CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. — A Clayton County police officer has been disciplined over a video on YouTube that shows the officer sleeping in his patrol car.
Clayton County police Chief Mike Register says the officer in question was working an extra job at an apartment complex at the time. He says whether he was on duty with the department or not, his actions put him at risk.
“While you’re on duty, either working a part-time or while you are on duty working for the department, you got to be vigilant. You can’t fall asleep. It endangers your safety, and it sends the wrong message to the public,” Register told Channel 2’s Mark Winne.
Register issued a written reprimand to the officer and suspended the officer’s ability to work extra jobs for 30 days.
Maj. Johnny Robinson, one of the officer's supervisors, said the officer normally works 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., but hours before the incident occurred in the early morning of New Year’s Day, he worked 7 p.m. to 3 a.m.
In a document Winne viewed, the officer indicated that after a property check, he spoke with a gate attendant and let him know that he was going to take a quick nap. The document says he slept approximately 45 minutes to an hour and woke up on his own.
Register says the officer is blessed that whomever shot the video was holding a camera or cellphone instead of a gun.
“A lot can happen in five minutes. A lot can happen in 45 minutes and, in today's world, a lot can happen in five seconds,” Register said.
The video was taken around the same time that a Philadelphia police officer was ambushed in his patrol car in January.