Understanding Consensual LE Encounters

[ghunter]

I get random people almost daily who stop me when I'm in uniform and say "I didn't do it". I reply by saying "I know. I did it. I made sure you weren't around".

I can't speak for other LEOs, but I don't stop anyone to talk unless I'm asking things like:

"Did you see a man run through here wearing such n such?"

"Why are you stumbling around and trying to punch people?"

The short version is, I don't make "random" stops.

 

[Leo]

Public police work is a crappy job from a mental health point of view.

1) most of the big supervison decisions are passed down from slimy politicians.

2) The city (like the Fed's) is financially irresponsible, somehow that becomes an officers problem.

3) If an officer actually arrests a bad guy, and by some chance the guy actually gets all the way to prison, the parole clerks or somebody screws up and puts them back on the street. Now it is the officers problem again, along with the citys financial issues.

4) The bad guys actually stay in prison, and then some politically connected judge decides to ease overcrowding by putting the bad guys out on the street. Thanks judge

5) Many of the people the officers deal with are the scum of the earth. You have to be pretty hard shelled to deal with that day in and out. You have to be nice to them because the same judges who empty the jails will bust the officer down if they offend some slime ball. Oh, and by the way, the citys fanancial position needs help, you better produce some revenue, or it could be you job.

6) After a while this wears on you and everyone looks like an enemy. It is hard to be level headed. Your family is suffering because you cannot deal with it all. That makes you more depressed and more angry. BTW don't forget that revenues are down.

None of this is excusing any officer that has gone wrong. Some become actual sociopaths. Some entered the job because they are sociopaths. When I did Chaplain work at Starret jail in Dallas, I often talked to as many LEO's as prisoners.

99% of the time I do my best to not make trouble where there is not trouble. It usually works. If you take a man, any man, but especailly a stressed man, and talk to him like a dog and become beligerent, you are probably not going to receive his best behavior.

Common decency works most of the time. In the cases where the officer had already lost his reasoning before he spoke to you, there is little you can due but refuse to esculate. I just try to stack the odds in my favor.

I could not do the job. I know how strong my desire for justice is. If I kicked in a door and found a perv rapping a child, I would instantly become judge, jury, and executioner. If some punk just beat an elderly woman nearly to death, I would wear out my night stick. I know that my personality would default to both Mosaic Law and Levitiacal Law with a little pride based bravado. I pray for safety, judgement and wisdom for all LEO's, even the screw-ups.

While many will not be called friend, I choose not to make them enemies either.

I know there are several LEO's on this site, GOD BLess you.

 

[ghunter]

Public police work is a crappy job from a mental health point of view.

1) most of the big supervison decisions are passed down from slimy politicians.

2) The city (like the Fed's) is financially irresponsible, somehow that becomes an officers problem.

3) If an officer actually arrests a bad guy, and by some chance the guy actually gets all the way to prison, the parole clerks or somebody screws up and puts them back on the street. Now it is the officers problem again, along with the citys financial issues.

4) The bad guys actually stay in prison, and then some politically connected judge decides to ease overcrowding by putting the bad guys out on the street. Thanks judge

5) Many of the people the officers deal with are the scum of the earth. You have to be pretty hard shelled to deal with that day in and out. You have to be nice to them because the same judges who empty the jails will bust the officer down if they offend some slime ball. Oh, and by the way, the citys fanancial position needs help, you better produce some revenue, or it could be you job.

6) After a while this wears on you and everyone looks like an enemy. It is hard to be level headed. Your family is suffering because you cannot deal with it all. That makes you more depressed and more angry. BTW don't forget that revenues are down.

None of this is excusing any officer that has gone wrong. Some become actual sociopaths. Some entered the job because they are sociopaths. When I did Chaplain work at Starret jail in Dallas, I often talked to as many LEO's as prisoners.

99% of the time I do my best to not make trouble where there is not trouble. It usually works. If you take a man, any man, but especailly a stressed man, and talk to him like a dog and become beligerent, you are probably not going to receive his best behavior.

Common decency works most of the time. In the cases where the officer had already lost his reasoning before he spoke to you, there is little you can due but refuse to esculate. I just try to stack the odds in my favor.

I could not do the job. I know how strong my desire for justice is. If I kicked in a door and found a perv rapping a child, I would instantly become judge, jury, and executioner. If some punk just beat an elderly woman nearly to death, I would wear out my night stick. I know that my personality would default to both Mosaic Law and Levitiacal Law with a little pride based bravado. I pray for safety, judgement and wisdom for all LEO's, even the screw-ups.

While many will not be called friend, I choose not to make them enemies either.

I know there are several LEO's on this site, GOD BLess you.

Very well said. +1!

 

[Audie Murphy]

Really a quality post you keep on spamming here and every thread you have commented on.

 

[BehindBlueI's]

I'm going to start responding with the "am I being detained" thing when I get back to the street. I want to see how the other side lives.

I can picture you now, sitting there with your cheeseburger all poised to shove in your face. Random citizen approaches with the obligatory "I hate to bother you while you're eating" and then asks something like "my neighbor trained a squirrel to deposit empty acorn husks in my mail box, can I legally..." before you burst out with AM I BEING DETAINED?? I DON'T HAVE TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS, I KNOW MY RIGHTS!!!

Sgt says...