Don't talk to the Cops

[JackLuis]

What the 'innocent' need to know.

Not that any of you AHer's need to worry, of course.

 

[Boxlicker101]

Personally, I want as little to do with the cops as I can manage. Over my lifetime, most of my interaction with them has resulted in my being arrested or getting a ticket or something else unpleasant, so I try to avoid them whenever I can.

 

[3113]

Sobering. Thanks for that video, Luis! Of great use for law, court, crime or detective stories...

As well as keeping us innocent types out of jail.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

I have lotsa experience with cops, and they will jump on any opportunity that comes along to make an arrest. Its so bad these days they fuck with each other, even.

 

[TE999]

Damn good advice, that. It's never a good idea to say anything to the fuzz other than 'Yes, sir' and 'No, sir', since they have the badge and the gun.

 

[JackLuis]

Even if you don't talk they hit you.

Be careful out there, it's a jungle.

 

[bashfullyshameless]

...I have only once, ever, had a cop even be so much as irritable toward me. I've dealt with them a good deal, both in Southern California and in Seattle.

I will grant that I'm white (we all know racial profiling happens) and that since I don't drink or do any drugs, I'm rarely doing anything that would set off alarm bells...but it's always a little jarring to me how hostile people are to police when my own interactions have been universally positive.

Guess I'll just count myself lucky, I guess.

 

[oggbashan]

When I was young, I was taught that a British policeman was someone that a child (or adult) could approach for help. It is still true.

I also learned that the Police in other countries were not like the British police. I met and had unfortunate experiences with Generallismo Franco's Guarda Civil. Australian policemen were nothing like the British ones.

In France, there are several Police forces. The normal Police might be reasonable. The Gendarmarie? Treat with caution. The CRS? Cross the street and get well away. If they are on the street trouble is about to happen.

Og

 

[Boxlicker101]

...I have only once, ever, had a cop even be so much as irritable toward me. I've dealt with them a good deal, both in Southern California and in Seattle.

I will grant that I'm white (we all know racial profiling happens) and that since I don't drink or do any drugs, I'm rarely doing anything that would set off alarm bells...but it's always a little jarring to me how hostile people are to police when my own interactions have been universally positive.

Guess I'll just count myself lucky, I guess.

People are hostile toward cops because almost any interaction toward them results in something not good happening to the citizen. It may be a ticket or being arrested. Even when the citizen is a victim, the cops are usually no help. If your car is stolen or your property is vandalized or your home is burglarized, the only reason for contacting the cops is to get a police report to send to the insurance company. The cops usually don't even try to do anything beyond that. I'm white, BTW, and that has never, to my knowledge, benefitted me in dealing with the cops.

Og, it is probably different in the UK, where the cops are not usually on power trips.

 

[Jake Marlow]

I encounter police a lot through work (in the US) and it seems that suburban cops have far worse attitudes than city cops. A lot of them want to be cops for the wrong reasons: they want a badge and a gun to push people around, and they don't have much in the way of real crime to occupy them, so they push people around for minor things. Also, there seems to be a story in the paper every other day about police corruption or incomptence in the major city I live near. I never thought I would say this, and I understand police have a tough job, but so many of them seem to be incompetent and lazy at best, and corrupt at worse. If they decide you're guilty of something, and their wrong and you're innocent, God help you.

 

[JackLuis]

Yes cops have a hard time. Most of the people they deal with are the dregs of the population and after a while, it is natural for a cop to start treating everyone like a scum bag, especially if the cop has had a bad day.

There are cops that will understand if you are contrite, but you still have to pay the fine.

 

[lovecraft68]

What the 'innocent' need to know.

Not that any of you AHer's need to worry, of course.

