An internal affairs report in Daytona Beach concluded that a police lieutenant demanded free coffee and tea from a Starbucks and threatened employees with slower emergency response times if they refused.
Lt. Maj. Garvin was fired July 8. He was a 15-year veteran of the force.
The Daytona Beach News-Journal quoted Police Chief Mike Chitwood as saying Garvin flunked a polygraph test that he himself had insisted on taking.
Starbucks employees claimed that starting in June 2007, Garvin visited the shop as many as six times a night while on duty. The workers said that in addition to demanding free drinks, he would cut in front of the paying customers.
This reminds me of TV episode where a gangster hits up a shop demanding weekly protection money and the teenage employee informs the thug that the store is part of a franchise and he doesn’t even have keys to the register.
That would be the Sopranos! And it was a little more than that. The kid also said that whacking him would mean the franchise would just hire someone else to replace him. Extortion only works when you threaten the actual owner, doesn’t work well in corporations.
“Mike Chitwood”
Just sayin’
How was he not laughed at? i’d start enticing him with the donuts. Here boy! who’s a good boy, and then throw the donut out the door so he’d chase it. and if that didn’t work, i’d crank that steamer to 11 and make his coffee 280 degrees. Who’s gonna protect your mouth fatass?
This cop sounds like a real dick. I’m kinda wondering what his drink of choice was. Seven trips in one day sounds rather excessive. Sounds like he might have some psychological issues he’s trying to medicate.
I read about this and find it kinda weird that people are mad. Most late night Diners, 24hr Coffee, & Donut shops give cops free coffee n stuff to keep them in the building for exactly the same reasons the cop said. Giving cops free stuff keeps them around and improves response time.
Right on Breetai. I watched an all night joint in my hometown get infested with slime after they changed their policy on free coffee for cops. Cops give creeps the creeps.
Breetai,
It is one thing when it is OFFERED, quite another when it is TAKEN.
Isn’t that how liberals operate, collecting taxes as protection money?
I’m sure he consumed gallons of the “secret spice” during the course of his extorsion.
Never worked in foodservice, but i’ve heard too many stories to ever ever ever be rude to someone who has not given me my food yet. I’ve never sent anything back either.
Don’t you have to extort “something of value” ? A 79 cent cup of burned coffee in a $4 cup isn’t much of a value !
Ha! Remember the hamburger scene in “Super Troopers” when the idiot cop orders a burger from the teenager, without spit?
Steph, it’d be one thing if it were a REAL threat. He was just pointing out he won’t be in their building drinking their coffee which would increase response time because they’re not within eye sight.
Remember when you dial 911 the first few seconds of an emergency make all the difference and the cops only minutes away.
The concept that anyone, citizen, illegal alien, or business must pay in order to have police protection is repugnant.
Several police departments I am aware of forbid their officers from accepting any free food or drink for that very reason. Police are there to serve and protect everyone, not just those who pay a little extra.
Regarding the extorsion of corporate business – they get extorted all the time, just higher on the food chain. It’s real easy to threaten someone’s family.
#13 “The concept that anyone, citizen, illegal alien, or business must pay in order to have police protection is repugnant.”
It is so repgnant that the Supreme Court has ruled the police don’t have any duty to protect you at all.
http://tinyurl.com/65kxk9
Cops like this give decent cops a bad name. I’m glad they fired him.
Good riddance. He was playing with fire. Worse, an officer of his level is a corrupting influence on the behavior of all his subordinates.
This is probably also one of the reasons why federal government workers outside of elected politicians are uniformly disallowed from accepting donations and gifts.
No “Wacky news from Florida”
He should sue Starbucks. Obviously, they got him addicted to caffeine and he was unable to help himself.