just when you thought you knew what stupid was

[k0ua]

I've never objected to the questioning. When my wife and I were dating we'd go down to the river and park and just listen to music, talk, etc.... once in a while a police officer would sneak up on us and tap on the window with his flashlight.

Evening folks. Everything all right in there?

Yes sir.

Then he'd look over at her and ask if she was there on her own free will. Glad she was never mad at me....

HE'S GOT WEED! HE'S GOT WEED!

:laughing:

How about: "this guy abducted me at the mall and just finished raping me!" That would have piqued his interest I am sure!

 

[MossRoad]

Oh boy! That's a beating.

Speaking of police beatings... :laughing:

Seriously, I grew up expecting that if you fight with the police, you're gonna get a beating. If you spit in a cops face, you're gonna get a beating. If you run from the police, if they catch you, you're gonna get a beating. If you hurt one of them or someone else while you're running from them, your gonna get a more severe beating. And I'm OK with that for some reason. Guess I am a man of many layers.... like an onion. :confused3:

 

[k0ua]

Moss, just so you will know, the rather populated county I worked for "back in the day", and it was a LONG time ago. Even then the Prosecuting Attorney's office had ZERO interest in any juvenile's with beer or small amounts of "whacky tobaccey" even back then. So there was no point in doing anything official. All threats aside. Then as now, the officer has discretion and the PA has discretion, and any one thrown into jail and a booking made, would likely get a "chewing" from the PA the next morning as they released them without them being arraigned. So it is a major waste of patrol time, jail officers time, and PA's time to do things for which there will not be any action taken on in the morning.

If you ever had to sit your behind down in a chair and write either a Sheriff's report or a CAP report (crime against person or property) and have the shift supervisor go over it and to make revisions if he didn't like it, you would understand. I wrote a lot of those reports. I even was assigned to re-write reports for other officers because I could write a whole of a lot better than some of the other officers could do. They would read it, and the supervisor would approve it before it went into the basket for the prosecutor to pick up in the morning. If you were there in the squad room 2 hours after your shift ended. Too bad, so sad for you. Some of those guys were pretty good patrol officers, but they couldn't type and they couldn't compose at the keyboard. They could tell you what happened orally, but they did a lousy job of putting it on paper. That is why the shift commander would come over to me and say "help Bob with his report".

 

[ovrszd]

You're reading that wrong. As a teenager, of course I didn't want to get caught. Looking back on it as an adult, I do wish someone would have intervened. It would have saved 9 years of my life.

I read what you wrote. If there was a deeper message you should have stated it.

Why can't everybody just say what they mean. Rather than paragraphs of fluff?

 

[ovrszd]

Understood.

My boys aren't old enough to drive by themselves, but I tell them that if they every have to deal with a LEO for whatever reason while driving, they HAVE to be respectful and do what they are told be it even if they think they are in the right. The person who has you pulled over does have the power at that moment in time on how things will play out. I'd be lying if I didn't tell them to keep their answers to "yes sir" and "no sir", and keep your mouth shut. Would be nice if I kept my own advice, but it's just irritating how it seems some cops go on fishing expedition for a seat belt violation, but I do thank them in a very nice tone for looking after my well being LOL

I always found it funny how I'd be asked "where are you going today?" when pulled over for a seat belt violation. I don't lie, tell them where I'm going, but it's like what are they expecting, for me to tell them I'm on my way to rob a bank? LOL

I'm getting better with seat belts as I've gotten older, added I now have to set an example so I haven't gotten anything for years.

How many moving violations have you had?

 

[ovrszd]

That is not the reason the officer asked you the "stupid question". He asked the question to engage you in conversation for several reasons.

Reason 1: to see if you are lucid and can carry on a conversation. Are you drunk or otherwise under the influence of something?
Reason 2:. To gauge your reaction to his presence. Are you "antsy" or "guilty looking". Are you extremely defensive, and looking like you could either fight or run in a moments notice? In other words what are you hiding or don't want to talk about?

Reason 3: Engaging you in conversation allows him more time to do a visual outside search of your person and your vehicle. Just a good "eyeing up". not a casual glance. The conversation
is to keep you engaged, and see 1 and 2 above. Also if you have passengers, he may want to engage them also. Especially a woman, Does she look like a willing passenger? Is he holding her against her will, does she look frightened? All good questions to follow up to the inane question he asked you. Even that question could be germane if for instance you say you are going to Chicago and he stops you going south into Kentucky. \

Again, If everyone spent a couple years as a police officer, their outlook on life would forever be changed. You will never see human interaction the same way.

Dang it, wish I'd said that...

 

[k0ua]

Oh boy! That's a beating.

