This isn't a thread to bash police officers, but to simply find out if these occurances are only things that seem to happen to me.

EVERYTIME I call the police, I, somehow, come under suspicion. This has been so annoying that I've actually stopped calling them, & have resorted to taking the law into my own hands on more than a few occasions.

The first time this occured in my adult life, I was 18. I thought I was helping a "friend", when I pawned a few items for him. I soon found out that these particular items were actually stolen from a nieghbor of mine. So, I called the police, thinking, "If I let them know now, they can get back the items & arrest the guy". No, they wanted to arrest me. I got a Burger King Whopper Meal for "helping" him out, so I had no money & they wanted me to go pick up the stuff or charges were going to be brought against ME! Really, if I would have known they were going to focus on me, I wouldn't have called them. If I were the perp, would I have called them? Wouldn't I have TRIED to get away with it? It took a conversation with my mother before they decided to just take a statement & leave me alone.

Then came the time I let my girlfriend move in with ME, we got into an argument & she proceded to break my stuff. Once again, I call the police. When they arrive, they take a look around & decide a "little woman" like her couldn't have torn up my living room the way it was. They then turn to her & ask if SHE would like to press Domestic Violence charges against ME! This was MY HOUSE! I wouldn't have destroyed my own stuff, no matter how angry I was! I paid for that stuff & I'm not a violent man! I guess I was lucky that she "decided" not to press charges.

The last time I called them was when my truck was stolen. It's a Limited Edition ragtop convertible Dodge Dakota Sport Truck & a tow truck driver had been eyeballing it ever since he saw it in a transmission center's parking lot. He went to them several times about it, until they told him to ask me. If I said yes, than they had no problem with him taking it. He lies & tells them he stopped by my house & I no longer lived there, so they let him have it. He contacts my brother at work, I had a receipt from the dry cleaner's he worked for in the glove compartment, about my birth certificate, which was also in the glove compartment. I call him back & he proceeds to tell me if I want my truck back I'm going to have to pay him over $3,000. I call the police...again.

The officer comes through the door & takes one look at my brother. At this point he was done with me. (See, he arrested my brother a few months ago, so, I guess now I'm a criminal, as well.) I give him the guy's number. The cop calls him, asks a couple questions, hangs up & tells me the tow was legit. I follow him outside to ask, "If it was legit, why did he have to lie to the transmission center?", when the cop just ignores me & drives away. Luckily, the call from the officer made the jerk nervous. So, he calls & asks me to give him something, anything. So, I tell him all I can come up with is $500. He agrees to it & brings my truck back to the shop. I wait until midnight, call another tow truck driver & pay him $30 to bring my truck back home.

Why is it cops are so quick to look at the one who placed the call? Do criminals normally call & try to shift blame BEFORE any fingers are even pointed? Has this ever happened to anyone else? Or, is it just my "luck"?

By the way, I'm a "fairly" law abiding citizen & I have no police record.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Monkey_Boy,

You mean after all those busts, you have no police record? I don't have one either, but I admit that's a fluke! Without going into details, I'll admit that police are some of the most thrill-seeking junkies out there. Even though they don't want to get shot and killed in the line of duty, they do enjoy seeking out "semi-danger". Now, maybe, I'm wrong, but it honestly seems to me that nobody who wants even a remotely normal life would want to become a policeman. True, I had a pretty normal brother-in-law who was a cop for over 30 years, but he never brought his job over to the family get-togethers. He also was a product of the '50s/60s.

Anyway, I have been harrassed by many policemen in my earlier days, but somehow, now that I never get into accidents or trouble, they leave me alone and go pick on some minorities. I like cops in a theoretical sense, but I'm not one who feels that comfortable when they're around.

Please don't take offense because I'm sure there are those here who are cops, or are married to cops, or are grateful to cops. I just haven't been put in that situation, even though in a perfect world, I would be.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: mark f,

Geez, outta everyone here, Mark F & I are the only two to experience this type of treatment! Must be our bad luck. Guess next time I'll call a lawyer!

