Woman, Fiancé File Report, Say East Pittsburgh Officer Harassed, Arrested Her For Asking Question
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EAST PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- An East Pittsburgh woman spent a night in jail after she says she inquired as to why her fiancé was being detained by police.
Law enforcement officials say she was obstructing an arrest during the incident, but the woman claims she was harassed.
"He has no right to have a badge."
That's what 29-year-old Jessica Short is saying about an East Pittsburgh Police officer that she had an encounter with after her fiancé, Darnell Scott, was pulled over on Grandview Street for a traffic stop.
He said police officers told him his car windows were tinted too dark. Scott says he was told to roll his window down completely, and if he didn't, the officer allegedly said he would break it.
Short says she was on the phone with her fiancé at the time, and since she was only a block away, she walked over to see what was going on.
A witness took cellphone video.
"She's on the other sidewalk," said Scott. "I'm on one sidewalk, she is directly across the street, and she is asking was it all right to break someone's windows at a traffic stop."
At that point, they say the officer was walking back across the street, but then turned around and Short asked another question.
"I said why are you so angry, that's all I said," Short said. "He grabbed me and said, 'You are going to jail,' threw me to the ground, pinned my son beneath me on the ground."
Short says a Taser was used on her several times. Eventually, she was taken to the Allegheny County Jail where she spent the night.
On Tuesday afternoon, Short and Scott went to file a report with East Pittsburgh Police Chief Lori Payne, who says she will investigate the matter.
Short and Scott say they have hired an attorney and plan to file charges against the officer.
