Two police officers in Los Angeles were terminated after they preferred tracking Pokémon rather than pursuing thieves who were robbing a large store. Louis Lozano and Eric Mitchell roamed the streets of the city in April 2017 searching for virtual Pokémon characters through the "Pokémon Go" mobile game app on their phones. When the police issued a call for backup to help fend off a burglary at a large store, the two officers decided to ignore it and continued playing, according to recordings of their conversations in the car.
Official documents filed in their case indicated that Mitchell alerted his partner Lozano that "Snorlax," a Pokémon known for its deep sleep, had just appeared. The documents, which were released last week, revealed that twenty minutes after the request for help, the recordings showed the officers discussing the game while moving between locations based on the appearance of the virtual characters on their phones. The Los Angeles officers were able to catch "Snorlax," while they struggled to capture the Pokémon "Togetic." Mitchell was recorded saying, "Damn, this thing is frustrating."
The officers were charged with multiple violations and misconduct. They admitted to not responding to the request for assistance in the burglary, denying that they were playing "Pokémon Go." While they maintained they were only discussing the game, the appeals court did not believe their justifications and upheld their termination on Friday.
Launched in 2016, "Pokémon Go" was downloaded by millions of people worldwide, but the search for these virtual characters has caused several issues. Due to its immense popularity, many military facilities warned their soldiers about the dangers it posed, particularly near runways. Additionally, many "Pokémon Go" players have been involved in road accidents, and one was even accused of illegally crossing a border to catch a Pokémon.