I think things are a little more lax, but fair, in Canada. There are local police and there are RCMP. However, the RCMP seem to be the most level-headed and courteous of the two groups of law enforcement.

quote:

Originally posted by Monkey_Boy:
By the way, I'm a "fairly" law abiding citizen & I have no police record.

What do you mean by “fairly”, Monkey_Boy? ;-)

quote:

Originally posted by Echolocating:
What do you mean by “fairly”, Monkey_Boy? ;-)

Well, just that, like most people, I've gone faster than the speed limit, dropped trash in a parking lot, murdered a couple of people that really annoyed me, I mean, um, that's all ! If you really read the laws of your town, you find you've unknowingly broken all sorts of laws. I'm no angel, but I'm no devil, either ! To be treated as a criminal everytime I call the police, just isn't justified by my past. That was my point.

I guess I should point out that most of my bad experiences with the police were when I lived in the suburbs. However, now I live in the city & a year ago, I got into a fight with my in-laws & decided to forbid them from seeing my children. To get back at me, they call the police & tell them I'm neglecting my children . The police show up & I'm once again looked as a suspect. It's funny to me because there was no evidence my children were in any danger. Yet, they took my wife outside & drilled her with questions on whether she fears for her life & such. I then had to have child sevices come to my house for the next few weeks until they decided there was no cause for action. All of this because the police got a call. They never once looked at my in-laws with contempt. I even told them WHY they were called & still, I was a suspect. What makes this story really sad, that very morning I told my wife to take the kids to her parents house because I shouldn't try to make her choose between me & her parents. As she was getting the kids ready, the police knock on the door with her parents standing behind them.

As you've read, when I call them, they always end up believeing the people who I've called them on. When others call the cops on me, for some reason, I'm the only one they look at. No matter what I say, I'm the only one under suspicion. I am truly confused why I'm so unbelieveable. That's why I started this thread, I'm just curious if this is something that only happens to me.

Do you have shifty eyes, MB?

quote:

Originally posted by ericg75:
Do you have shifty eyes, MB?

Well, a general description of me (before my operation last month) would be: I'm 5'9" tall, 215 lbs., slight pot-belly, very light skinned, mixed olive complexion, a neatly, trimmed goatee, & strawberry blonde dreads to my shoulders (now, I have no hair). I'm mistaken for a white person by most, but a few people that really look at me, can see I am mixed. I've been told by friends (& enemies) that I looked rather threatening & I even scared a few girlfriends when they first met me, but once I opened my mouth & they found out how goofy I was, all fears vanished (bad news for me, when it came to my enemies). I have taken my appearance into consideration, however, when it comes to the point that I have to call the cops, all intimidation in my appearance is gone. I'm at the end of my rope, there is no composure, I've given up & am ready for the cops to take care of my problem. I'm all, "Yes, sir", "No, sir". I'm not angry. Even when I called them on my girlfriend who was destroying my house, I was calm when they showed up & she was the one all yelling & screaming. Not a mark on her, but my living room & dining room are in shambles & I'm the bad guy .

It must be because you look or seem different, Monkey. Very superficial crap. To the "average folk", you're scary, so they need help. To the cops, you're "scary", so they treat you suspiciously.

I suppose you're right. It sucks because I'm as weak as a kitten! All these operations have left me in a constant state of rehabilitation. I can't even walk up a flight of stairs without getting out of breath! Thanks for the feedback!

I've had my fair run-ins with the cops. Every time I get pulled over for somthing they act like such jerks. I used to drive a beautiful 1968 El Camino--which my girlfriend hated--it was loud, fast and well I loved it. My dad and I put a 455 Oldsmobile Delta 88 engine in it and it roared. However, I am not a speeder so I never went too fast in it. There was a long street heading to my old house that was 35 MPH for the longest time, very annoying, everyone would speed there. But there was always a pig hanging out there waiting to give a ticket. I was driving home late one night (around 12AM) and the cop pulled behind me, stayed there for a good five minutes then flashed his lights. I pulled into a neigborhoood, I was only about two minutes home so I made sure that I pulled into a different block so that no one in my family freaked out. The cop pulled me over because I was supposedly swerving on the street and had an expired inspection sticker. I had already renewed the sticker a month before and I was not swerving at all. He kept flashing his flashlight in my eyes and was asking me why I was out so late. What was it to him? He even made me get out of the car and made me do the "Walk a straight line, walking foot over foot" thing. I hadn't even had one drink; he was asking me all these questions to see if I stuttered and everything. It was so stupid, he finally let me go of course because he had nothing on me. Needless to say I got home at 130AM, way over my curfew, and got in huge trouble with my parents for being late. I couldn't say why because eventhough I didnt do anything wrong my parents would have freaked out.

