Source: Courtesy of / Instagram / La Sentinel
Cop and Miss Eugene (Oregon) winner Taisyn Crutchfield is suing the Pasadena Police Department over claims she was discriminated against and put on paid leave without explanation.
The 28-year-old police officer’s lawsuit alleged she was retaliated against after Feb. 20, when she tried to deescalate cops’ involvement in a public familial dispute involving citizen Carlos Towns, his brother — who’s a minor — and their mother, Barsha Knox. Crutchfield intervened during a heated moment between the Black mother and a non-Black police officer.
Police bodycam footage initially showed three officers surrounding Knox while Crutchfield stood toward the side. When Knox called out one of the male cops for being “the aggressive one,” Crutchfield walked over and seemingly placed her hands on him. Based on their brief subsequent verbal exchange, that was her way of signaling him to stop engaging with Knox.
The male officer pushed Crutchfield away from him and repeatedly told her, “Don’t do that.” The 28-year-old woman emphasized that he should “stop” and “calm down.” Another law enforcement authority approached the two cops and told them to distance themselves.
Crutchfield was ordered to go back to the police station.
She was placed on six months of paid administrative leave, according to CBS News. Her lawsuit reportedly argued that the Pasadena Police Department subjected her to racial discrimination and retaliation.
“The Pasadena Police Department has a history of racial discrimination, racial profiling, disparities of punishment of African American employees and retaliation against [officers] who are whistleblowers or complain about discrimination, harassment, and retaliation,” reportedly noted the 28-year-old’s attorney, Brad Sage, in a press release. “Crutchfield is the latest victim.”
On Instagram — where she boasts over 97,600 followers — Crutchfield has been thanking everyone shedding light on her story.
A member of the Pasadena force since 2021, the pageant winner clarified that she wasn’t fired. She outlined that the department put her on an “extended” suspension.
While she couldn’t say much due to legal reasons, her Instagram Stories said, “One day, my story will be told.”
Source: Courtesy of Instagram
The context surrounding the mother and sons’ interactions with the police that February night is heavy.
The sons were the children of Charles Towns, a Black man, who was shot and killed by Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department deputies in January after allegedly stabbing a woman and trying to harm another person.
“On God, I shouldn’t even be talking to you. You niggas just killed my dad. So get the fuck out of my face,” the minor yelled at a cop during his February apprehend.
The latter incident happened near the Pasadena police station and Knox’s home with her sons.
Pasadena Now reported that all three family members were detained and handcuffed. The City of Pasadena specified that “no one was arrested or cited.”
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