‘Playboy’ bunny who cabby thought was vampire sues NYPD for abuse
posted at 2:53 pm on February 12, 2012 by Howard Portnoy
A former Playboy playmate is suing the New York Police Department for allegedly “shoving her face into the pavement” following a 2006 altercation with an unhinged cab driver.
According to the Mail Online, Stephanie Adams, 40, claims that police drew their guns on her and used unnecessary force after her taxi driver, Eric Darko, claimed she was armed and dangerous. Darko later tipped his hand when he further shared with city investigators his belief that Adams was a vampire.
The incident occurred on May 25 of 2006. Adams hailed Darko’s cab and gave him her home address. When he refused to take her to her destination, the two became embroiled in a dispute over passengers’ rights and called 911. When police arrived on the scene, Darko told them that Adams was armed and had threatened to shoot him. An officer asked her to step out of the cab so that she could be frisked. She refused and was ultimately wrestled to the ground.
It was not until later that police discovered that Darko had fabricated the threat because his true concern—that Adams was a vampire—might fail to get their attention. His hack license was revoked and he was fined $2,700.
Adams’ lawyer, Nina Neumunz, stated in court stated that her client’s tight-fitting clothing should have revealed to police that “there was no place to conceal a weapon” and that she was therefore unarmed.
Police Sergeant John Rajan testified that the maneuver used on Adams was “a controlled drop to the ground,” which is standard procedure when a suspect fails initially to comply with instructions to lie face down.
A doctor testifying on Adams’s behalf claimed the former model suffered injury to her spinal discs resulting in serious back pain.
Adams was featured as the Playboy centerfold in the November 1992 issue.
Related Articles
- Prosecutors come down hard on clerk who laced yogurt samples with semen
- Elementary school teacher arrested for tying up and feeding students his semen
- School accuses 6-year-old of sexual assault during schoolyard game of tag
- Woman dies after being set on fire in apartment building elevator
- Woman crushed to death by elevator in Midtown
- Woman struck by shopping cart thrown from high floor near death
- Police arrest school teacher who made students dress in bras and panties
- Black Philly teens who attacked whites not to be charged with hate crime
- MSM distorts news reporting in order to play race card
- Deranged ex-con opens fire on city bus in Queens; two dead
- Would-be mugger schooled by his victim
- NYC 8-year-old’s dismembered remains found in trash and refrigerator (updated)
Follow me on Twitter or join me at Facebook. You can reach me at howard.portnoy@gmail.com or by posting a comment below.
Blowback
Note from Hot Air management: This section is for comments from Hot Air's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that Hot Air management agrees with or otherwise endorses any particular comment just because we let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with our terms of use may lose their posting privilege.
Trackbacks/Pings
Trackback URL
Comments
Oka…like i need ANOTHER reason to convince me to move away from the Northeast?
:former NY’er in exile:
BlaxPac on February 12, 2012 at 3:32 PM
Oka=Okay
Spellcheck We Must!
BlaxPac on February 12, 2012 at 3:34 PM
Heck, she could bite me, and more, any time. As long as there is reciprocation.
We could be vampires together.
cozmo on February 12, 2012 at 3:49 PM
Erik Darko…any relation to Donnie?!
ellifint on February 12, 2012 at 4:00 PM
Where’s the damn link, Howard . . .
BigAlSouth on February 12, 2012 at 4:29 PM
google is your friend. Just make sure “safe search” is off.
Yummy, even now. And she is a switch hitter.
cozmo on February 12, 2012 at 4:41 PM
Sorry, BigAl. I provided a link in the article to a shot of Adams as she looks now. If you want the “then” pictures, I suggest you search here.
Howard Portnoy on February 12, 2012 at 4:49 PM
This case represents a serious problem.
In a police state if you want to screw someone over all you have to do is lie to the police and accuse your target/victim of some crime.
If you want all the cops in town to race to someone’s house all you have to do is use the magic word “gun” in a sentence to the dispatcher. At that point the dispatch operator, usually overweight female, suspends rational thought and dispatches all available cops code 3 to that address.
Note: there is no penalty for doing this unless you do it THOUSANDS of times.
The bunny here, should sue the cab drive and the cab company as well as NYPD.
CrazyGene on February 12, 2012 at 5:19 PM
Given the description of what she was wearing, and her status as a former Playboy Bunny, she was probably not wanting to be groped by a cop, just because that darn cabbie was having a psychotic episode.
Sekhmet on February 12, 2012 at 5:32 PM
You’ve been there too?
And there ain’t a darn thing wrong with the way she looks now.
Though the incident happened six years ago. To be fully informed, we need to see how she was decked out the night of the incident, preferably several.
Looking at the picture of the cabbie, I’d say he was a vampire.
cozmo on February 12, 2012 at 5:42 PM
Oh, Howard. “s/”
Love ya. Mean it.
BigAlSouth on February 13, 2012 at 6:35 AM
And, again, folks: if the police ask you to get out of a vehicle, or kneel down or put your hands on the hood or whatever – do it! If you don’t, then don’t come kvetching and moaning later at how you were mistreated.
This does *not* mean you should be a compliant subject of the state. But, it does mean you should not give a policeman an excuse to manhandle you. We should not give people our sympathies (no matter how hot they are) when they are acting out in front of police. Her excuse is that her clothes were so tight no one should have had to frisk her? And we’re supposed to take *her* evaluation of the scenario over a trained police officer? If she complies and they get to groping on her, then she can sue. But, no, she shouldn’t be suing the police for this.
She *should* be suing the cabbie. And, possibly suing the police department for failing to charge him with making false statements and attempted felonious detention via fraud.
GWB on February 13, 2012 at 11:09 AM
Hot Air game: From the main page, scan the Green Room headlines in the sidebar and guess which articles were written by HP.
I’m 100% in the last two weeks so far.
Marcola on February 13, 2012 at 12:12 PM
I’m also 100%. What do I win?
Howard Portnoy on February 13, 2012 at 12:15 PM
Sorry – the Contest is not open to Hot Air employees, or to the immediate family members of, or any persons domiciled with, any such employees.
Marcola on February 13, 2012 at 12:32 PM
Yeah, I get the same spiel every time pollsters call.
Howard Portnoy on February 13, 2012 at 12:58 PM
Never thought about it.
Dyer does the military stuff, Jazz the energy stuff (mostly), Portnoy does the stuff that is interesting (especially when the political threads get messy). Then there’s Karl and patrick and the others, its all worth reading, well most of it is. I’ll take news from them over the DMN any day. I miss Sarjex’s stuff though.
cozmo on February 13, 2012 at 3:25 PM