“Dear PoPville,
There was quite the scene tonight (Sunday) in Capitol Hill neighborhood, and an off-duty police officer was the instigator.
A lady was crossing East Capitol right across the street from the west side of Lincoln Park next to Wine and Butter Cafe. She started walking when the street sign said Don’t Walk and a guy pulled up in a Tesla dual-motor Model Y or Model S, stopped right in front of her, laid on his horn, and started screaming obscenities at her. He did not remove his hand from the horn and honked for the entire altercation which was probably about 4-5 minutes.
The guy was yelling swear words and telling her to get the F out of the street. It was a pretty tense scene so I rode my bike closer to make sure she was ok. As I rode up, I could tell the guy in the car was in a police uniform. Others had made the same observation and were asking him for his badge number. He just kept telling her to get the F out of the street and that she was being recorded. I think he was referring to a feature that is on most newer Teslas where if you honk, it begins recording from the vehicle’s cameras.
The woman was in the wrong for crossing the street when it said Don’t Walk but it was 7:30 pm in residential Capitol Hill on a Sunday. If ever there’s a time and place where jaywalking is permissible in D.C., that was it. It was a totally insane scene and I was concerned for her safety. I was shocked when I got closer and saw the guy was in uniform. I’ve been in the military for quite some time, and the cardinal rule of driving home from base while in uniform is to behave and not drive or act like an a-hole.
Many others saw and recorded it. I’m not sure what department of law enforcement the guy was with. I hope he’s held accountable because that was completely inappropriate behavior from any driver, let alone an off-duty cop in uniform.”