Lin Riley was pulled over in Sydney and asked to perform a routine breath test by a local police officer.
After presenting her licence and performing the test, the 68-year-old was questioned about what was on her seatbelt – which has a one inch bulldog clip above the right shoulder.
“He [the officer] stopped and said ‘What are you doing? What do you have on your seatbelt’” Lin told news.com.au.
The reason for the clip was to make wearing a seatbelt more comfortable for Lin, who had recently suffered breast cancer.
Following a mastectomy and reconstruction, at the end of 2015 one of her implants ruptured and she developed lymphedema – which created swelling to her left side and with it discomfort.
Because of this, wearing a seatbelt causes Lin “great discomfort” and so she uses the bulldog clip to help.
“It just lifts the belt away from my chest just a small amount so it doesn’t go tight across my left side and cause me pain,” she explained.
But shockingly, when Lin explained this to the police officer, he simply said it wasn’t his problem. His colleague was apparently equally unconcerned, and she was fined $360 Australian and sent on her way.
But after getting a note from her doctor to say she suffered breast cancer, Lin is now in conversation with the New South Wales police Force, who have apparently been “very apologetic” about what had happened.
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