OH Cop Abused Power By Pulling Over Daughter's Boyfriend: Report

LORAIN, OH — An Ohio police officer has been fired for abusing his police authority after an internal investigation that found he pulled over his daughter's boyfriend without cause, threatened to arrest a woman for saying she would call 911 and for not providing backup to an officer at a road rage incident, according to The Lorain Chronicle Telegram.

The Telegram reports that the officer, John Kovach Jr., violated many sections of the department's standards of conduct, policy and procedures. The incident took place April 16.

According to the internal investigation and dashcam footage, Kovach pulled over a car driven by his daughter's boyfriend, 18-year-old Makai Coleman, with three other passengers inside on April 16 in Lorain. According to the Telegram, he did not notify dispatch that he was making the stop.

Kovach reportedly tells Coleman to get out because he's going to jail and when Coleman asked him what for, he responded: “Have a seat in my car. We’ll make (expletive) up as we go," according to the Telegram.

The footage shows that Kovach then gets into an argument with a woman who came out of a nearby house whose two children were inside the car driven by Coleman. According to the Telegram, Kovach threatens to give the woman's daughter a $300 ticket for not wearing a seatbelt and threatens to arrest the woman if she calls 911. Kovach also allegedly told the woman his daughter's laptop was inside his house and after initially saying he could search, she says to come back with a warrant after he threatens her daughter with the ticket, according to the Telegram.

Kovach then notices that his daughter is in the backseat and tells Coleman to get out of the car. According to the Telegram, his daughter protests that she is 18 and can't be arrested without cause but she eventually gets in the car and Kovach drives away.

While this was happening, Kovach had been called to a road rage incident but the video doesn't show him responding to the call, according to the news report.

Kovach told investigators he was worried for his daughter because he didn't think Coleman was a good person and because she was staying with Coleman despite her parents' wishes, according to the Telegram.

The Telegram reports Kovach was placed on administrative leave the same day as the incident. He was fired on May 11. The investigation also faulted him for using his police authority to track down his daughter and for failing to tell dispatch he was conducting a traffic stop.

You read the full story and view the dashcam video via The Lorain Chronicle Telegram here.

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