Oh my god....
Must we always disintigrate into the lowest common denominator?
Give any thread enough time and it inevitably degrades into LEO bashing. What hypocrites within our own ranks! As we whine and moan in the face of the injustice of Maplewood City Council lumping us all into the same category and falling prey to the stereotype of OC'ers as a bunch of brainless, irresponsible, cowboys......
....we throw around our own stereotypes of doughnut eating flatfoots.
Nevermind that many law enforcement officers are supportive of our civil liberties. (As evidenced by the Frontenac officer saying hello and "good to see you exercising your second amendment rights" at the Ladue Starbucks). I've never had a bad situation with any LEO other than a few questions and then on my way....
Yet, some of us insist on making things confrontational (US vs. THEM) anyway.
Pointless and unproductive. At best.
Not all LEOs are bad cops. There are many that are well informed, well trained, and well educated. But there are more and more popping up that get the negative attention because of their outright stupidity and that gives them all a bad rap.
It's one of the very few professions that disqualifies potential hires for lying, cheating, violations within moral turpitude, and making bad decisions because you weren't aware of the law. But that is completely acceptible behavior once you're accepted into the brotherhood as it's part of the job, per the US Supreme Court. (don't ask for the court case or cases, I'm not taking the time to look them up)
This former MP knows for a fact that LEOs should be treated just like the media, only with a lot more scrutiny. Everything is on the record with them AND can be used against you, all on the word of someone who the US Supreme Court has said is allowed to lie when conducting an investigation. Have you ever heard the phrase with an employer that no-one at work is your friend? Your coworkers will turn on you rather quickly for their own benefit. The same goes for the LEO, they ARE NOT your friends, they have a job to do.
Example: LEO makes a traffic stop, walks up and asks for DL/insurance/registration. While waiting, he asks "Do you know what the speed limit is here?" Driver says "No". Guess what folks, this IS a question designed to illicit a criminal response! It can and will be used against you in court if you challenge the ticket. You've just admitted to the LEO that you were not paying attention to the speed limit and your own speed while driving, even though the question sounded quite innocent.
So look at it this way: If they're allowed to lie while investigating (per the courts), everything you say will be used against you in a court of law (Miranda) even for an unrelated case, and nothing you claim the LEO said is admissable (called hearsay unless it's recorded), then why on earth would ANYONE trust a LEO who is making an active effort to start an investigation?
Fact is, we can trust them for the most part, but we need to know our rights and we need to know when to
shut up. When one is making the typical firearm related "stop" and starts asking questions you simply shut up, ask for a supervisor, ask if you're being detained and why, then promptly move on if you're not.
