'Your driving is shocking': Police officer filmed calling out 'stupid' driver
A Sydney police officer has been caught on dash cam calling a female driver "stupid", apparently for approaching a random breath test too slowly.
The motorist was left shocked after the cop was caught on camera saying her driving was “shocking” as she pulled into the roadside testing station at Carlingford Saturday morning.
The video shows the woman’s car coming to a stop on the side of Marsden Road, behind other vehicles at the RBT.
As she waits for the van ahead to drive on, a police officer can be heard repeatedly yelling for her to "move forward".
The woman tells him "I am", saying she wants to keep a safe distance between vehicles, and accuses the cop of "harassing" her for being cautious.
"I'm harassing you for being stupid," the officer can be heard shouting.
The disgusted motorist tells the police officer his behaviour is "shocking" to which he replies: "Yeah you’re shocking. Your driving is shocking."
The woman then moved along the queue and asked a second officer if his colleague was right to harass her for leaving a gap. He told her a metre distance was sufficient, a range which the woman believed she was within.
The clip was shared on YouTube, with the caption: “Evidence of a policeman abusing power by abrasively admitting to harassing a civilian during RBT and angrily labeling a civilian as 'stupid' as well as verbally attacking a civilian as a 'shocking driver' for leaving a safe distance from the car in front.”
But rather than generating sympathy, those who watched the clip ridiculed the driver’s actions.
“Sitting in a lane of traffic when there is enough room to move your car off the road is not a smart move,” one wrote. “That is not a police person harassing that is a police person frustrated at someone who won't listen.”
Another commented: “She was 3-4m behind the van, stopped with her car hanging out into the passing traffic. She wasn't being careful, it was stupid because it could have easily caused an accident.”
A NSW Police Force spokesperson told Yahoo News they have viewed the video and will be examining the incident.
“Safety of both the community and officers is paramount,” the spokesperson added.
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