SUBSIM Radio Room Forums - View Single Post - What to do if you are pulled over by the police

The Old Gringo · 07-28-16, 08:08 PM

I would like to relay how it used to be done (in the old days). I retired in 1996 (WOW 20 years last April) from a small mid-western town, USA, I was a patrolling officer the first 11 years and chief the final 14.
First I would like to add the huge amount of respect I have for todays street COP, the stress level must be horrendous. Secondly when I was a COP, we (both the good and bad guys) were like children playing a game, no one ever dreamed of a shoot-out. I drew my weapon 2 times during my career, the first as a rookie and it was unwarranted, the second when a girlfriend wanted to shoot her boyfriend for hitting her, and then only after she fired a shot.
But I digress, sorry I suffer from SOMS (Stupid Old Man Syndrome:-) back on point. Daytime stops were pretty straight forward, visibility wasn't a problem and there were many people to observe the situation. Nighttime another story, the officer would observe while calling in the plate if it was an unknown vehicle. Also if the driver and/or passengers displayed a lot of movement. It was assumed they were hiding something, more caution was given. As stated it was a small town, we knew everybody. Normally, we would tell dispatch we were stopping "Johnny Jones".
Thanks for reading this old mans ramblings.

07-28-16, 08:08 PM	#24
The Old Gringo Swabbie Join Date: Jun 2016 Location: Northern Mindanao, Philippines Posts: 5 Downloads: 170 Uploads: 0	Retired Chief of Police I would like to relay how it used to be done (in the old days). I retired in 1996 (WOW 20 years last April) from a small mid-western town, USA, I was a patrolling officer the first 11 years and chief the final 14. First I would like to add the huge amount of respect I have for todays street COP, the stress level must be horrendous. Secondly when I was a COP, we (both the good and bad guys) were like children playing a game, no one ever dreamed of a shoot-out. I drew my weapon 2 times during my career, the first as a rookie and it was unwarranted, the second when a girlfriend wanted to shoot her boyfriend for hitting her, and then only after she fired a shot. But I digress, sorry I suffer from SOMS (Stupid Old Man Syndrome:-) back on point. Daytime stops were pretty straight forward, visibility wasn't a problem and there were many people to observe the situation. Nighttime another story, the officer would observe while calling in the plate if it was an unknown vehicle. Also if the driver and/or passengers displayed a lot of movement. It was assumed they were hiding something, more caution was given. As stated it was a small town, we knew everybody. Normally, we would tell dispatch we were stopping "Johnny Jones". Thanks for reading this old mans ramblings.