Nashville Police Officer Takes Bottle Of Water, Loses Badge

NASHVILLE, TN — A bottle of water cost a Metro police officer his badge.

Officer Wesley Feinstein, who graduated from the academy two years ago, has been decommissioned and assigned to desk duty after taking a bottle of water from the refrigerator of a business while investigating what turned out to be a false burglar alarm. (For more updates on this story and free news alerts for your neighborhood, sign up for your local Middle Tennessee Patch morning newsletter.)

Feinstein responded to the alarm call at e-mail marketing firm Emma Incorporated on Lea Avenue on Rolling Mill Hill at 3:45 p.m. Saturday. Officers found an unsecured door and entered the building to see if anyone was inside. While checking the interior, Feinstein allegedly took a bottle of water from a small refrigerator. Another officer who saw it reported Feinstein’s action to a superior and the bottle of water was subsequently recovered from Feinstein’s patrol car, according to police.

Feinstein was immediately relieved of duty Saturday and issued a misdemeanor citation charging him with theft. The MNPD’s Office of Professional Accountability is conducting an administrative investigation of Feinstein.

Image via MNPD