Although this board isn't as bad as some others for bashing officers, here's a little reminder of why they deserve a little respect for the job they do. This officer is a friend of mine and a true stand up guy. Watch how quickly this goes south (BTW - probably NSFW b/c of some understandable "adult language.")
http://videos.mlive.com/kzgazette/2012/01/police_cruiser_video_from_offi.html
I really wanted to see the driver's ass get beat.
Did they catch the guy?
My experiences were probably not typical, but nearly every officer I ever encountered treated me like they wanted to be treated...I figure the "bad cops" must be guys that run into a$$hats all the time and it just gets to be too much of a hassle to deal with.
What happened? I saw him take a right on a green light with a turn indicator. Hardly a reason for him to open fire on a cop, mind you...
Taiden wrote: I really wanted to see the driver's ass get shot.
FTFY
Glad the officer is OK.
Close call, glad he is ok.
If you've ever run into a life-threatening situation with a dangerous criminal... you gain a new appreciation for cops.
Actually, the shoot out was just the beginning. As I understand it, they ended up ditching the truck, getting picked up by a girlfriend of one of the two knuckle-heads in the truck, fleeing from the police in another jurisdiction, stealing a car (and blowing up the car's owner's garage during the car theft), fleeing from the police in a third jurisdiction and finally getting caught after a high speed chase on the interstate, then fought with officers during his arrest. The one they believe to be the shooter was a parole absconder. One of the two (I actually think it was the "non-shooter") got chewed on by a police K-9 after the final chase, but from everything I've heard, they were collected relatively unharmed given the craziness that let to their arrests.
That's insane. Think of all the lives that were put in danger because of some guy who was afraid to break parole.
Lesley wrote: If you've ever run into a life-threatening situation with a dangerous criminal... shoot them.
ftfy 
integraguy wrote: My experiences were probably not typical, but nearly every officer I ever encountered treated me like they wanted to be treated...I figure the "bad cops" must be guys that run into a$$hats all the time and it just gets to be too much of a hassle to deal with.
Personal experience tell me cops are usually awesome guys who would rather help you out than berkeley you over. Respect them and they tend to reciprocate (a lot of times, even if they just watched you do something really, really stupid).
I had a high school friend who became a cop and the one piece of advice he gave me was, "if you every get pulled over, don't reach for your wallet, don't hunt for your insurance, keep your hands visible until the officer gets to the window. It'll make him much less nervous and make the whole process go easier"
He said, "imagine walking up to a car, in the dark, not knowing who's in it or what they're going to do."
That video is a perfect example of what he told me all those years ago. I can't imagine the stress those guys are under.
NOTHING about that truck, driver or stop indicated he'd get shot at. I wondered if I was looking at the right one first because the guy seemed to comply and pull over immediately as if it would be a routine stop.
Wow.
-Rob
Pull over to a safe spot, turn on your interior light and keep both hands on the steering wheel.
I don't see how this precludes any other cops from sucking.
Otto Maddox wrote: I don't see how this precludes any other cops from sucking.
Yeah, ONE cop, for a few seconds is seen pulling somebody over. I've only had one cop treat me with respect even though I am VERY respectful of them. I can deal with the cops having the superiority complex to some extent, but it's the issues I dealt with growing up in Detroit that will forever sully the "profession". That and seeing them hiding behind bushes looking to give me a tax for driving 5 over.
Most cops are good. A bad one with the amount of power they are given is very bad. And usually when there is a bad one the "fraternal" nature of cops keeps the bad ones from loosing that power.
Otto Maddox wrote: I don't see how this precludes any other cops from sucking.
Oh, it doesn't. I just get tired reading "cop wrote me ticket, was total D-bag" threads. Not saying cops getting shot at excuses all lousy police/citizen encounters, I just figured the video gives a little insight as to why they might not be officer friendly when they first come to your window.
Of the last four times that I was pulled over for speeding,I got one written down to 10 over from 20, one written down to 5 over from 13, and one really tame lectures, and one warning that the deer are in rut and I should slow down ! I don't mind cops one bit ! FWIW, these tickets occurred over a 12 year time span.
I have yet to be ticketed for anything other than parking in the wrong spot on private property. Every encounter I've ever had with law enforcement has been positive, but in my experience, you can ALWAYS sense uneasiness in the first few minutes of a conversation with an officer.
I've never had an issue with a bad cop . I've always treated them with respect and gotten the same in return.
I did write one letter to an FHP's shift leader due to unprofessionalism at a stop other than that nothing.
Traffic stops are the most dangerous part of a police officers job. More die during them than any other activity. Understand every time a police officer pulls you over, he thinks to himself, "I might die now." Now how worried do you think he or she its about making your experience a positive one? (Not directed at the previous post. I've done similar and support that.)
This reminds me that I should fix the dome light on both of my cars.
I once saw a very memorable photo in a law-enforcement survival manual. Viewed from officer eye level was the driver's seat of a Camaro, containing a smiling blonde woman wearing a halter top that was about three sizes too small. The caption read, "If you failed to notice the .45-cal handgun on the console of this vehicle, you need to re-evaluate your approach to routine traffic stops."
Nuff said.
Wow, glad he survived. It could have turned out a LOT worse.
Over a long time of driving, I've been pulled over a few times. Even in my long haired hippie daze (I try to keep the pics hidden) I was always treated well by cops, even when they really shouldn't have. They have one hell of a hard and dangerous job, that was driven home quite forcibly when a constable I knew in Charleston was kidnapped, taken to a remote cornfield in Orangeburg County, murdered and buried in a shallow grave.
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