Talk to a Cop- The good, bad, and ugly!

I cannot lie.

Yes.


h34r:

(at least the first part of my post, I TRY not to get snagged as much as possible, but truthfully, it doesn't bother me too much, as I know I stand a good chance of winning (it's just a real PAIN in the arse))

 

DISCLAIMER I have & do have Law Enforcement in my family... an ex-b in law, also a current one (Park Ranger), a nephew (County Police) and a niece Fed Govt (leave it at that).

My ex-BinLaw once said something that summed it up for me.. He said that he has to confront and deal with the people that everyone else would cross the street to avoid.

Sure there are some bullies & jerks in law enforcment and by the nature of the job can do much harm to you if you are in their way, but overwhelmingly.... I have the utmost respect fo the job you & they do.


BYW, he said the call he hated the most to respond to was Domestic Dispute... because the other party would often turn on you even when they called in

 

Oh, here's one I've been dying to get an answer to (well not really, but interested nonetheless):

Have you ever had an experience with those radar/laser "jammer" units? I know many are BS, and only work under very precise circumstances, just wondering if you've ever come across a situation where you suspected something was "funny", and it turned out someone was using one of these devices...

Also, have you ever had to draw your weapon at someone?

Have you ever fired it at someone?

h34r:

 

One last hurrah with this thread, maybe... I have AAA, and they send
out this little newsletter thing once a month. In that, a Mass.
statie has been writing a semi-regular column about various traffic
safety topics and how to be a better driver. This month it's about
merging and entering/exiting highways and rotaries. A couple of
months ago it was following distance.
.
So, inspired by this thread and consistently seeing the usual
braindead behavior on the highways, I called over to the Troop A
office in Danvers and actually got transferred to him. Explained
who I was and that I liked the fact that he was writing these
things, and basically offered the same question that I'd put to
Schmika -- what to do about the tailgaters. He was really glad to
hear the positive feedback about traffic safety advocacy, and said
I was like the *only* person ever to call him about the articles.
He said that the officers do issue citations for unsafe following
on a fairly regular basis, but they're spread fairly thin and while
they do what they can, there's so much of it going on that they
can't nail everyone. We agreed vehemently with each other that the
base problem is likely one of early driver training and societal
pressures. He mentioned the occasional "speed vigilantes" who try
to go exactly the speed limit in the left lane, and what a bad idea
that is [not to mention illegal since you're supposed to keep right].
We had a very pleasant conversation; I told him about this thread
without dropping a whole lot of specifics, and he thought it was
a great idea.
.
The article can currently be accessed at
http://secure.aaasne.com/public/horizons/t...ty/traffic.html
which will probably change at the next issue since it doesn't seem
to be date-specific. I talked to Mr. Kelly.
.
_H*

 

Just a quick question for our resident officer - have you ever seen that "busted - citizen's guide to police encounters"? I saw it a while back and was curious about a cop's take on the advice they give there:

For example:

-Put both hands on the wheel after you're stopped so the officer can approach safely (I don't think there's any question that this one is the safest for everyone).

-Be very careful of which of the officer's questions you answer (ie: "do you know why I stopped you, do you know what the speed limit is", etc), as you could easily incriminate yourself.

-When asked for DL and registration, only open the window enough to pass the documents to the officer, unless they request that you open the window fully.

-If asked to step out of the vehicle, close and lock it behind you to prevent unauthorized searches.

-Deny any requests to search the vehicle for any reason (in the unlikely event that you actually had something you didn't want found, you wouldn't be any worse off if a search was conducted, and it might open possible legal arguements against illegal searches and such).

Just curious what your take on their advice is - of course, this video was made for the US, and being in Canada, parts of it wouldn't apply here, but for the most part, it seems fairly reasonable.

Dave (2 tickets in 17 years )

 

Oh, I just remembered one:

At what point is a cop "authorized" to use deadly force? Assume the person is unarmed, and just simply won't follow "requests" like giving the cop his license and registration, gets out of the car, and simply starts running away? Are you REALLY going to shoot someone for doing such?

Hmmm, I wonder if it's a bad sign that I had those thoughts when I was like, oh, NINE. :lol:

 

Don't know if it's the same in the US, but as far as Canada goes, it's basically if someone's life is in imminent danger from the suspect, the officer is allowed to use deadly force. And if they're going to shoot, it's expected that they're trying for the best-chance shot (ie: centre body mass) which has the best chance of disabling someone.

