ORLANDO, Fla. – A retired police officer was hassled during his entry at Universal Studios Orlando over a t-shirt indicating his status as a retired cop.
The retired lawman from Volusia County, Fla., said he was temporarily denied entry into the theme park because his shirt identified him as a retired police officer.
Universal Studios has since apologized, but explained their policy as a safety precaution intended to prevent confusion.
Vincent Champion and his girlfriend arrived at Universal Studios during its Halloween Horror Nights festivities, but Champion said a staff member detained him upon entry.
“She said you can’t come in here wearing a shirt that says ‘police’ on it,” Champion told Fox 35.
Champion, a former Ormond Beach Police officer, was wearing a T-shirt that read “Retired Police Officer” on the front, and “My time in uniform is over, but my watch never ends” on the back. Both the front and back also featured a design consisting of a skull with a blue line on it, representing the “Thin Blue Line.”
Champion told Fox 35 that another person in line overheard the exchange and offered him a different shirt to wear, which he eventually put on. The employee, however, said Champion wouldn’t even be allowed to carry his original T-shirt into the park, but would instead need to leave it in his car.
“I don’t understand why it’s happening. I’ve never been treated that way or anything before,” he told the news agency.
Champion asked to speak to a supervisor. Thankfully, he was eventually allowed into the park wearing his original T-shirt, but not without hassle and unwanted attention. He said the entire ordeal held him up for about 45 minutes to an hour.
In a statement to Fox 35, the park outlined the policy that initially prevented Champion from entering in his shirt.
“For safety reasons we want our guests and team members to be able to easily identify active, working law enforcement,” the statement read. “And so, as is common in our industry, we do not permit to wear clothing or items that could cause confusion.”
On its website, Universal Orlando currently lists “clothing that represents someone as emergency personnel” under its prohibited items list, along with clothing that falsely identifies someone as working for the park, and clothing with offensive language or content.
While the park visit occurred on Nov. 1, Champion says he received a call from a top park security official Wednesday.
“This gentleman – very apologetic – he made it clear I was treated wrong and my shirt does not raise to the level of what that policy stands for,” Champion said.
The retired police officer says he hopes this does not happen to any other member of law enforcement. He also said he does not plan on ever returning to the park.