Either way, all cops I have dealt with are jerks and I have never met one that wasn't.

I was hasseled by the cops after I got The Truck. I guess it's because I stuck out like a sore thumb. I was 18 & had the baddest truck in Lee's Summit, Mo. ! Not many teens had a convertible truck back then. They pulled me over everytime they saw me. Each time, I had to let them search my truck for drugs. I even had a cop tell me he was going to bust me if it was the last thing he did! They liked to crap when they found a prescription bottle with someone else's name in my glove compartment! Too bad for them, it was just some Tylenol my grandmother gave me when I told her I had a headache. She didn't have anything to put the pills in, so she grabbed one of her empty bottles. Of course, they threatened to take me to jail, anyway. I told 'em they'd just be wasting their time & so they let me off with a "warning". If only I knew I had the right to refuse to let them search. I would've soooo let them call & wait for a K-9 unit to sniff around. It's not like they would've smelled anything & they would've just wasted time waiting for it.

Here in the city, the cops aren't that bad. Besides the ones that showed up when my in-laws called, I haven't had any problems with them otherwise. I even had one time where I was pulled over & the cop just wanted to tell me one of my tires was low on air. That's it! He didn't even ask for my license or insurance! I didn't really have trouble with the police until my mom moved to Lee's Summit when I was 16. Then it was always, "Let me see your I.D." or "What's your social security number?"

quote:

The cop pulled me over because I was supposedly swerving on the street and had an expired inspection sticker

I had an similar situation Fragile. I was driving home from doing my laundry and it wasn't even that late, around 10:00 pm. I was in a left turn lane when the light was red and the cop was next to me. I see him back up and get behind me. I turn and he flashes his lights. I pull off to the side of the road and he asks me for my license, registration, and insurance. I haven't been pulled over in a while and I had about ten old insurance cards so I was rifling through my glove box. He came back and saw me doing it and told me to step out of the car and put my hands on the hood. He gave me a search and three other cop cars pulled up blocking my way on both sides. I also recently moved so I was pretty far away from where my address on my license said I lived. They grilled about what I was doing in this part of town, and I said I lived around here. They eventually let me find my insurance card. I guess they ran it through the computer and found out that I was clean. He told me that my tag was one year expired even though it had about four months left on it. I probably matched some discription of a car thief or other criminal and they decided to pull me over.

That's Albuquerque for ya. We have one of the highest crimes rates per capita in the United States, but at least I can see my fair city on Cops on a regular basis.

I’m really curious as to the psychological profile that law enforcement wants working for them. Two brothers I met a while ago went to become RCMP officers. Only one of them made the cut. The guy who didn’t was far from a being a dummy and was incredibly physically fit… yet he failed the psychological testing… twice. What are they looking for in potential recruits?

quote:

Originally posted by Monkey_Boy:
Geez, outta everyone here, Mark F & I are the only two to experience this type of treatment! Must be our bad luck. Guess next time I'll call a lawyer!

I'm a long-haired, skateboarding, music obsessed pothead teenager. I get illegaly searched on a daily basis (last time the police officer said that he thought my friend and I had been "tagging" bridges and searched us. Even though our hands had no paint on them, it was daylight, and the bridge we were hanging out at was busy as hell... I had to toss my ish when the dumbass wasn't looking).

I can't stand most police officers. I've grown up around them (my dad is a firefighter and he works w/ police officers a lot) and i can say without a shadow of a doubt that they either take themselves too seriously and are uptight dick wads or they're really cool dudes. I've rarely met a cop who didn't match one of descriptions.

