imported post
DVC wrote:
Ever have a good contact with a cop who didn't want one?
Me neither.
One thing being overlooked is that the OP WAS THERE, and HE believes that the cop deserves the attaboy.
That's good enough for me.
When you consider the attitude being thrown by way too many cops these days, one who is "just doing his job" deserves to be shown that we're not ignoring it. Let's not forget that a cop who doesn't like people carrying guns COULD have made this happen a whole lot differently. He would be within policy and justified in asking the OP to step outside while straightening it out, and things get even less pleasant from there -- nothing major, just annoying and within the law. For instance: "a 19-year-old carrying a handgun . . .where did you get it, when you have to be 21 to buy one? Who is the legal owner? Does the owner know that you have it? Do you know the owner's phone number? Do you have anything proving that you're allowed to have it . . ?" Half an hour later, the OP can get back to his life, after Little Miss Hoplophobe gets a story to tell everyone in school the next day.
This guy didn't even give the OP grief for lying about the blue card!
Somewhere in here, you have to admit that this cop deserves the pat on the back for NOT having done what he COULD have gotten away with.
My personal policy is to encourage good behavior on the part of others -- including cops -- by praising it. And when you praise a cop, praise with a letter to the top boss, so it has the most effect.
After that letter trickles down to the deputy who earned it, that deputy will think "he didn't need to do that," and equate nice things with guys carrying pistols.
So . . .tell me where that hurts us any . . ?
It's not enough to have the law on our side. It's not enough to have right on our side. We want our NEIGHBORS on our side, and we want out CIVIL SERVANTS on our side. Anything this simple which improves this relationship is worth doing.
Rewarding mediocrity is a poor choice in all aspects in life.
OP didn't lie about the blue card. He didn't have the blue card, as the officer asked, he had a copy.
As for deserving a pat on the back for "what he could have done" is also ridiculous. He COULD have asked all of the things you suggest, but you are not required to answer or do any of them. Forcing any of them would have been a violation of the law, and therefore rewarding a police officer for not violating the law seems a little wrong.
It hurts us, by rewarding the police officer for having any unnecessary contact with somebody that was OC. As I stated above, there was NO reason to have any contact with the OP. As OP stated, he initiated contact, so I'll let that go, but there was NO reason to ask the OP any questions whatsoever, let alone questions probing for violations of law.
I agree that anything that is simple that improves a relationship is worth doing. I think the differing point here is whether this improves the relationship. To me, the analogy of this situation is as follows. You're trying to potty train a dog, so when they do their business outside as you expect and wish, you reward them with a treat. Now, if you lower your standards to be that the dog does it's business near the door, you're suddenly rewarding the dog for crapping inside the house. Sure, the dog was close to being outside, but do you really want to train the dog to crap inside the house by the door? No, you want them to go outside. Likewise, we don't want the police to be less than horrible, we want them to do what is right.
Ultimately, the OP should do what he desires. He was the only one of us there, and knows more about the situation than any of us. I can only relay my feelings and my opinions based on the information I was given. My opinion, is that the officer has done nothing to deserve reward. Likewise, he's done nothing to deserve a reprimand. He was merely mediocre at best.
