When Teresa Culpepper called Atlanta police to report that someone had stolen a truck from the street in front of her home, she had no idea she was about to be victimized again — by the police officers who are paid to protect her.
In a mixup that would make the Keystone Cops proud, police decided that Culpepper was another woman also named Teresa — and that other woman was wanted for aggravated assault. Culpepper’s attorney says there’s no reasonable explanation:
“Her birth date didn’t match. Her address didn’t match. Her description didn’t match. Other than the name, Teresa, nothing matched,” said Culpepper’s attorney, Ashleigh Merchant.
Culpepper was kept in jail for 53 days. She was freed only after her public defender was able to get the victim in the other case to come to court and tell a judge that the woman being held wasn’t the one who assaulted her.
Poll shows half of Occupy Wall Street crowd favored Wall Street bailout
Of all the world’s contradictions, our own actions confuse us most
Life as misunderstood stranger feels like walking through a fog
How much of what we do is driven by our unconscious social scripts?
A tax on folks who can’t do math? Winning may be worst possibility
If an election can destroy your life, your priorities are out of whack
Suicide ends pain of depression, but scars loved ones left behind
Without things to look forward to, the human heart gets ready to die
A year later, my father’s death looms large, but I have no regrets