#9 - Christi Ruhtz
Florida police officer Christi Ruhtz was fired from the Pinellas County sheriff's department
after being arrested for driving under the influence.
The 41-year-old lieutenant, who’d been on the force since 1998 prior to her dismissal,
had reportedly honked her horn several times for ‘unknown reasons’ while driving in
reverse on the roadway on March the 18th of 2018.
Officers responded to the scene after receiving a 911 call about a disturbance, and they immediately
noted that Ruhtz’s eyes were glassy and bloodshot.
She initially refused to provide her fellow officers a breath sample but eventually relented
when informed she was required to comply as an employee of the sheriff’s office.
The breathalyzer indicated her blood alcohol level was 0.14, nearly twice as high as the
legal limit in the state of Florida.
#8 - Stacey Lyons
On October the 28th of 2016, only hours after arresting a man for domestic violence as part
of an episode of the reality TV show ‘Live PD’, Connecticut police officer Stacey Lyons
was detained for the very same charges.
During the episode in question, a suspect was taken into custody after allegedly choking
his girlfriend at their shared Trumbull apartment.
Lyons attempted to reason with the individual, urging him to surrender all his weapons, while
explaining that “domestics are the most dangerous calls a police officer can go on”.
Soon after filming of the show was wrapped, local police received a call from Lyons’
former boyfriend, who reported that she’d broken into his home by using his old security
code.
The 33-year-old officer then angrily confronted her ex about dating another woman.
Responding officers noted a cut to the former boyfriend’s arm and nose, and the unnamed
man explained that he’d broken up with Lyons two weeks earlier.
She was forced to surrender her service weapon and was subsequently put on administrative
leave pending an investigation.
In December of 2016, Judge Kevin Doyle dismissed the charges against Lyons after she completed
a family violence counseling program, shortly after which she was reinstated to the force.
#7 - Stephanie Roggina
On August the 26th of 2016, police recruit Stephanie Roggina led officers on a high speed
chase through Flemington, New Jersey.
The 26-year-old woman had been sitting in her car at an intersection for over a minute
and a half, before speeding away as a patrol car approached with its lights activated.
A dashcam recording of the incident, released to the public about a year later, showed Roggina
swerving repeatedly before finally pulling over to the side of the road.
Lieutenant Scott Crater, who subsequently made the arrest, noted that the recruit displayed
clear signs of intoxication.
Roggina attempted to use her badge number to avoid arrest and seemed stunned when Crater
handcuffed her, but the lieutenant responded that as an officer, she should have known
better.
The woman was immediately suspended without pay and charged with reckless driving, leaving
the scene of an accident, and obstructing the passage of other vehicles.
Presiding judge Angela Borkowski penalized the defendant with a non-custodial sentence,
meaning Roggina was required to pay a fine and report to a probation officer in lieu
of jail time.
#6 - Michael Dimeglio and Sara Laudano
Police officers Michael Dimeglio, aged 38, and Sara Laudano, aged 31, were supposed to
be on duty in the early hours of October the 10th of 2020.
However, neither of them responded to emergency calls to their radios, prompting an investigation
into their whereabouts.
Witnesses claimed that the Connecticut officers had been drinking at a nearby restaurant before
the start of their shift.
Once they reported for service, they allegedly continued to binge-drink at the police headquarters
parking lot along with several coworkers.
Additionally, it was reported that Laudano had been smoking THC while dropping her son
off at a friend's apartment earlier that night.
The pair headed over to a hotel and booked a room, where they remained for the entire
duration of their shifts.
Their location was discovered thanks to the patrol car's Automatic Vehicle Locating system,
and they were subsequently deemed unfit for service.
An official inquiry was launched into the matter before the officers willingly surrendered
themselves and admitted to their affair.
Three months after the incident, Laudano and Dimeglio were charged with second-degree larceny
and second-degree reckless endangerment.
Laudano also faced accusations of risking injury to a child for exposing her son to
her illicit activities.
#5 - Lacy Fields
23-year-old policewoman Lacy Fields was arrested after assaulting a uniformed officer at a
Louisiana restaurant while off duty on May 6th of 2018.
Police arrived at the Alexandria IHOP after receiving reports of a disturbance at the
establishment.
After initiating an altercation with her fellow law enforcement professionals, Fields was
taken outside, whereupon the fight reportedly continued.
When one of the officers attempted to pull the off-duty officer away, she attacked him
before finally being subdued and handcuffed.
Although she wasn’t arrested on the day the confrontation took place, Fields was eventually
taken into custody on May the 22th of that same year.
