Hillsboro City Hall - Hillsboro, Missouri

Paul W.

Passing through Hillsboro, I became lightheaded & my heart began to go into mild arrhythmia. This had happened before & had always gone away if I just relaxed a little bit. I thought this time would be no different. I stopped on a side street & parked to hopefully allow the issue to pass.

I eventually felt OK so I resumed traveling east on hwy 56.

About 3 miles later I became lightheaded again so I looked for a place to pull over. I noticed a police car behind me. After I stopped he pulled behind me & turned on his lights.

Initially, it was comforting to know that I had help so when the officer got out of his car, I motioned with my arm for him to approach because he was standing behind my vehicle, looking at my license tag. He Ignored my gesture, but eventually walked up to my vehicle & asked if everything was OK.

I told him no; I was having a medical issue & that I had pulled over because I felt like I was going to pass out.

Instead of asking me about my medical situation, he assumed a very “official” tone and informed me that a complaint was called in because I was “sleeping” in my truck, and that he “had me crossing the center line”. I tried to explain to him why I had stopped in town & that I was aware of my driving & that was the reason I had pulled over onto the country road.

I gave him my drivers license and he demanded that I turn off my vehicle. I tried to explain to him that I needed the cool air & he sarcastically responded, “you have your window down”. I told him I could still feel the cool air from my vents, and it was helping me. He repeated his demand for me to shut off my vehicle, but I didn’t comply because it was very hot outside & I felt like I was going to pass out. Then he stepped back in a defensive posture so that he was behind me and out of my field division and repeated the “sleeping” complaint and that I’d crossed the center line.

I reminded him that was the reason I had pulled over because I realized that something was very wrong. He then berated me for “driving while impaired” & I tried to tell him that I didn’t drive again until I felt like I was OK.

He called in “back up” & another officer showed up. When the second Officer showed up, I opened my door and stepped out of the vehicle to talk to them about how dizzy & sick I felt. The first Officer assumed a defensive posture and told me that he felt “threatened” even though I was hanging onto the vehicle just to stand up.

He ordered me back in my vehicle. At that point I was more afraid of him than my medical condition.

I called my wife to call our attorney because I didn’t see a body cam and I had had an officer tell me that he felt threatened by my presence. I was genuinely afraid of being shot. I made sure the officer could hear me doing this so that he would be aware that somebody else was aware of what was happening on a deserted Marion County country road.

He approached my vehicle again but I locked my doors, rolled up all my windows & told him that the next people I would agree to speak to would be the EMS crew.

The ambulance showed up quicker than I expected, hooked me up to a monitor and confirmed I was having a serious event with my heart. It was beating between 80 and 220 bpm and I was needing to be taken to the ER.

I was loaded into the ambulance & left my vehicle there.

My dad was a police officer & I respect their service, but respect works both ways & this officer had none.

To be fair, I was scared and upset. I asked the officer several times why he was F’ing with me instead of helping me. I’m didn’t need to swear and for that I apologize.

My advice is to steer clear of Hillsboro if you’re traveling.

The EMS & hospital people were INCREDIBLE but that officer should NOT be on any police force. He is a liability to the city & a danger to visitors.

Cam

Got in quick for my appointment and got done

Dennis B.