Speaking of police beatings... :laughing:

Seriously, I grew up expecting that if you fight with the police, you're gonna get a beating. If you spit in a cops face, you're gonna get a beating. If you run from the police, if they catch you, you're gonna get a beating. If you hurt one of them or someone else while you're running from them, your gonna get a more severe beating. And I'm OK with that for some reason. Guess I am a man of many layers.... like an onion. :confused3:

I never actually "beat" anyone. I did hit a few, because they hit me first, and I threatened to beat one I can remember, because he had a warrant and we scooped him up but as the car accelerated to about 15 to 20 miles an hour he tried to bail out. I had a collapsible baton, and I threatened to beat his head in, as I grabbed him by the collar and held on to him. He was an adult, and I would not have really hit him, but he thought I was going to. He then apologized for his escape attempt. The reason he didn't have his handcuffs on yet was because the more senior officer with me, wanted to get away from the hostile crowd of relatives we snatched him quickly out of and get down the road a bit before we shackled him up. That was probably a mistake, but we were trying to avoid a physical confrontation, but I wound up with one with him instead. And even though he protested all thru the trip that the warrant was not valid and he had satisfied the charges, of course when we got him to jail the warrant WAS valid. They all lie

 

[ovrszd]

I've never objected to the questioning. When my wife and I were dating we'd go down to the river and park and just listen to music, talk, etc.... once in a while a police officer would sneak up on us and tap on the window with his flashlight.

Evening folks. Everything all right in there?

Yes sir.

Then he'd look over at her and ask if she was there on her own free will. Glad she was never mad at me....

HE'S GOT WEED! HE'S GOT WEED!

:laughing:

Another reason it's BS for you to say you wish they would have busted you.

Not picking on you. Just making it clear that it was your fault. Not the LEO's fault for not busting you.

We haven't became a nation of "it's not my fault" overnight. This has been growing for decades....

 

[Sigarms]

How many moving violations have you had?

Since I moved back to NC around 2001, around 3 for speeding (one was less than 5MPH over the speed limit) and probably around 5 seat belt infractions (don't even know if that's considered a "moving violation"). Keep in mind, in 19 years here, I've driven over a million miles for work alone). Before that, I'd guess less as more than a couple of times I moved around for work out of state so quick I could have one states DL, another states tag and actually live in yet another state, so I drove way more carefully.

 

[Sigarms]

That is not the reason the officer asked you the "stupid question". He asked the question to engage you in conversation for several reasons.

Reason 1: to see if you are lucid and can carry on a conversation. Are you drunk or otherwise under the influence of something?
Reason 2:. To gauge your reaction to his presence. Are you "antsy" or "guilty looking". Are you extremely defensive, and looking like you could either fight or run in a moments notice? In other words what are you hiding or don't want to talk about?

Reason 3: Engaging you in conversation allows him more time to do a visual outside search of your person and your vehicle. Just a good "eyeing up". not a casual glance. The conversation
is to keep you engaged, and see 1 and 2 above. Also if you have passengers, he may want to engage them also. Especially a woman, Does she look like a willing passenger? Is he holding her against her will, does she look frightened? All good questions to follow up to the inane question he asked you. Even that question could be germane if for instance you say you are going to Chicago and he stops you going south into Kentucky. \

Again, If everyone spent a couple years as a police officer, their outlook on life would forever be changed. You will never see human interaction the same way.

I get it. That's why the answers are short and to the point if not a "yes sir" or "no sir". Officer "where you headed?" me "next town over for work". He can talk to me all he wants, he isn't going to find anything.

Did get pulled over staying overnight at a college town around 0100 one time for work because I had a very early morning start in the area. I was informed that my tires hit the yellow line and I was asked where I was going. Told him the same thing as mentioned. It's when he started walking around my car with the light shining in my car looking for "stuff" that I told the officer to either please write me up, take me in, or let me go as I wanted to get some sleep, I was stone sober and I had my presentation materials in the backseat (please note, I stated my thoughts in a respectful tone) . He let me go. Could of gone the other way I know, but the reality is many people don't understand their rights when they are pulled over.

LEO's are to be respected, but they are also to be feared, and you need to understand your own rights on what you do and don't have to say. Thing is, just because you don't answer doesn't mean you're guilty. Reality is if you have nothing to hide, the only thing you have to fear is the ticket, which was probably deserved in the place (although I did call my one buddy in the town outside where I got pulled over for doing 59 in a 55, and all he did was laugh and told me now I know where to watch LOL).

I have some local guys who work for the law come over to shoot from time to time and I shoot with them over at another buddies place as well. Great guys. They will even admit there are some "interesting people" who work in law enforcement.

If anyone is driving down 19 through West Virginia and you're around the Summerville area, do not do 1MPH over the speed limit with out of state plates. The rumor was those guys wrote more speeding tickets than Chicago. Easy to find the articles...Speed trap or safety measure? Summersville, W. Va., police wrote 1, tickets in 24 | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette