A police chief has been accused of stealing over $700 from a former stripper’s purse following a car chase. The police chief is now facing a federal lawsuit claiming he violated the constitutional rights of the stripper.
The stripper, Justina Cardoso, filed the lawsuit back on December 22, which claims that Colonel John Whiting violated rights that protected her from illegal searches and granting her due process. Cardoso is a resident of Pawtucket who used to perform at the Satin Doll Strip Club in Providence. She is asking for $250,000 in damages from the officer.
Whiting is from North Attleborough, Massachusetts, and has been suspended from his job without pay. He works for the North Providence police as their chief and has been suspended since his arrest back in September. Whiting pleaded not guilty to charges that he stole money from the Coach purse of Cardoso and then attempted to cover it up. The next court date for Whiting is scheduled for February 16, 2012.
On August 28, Whiting was driving in an unmarked police car while on his way to work. He turned on his police lights and began to chase the Ford Explorer that Cardoso was riding in through Pawtucket. As Whiting was trying to pass the vehicle, he claims that someone threw an object at his vehicle. Cardoso was a passenger in the SUV, which was trying to drive around a fallen tree, according to police.
The SUV then crashed into a parked car, ending the chase, and caused the people inside the vehicle to flee.
At a later time, Whiting told a Pawtucket police officer that he stole money from a purse found in the SUV that was ‘loaded with cash.’ The officer from Pawtucket then said Whiting gave him the money and told him to spend the money in Las Vegas but not to discuss the matter.
The lawsuit filed by Cardoso claims that Whiting illegally rifled through the SUV and took the money belonging to Cardoso. Police claim Cardoso earned the money while working at the Satin Doll and from a man who paid for her company. Cardoso also claims that Whiting violated her privacy.
Cardoso wound up getting arrested on a warrant for an unrelated criminal matter after the chase ended. Last month, Cardoso pled guilty to three charges in an extortion and blackmail case and pled guilty to one count of marijuana possession.
Cardoso ended her employment at the Satin Doll after Whiting’s arrest but has been unable to find new work as a stripper. Cardoso’s stolen earnings and SUV were returned to her but she could not afford to keep the SUV.
Cardoso was sentenced to one year of probation in the drug case and five years of a suspended sentence in the blackmail case. Cardoso has been able to avoid jail time by being treated for drug abuse. She is also working towards a GED.