An Atlanta police officer has been placed on administrative duty after a road-rage altercation with a MARTA bus driver was captured on video, authorities said.
The incident occurred Nov. 23 when Officer A. Swan, who was off-duty at the time, got angry at the bus driver for pulling in front of his personal vehicle, Channel 2 Action News reported.
Video obtained by the news station appears to show Swan stop his Subaru in the middle of North Avenue before getting out and screaming at the bus driver in his full APD uniform.
“That’s my (expletive) lane,” the officer is heard yelling. “I’ve been here for eight (expletive) hours already.”
The video also appears to show the officer holstering his service weapon as he gets out of the car to confront the woman near the Georgia Tech campus.
Rosmaree Holiday told Channel 2 drivers honk at her all the time while she’s on her route, but she never expected a police officer to become so irate. She said the road-rage incident began when she merged in front of the off-duty officer during a lane closure.
Surveillance footage from her bus shows the officer cut in front of her as they go through an intersection before stopping his car in the road and getting out.
As he does, Holiday can be seen calling for a MARTA supervisor to meet her at the North Avenue station.
Credit: Channel 2 Action News
Credit: Channel 2 Action News
After the altercation, the bus driver filed a complaint with Atlanta police, who opened an investigation into the incident, Channel 2 reported.
In a statement, Atlanta police spokesman Carlos Campos said the officer was immediately placed on administrative assignment “with no law enforcement duties.”
“(We) found the officer to be in violation of our policies regarding appropriate conduct, and he is awaiting disciplinary action,” Campos said.
It’s unclear what further disciplinary action the officer faces.
Holiday said she feared the officer could shoot her when she saw him reaching for his gun, adding that doesn’t feel safe knowing there are cops out there who could react like that.
“I couldn’t believe what I heard,” she said. “My company tells me, ‘When you wear this uniform, you’re representing us ... You’re representing MARTA.’ He’s representing Atlanta police.”
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