A Tennessee nurse has unfortunately become the latest victim of a trend of white people calling the police on Black folks for merely existing or, in this case, working.
Stephanie Dash is a nurse who provides home care services. The Williamson County woman was performing a routine check-up on a patient when she observed a police officer peering into the patient's home from outside.
After getting permission from her patient to open the door, Dash was met with authorities who questioned whether she was allowed to be in the home.
"The patient told her I was her home health nurse," Dash explained to The Tennesseean. "But the deputy told my patient that they got a call about a suspicious person in the area. I then showed her my nursing bag."
Dash said the deputy didn't believe her story, so she and the officer both walked to her vehicle so Dash could show her identification badge. She works for Amedisys Home Health in Nashville. To further confirm her employment with Amedisys, Dash then called her supervisor so the officer could speak with them. When her boss asked the deputy, Rhonda Casillas, if she stopped Dash because of her race, the officer rebuked the claims.
Even after her employer confirmed Dash's status, the officer refused to leave the patient's home, Newsweek reports. Dash says the officer in question refused to leave the property. Casillas went as far as interrupting the nurse to ask the patient if she was familiar with Dash.
Growing sick of Casillas' antics, Dash gathered her things to leave. When she walked outside, however, she was met with two more patrol vehicles blocking her vehicle.
Amedisys Home Health is standing in solidarity with its employee, who The Tennessean says has been a home health nurse for a year and a half.
In a Facebook post detailing the incident, Dash stated she filed a complaint with the accused officer, citing Casillas was unprofessional in handling the situation.
I would like to give a special acknowledgement to Williamson County TN Deputy Rhonda Casillas for abusing her power as a…Posted by Stephanie Dash on Thursday, December 6, 2018
"Not only did you interrupt my patient care, you also delayed me from getting to other patients in need. All for what?" Dash wrote. "The treatment you gave was uncalled for. The way you handled the situation was unprofessional. Your attitude was disrespectful. You are a racist, treating innocent people like they don't have the right to be in certain areas. I honestly don't feel like you deserve a badge."
A representative for the Williamson County Sheriff's Office (WSCO) released a statement saying it is determining whether there was any audio traced to the interaction.
"We are investigating and working to determine if there is audio or video from the call [with Dash and Casillas.] The deputy was answering a suspicious person call after someone in the neighborhood reported seeing someone going from house to house," Sharon Puckett, a spokesperson for the WSCO, told The Tennessean.
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