Mujer De 82 Años Detenida Por No Pagar 77 Dólares Por La Recogida De Basura, Acaba Riendo La Última

Bajo Arresto

Acababa de despertarse cuando oyó que llamaban a su puerta. Frunció el ceño.

Nadie venía nunca a su casa tan temprano. Se acercó para ver quién era y se sorprendió al ver que la esperaba un agente.  

Le mostró una orden de detención en la cara, alegando que no había pagado la factura de la basura. La acompañó a su coche, sin saber con quién estaba tratando. 

Una Vida Tranquila

Para Loretta Reed, ser arrestada fue lo último que pensó que le ocurriría ese día.

A sus 82 años, llevaba una vida tranquila en su residencia de Tucson, Arizona. 

Vivía en un barrio modesto con buenos vecinos y adoraba todo lo que su avanzada edad le deparaba. Pero hoy, todo se detendría abruptamente. 

Dicho Y Hecho

Después de vivir una vida larga y llena de acontecimientos, Loretta había encontrado por fin un lugar al que podía llamar hogar.

Había pasado por mares en calma y mares agitados, vadeando para asegurarse de que sus hijos y nietos tuvieran una buena vida.

Ahora que todo estaba dicho y hecho, sólo quería disfrutar de sus últimos años. Eso hasta que esa mañana apareció el agente.

Su Vida 

Antes de mudarse a Tucson, Loretta había vivido en Fort Lauderdale con su marido, Roy. Ella había trabajado como profesora de instituto toda su vida mientras Roy estaba en las fuerzas especiales. 

Juntos tuvieron cinco hermosos hijos, dos de los cuales lamentablemente fallecieron. Roy también falleció después de luchar contra el cáncer durante tres décadas.

Pero en el tiempo que pasaron juntos, le había enseñado a Loretta algunas cosas que podrían salvarle la vida si algo salía mal.

Sus Enseñanzas 

Loretta nunca se había tomado en serio las enseñanzas de Roy. Disfrutaba de todo lo que hacían juntos, ya que le permitía compartir sus intereses. Pero nunca pensó que tendría que usar las habilidades que él le enseñó. 

Cuando él falleció, hacía ya dos décadas, se alarmó al pensar que tendría que poner en práctica todo lo que él le había enseñado.

Después de todo, él ya no estaba allí para cuidarla. Pero con el paso de los años, esa preocupación fue desapareciendo. Hasta aquel día. 

Una Mañana

El día del incidente había sido como cualquier otro para Loretta, que, como era su costumbre, se había levantado a las cinco de la mañana para prepararse para hacer unos recados en la ciudad.

Todos sus hijos habían crecido y ya habían abandonado el nido, por lo que Loretta vivía sola con tres gatos a los que adoraba con locura.

Esperaba visitar a unos amigos en la ciudad y pasar más tarde por el mercado de agricultores, sin saber que estaba a punto de acabar esposada. 

Desayuno Interrumpido

Estaba disfrutando de sus tortitas y huevos revueltos en la mesa cuando el golpe sacudió la casa.

El reloj de pared marcaba las “8:15 de la mañana”, lo que la impulsó a dejar todo lo que estaba haciendo y estirar el cuello para ver quién estaba fuera. 

El sol acababa de salir, inundando el camino de entrada con su radiante luz. Pero por mucho que Loretta intentó mirar por la ventana, no pudo ver quién llamaba.

Te He Oído

Volvieron a llamar a la puerta, más fuerte que la anterior. “Te he oído”, gritó Loretta.

“Voy para allá. Cruzó la cocina arrastrando los pies hasta la puerta principal. 

Nunca había oído a nadie llamar tan agresivamente en sus ochenta y dos años de vida y se preguntó qué pasaba para que alguien considerara oportuno venir a perturbar su apacible mañana.  

Un Crucero 

Lo primero que vio cuando se dirigía al salón fue el coche oscuro aparcado a la entrada de su casa.

Sus cejas se fruncieron al pensar que uno de sus vecinos podría estar en apuros. 

Pero eso no tenía sentido, dado lo bien educada que era la comunidad. Rara vez había casos de mala conducta grave. Si Loretta supiera que el coche patrulla estaba aquí por ella.

Un Agente A La Espera 

Miró por la mirilla y se le cortó la respiración cuando vio a un agente esperándola. 

Volvió a llamar, Loretta abrió la puerta y le saludó.