Besides, if it's like most other police departments, the amount of paperwork, investigations, reports and such you'd have to do if you fire your weapon (much less hit someone) make it a good reason not to use it unless absolutely necessary.

Dave

 

Wow Karl, you are a brave man.

If you'd like the perspective of an Oregon copper I'd be happy to help out brother in blue (but I don't want to steal your thunder.)

 

It also helps if you motion an acknowledgment to him when he first hits the lights, also (and I DON'T mean give him the finger :lol: ), be sure to pull over without causing a bad traffic situation for the cop, signal appropriately, IMPORTANT: pull off in a place that puts the cop out of traffic if you can (cops are people too, and they're just doing their job, no one need be in harms way over a few dollars, take the fight to the court room), turn on the interior lights, and SHUT THE CAR OFF.

EXACTLY. NEVER, EVER, answer anything with an affirmative, if you can't think of something neat to say, say, "I don't know", or simply say, "The posted speed limit", it's up to THEM to PROVE what they're accusing you of... (warning, that will drive cops nuts, particularly if they radar'd you, but stick to your guns and fight it out in court! I had one cop get really ANGRY because I looked him straight in the eye with a serious face and said I was doing 25 in a 25 when I was doing about 60 in my Cobra :lol: , because of the way it came about, I KNEW he was "eyeballing", and didn't have Jack, he got pissed, but didn't issue a ticket... as expected... please don't try this unless you're well experienced when dealing with cops....lololol)

I agree with the officers, this will raise suspicion 10 fold!

Personally, I've always let them search, I never had anything to hide anyway, and it makes them feel better... Plus, if you give them a hard time, they'll think nothing of having a leisurely dinner while "running" your info, to the tune of somewhere around 20 minutes or more...

Squid (more tickets than I can even count in the last 10 years, 70% chance of beating any rap I get charged with on my own (still retain pretty good insurance rates) )

edit: Oh yeah, and if you ever get busted for not having your headlights on, say, "My other car, the one which I primarily use, has automatic headlights..."

I respect the law and law officers, NOT legalized extortion.

 

Oh, here's another question:

Why is it, that sometimes when I get pulled over, all of a sudden, like two or three OTHER cop cars feel the need to stop as well? It's happened to me a few times, one will pull me over, and mintues later, there will be like 3 cops cars, all lights flashing, the officers all standing around, as if conducting an important pow-wow...

Is it simply because they're checking up and supporting each other, or did the officer who pulled me over request "back up" because he felt like I might run or something? Or is there some other reason?



h34r:

 

Schmika, As someone who does the vast majority of their Driving on I-75 Between Bwoling Green-Findlay and Bowling Green-Toledo, my current policy has been to just stick in the right lane and hold at 65... Afer getting a few speeding tickets in high school I learned my lesson many years ago... The last time I got pulled over was up near Port Clinton around 1am heading up to the lakehouse and I had a headlight out on my beetle...

Every time I have been pulled over I slip into a mortal fear for reasons beyond my knowledge... I feel like im having a heart attack when I see the sirens go on... or even if I see a cop parked in the median on I-75.. even if im going the speed limit... Being pulled over and looking like im about to hyperventilate has led to several interesting serches and inerrogations over the years... I had one cop pull me over for a broken taillight back when I drove an 84 cutlass who thought I had weapons or drugs because i was in such a state of panic... despite the fact I have never touched a gun or even seen drugs in person (beyond tobacco and alcohol, and I do my best to avoid being around those).

All this despite the fact that I have an older brother who is a police officer in a small town outiside of Findlay and my aunt was a bailiff at the Hancock County Justice Ctr. for 20+years... My oldest brother is currently in his 20th year in the Army... I am not even comfortable around my own family members when they are in uniform... I cannot even form a cohernt sentence sometimes when I see them in uniform... I just seem to have an irrational fear of law enforcement figures... Even when im at the mall in toledo, I literally cannot breathe when I see the toledo police walking around... I dont know why, never stolen anything, never seen or done drugs, just a couple of speeding tickets from high school... (me being in my mid 20's now) I have never committed any crimes beyond a couple of monior traffic violations nor have I ever had any desire to... yet I feel like a felon when I see cops nearby... ::whew::... i just typed all that nonstop...

SO... any advice to someone with my problem??? Ive asked my family what to do and they literally just laugh at me, or wear their uniforms around me on purpose to see me so into a paic attack and hyperveltilate and pass out or throw up or something... (god bless them ) How would you handle encountering someone like me on a routine traffic stop??? (and hopefully this does not make me sound insane... mabye im not the only one with this problem???) Thank You!