Outrage after 'get f*** out of my way' TikTok cop gets suspended for just 10 hours

A police officer who posted a video on TikTok saying drivers on the highway should immediately "get the f*** out" of her got suspended from the force for just 10 hours - and people are outraged.

The now-deleted video, which was first uploaded to the platform in July, showed officer Breanna Strauss of the Washington Federal Way Police Department (FDWP) telling viewers that they should move if they spot an officer following close behind.

"If we're driving on the freeway with our police cars, get the f***out of the way," she said in the video.

"If you merge, and we follow behind you, and we merge too, you're probably in trouble."

She added: "Best way to find that out is to get the [expletive] out of the way ... I can run 90 miles an hour… if us officers stay behind you long enough, we can find a reason to pull you over."

Now, the footage has received more attention after the video made its way to Reddit, which prompted the discussion on whether Strauss should have received a severe penalty than the suspension she was given.

Sign upto our free Indy100 weekly newsletter

One wrote: "This is [the] exact type of personality that you don't want in a cop. She has complete contempt for "civilians" and she thinks she's above the law. She should be relieved of her duty and become Walmart security."

"Jeeze. At first, I read it as 10 days, but nope, it's10 hours meaning she was suspended for only one day/shift," another added, while a third wrote: "Seriously. There's only so much one can defend. They really go out of [their] way to make it hard."

Someone else added: "IS NO ONE GOING TO ASK WHY THE F*** LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS ARE MAKING TIK F****** TOKS WHILE IN FULL UNIFORM SITTING INSIDE A DEPARTMENT VEHICLE?

"Like is this just cool now? We're just going to be okay with this? Cops are now trying to be full-on Tiktok influencers while ON THE JOB? Jesus f****** christ, she even put the filter on and everything. Why is this a thing."

When the video went viral over the summer, the Seattle Weekly reported that the FDWP launched an investigation and reviewed Strauss' previous disciplinary issues and didn't find any.

"We had not received any complaints against Officer Straus regarding arrests, citations, or traffic stops," said Commander Kurt Schwan of Federal Way Police in conversation with the Federal Way Mirror.

But after concluding that the video violated the department's code of conduct, Strauss got a 10-hour suspension.

The investigation ended on 7 July, which found that Strauss violated personal and social media protocols the department has.

She was sworn into the police force on 9 August 2021.

Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.