Su mente empezó a dar vueltas mientras se preguntaba por qué un agente de la ley estaría en su puerta tan temprano por la mañana. 

¿Por Qué Estaba Ahí?

¿Había venido a darle malas noticias? ¿Le había ocurrido algo a alguno de sus hijos, nietos, parientes o amigos?

Su ritmo cardíaco se aceleró, retumbando en sus oídos mientras el aire se enrarecía.

Apoyó el cuerpo en un lado de la puerta y respiró hondo para despejar los pensamientos. Pero el motivo de la visita del oficial sería otro muy distinto. 

¿Es Usted Loretta Reed?

“¿Va todo bien, agente?” preguntó Loretta en cuanto pudo pronunciar las palabras. El agente asintió y mostró tres documentos que tenía en la mano. 

“¿Es usted Loretta Reed?”, preguntó con un tono llano. “Lo soy”, respondió Loretta rápidamente.

“¿Cuál parece ser el problema? El agente presentó uno de los documentos y dijo: “Señora Reed, tenemos una orden para usted”.

Es Por La Basura

“¿Una orden?”, preguntó sorprendida Loretta, acercándose al agente para ver mejor el documento.

“Orden de detención”, rezaba la hoja de papel. ¿Se trataba de una broma de mal gusto? Loretta nunca había oído que detuvieran a alguien de su edad. 

“Es por no pagar la factura de la basura”, aclaró el agente, y Loretta casi se cayó de espaldas. “¿Qué?”, preguntó, hojeando la orden. “Entonces, ¿va a esposarme y llevarme detenida?”.

Extremidades 

“Sí, señora”, respondió el agente con un cortante movimiento de cabeza. “Tengo que hacerlo”. Por el rabillo del ojo, Loretta pudo ver a otro agente que salía del coche aparcado. 

“¿No hay forma de manejar esto sin todas estas extremidades?”. preguntó Loretta.

El agente que estaba a su lado estaba desencadenando las esposas de su cinturón, preparándose para atarla. 

¿Es Una Broma?

“Ojalá lo fuera, señora”, respondió, todavía sin emoción.

“¿Está a punto de detener a una mujer de 82 años por una factura de 77 dólares?”. preguntó Loretta, y el agente apartó la mirada. 

Loretta se rió, mirando fuera de la casa. “Esto tiene que ser una broma”, susurró. Una de sus nietas solía divertirse gastando bromas a la gente. Pero Loretta no podía verla. 

No Se Reía

Pero mientras ella seguía riéndose, convencida de que el agente estaba bromeando, se dio cuenta de que él no se movía. No reflejaba su risa, ni siquiera sonreía. 

Se limitó a golpearse las esposas contra la cadera, como si quisiera decirle que quería acabar de una vez.

“No estás de broma”, dijo Loretta al darse cuenta, con el miedo inundándole las venas.       

Está Ocurriendo De Verdad 

El agente hablaba en serio. Estaba en su puerta por los 77 dólares impagados en facturas de basura.

No iba a irse con las manos vacías y se aseguraría de que ella estuviera en el asiento trasero de su coche mientras él conducía de vuelta a la comisaría. 

“Señor”, dijo Loretta. “La cuenta ya estaba pagada. Lo sé porque lo confirmé la semana pasada”. El oficial suspiró. “No estaríamos aquí si así fuera, señora”.

A Solas

“Vamos a tener que esposarla”, continuó, insistiendo en que era el procedimiento habitual.

Le pidió a Loretta que se diera la vuelta con las manos a la espalda y, cuando lo hizo, le pidió que volviera a mirar al frente. 

La esposó y el frío acero le heló la piel. Loretta miró a su alrededor, esperando que alguno de sus vecinos la estuviera viendo. Necesitaba que alguien viniera a ayudarla. Pero estaba sola. 

Innecesario 

“¿No puede llevarme sin esto?”, le preguntó al agente. Las esposas ya le pesaban en los brazos.

Le arañaban la piel y el dolor aumentaba a cada segundo que pasaba. 

Se le humedecieron los ojos sin darse cuenta y los cerró, levantando los brazos para secarse las lágrimas. Esto no podía estar pasando. Tenía que ser un mal sueño. 

¿Realmente Pagó La Factura?

¿Por qué la detuvieron si estaba segura de que había pagado la factura?

Bueno, durante la última década, una de sus hijas había estado gestionando sus facturas de servicios públicos.

