Tuesday, March 17, 2009

You're Killing Me...

I have a new tactic for dealing with people who say I have nothing better to do than harass them and write them traffic tickets. The same people who usually ask me why I'm not out catching murderers. I relate these famous cases to them:

David Berkowitz, the Son of Sam, was caught largely as a result of attention he received because of a parking ticket left on his vehicle for blocking a fire hydrant.

Timothy McVeigh, one of the men responsible for the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, was captured as a result of a traffic stop. An Oklahoma State Trooper stopped McVeigh because his car had no license plates.

Ted Bundy was arrested when he attempted to evade a police officer who was stopping him for a minor traffic violation.

So yes, I am trying my best to catch murderers...

Now, say it with me...

Press hard. You are making four copies...

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

Awesome! You'll get no response from the citizen with these facts when they're pressing hard....

Anonymous said...

Hahahaha... as there jaw's drop!
-Dispatcher

Unknown said...

Let us know how it turns out.

The Bus Driver said...

*dutifully presses hard* thank you officer for bringing my innattentiveness and speeding to my attention LOL

:P

Scottish not English said...

I have been reading your blog for a while and it has been great. I am applying at a department right now and your blog along with the other great police blogs have helped to give me some kind of idea what to expect and confirm that I really do want to be a police officer (not to mention I have found my sense of humor meshes well with the so called "cop humor"). I know you have posted a couple of things about ride alongs you have taken out and I was hoping I could ask your opinion real quick.

If you are too busy or dont feel comfortable with it, I understand.
I am getting ready to do another ride along with the department I am applying to and I will be going through the oral boards here in the next few weeks. My question is... Do you have any suggestions of things that I should talk about with the ride along officer or interviewers? or were there things that you wish you would have asked about your department before you were hired? or are there some things you just think are wise to find out from the officers of a department before signing on? Thank you so much for any pointers you can give me. I have never applied to any agencies before and I want to make sure I do things right.

ps- I have read a couple of the bad things ride alongs have done but what are the things you wished they would do... or what have been a few of your favorites to have with you?

Thank you,
Rob

Anonymous said...

I'm totally going to tell my husband these facts so he can use them.

Berserk said...

My most important rule for riders is to take a shower before you show up. If I can smell you, it's gonna be a short ride.

One of those things that shouldn't have to be said, but every rule exists because someone made it necessary.

Front Porch Society said...

Good comeback! :)

Officer "Smith" said...

Scottish not English -

Short answer to a long question.

I have sat on oral boards. One of my pet peeves is when the applicant can't be bothered to find out a little information about the city. The third question is "What do you know about the city of Smithville, and its diverse community?"

Look at the city web site and find out what you can about the city. One good way to gain information is to ask questions, which leads to my second point. What I wish every rider would do is ask intelligent questions.

An intelligent question would be something along the lines of "So, what is the most common crime in Smithville?" or "Is there any specific area that you focus your attention on as a "bad neighborhood?"

An intelligent question is not "Can I shoot the shotgun?" or "Where are all the banks?"

Basically, both in the interview and on a ride along, just be yourself. Ask questions, and give honest answers when you are asked questions. If you're not a complete tool, as several of my applicant riders have been, you'll do fine.

If you don't mind my asking, what agency are you applying for? Or if you don't want to go that far, maybe at least give me the state.

Scottish not English said...

Thanks for the tips. And to answer your question, I am applying at a department in Kansas. I will try my best not to act foolish on the ride along :)

lyle said...

I'll never understand why McVeigh was driving on a major interstate without a license plate. It just defies every single piece of logic you could imagine. Really the only thing that makes any sense is that he was trying to get caught so he could appear as a martyr, and didn't want to turn himself in and appear to be a coward to his idiot militia comrades.

Officer "Smith" said...

Well, it usually ain't the smart ones that gets caught...