She was put on administrative leave and charged with battery on a police officer and resisting
an officer with violence.
#4 - Aaron Dean
After becoming a suspect in a murder investigation, Texas police officer Aaron Dean resigned from
the force and refused to cooperate with detectives.
On October the 12th of 2019, Dean had reportedly responded to an open-structure call.
Such incidents can involve anything from an unlocked front door to burglary and home invasion.
The 35-year-old officer, who had been a member of the department for fewer than 24 months,
approached the building at about 2:30 am.
Noticing a person moving behind one of the windows, Dean demanded the individual put
up their hands.
Instead of waiting for a response,, he shot in the direction of the figure without properly
identifying himself as an officer.
The incident was recorded by Dean’s body cam, although the feed was cut after the gun
was fired.
The identity of the victim was subsequently revealed to be the property’s resident,
Atatiana Jefferson.
The 28-year-old woman had been playing video games with her nephew, Zion Carr, just before
the unprompted attack.
Police Chief Ed Kraus told the press that Dean would have been dishonorably discharged
had he not quit 48 hours later.
After his criminal trial was delayed several times due to administrative issues, recusals,
and appeals, the case’s latest presiding judge, George Gallaher, scheduled jury selection
for November the 28th of 2022.
#3 - Sam Dobbins
Mississippi police chief Sam Dobbins was fired from his post after recordings of him making
racist declarations surfaced to the public.
Fellow officer Robert Hooker had decided to document Dobbins’ slurs and insulting remarks
during a conversation that took place in April of 2022.
Hooker, a 20-year veteran of the force, confronted Dobbins after an incident in which the chief
had told him to “shut the f up and listen”.
In the tape, Dobbins can also be heard telling his subordinate that if words had such an
effect on him, the police force might not be the best place for him.
Dobbins had been appointed as chief in Lexington, a town with an 85% black population, in July
of 2021.
During the 19-minutes of recorded conversation, he repeatedly used racial slurs, bragged about
killing 13 people in the field, and laughed when recounting a pursuit during which he
shot at a suspect 119 times.
While Dobbins claimed he wasn’t aware the conversation was being documented, Hooker
stated the phone he used to make the recording was in plain sight.
After quitting his job, Hooker was interviewed by CNN, during which he said that he was appalled
by the words Dobbins had used and added: “I have heard rougher words, but not from my
leader."
The department’s new chief, Charles Henderson, indicated that his administration would have
zero tolerance for racism.
#2 - Oscar Mayorga
On July the 4th of 2022, Florida police officer Oscar Mayorga was arrested for driving under
the influence.
The 25-year-old, who had been in the force for five years, had been dressed in his uniform
and was driving a marked police vehicle while intoxicated.
He was stopped when his fellow Eustis officers noticed he’d been driving recklessly, and
it was subsequently discovered that he’d been carrying an open alcoholic beverage container
in his cup holder.
The drunken officer attempted to explain away his slurred speech by claiming that he suffered
from frequent seizures and had taken a Benadryl hours prior to the incident.
However, a breathalyzer test revealed his blood alcohol level to be 0.39, with the state’s
legal limit being 0.08.
Mayorga was consequently put on administrative leave pending an official investigation into
his misconduct.
#1 - Michael Perrault
Georgia police officer Michael Seth Perrault was found guilty of murdering his wife, Amanda,
on February the 28th of 2022.
The 45-year-old man had called 911 to report that the woman had committed suicide only
days after he was arrested for domestic abuse.
Although a judge had issued a restraining order against Perrault, the 44-year-old victim
allowed her estranged husband to return to the family home.
She had urged the judge handling her case to lift the order, but three days later, on
February the 3rd of 2020, she was found dead from a gunshot wound to the head.
Detectives found the position of the victim’s body inconsistent with what would be expected
following a self-inflicted gunshot wound, and an investigation was subsequently launched.
Perrault became the main suspect due to his previous instances of domestic assault.
During an interview conducted by Sheriff Howard Sills, the officer claimed that he’d been
laying in bed with his wife when she’d suddenly pulled out a handgun and told him she couldn’t
take it any longer, before shooting herself.
He denied tampering with her body or the weapon.
While testifying in the ensuing court proceedings, Sheriff Sills told the judge that the evidence
made it impossible to believe the victim had shot herself, stating: “Somebody had to
have taken the magazine from that pistol, and moved that body.”
After the jury deliberated for less than four hours, presiding judge Brenda Trammel sentenced
Perrault to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Thanks for watching!
Would you rather be sent to jail for an undisclosed crime or be falsely accused of tax evasion?
Let us know in the comments section below!