Ask A Cop!!! Post Your Questions Here!

[RonDawg]

I used to have a habit, thankfully gown out of, of locking my keys in my squad car on a routine basis.

When I was in training, I did that very thing. My training officer had just allowed me to start driving, and we had stopped at a local restaurant to have coffee and review my progress. After we sat down, he had realized he forgot my evaluations in the car, and told me to go get them.

I walk out to the parking lot and towards the cruiser, reach down on my gun belt and....the keys are nowhere to be found. I check my pockets...nope. I go back in the restaurant thinking they fell out when I sat down...nope. I go back out to the car and look inside...yup, right on the seat where I left them. At that time, I didn't have a spare key like I do now.

That walk back into the restaurant was probably the longest in my life, because I knew (or thought) I was going to get a good chewing out from my training officer. But when I break the news to him...he just busts out laughing. Hysterically. In the middle of a crowded restaurant.

I still don't know what would have been more embarassing...being chewed out, or being laughed at. To add to the embarassment, I had to call for another officer to come over to borrow his key (the keys to our cruisers are keyed alike) to unlock the car.

As soon as we finished at that restaurant, my next stop was a locksmith to have a spare key made.

 

[papps953]

While on her after academy coaching trip a fellow classmate and her coach met another trooper at a restaurant. She need to something with her uniform (I don’t remember what). She was sitting in the back seat to do this. For some reason she decided to close the door. Her coach and the other trooper had already gone into the restaurant. Fortunately she had left the screen open. She had to take her gun belt off and crawl into the front to get out of her car.

 

[RonDawg]

how glad i am would highly depend on the circumstances...

i work with cops (not as a cop), and it's tough. thank you for the work you do.

Andy,

There is a long-standing perception within law enforcement that can be best summed up in a sentence once told to me by my training officer:

"If you wanted people to like you, you should have taken the firefighters test instead."

That said, there is also a perception within law enforcement that the public will let firefighters get away with a lot more than a cop.

 

[adurso]

"If you wanted people to like you, you should have taken the firefighters test instead."


And the firefighters always say:"Cop, huh, failed the firefighter's test did ya"

 

[RonDawg]

If it was either or, I'd go with the lecture as well. As it happens, the attempted lecture is taken by me as adding insult to injury. Sometimes it comes pre ticket and I've got to hope that is the penalty, so I endure it. When it comes while the officer is writing or after he has written the ticket, that is when I have to draw the line and insist that the officer do his job and not my mothers. This is what I pay him to do after all.

Officers are generally taught to either warn/lecture or cite, but not both. Sometimes though, when you've got a citizen arguing with you about why you're citing them, it's not hard to fall into parental mode.

If I stop someone, assuming it's not going to turn into a high-risk stop, I let the violator know why I stopped them and then ask for the usual papers. As soon as the paperwork is in order, I walk back to the cruiser to start writing the citation. That's when the "But officer..." often starts. Being "customer service oriented" I try to address their concerns by stating the reasons behind the citation; that's when the perception of "lecturing" comes into play.

If you aren't prepared for an honest answer, don't ask the question.

 

[RonDawg]

And the firefighters always say:"Cop, huh, failed the firefighter's test did ya"

I personally couldn't care less what a firefighter thought of my job.

 

[adurso]

I personally couldn't care less what a firefighter thought of my job.

They are joking when they say this......

 

[dherbman]

Would you expect it to be any other way?

I can't recall a time when I was ever pulled over by an officer because he wanted to help me. I'm not questioning the value of your job, just pointing out that the majority of honest citizens encouters with LEO come in the form of traffic stops. Tense situations that often leave the civillian with a sense of being "screwed by the man".

That said, there is also a perception within law enforcement that the public will let firefighters get away with a lot more than a cop.

 

[tjmills]

If a guy hasn't had tickets in years (10) and is an upstanding citizen....why do you feel compelled to write a ticket when he is driving on open road with no one else on the road and is only 6mph over the speed limit on a highway? 81 in a 75mph zone. This has happened and when I say open road I mean passing a car in either direction with 5-10 minutes passing before the next.

No arguement, no excitement, no pleading my case and answering everything with Yes sir, No sir. I mean being honest and upfront. I have a huge respect for most officers until proven otherwise.

 

[TJcop]

Is your wife an officer? If not, how does she feel about your Career?

What is your favourite thing about your career? Your least favourite?

Weezy

No, she isn't, but she is very supportive of my career. She tells me how she worries about my safety, and that she's there for me if I need her. Sometimes you do need that shoulder to lean on.

My favorite thing? Geesh...how about not having to sit in an office, staring at a cubicle and doing the same thing every day?

Least favorite? The down time. In the winter months, it can get pretty slow...and it gets depressing on the night shift. But, on Suday I'll be rectifying that problem, since I'll be going to the day shift! Woo-hoo!