As a "street rat" i learned to avoid cops like the plague. As I got older and was a trouble maker I hated them because they were after me.
Now I have to say after I straightened my shit out years ago I feel worse about them.
The average (and I know I will be guilty of generalizing) cop is the most arrogant thing on two legs. They think they can get away with anything. There is a high percentage of domestic violence with cops. They beat their wives and blame it on job stress. They also get away with it. Their wives can;t go to anyone now can they? Cops stick together even the good ones will watch the others do this and not say a word to break their code.

there is also a high percentage of alcoholism also blamed on the job. Please. grow some back bone or quit your fucking job.
Cops are badge wearing bullies and the kids whose asses got kicked in school. I know I am disrespecting the good ones out there, But lets face it what I described is quite common.
My cousin was married to one who beat her terribly. She finally went to a womans shelter he violated his restraining order twice and got away with it. he beat her again and put her in the hospital. her two brothers and ummm a party to remain unnamed caught up with him. One of her brothers did 18 months for doing the right thing.
Pigs is a very fitting name for many of them.

 

[stephen55]

Funny...every time I've been pulled over for speeding...I've been speeding.

 

[Boxlicker101]

As a "street rat" i learned to avoid cops like the plague. As I got older and was a trouble maker I hated them because they were after me.
Now I have to say after I straightened my shit out years ago I feel worse about them.
The average (and I know I will be guilty of generalizing) cop is the most arrogant thing on two legs. They think they can get away with anything. There is a high percentage of domestic violence with cops. They beat their wives and blame it on job stress. They also get away with it. Their wives can;t go to anyone now can they? Cops stick together even the good ones will watch the others do this and not say a word to break their code.

there is also a high percentage of alcoholism also blamed on the job. Please. grow some back bone or quit your fucking job.
Cops are badge wearing bullies and the kids whose asses got kicked in school. I know I am disrespecting the good ones out there, But lets face it what I described is quite common.
My cousin was married to one who beat her terribly. She finally went to a womans shelter he violated his restraining order twice and got away with it. he beat her again and put her in the hospital. her two brothers and ummm a party to remain unnamed caught up with him. One of her brothers did 18 months for doing the right thing.
Pigs is a very fitting name for many of them.

It's not a mattter of a few bad apples; it's a matter of a lot of bad apples. And, the "good cops" let the bad apples get away with it, partly because of loyalty and partly because they are dependent on each other. Here is a good example of rogue cops getting away with it for a while:
http://revcom.us/a/v19/920-29/921/louima.htm

Eventually, somebody blew the whistle, but nobody did anything to stop the abuse and hardly anybody reported it.

ETA: In all honesty, I don't believe everything said on that link, and it's obvious where the sympathies of the paper lie, but the first part is true. It was in all the newspapers and the cop eventually went to prison over it. I don't think everything else that appears there actually happened, though.

 

[bashfullyshameless]

*shrug* Like I said, my own experience has been the direct opposite of everything I've seen here. Those couple speeding tickets I got? I was speeding. Hell, the second ticket I ever got was promptly followed by instructions by the cop on the best ways to get out of having to pay for it. And every other traffic stop I've ever been through has been a short conversation, more or less pleasant, followed by me going on my way without any ticket at all.

I suspect it's because I'm polite to them. Being a cop is often a shit job. And that aggression that they often show? It's to keep them alive. I've been through a little of their training -- just a slice of it, mind you, 'cause I had a campus cop job in California in college. Cops often come off as aggressive because it's a deterrent from suspects thinking they can get away with overpowering them.

I have an ex who vended a street fair in Seattle a couple years ago. It was a weekend thing. We came to her booth on Sunday and found that one or the other local street rat assholes had smashed her booth during the night. (There was allegedly supposed to be security provided for the fair, but that was obviously worthless.) My gf was inconsolable. It was Seattle PD who came by and dried her tears, made her laugh and smile again, fixed up the booth so she could make it through the day, and made sure that the fair organizers paid for a new booth since they were supposed to provide security in the first place.

I've got several other stories like that. As I've said, I've only ever had cops be rude to me once, ever. Maybe I'm just lucky, but I really have a hard time believing that cops are more often "bad" or "arrogant" or "corrupt" than not.