Dreamer
Regular Member
One thing we all need to train ourselves on is that LEOs are citizens. They have the same rights that you and I have. We may walk up to a citizen and ask him for his name.
I beg to differ...
LEOs are, while on duty, agents of the government, and therefore they are, in fact ENTIRELY different from "citizens" in the eyes of the legal system.
Also, just like the employees of any other private corporation (because that is EXACTLY what LEOs are--their employers are the Municipal Corporations that employ them), they are restricted (and protected) by the policies of their employer. While on duty, police are prohibited from exercising their 1A rights, have SEVERE restrictions on their 2A rights, and function under severe restrictions (and near revocation) of several other of the rights guaranteed to "citizens" by the Bill of Rights.
So, while I would agree that LEOs are HUMANS, and deserving of the same respect and cordiality we would give to any other nosy, intrusive, human being who was intent on violating our civil rights in pursuit of revenue, power-over, or just general s#!+s and giggles, I would COMPLETELY disagree that they are bound by the same rule of law that "citizens" are in the course of their daily work.
In fact, they are expressly (by statute, code, and law) allowed to do MANY things that would land a "citizen" in jail, and they are prohibited from doing many things that "citizens" take for granted as fundamental human rights...
When an LEO is off duty, he is just the same as any "citizen"... But then again, most LEAs have it as official policy that their officers are NEVER truly "off duty", even when they are off the clock and out of uniform.
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