A short time ago, I read a diary: http://www.dailykos.com/...
Within that, I made a comment that in retrospect was a bit tengential and lengthy, probably warranting its own diary. The author graciously pointed this out and I agreed. It also, due to some haste on my part, was somewhat confusing, so I agreed to some tidying.
Though a bit overdue, here is my reworked comment:
Advice is probably useless against LEO 'wisdom'
I find that article, "lawful vs. proper policing," is quite quaint. I scoff at idea that 'training' will rectify, since quite often, what new recruits learn on their new beat with FTO, is to 'forget what they learned in training.' Don't believe me? Read the officers' own words.
Combine an allowance to mistake fact, mistake law, everyone is a threat and criminal, qualified immunity, judicial allowances for buzz words of 'feared for my life', and every cop knows the first rule of policing is that the officer, under any and all circumstances MUST go home, 10 year olds and 80 year old, wheelchair bound elderly will certainly kill you, and it is better to be judged by 12 than carried by 6, the pragmatic thing to do is shoot first, under any circumstance with even the slightest inkling of doubt in officer's mind. Considering that the mantra is that everyone lies, criminals lie, ergo the world is filled with dirtbags, creeps and fuck 'em all, they don't care about you...the courts, DA and other officers will back you, well, the results are not surprising. Now, tie that into a not-insignificant swath of the general population that buys into a glaring authoritarian mindset that all of that is necessary, good, supportive of reinforcing/condoning policies you have the recipe that renders our current state, growing more troublesome by the day.
Example comment from a fishing web site I peruse, discussing a local non-violent protest: "I grew up with the understanding that violating laws made you a criminal, not a hero. If a LEO says move (or anything else) by order of law, and you don't, you have earned whatever happens next. Choices were made ..." Note that for the commenter, the 'choices' leading to a beating or worse, are always the fault of not listening to any/all commands, even when abiding law, or non-threatening/peaceful; it's their own damn fault for a beat-down or death, because they chose to voice protest. In other words, no matter how trivial a violation, there is no limit to the harshness of the consequence, "if they didn't listen, they deserve whatever they get." This attitude is quite prevalent among the members of that fishing site, and over time, I think they are fairly representative of my geographical region's general population.
Reading Balko's Rise of Warrior Cop and Authoritarian tests/observations done by Altemeyer, one gets a decent sense for the politics, fear-mongering, contradictions, and hypocrisy our law enforcement approach and policies instill throughout our 'justice system.' Our schizophrenic illogic, fear-induced paranoia calling for extreme and counter-productive punitive action, and tired platitudes are an incoherent jumble these days: Innocent until proven guilty = LEOs can shoot people guilty of nothing, presenting no threat, because officers made gross mistakes of both law and fact (see L.A. and two women delivering papers on their daily route), imprison indefinitely without trial (see NY prisons, Gitmo, etc.), target and assassinate a teenager without evidence or trial, because they should have had a different father (see al-Awlaki's son per senior advisor Gibbs). Appalling, not altogether unexpected, and if anyone's read much about criminology, mostly contrary to sounder methods.
Our police, elected officials, much of the populace, legislature, and judiciary all generally support policy that further protects and insulates a system that paradoxically, aggressively clamors to provide a service targeting its customers as the adversary and is always looking for a larger market/more customers to impose punitive wrath.
A few tidbits from a few minutes on google to illustrate:
It doesn't even matter what a former officer says, only your current 'bros' are what matters. So this guy (ex-cop turned defense lawyer) is talking to the wind:
https://excoplawstudent.wordpress.com/....
"At the end of the day, the public’s safety is paramount. Strike that. At any time of the day, the public’s safety is paramount."
http://blog.simplejustice.us/...
In Heien v. North Carolina, by a 6-2-1 decision, the Supremes have completed the fuzzying up of search and seizure law that began with Whren, where phony “objective” justifications for a stop were approved even though they bore no connection with reality or truth. The Court then followed through to mistakes of fact, built on Brinegar, but raised to an art form in Herring, where police incompetence that created the “mistake of fact” was sufficiently reasonable to cover their screw-up.
[I add case references]
https://www.law.cornell.edu/...
"we conclude that when police mistakes are the result of negligence such as that described here...any marginal deterrence does not “pay its way.” In such a case, the criminal should not “go free because the constable has blundered.” The judgment of the Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit is affirmed. It is so ordered."