Im afraid that ive had just the opposite experience with poliece officers.

when i am angry, and i let my face show it, i am a Very intimidating person. i am 6'4, White, Hazle eyes, very dark brown hair that is about shoulder length, and a medium sized gotee on my chin. honestly, i dont dress very intimidating, but you never know.

one day, a few years ago when i had this same look about me, i had been target shooting with my compound bow in my back yard. my property is almost an acre in size, so i had pleanty of space. well, one of the arrows that i shot went very very very far off course for absolutely no reason that i could understand. it went into one of my neighbors yards (yes, i do understand that that is a very DANGEROUS thing). well, about 2 hours later, a poliece officer knocked on my door, and asked me very politely if the arrow was mine. i responded "yes" and he told me where it was found, and that the people who found it asked that i be more careful in the future. (keep in mind that these particular neighbors are uptight assholes who pretty much hate my guts for no apparent reason) i responded, of course officer, i did not intend for it to happen, please convey my appoligies, and that was the end of it. he was polite, i was polite, and that was despite the fact that i could have put that arrow straight through someones head.

in fact, the same thing happened again, on a later date, when an adult friend of my fathers, who is a bow hunter, was target shooting. his arrow went almost a block off course, and completely deformed before it landed. again, an officer showed up, and again he was very polite, and simply said that the person who found the arrow wished to tell whoever shot the arrow could have endangered someone. that was the end of it.

quite recently, when i was out of state driving home from college, an officer pulled me over (i had already gotten a ticket on this road at the start of the school year) and told me that normally he wouldnt have even bothered to stop me, except that i had out of state plates, i was in the left hand lane on a 2 lane on both sides ruralhighway (huh?) and i was going 70 miles an hour in a 60 mph zone. (which to him was the least of his worries) after telling him that i had absolutely no idea that driving in the left hand lane was not allowed except for passing, and that i was on my way home from college, and just eager to see my family, and my girlfriend, and my pets, he gave me a "fake ticket" which had no fine on it, no court date, i dont think it even had a signature... and just said have a good day!

what city do you live in the suburbs of, by chance?

I'm not defending their behavior but being a cop is a difficult job. They get paid shit. Most of the stuff they deal with is boring. When they go home to watch TV, they have a million shows about awesome stories with awesome cops that maybe might could happen. Cops want to be these awesome cops. We all get bored but they have the capability to change that. ANYTHING that looks suspicious could be a drug dealer or a wife beater in their eyes. I guess that is why they became cops, for adventure, even if it is just a naive thought in their head at the academy.

Although my experiences with the cops have been relatively low and I also live in the nice white suburbs of Atlanta, where black people could rape our women (they do actually believe that. there has been talk of a rail to the suburbs and the argument against it is black people are gonna come and kill us all. no joke. its white flight in the south), I've always had very good experiences and I've always respected them. But unfortunately they can do asinine things and be huge assholes, like in monkey boy's experiences.

I still (slightly) respect them, monkey boy, but damn what city were those cops?

quote:

Originally posted by Tythsai:
what city do you live in the suburbs of, by chance?

Well, when I was younger, I lived in the city & the cops were cool, but when I turned 16, we moved to the suburbs where all of my "Police Problems" began. I understand that suburban cops are a bit more a$$hole-ish because they don't really have that much to do other than show up for domestic disturbances & other "low-level" crimes. Seems like it would be nice not to have to worry too much about your life policing the suburbs .

I must say, you are lucky than a mug in your situations! I remember when I first moved to the 'burbs (I love that movie!) I was up until 6am with some new neighborhood friends & one of them got the BRIGHT idea to go around town & shoot people with Super Soaker water guns. Now, I had never lived in the suburbs before, so I had no idea how stupid this idea was at the time. So we all pile into my car with a couple of Super Soakers & I start driving around town while the guys in the backseat were squirting unsuspecting people on their way to work. It was plain, old water. Nothing was in it & they would've been dry by the time they got to work. I didn't think it was that big of a deal. After awhile, we're pulled over & a cop is threatening to take us to jail for assault. ASSAULT WITH A WATER GUN! You got a "Please be more careful" & I got "That was assault & you're damn lucky we don't haul your butts in". I mean, we were surrounded by several squad cars & there were at least 10 officers because someone called & said there was a group of teens armed with a water gun. I wonder what the scene woulda looked like if we had a real gun! We probably woulda been shot before I pulled the car over!

