A Connecticut cop was fired after he was caught on camera ruthlessly berating a driver while directing traffic last month.

James Hinkle, a former Waterbury police officer, lost his cool while directing traffic on Dec. 13 after a woman driving an SUV plowed through an intersection, despite being directed to stop by the fired officer, footage of the confrontation provided by the department shows.

Hinkle, who was canned Monday following an internal probe, accused the driver of trying to run him over.

The driver of the SUV kept moving forward until Hinkle – on foot and leaving his post – caught up to her and demanded she pull over to the side of the road and then to a parking lot, Hinkle’s body camera footage indicated.

“Pull over god damnit!” Hinkle can be heard shouting. “I’m not repeating myself.”

Once the woman was in the parking lot, the officer began to shout at her as she profusely apologized and said she didn’t realize she was supposed to stop, according to the footage. She told him she was on her way to Target.  

“What is such an important factor that me standing in the middle of the street stopping you and you try to run me over,” he shouted as the woman said she was not trying to hit him.

“You’re lucky you’re not in handcuffs right this second,” Hinkle said, according to the department’s footage. “Explain to my kids why they don’t have a dad a week before Christmas because you’re trying to run somebody over.

“You see the bright lights flashing in the middle of the street, that means use caution there’s a cop out there,” Hinkle continued. “I’ve got kids at home and you almost ran me over a week before Christmas.”

Throughout the interaction, Hinkle cut her off as she tried to explain herself. At one point he told her it wasn’t an accident, but that she was being irresponsible.

“Sir, I’m very sorry,” the driver said, with Hinkle firing back, “Sorry doesn’t break it. You looked right at me and still decided to drive right by me.”

When another officer with the department who arrived on scene asked if he was hurt, he told him, “Emotionally.”

Waterbury Police Chief Fernando Spagnolo condemned Hinkle’s interaction with the driver as “unacceptable.”

“His conduct during this encounter with a citizen of the community is unacceptable and not representative of the men and women serving the Waterbury Police Department,” Spagnolo said in a statement Tuesday. “WPD officers are trained to demonstrate the highest level of professionalism when performing their duties.”

The internal probe determined Hinkle’s conduct was in violation of department policies, police said.

Spagnolo, the police chief, said the driver, who was not identified, was ticketed at the scene, but that was later dropped, according to NBC CT.

“I haven’t seen a case in my 30 years here that’s undermined the public’s trust more than this,” he reportedly said during a Tuesday press conference. “It really rocks you to the core.”

The dismissed officer, in his 7th year with the department, can file a grievance over his termination, the station reported.

The police department’s union said it was reviewing the incident, according to WTNH.

“The Waterbury Police union is aware that Officer Hinkle was terminated on 01/09/2023 and is currently reviewing the internal affairs report, and the videos regarding the incident with our legal counsel. The union will ensure that Officer Hinkle will be afforded all the due process rights in the collective bargaining agreement.”

Hinkle was with the patrol division and placed on administrative leave before his firing.