6. Never Park In This Man’s Spot
I work as a paramedic in a neighborhood with many HOAs and apartment buildings. Due to assigned parking spaces and no-fire zones, we hate responding to apartment complexes. We have to obstruct the road if we can’t find a place to squeeze in.
My company also makes use of first-responder vehicles and ambulances. We try to leave enough space for the ambulance to fit since, as implied, the first responder generally arrives first. A call comes in from the apartment building. I’m the first to arrive.
Through some miracle, there is a spot just two apartments away as I near the address. I can now clear the road so the ambulance may pass. As soon as I park, this guy comes out screaming I can’t park there. I give them the “are you serious?” look and tell them it’s a medical emergency.
He says he doesn’t care and that I can’t park there. I gather my belongings, lock the car, and go on my way. I tell him that the authorities are already en route, as he screams that they will be called.
While I am still inside with the patient, an officer arrives and orders him to essentially “pound salt.” When the officer enters the flat, this man has a temper tantrum. He walks into the apartment and comes into the room where I’m treating the patient.
He launches into a rant about how I need to move my car. “Get him out of here,” I say as I turn to face the officer. The policeman seals his fate. The patient is questioned about if she wants this guy removed from the flat and whether she ever permitted him to enter. “Get him out. He’s trespassing,” said the patient.
The all-clear goes off. The officer gives him one last chance by ordering him to leave or face being arrested. ” I am on the HOA committee. I can go wherever I want!” he shouts as he pushes his luck further.
Now it is necessary to call backup. At least the cop drags the man out of the room. He is taken out of the apartment by the ambulance, which has PD support, so we can safely transfer the patient. I was in the ambulance’s back, so I’m not exactly sure what happened after that.
As I got out, one of the officers came over and apologized, saying, “Sorry, but we need another bus. He needed to be tazed.” According to PD policy, if someone is tazed, they must be taken to the hospital by ambulance since the barbs on the taser spikes require surgery to be removed.
They wait for the second ambulance to fetch him. I resume my duty. He was accused of trespassing, assaulting a police officer, resisting arrest, and interfering with government operations, which I learned about a few weeks later.
All over a parking spot, I would have only occupied for 20 minutes if he hadn’t caused any problems. I never received a call to testify, so I can only assume that he accepted a plea deal
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