That was my first encounter with the Lee's Summit Police Department, the first of many, & they all went pretty much the same way. Pulled over (or stopped while I was just walking up the street), threatened, given several sarcastic comments, & then just let go. What was really funny was they used to pull me over & right when they got to the car window, they would tell me I had a warrant for my arrest. I'd always answer back with "No, I don't" & then they would normally say, "Well, there's a guy that looks just like you with the same truck, & he has a warrant." Um, okay, so there's another light-skinned, half black, dreadlocked male, with a rag-top convertible truck & a monkey. Suuuure there is . However, there was that one time when they told me I had a warrant & when I said, "No, I don't" they came back with, "Yes, you do. Please step outta the vehicle." I was shocked! Turns out that I was being arrested for a ticket that I had already paid off! I didn't know this at the time, but this was something that was happening to black males quite often back then. I caught it on the news about six months after it happened to me. Sumpthin' smells very fishy, indeed.

quote:

Originally posted by The Friar:
I still (slightly) respect them, monkey boy, but damn what city were those cops?

Lee's Summit & Blue Springs, Mo. The Kansas City cops are actually very nice!

i do understand the stupidity about the whole watergun thing.

im in the chicago suburbs. im 19, i still live with my parents when im not at school. i was born in the hospital that caters to my town, and i have lived in this exact same house my entire life. my father spent his very late teens in the general area, and my mother, after being forced to nation hop for most of her life because my grandfather worked for amaco as a refinery designer, moved into this same area as well. i mean, i dont know any poliece officers for my town on a first name basis, but thats not to say that i havnt met a few of them once or twice when i would call the villege hall/poliece department and tell them that i was nearly hit by the school bus for the 7th time that month.

there was a situation that happened several years ago where my father was driving id say maybe half an hour outside of town, and some crazy (bitch) lady was riding his ass. well, honestly she was lucky as hell that she didnt rear end him. he drives a ford f-250 with a ladder and tool cap on the back end, and you cant see shit thats behind you. well, the lady zooms around him, she stops at a trafic light, rolls down her window to flick him off. he rolls down his window and says "lady, what the fuck is your problem?" probably 6 months later, after being stopped from having who knows what the hell it was wrong with his truck, a cop arrests him for "assult". he later finds out that the woman accused him of spitting on her and supplied the poliece department with his liscnese and shit.

since you mentioned appearence as a factor in your incidents, i can say that that is a VERY big problem here. i mean, my town is fairly small, and mostly self contained. people normally dont say to their friends "HEY lets go to bolingbrook today!" normally its people in my town who say that they want to go to naperville, or downersgrove or what have you. so the police have the serious troublemakers pegged. but its very troubleing what the normal description of all of these trouble makers are. basically anyone who has either too nice of a non high class car, or anyone who has too shitty of any car. if any police officer ever pulls over any member of a minority, regardless of whether that person has 4 children under the age of 7 in the vehicle, the officer wont even bother getting out of his car until he has an additional 2 or 3 backup cars in place. i dont mean specifically african americans only. it could be an asian, it could be someone of hispanic decent, someone of middle eastern decent, yes, african american's, even white folks who dont look "proper" get the same treatment. the people that i see getting pulled over most often, and i admit i really only notice those in my age group, dont even really bother to put up a fight any more. the last time, in fact he was a white guy who i was in grade school with, was pulled over, he simply assumed a position of helplessness the moment the officer started walking up to his car. sure, the guy isnt an angel, but i doubt that he deserved that kind of treatment. he has a kid, and a wife, i doubt that hes THAT much of an idiot.

i dont know... on a lighter note, perhaps police officers never bother anyone at my house because i have 2 (3 if you count the one who is 18 yea