A police officer is essentially a community worker and I believe should have that mentality of serving the community. I don't really believe what the officer did was malicious or even all that inappropriate. I think the police officer is probably wrong in the views she is expressing, but I don't think it's wrong for her to call him in this situation or even help the restaurant owner and the former employee work out an issue.
I can understand the police officer acting as a conflict-resolution mediator, but unless the officer passed the bar exam I don't think it's appropriate for him to give what could be misinterpreted as legal advice on civil law.
Ordinary community workers aren't charged with the responsibility of executing state-sponsored violence against people deemed threatening or unlawful, and are allowed significant legal protection in their duties. Given that context, he has a very legitimate reason to interpret this as a threat or an attempt at coercion.
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A police officer is essentially a community worker and I believe should have that mentality of serving the community. I don't really believe what the officer did was malicious or even all that inappropriate. I think the police officer is probably wrong in the views she is expressing, but I don't think it's wrong for her to call him in this situation or even help the restaurant owner and the former employee work out an issue.
I can understand the police officer acting as a conflict-resolution mediator, but unless the officer passed the bar exam I don't think it's appropriate for him to give what could be misinterpreted as legal advice on civil law.
Ordinary community workers aren't charged with the responsibility of executing state-sponsored violence against people deemed threatening or unlawful, and are allowed significant legal protection in their duties. Given that context, he has a very legitimate reason to interpret this as a threat or an attempt at coercion.