the other charges were thrown out.

The magistrate criticised testimony given by the three constables during the court session on October 10.

Following a review of the video and court transcripts the Internal Affairs Unit has launched a renewed investigation into the conduct of the three officers.

They have been stood aside and restricted to non-operational duties pending the outcome of the probe.

a reply to: Xcathdra

Other than psychos gravitate to positions of power I'm missing your point.

They recently made a TV series called "underbelly " it became very popular and subsequently there have been many series .

I'm under no illusions of corruption.

originally posted by: hopenotfeariswhatweneed
a reply to: RalagaNarHallas

500k of tax payers money, not good enough. We the people should not be paying for corrupt cops to be... Well corrupt.

Insurance... not tax payers.

PDs have insurance for this.

originally posted by: hopenotfeariswhatweneed
a reply to: Xcathdra

Other than psychos gravitate to positions of power I'm missing your point.

They recently made a TV series called "underbelly " it became very popular and subsequently there have been many series .

I'm under no illusions of corruption.

His point is quite clear. No police force is immune to this kind of thing.

You made a post bashing the US police while holding yours up as an shining example. He is simply making the very valid point that these things happen, and not only in the US, including your home grown Australian 'smile as they pull you over' police force.