- Politician gets police to stage raid
- Proposes to girlfriend during search
- Officials furious over use of resources
A POLITICIAN diverted the resources of several major police units so he could make a surprise proposal to his girlfriend.
Jon Cardin, a legislator from Maryland in the US, managed to get the Baltimore City Police air wing and a marine unit to stage a raid on his boat while his girlfriend was on board.
Once police boarded the vessel and convinced the woman that she was about to be handcuffed, the Democratic state delegate dropped to one knee and popped the question, The Baltimore Sun reports.
She said "yes", but police officials and politicians were quick to say the stunt was a big "no-no".
Fellow state delegate Curtis Anderson, who is also a Democrat, said he was furious over the use of police resources.
"How in the world did he get something like that?" Mr Anderson said. "If I wanted to do this myself, I wouldn't have the first clue as to how to get that accomplished.
"This is totally astonishing that a state delegate, especially one from Baltimore County, could commandeer the forces of the Baltimore City Police Department like that.
"It's a big waste of the city's money if that actually happened."
Police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said officers should not be hired for entertainment purposes.
"Definitely there was some poor judgment exercised by some officers," he said
"The Police Department is not in the business of renting out the helicopter and the boats for bachelor parties and birthdays. We're in the business of upholding public safety in Baltimore."
Mr Cardin denied that there was a "raid" on the boat, describing the actions of police as a "5-minute safety check".
"During the evening, I was focused on making my fiancee's night perfect. In retrospect, I should have considered that city resources would be involved and used better judgment to put a stop to it."
He promised to reimburse the police department for any costs incurred.
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,25952459-38198,00.html