Mistake of law - Heien v. North Carolina
http://www.supremecourt.gov/...
[end case references]
[back to simplejustice commentary]
The Supreme Court has now held that they are, indeed, the arbiters of the law, with the only condition being that they can craft a half-baked, phony, facile excuse for why they got the law wrong.
Finally, Heien and amici point to the well-known maxim, “Ignorance of the law is no excuse,” and contend that it is fundamentally unfair to let police officers get away with mistakes of law when the citizenry is accorded no such leeway. Though this argument has a certain rhetorical appeal, it misconceives the implication of the maxim.
And so, the ruling:
Reasonable suspicion arises from the combination of an officer’s understanding of the facts and his understanding of the relevant law. The officer may be reasonably mistaken on either ground. Whether the facts turn out to be not what was thought, or the law turns out to be not what was thought, the result is the same: the facts are outside the scope of the law. There is no reason, under the text of the Fourth Amendment or our precedents, why this same result should be acceptable when reached by way of a reasonable mistake of fact, but not when reached by way of a similarly reasonable mistake of law.
Good luck out there...because we are all liars, creeps, we all have paper-clip sized weapons that can kill (even your driver license), and every officer you encounter, if they are following the oft-given advice of their peers per their own words, is literally planning a way to kill you during every interaction.
For verification of preceding paragraph truth, just check out a compilation of what actual police officers proffer new recruits on the job:
http://forums.officer.com/...
1. Go Home At The End Of Your Shift-
That's the first rule of law enforcement-that you go home at the end of your shift.
Officer Jim Malone (Sean Connery)
The Untouchables (1987)
Enough said. However, I’ll give my thoughts on it. It is proven that officers intently focused on going home, with the mentality “I WILL not die here on the street” will be more apt to survive deadly encounters, and FAR more likely to survive a potentially deadly wound. Officers have survived being shot to the heart, brain, etc. You MUST adopt the mentality and motto: “They WILL NOT HURT ME-I MY GOING HOME TO MY FAMILY!”
NUMBER 1 {probably been said 100 itmes} ALWAYS GO HOME AFTER EACH SHIFT.....
Rule #1 is a must, and everyone should not get in your car unless you believe rule 1.
Remember you are out there to protect life and property - but its your life first !
There is very little worth dying for on the streets. I will come home no matter what.
Rule #1.......It is better to be judged by 12 than carried by 6...Never forget that
Don't just carry a gun because it's part of the job - become a Gunfighter. This may save lives some day. This goes back to the #1 rule of Law Enforcement: Come home alive!
remember, there is NOTHING on the street that you cannot do and do successfully so long as you can reasonably articulate the whys for what you did.
As a PO you have been given a power that is beyond the President, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court or even the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. You have been given the power of life or death that YOU alone control and have the ability to rule on as to appropriateness. Later others will call what you did into judgement, but at that moment on the street it is you alone who is acting under the color of law and the belief the action is necessary. AND unless you were eggregiously out of line you will probably be able to "get away with it" even if you are wrong, so long as you cover yourself appropriately. Write your report correctly and state the correct buzzwords about threat and fear.
[Note that this above-comment, specifically coaching to use the correct buzzwords about threat and fear and 'you will get away with it' receives loud applause and cheering from the forum...Subsequent post, blockquoting above statement:] "Just wanted to say awesome reply."
And my first Sgt. told me - none of these (pointing to houses) muther f*kers are on your side. They sure as H*LL aren't worth my life...
On a traffic stop, try and get I.D's from everyone in the car; not just the driver. You'd be surprised how many people have warrants.
EVERY time you reach for that door handle to get out of the car, be ready for a gunfight! That CS traffic stop......that ped stop to cite a minor for an open container.......THOSE are the contacts that will turn into firefights and KILL YOU, because those are the *routine contacts where it isnt supposed to happen.
were the boss on the streets, no matter what they say at the end of the day what you say happens;
Make a mental list of the idiots that gave you a hard time and you werent able to do anything about it. You will see them again when you can.
Remember that EVERYONE, from then ten year old girl to the 80 year old in a wheelchair, can possess the ability to KILL you.
Fight to win. Fight dirty.
Always cheat; always win. The only unfair fight is the one you lose.
Be polite. Be professional. But have a plan to kill everyone you meet.
Have a plan to kill everyone you meet.
When in doubt, point your gun at people if you think they might try to kill you or somebody else. There's no law saying they have to shoot first or that you can only draw from your holster after the threat shows itself.
