Here’s The Real Story Behind The Viral “Sorry I Tased You” Cake

The cake was made in 2014 after a cop tased his coworker.

Media outlets including New York magazine, the New York Daily News, and the Associated Press reported this week that a Florida police officer shot a woman with a Taser and later apologized with a cake that read “Sorry I Tased You.”

But even after that gesture, the woman still sued the officer, the articles reported, citing a lawsuit.

But that’s not the real story behind the cake.

The Pensacola News Journal, which was first to report on the lawsuit, initially said the officer baked her the cake. But the newspaper later updated its story to say that he merely texted her the photo of the cake. The photo was apparently included in court documents, which led to the confusion.

In fact, the cake apology stems from an incident in 2014, when a police officer accidentally tased his coworker in the hand.

Katie Ross

Jay (Josh) Maloney and Katie Ross — two officers in Barnstable, Massachusetts — responded to a domestic disturbance call between a father and son early on New Year's Day. The family members were still fighting when they arrived on the scene, Ross told BuzzFeed News in an email.

As was first reported by Gizmodo, Maloney tried to subdue the son by using his Taser, but he got his coworker instead due to some "perfectly bad timing," Ross said.

"I go to assist by grabbing on to the male at the exact same time Josh deployed his Taser," Ross said. "Taser probes enter my left hand and I had a two second 'ride.'"

Katie Ross

Ross said she was out of commission for about a month. When she returned to work, Maloney presented her with the now-famous apology cake.

"I thought the cake was amazing," Ross said. "He truly felt horrible about the situation."

Jay Maloney / Via facebook.com

It wasn't baked all the way through, but it was the thought that counted.

The photo of the cake made the rounds back in 2014, and it has popped up online every now and then ever since. One fake story connected to the cake claims a cop accidentally tased a good samaritan who tried to break up a fight, and then made the cake as an apology.

"The first time we saw the memes we were annoyed but it was also funny considering it's clearly two stick figure cops!" Ross said. "We have to give credit to Josh for his artwork."