Dado que Loretta tenía una edad avanzada, sus hijas se habían hecho cargo de la parte técnica de su vida, asegurándose de que sus facturas y demás siempre se pagaran a tiempo. ¿Qué ocurrió esta vez?

They Could Have Just Canceled It

Whether her daughter cleared the bill or not didn’t matter to Loretta. No matter if the bill went unpaid, all the county had to do was take away her trashcan and suspend her pickup. 

There was no need for all this violence, especially considering her age and that all this was because of a 77-dollar trash bill. Her eyes welled with more tears.

She remembered the lessons her late husband had taught her, wondering if it was finally time to employ them. 

What If It Was Your Own Grandma?

“Isn’t there any other way we could handle this?” Loretta asked as she wiped her tears again. “No, ma’am,” the officer answered. His voice brimmed with irritation.

“How would you feel if your grandma was arrested,” asked Loretta. Her fear and pain were slowly turning into anger.

Her mind started analyzing the officer, calculating the odds that what she was about to do would be successful. “Do you think any of this is right?” she asked.

Into The Backseat

With the help of the other officer, they bundled Loretta into the cruiser’s back like some common criminal, not caring that she was in pain and uncomfortable. 

They didn’t engage her in any conversation on their way to the station, even though she kept asking them to hear her out.

They had no clue who they were dealing with or that she already had her sight trained on them. 

At The Station

On reaching the station, they threw her into a cell. Her tears flowed anew as she looked around. She hadn’t been in such a place in close to sixty decades.

The only time this had happened was because she’d been protesting for Civil Rights in the late fifties and early sixties.

“Ya’ll ought to be ashamed of yourselves for putting me in this cage?” a teary Loretta croaked. But her tears were just for show. 

A Fine 

Loretta spent a day in the cell wondering if she should just employ one of the skills her husband had trained her in to get free.

She could have easily walked out, leaving the station without anyone noticing. 

But she waited until one of her sons got her out. If she were to get her revenge, she’d have to be objective about it. Letting her emotions cloud her judgment would lead her to more trouble.

Roy Jr. 

Her son, Roy Jr., walked in with a smile, asking if she was alright. “You know I am, child,” she answered sweetly.

By now, she knew where all the surveillance cameras were and the guard officer’s schedule and route whenever he came to check on her. 

She even knew what he liked for his lunch and that he would go out after every hour for a quick smoke behind the building. All this information would come in handy soon. 

Her Son Knows 

“I’m glad you stayed put, momma,” Roy Jr. said, realizing she was too calm for someone in her position.

He had been there while his mom trained under his dad and knew precisely what she was capable of. 

He presented a document from his pocket, “They need us to pay a $275 fine.” Loretta took the paper and read it, smiling even though her heart was drenching itself in flames. 

Rage 

In her son’s eyes, she was calmly reading the document. But inside, she was fighting a war against herself and losing. Her fist clenched around the paper, and she threw it against the wall, stifling a scream.

She’d just found out that her daughter, Emily, had filed for the bill to be cleared months in advance by the town bank.

But for some reason, the request was still pending. How could the county send its officers to cuff her when she was innocent?

Don’t Be Rash

“It’s okay, momma,” Roy Jr. said. “There’s no need to do anything rash.” He picked up the crumpled paper and stuffed it into his pocket. “I’ll clear the fine, then drive to the bank to straighten everything out.”

But Loretta could barely hear him. Here she was, an eighty-plus-year-old woman suffering because of oversight at the bank.

Her molars ground against each other, and she followed her son out of the cell, ready to teach everyone involved a lesson. 

Do It 

Loretta walked straight to the first officer she saw, her fists balled by her sides.

She knew exactly what to do and had the needed fire coursing through her to do it. 

“Mom,” her son called, and she stopped at the last minute. Had she truly considered harming someone that was just doing his job? Did she consider doing something terrible in the heart of a law enforcement station? 

Breathe

She held in a retch, stepping back with trembling hands. She felt sick to her stomach. When had she become this cold, calculating, violent person?

She breathed out the heat pouring through her veins, praying her fury would subside.

Roy Jr. took her hand, and her heartbeat calmed down. She looked at him with teary eyes, but what he said next made her lips curl. 

Other Ways

“There are other ways, momma,” he said, pulling her away from the officer, who was still oblivious to what had just happened. “We’ll still prove your innocence.”

Together, the two went and cleared the fine, and Roy Jr. drove Loretta home, proud that her mom hadn’t done what her intrusive thoughts were pushing her to do.

