Pocono News Section

Officer Jailed for Illegal Stop

Officer Jailed for Illegal Stop - Thursday, August 14, 2008 at 12:10PM EST

Thursday, Aug 14, 2008 @ 12:10pm EST

BLOOMSBURG, COLUMBIA COUNTY - A former part time police officer from Berwick was sentenced to 30 days in jail for pulling over a woman while he was off duty just to give her his phone number. Steven P. Klinger will also spend three additional days behind bars for driving drunk a few months later. Police say Klinger used red and blue lights mounted to the dashboard of his Toyota truck to pull over a woman in Berwick in April 2007. Arrest reports say the woman became suspicious when he began asking her if she was married or had a boyfriend. He also gave her a police card with his cell phone number on it before she drove off. He was sentenced for official oppression, which is a misdemeanor that carries up to two years in prison. It pertains to anyone in official or public capacity acting outside their authority.