From episode: The Hair Radio Morning Show LIVE #899 Thursday, September 28th, 2023
Lisa Bloom is one of television's top attorneys as well as just helping us to navigate so many of these issues that have been popping up and just standing up for folks who may not feel like they have a big voice, It's always an honor for us to welcome Miss Lisa Bloom of the Bloom Firm to The Hair Radio Morning Show. So again, good morning, Lisa. Thank you so much for having me and for the kind introduction. Absolutely, and listen, you have a wonderful client that I had a quick moment to chat with a little bit, Mr. John Parrish. We're going to get him introduced here, but first I want to bring to the line one of my cohosts. We produce a program called The Vet Talk Radio Show, which airs across my HaiRadio Network, and Michael Hopkins is the host of that program, and Michael himself is a disabled veteran, and this story, wow! There are no words that you guys are going to hear.. You will understand exactly what I'm talking about. So, Michael, I want to introduce you officially to Miss Lisa Bloom and to our very special guest today, veteran, Mr. John Parrish. Now, John, you are an Army veteran, and I understand that you were a lieutenant in the Army. That's correct. Right? And so this whole thing, which happened back in March of 2022, which was the California Highway Patrol officer stopped you for a misdemeanor traffic stop as you were driving home with your adult special needs daughter. And Mr. Parrish, now, I'm going to say this, you know, with a life well lived at 80, you know, I wouldn't expect you to be out there just, you know, doing all kinds of somersaults and things like that. So, you know, so anyway, you were, you don't pose, you didn't pose a threat, obviously, to anybody. I mean, you know, so with that, right? So the officers, I'm just trying to understand this as well. You advised them that you had hearing problems, vertigo, and diabetes, and they still, you were handcuffed, amongst, They handcuffed you tightly behind your back, and literally carted you off like you were property of some sort. So they ignored, literally, I'm sure you told them several times and that that was painful. I mean, you know, that would be the first thing anybody would do. And so, and you were left in jail hours without receiving proper medical attention, despite, obviously, that you told them over and over and over again that it was needed. So, and it really kind of didn't happen, you know, you weren't really able to, they received that adequate medical attention until after you were released. You sustained really bad injuries, as far as I can see. I mean, this is, you're talking about a broken arm, internal bleeding, and a hand that was severely swollen. So I have to go back a little bit on this, Mr. Parrish. What can you tell us, in your own words? Did you have anything you wanted to add to that account that I just mentioned? Did you have anything that you wanted to add to that in terms of what happened that night? That was pretty much it. That's a, well, there's a lot of details, but that's a pretty good summary. Okay. So, Mr. Parrish, how did that make you feel? Because that was the first thing that jumped out at me, and I'm going to ask Michael on this too, but that was the first thing that jumped out on me, being an Army veteran and being a lieutenant, a first lieutenant, okay, in the U .S. Army, and knowing that, you know, some of that, someone can kind of treat you in this manner. What did that make you feel like, sir? It felt like being at P .O .W. Wow. That's what it felt like. Wow. Just unbelievable. Unbelievable. Lisa, I have to turn to you, yes. Oh, I'm sorry. Go right ahead, Mr. Parrish, please. I mean, first of all, I never expected to be arrested, even after the officers stopped me, and then, I mean, you know, maybe they give you a traffic ticket or something. I've had a couple of those in my life. They arrested me and cuffed me and took me off to jail and, you know, and all those other bad things and transpired. So, it felt like being at P .O .W., because P .O .W. are mistreated by their captors, right? Yeah, I have to tell you, Lisa, I have to turn to you on this, and you've handled, you know, you've been on our show with many of these types of cases. Sadly, there are way too many. Yes. What, yes, what can you tell us? What really, you know, this is hard for us to take. What was your take on this when you met Mr. Parrish and found out about this? I was so outraged that my tax dollars are going to pay police to bully an elderly vet in my community. I mean, there is no reason for this, and I think law enforcement just over and over again. We see this abusive behavior when it is not necessary. You know, John was simply driving down the road with his adult special needs daughter, as you say, he was fully cooperative when he got pulled over. He didn't threaten anyone, he didn't make any moves towards anyone, they don't even allege that he did. And so, there was no reason to handle him at all. And then, you know, even in the California Highway Patrol, the entity we're talking about, in their rules, they say that's within their discretion, they cannot handcuff people who are pregnant, disabled, or elderly. And so, John, you know, made it clear, he said something like, I'm old, and he talked about his medical issues, and complained that his arm hurt, and, you know, there was no compassion for him as just a human being to take the handcuffs off. And then, when he got to the jail, he was asking for medical aid, that was not provided, as the law requires. And now he has, John, I think, can talk to you about how difficult it is at age 80 to try to heal, you know, the body just does not heal as fast when you're elderly.