What I was honestly thinking as I read the article on North Palm Beach Officer Robert Szoyka:I get tired of typing "alleged" and "allegedly" so imagine it's in front of everything I say.
One article calls the victim his wife. Another refers to her as his girlfriend. So here I will refer to her as "the woman."
These articles sa
ys Szoyka was arrested - but don't mention any specific charges. I can't tell if the arrest was for sleeping on the side of the road, or for the attack he's accused of committing on the woman before he drove his car to the spot where they found him sleeping.The news articles don't specify who made the first call that night to the Sheriff's Office either, whether it was a neighbor, the woman, or another party. Actually, the articles don't say who was initially called at all - the local Indian River County Sheriff's Office or Szoyka's own North Palm Beach department. We only know which jail he was booked into and out of - Indian River. We don't what kind of call it was - a 911 call, an in-house request for assistance, or a report from a third party.
"...He [Szoyka] told the deputies there wasn't a problem, and a woman inside the home refused to talk, the report said..."Since the woman was INSIDE the house, does that mean that this cop was OUTside of his house TELLing the deputies that she refuses to talk? Did they try to talk to her? Did they take Szoyka out of hearing range and ASK her if she was okay? Did they look around inside - or did they stay outside? Did they take Szoyka at his word (or not care and) never even go in? Did Officer Szoyka tell the woman that she better not say anything? Did Officer Szoyka take compete control from the time the first law enforcement officers showed up?
AND THEN THE DEPUTIES THEN LEFT.
So that cop-to-cop, "no problem here" stuff WORKED. Or the brotherhood understanding was in full working order.
The woman had to wait another couple of hours until the alleged beater left the house to call for help (again?).
She could have been killed in those two hours. And it makes me mad to think what she may have endured between the two calls - unnecessarily. If she was further abused - someone really should be held accountable.
He punched her? Where? In the face? The body? Is there a bruise? More than one?
He sat on her face? What does THAT mean? Suffocating her? Blocking her breathing or blood flow is a felony in Florida. Pinning her? Sexually assaultnig her? Or for the pure punk joy of humiliating her?
He threatened to kill her? Was his gun out? Why isn't that mentioned? It's a different level of crime then. Was it terroristic threatening? How many times has he threatened her? What was Szoyka's gun doing while he was having this sadistic I am God episode?
He took the batteries out of her phone. That didn't work.
I'm glad she is alive. Because although the article says he was sleeping on the side of the road, and sleeping for his mug shot, I would guess he was blasted out of his mind - and may be a blackout drunk.
Any cop who gets drunk should be decommissioned. If you have your issued weapon all day - and all night - if you are commissioned with sworn powers of arrest and have the public's trust 24 hours a day, then you are always an officer: An ON-duty or an OFF-duty cop. Alcohol lowers the inhibitions. And if as I suspect that this guy was DRUNK while he assaulted her - he could have done anything to her and not even realized it until he sobered up. If he couldn't stay CONSCIOUS for the photo - he was NOT just tired.
He drove his car while in that condition? That's a whole other unmentioned crime.
If the girlfriend is afraid - and if this assault happened, she is - and the police put pressure on her, give her the whole speel about him losing his job and yada yada blah blah blah... she realizes that the world as she knows it IS against her. Then he walks from this with a clean record. He "resigns" before there is a completed internal investigation report - then goes over to Palm Beach Sheriff's Office and gets a new job as deputy.
[Still thinking out loud] I better set up a Google News alert for "Robert Szoyka" so I can see where he reappears. I won't follow him, but if he pops up,
I'll see him.
North Palm officer accused of punching, threatening to kill woman in Indian River
ReplyDeleteBy Lamaur Stancil (Contact)
Friday, March 13, 2009
INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — A law enforcement officer is accused of punching a woman, sitting on her head and threatening to kill her while they were arguing, according to an arrest affidavit.
Robert Szoyka, 44, has worked for the North Palm Beach Public Safety Department for 2 ½ years, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. He posted $500 bail at the Indian River County Jail Thursday.
Deputies were called to Szoyka’s Indian River home at 10 p.m. Wednesday, his arrest affidavit said. He told the deputies there wasn’t a problem, and a woman inside the home refused to talk, the report said.
However, the woman called deputies back to her home at 12:30 a.m. Thursday after Szoyka left, authorities said. She told deputies Szoyka had punched her, sat on her head and threatened to kill her, the affidavit said. She said Szoyka had removed batteries from the phones in the home before he left, the report said.
Deputies took Szoyka into custody after they found him sleeping in his car, which was parked in the 2600 block of Fifth Street Southwest.
Officials in North Palm Beach could not be reached for comment Friday.
a former member of the 90 detective sqd.
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