St. Petersburg Times: Police officer quits after admitting he slashed homeless man's bike tires

TARPON SPRINGS — On Jan. 28, Tarpon Springs police Officer Jeffrey Robinson says he encountered a barrage of racial slurs when he drove a homeless man to the Pinellas County Jail.

On Feb. 8, he retaliated.

On Wednesday, Robinson resigned from the Tarpon Springs Police Department after a three-month internal investigation, complete with video evidence, determined that he slashed the bicycle tires of John Bilawsky, the homeless man.

Now I understand that, if you unleash a barrage of racial slurs at a police officer, certain things may happen, your handcuffs might be a little too tight or your head might bounce off the roof of the patrol car. I don't necessarily condone that, but I understand things happen in the heat of the moment. But premeditated revenge after the fact is another thing entirely, no matter how much you may think this guy has it coming. You don't want a cop prone to petty revenge attacks out on the streets, especially one too stupid not to get caught on videotape. I must add I am impressed with the professionalism of the officers in property storage, who attempted to reinflate the tires and reimbused the owner for new tubes.

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