But even he knew this was far from over.  

Forgive Or Forget 

That night, he sat with Loretta, discussing the way forward. He implored her not to take her wrath to the two officers who had taken her in. They were just following orders, after all. 

Loretta listened carefully, seeing sense in what her son was saying.

The county was at fault here. But even so, she couldn’t bring herself to forgive how rough and rude the officers had been. 

The Video

The following day, she accompanied Roy Jr. to the bank.

But on their way back, her granddaughter, Roy’s daughter, sent her a video where the chief of police was giving a statement about Loretta’s incident.

Roy Jr. stopped the car, seemingly knowing this was something that would upset Loretta. “Momma,” he began while trying to take away her phone. “You don’t have to watch that.” What was he trying to hide?

Don’t Get Mad

“Is there something you don’t want me to know?” Loretta asked. She opted not to play the video.

If there were something she needed to know, her son would tell her about it. 

He rarely kept secrets from her, a trait she’d always adored about him. Sighing, he said, “But don’t get mad, okay?” Only when Loretta nodded, did he play the video. 

A Clarification Statement 

In the video, the police chief spoke to the press about Loretta’s situation. He said she’d been given several warnings about her unpaid trash bill. 

Apparently, an officer had been passing by her house every noon for a week, trying to talk to her.

They claimed they also left a door hanger to inform her of the officer’s visit. She was also summoned to court over the unpaid bill, and when she failed to show up, she got arrested.

Lies 

Loretta’s eyes went wide as she watched the video.

She always spent her afternoons at home and had not had any officer or municipal worker knock on her door over her trash bill. 

Additionally, she didn’t see any door hanger informing her of their visits and didn’t get any letter or notification that she needed to appear in court. 

War

Although her son cleared the $275 needed for her court fees and straightened out the issue at the bank, Loretta went home ready for war.

She’d been holding off from using everything her husband taught him. 

Among the most significant was to never go down without swinging. From the moment the officers showed up at her door, she knew something odd was happening behind the scene. 

The Shadowy Truth

There had been rumors about the county outsourcing garbage disposal to a private company. Those in the know maintained that there was an operation to extort money from the elderly and disabled members of the community.

The best way to do this was to arrest them over small utility bills and have them pay large sums in court. 

But this was only the tip of the iceberg.

A Dark Operation

 Several residents in more struggling parts of the county were arrested for unpaid trash bills.

Most of these individuals face financial difficulties but were charged criminally and forced to pay substantial court fees alongside the bills.

Sick of what was happening, Loretta decided she would bring this entire operation crashing down.

Calling Back Up

She called her granddaughter, the most tech-savvy individual in the family, and asked if she could visit the following day. 

Since Roy Jr.’s house was only a few blocks away, Loretta’s granddaughter was at her house by noon the next day.

She loved her grandma more than anything in the world and would do anything to make her smile. If only she knew what Loretta was planning. 

Her Granddaughter

Loretta’s granddaughter, Eve, had just turned eighteen. She was a college student studying to be a software engineer and had extensive knowledge of electronics and anything to do with the Internet.

Loretta knew the best way to handle this situation would be to bring in the masses.

Since she was too old to go around houses asking for people to join her cause, she would mobilize them through social media. This is where Eva came in. 

Setting Everything Up

Loretta explained everything to her, and Eva got to work almost immediately.

She created several accounts on different platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Tiktok. 

She explained how each of these platforms targeted different age groups. If Loretta wanted to get her message to everyone, this was the best way to do it. 

Telling The World

Loretta and Eva wrote down what had happened to Loretta.

They didn’t miss a single detail. With everything set, they posted the message in each of their newly created accounts. 

“Now we wait,” Eva grinned, and Loretta hugged her. The two spent the rest of the days baking cookies and watching old Disney movies. But it wasn’t long before the notifications started streaming in. 

It Works

The first batch of notifications came from Facebook and Tiktok. They were only a few, and Loretta thought her plan was failing. 

But then the posts started gaining traction. The likes, shares, and comments began growing, and before Loretta knew it, she had an army of angry citizens complaining about the same issue she’d faced. Loretta smiled as she saw the numbers build. Now that she had her army, there was only one thing to do: march. 

Disclaimer: To protect the privacy of those depicted, some names, locations, and identifying characteristics have been changed and are products of the author’s imagination. Any resemblances to actual events, places, or persons, living or dead, are entirely coincidental.