If that little voice inside your head says, "Hey, stupid, you'd better be ready to rock any second," then get ready to rock. Any second.
Sometimes that little voice is dead wrong. But you can always say you're sorry, and a surprising number of people are awfully nice about it once you explain what happened and why.
When a cop says something like, "I worked the streets for 10 years and never pulled my gun out of the holster," he's either lying or too stupid for words. Don't listen to him either way.
Be courteous to everyone, friendly to no one.
Never, write LEO"S for Traffic Infractions, he might be the only back-up you will have, while you are out there alone!
And lastly and most important, never, ever, fail to back your partner
If you getting to the end of your FTO and you wonder why no one wants to hang out with you or get to know you better it's probably because you've done something to break the "blue trust".
Be nice to everyone you meet, but have a plan to kill them if you have to.
If you do have to thump someone, when you are done, always ask in a calm manner, "Are you okay, man?", even though you don't care.
Out here, everybody lies.
If you ask a question to a suspect and the first word that comes out of his mouth is ,"huh" you can rest assured that the next word will be a lie.
See I figure that theres only about 1% of true victims. Rarely is there a true victimless crime. Atleast were I come from anyways.
Don't Believe Them
Probably the single most important thing I recall from all my years is that people lie. Grandmas, that "nice kid down the block," wives, husbands, sisters, brothers, neighbors, store owners, delivery men, waitresses, garbage men, doctors, lawyers (of course), witnesses, and even suspects, they all lie.
Crooks always lie. Always. And they'll look you right in the eye when they do it, and smile, and be all serious and such, and you'll be tempted to believe them. Don't believe them. Ever.
Handcuff anyone you feel hinky about, even if they get upset about it. You can always say, "Sorry, Sarge, it seemed like the right thing to do at the time." I had to apologize for this once, but the guy was still sore about it and I figured he'd call in a complaint. Oh well, I lived, and besides, a day "on the beach" isn't always a bad thing. Search anyone you get close to in a field contact if things get even semi-serious or if you have the least suspicion about anything.
If you have to, cut the suspect's pocket open first. So you may have to buy another pair of pants for some creep. So what.
They lied to you during training. Most of what you learned in during training will need to be forgotten. Most of what you learned in traing doesn't work.
Simplify your life. The drunk is always wrong. The drunk is drunk and therefore, can't remember what happened anyway. Referring back to rule #1, his drunken lies will be stupid and insulting, while the sober person's lies will probably be better thought out and plausible. If you know somebody in the disorder needs to go to jail, and you can't decide which one, take the drunk.
Civilian ridealongs are not your friends.
Some night, someone will try to kill you. You do not when, who or where. Therefore, consider everyone with whom you come in contact to be a potential threat.
Don’t be their friend, be MY friend. Please.
If you are on a traffic stop, and the lowlife you are dealing with does not have ID...
As it turned out, the guy was well-DOA, so it didn't matter. But what if that'd been another officer fighting for his life?
When it comes time to lay hands on somebody (and that time WILL come), let your violence be swift and merciless.
EVERYTHING IS A WEAPON, EVERYTHING CAN BE AN IMPACT WEAPON
Develop A “Hand Fetish”
MAKE YOURSELF watch the hands before you even look at the face. They can only hurt you with their hands. If you don’t see two empty PALMS then assume they have something in it.
Write your reports to an imaginary member of the public, NOT to just your supervisor. For instance, the layperson does NOT KNOW that “Hilltop Apartments” are a high crime area where an officer was almost killed a few years ago. They do NOT understand why your threw someone to the ground for taking his hands off the car repeatedly while you were patting him down-you must articulate that “in my training I have been taught that most officers are assaulted during the actual arrest procedure, and SINCE HE REPEATEDLY REFUSED TO OBEY VERBAL COMMANDS this furtive movement led me to believe he was reaching for a weapon.”
I don’t care what the courts rule-a cop does have a “sixth sense.” Use it. If you think you need to search someone over, DO IT. If you feel you are being lied to, keep pursuing it. I truly believe God looks out for police officers a little more.
9. Handcuff EVERYBODY
Don’t assume a non-violent arrest for a minor offense means they have no reason to kill you and urinate on your grave after they do it.
It’s proven that aggressive proactive officers are NOT the ones who get killed, for the most part. It’s the “Mr. Nice Guy.”