EDITOR: Wednesday morning I was at Nordstrom Elementary School
with my brother
’s kids as well as my own.
EDITOR:
Wednesday morning I was at Nordstrom Elementary School with my brother’s kids as well as my own.
After we played for a while, we decided to go home to get something to eat. I got the kids in my car except for my youngest niece, who is 3 years old. She stayed to tie her shoe. I standing at the gate next to the park telling her she could do it.
Meanwhile, someone drove by and saw what was going on and jumped to the conclusion I was trying to kidnap the girl. They called the cops and one arrived and began to treat me as if I were someone on parole.
He made me put my hands on the hood of the car and searched me. The officer asked me if I had any weapons. I asked him what was wrong and he refused to answer me.
He asked me about the children and I told him they were my brother’s children. He then asked the children and they told him they were playing at the park and were going home because they were hungry.
I explained to the officer that I lived around the corner and we regularly come here to play.
The officer started talking down to me, not yelling but talking loudly. I told him I don’t deserve this disrespect, because I didn’t disrespect him.
He asked me if I was on probation or parole and I said no, but he didn’t take my word for it.
I didn’t have car seats, but I admitted that and took responsibility for it. But he gave me a lecture about how he’s seen kids who were killed when they were not in car seats. I felt like a little kid.
Then he got the report I wasn’t on probation or parole and his attitude completely changed. He didn’t give me a ticket or a citation. When he thought I was on probation he was rude, but when I came back clean, he was nice to me.
Why is that? I felt he should have treated me better from the beginning. Some may say I am an intimidating person. I have tattoos, some of them used to be gang, but I’m covering them up. My tattoos are now for Cesar Chavez, all he had to do was look at them.
Even if I was on parole, he didn’t have the right to talk to anyone like that. I was cooperative but he didn’t calm down until I came back clean.
I don’t understand why this happened. I am very active in the Nordstrom area community: I’ve lived in Morgan Hill for 23 years. I volunteer at the school. I am there all the time playing with the kids and am very noticeable.
When the person drove by and was so concerned that I was trying to kidnap the kid, why didn’t he pull over? If I see a situation where I think a kid is in trouble, I’m pulling over and asking what is going on.
Besides, my niece is 3 years old. There wasn’t another adult around. Who leaves their 3-year-old girl alone? The driver should have been more critical and if he cared that much, he should have pulled over. If someone starts asking questions, a kidnapper is going to run.
I feel like I was judged because of how I look and not given a fair chance. I should have been more responsible with the car seats, and I have admitted that. But I should have been treated with more respect, even before the officer learned I was not on parole.
The children asked me if that was a good or a bad cop. I told them there are good and bad cops; he was just doing his job. I just wish he treated me better.
Manuel Rocha Jr.,
Morgan Hill
