Why is it that just bad cops get all the attention???

[Martin Draco]

It seems everything we see about the police in the news is negative these days. The other day I was going a bit to fast through a school zone and the next thing I see in my rear view is cherries and blueberries. This was in Westfield and the officer was very polite. When he came back to my the vehicle he said, "You weren't go THAT much over the limit and after seeing your driving record (it's not that great), I'm going to just give you a warning, because trust me, you don't want speeding through a school zone on you record. Now do me a favor and watch your speed through here."
The truth is I deserved that ticket and the officer was very cool and took mercy on me!

We just see the bad officers on the news but if you look at it from a percentage standpoint, think about how many officers there are just in IMPD.
There are some power-tripping scumbags in every department but there are also some great officers that don't do it for the recognition but they still deserve some.

Perhaps some of you have had a good experience and even know the officers name you dealt with. Post it and maybe one of their fellow officers who is on here, might see it, and let them know they are appreciated.

 

[Benny]

It's not just the police, it's everyone.

What is going to sell better(in the media), the double homicide or the citizen who helped the little, old lady cross the street?

 

[Martin Draco]

It's not just the police, it's everyone.

What is going to sell better(in the media), the double homicide or the citizen who helped the little, old lady cross the street?

You are correct and it's a shame

 

[Colt556]

Same thing with guns. You only hear the "Teen killed with semi automatic pistol" and never hear "12 year old girl wins NRA Match" or " Homeowner defends family with legally owned gun". Bad news and sensational headlines sell papers and keep ratings up. A sad state of affairs.

 

[eldirector]

Bad cops get all the attention just like Jersey Shore gets attention: train wrecks sell.

Want it to change? Convince all of your friends and family to turn OFF the "news". Hit 'em in the pocket book.

 

[steveh_131]

So you were driving along, minding your own business and hurting no one. You get stopped, detained and hassled for no logical reason...and you call this a "good experience" because you weren't slapped with a huge financial penalty for your heinous crime?

I think you answered your own question.

 

[misconfig]

It's because only bad cops exist.

 

[Glock21]

On the other hand, when you have a group of people considered "elite" (by themselves, others or anyone), and one of them fails to live up to the expectations, we can't be surprised when it's pointed out.

Charlie Sheen does drugs, it's expected. He's an actor and no one really cares.

A police officer gets caught doing drugs (or planting drugs), well, that's a betrayal of the public trust. Police officers are expected to be above such things since they have been granted special powers the rest of us don't have.

It's not a matter of good vs bad, it's a matter of there are not supposed to be any bad ones. (In theory, lol)

 

[jsharmon7]

So you were driving along, minding your own business and hurting no one. You get stopped, detained and hassled for no logical reason...and you call this a "good experience" because you weren't slapped with a huge financial penalty for your heinous crime?

I think you answered your own question.

 

[Denny347]

 

[edporch]

It seems everything we see about the police in the news is negative these days.
-Snip-

This isn't true JUST of the police.
It's true of every profession.
Only the bad apples attract attention because it's assumed you're supposed to be a "good apple".

No matter what profession one is in, they are expected to do their job competently and honestly, and to NOT cover for their fellow professionals who aren't honest and/or competent.
NOBODY in any line of work gets a pass on this in my book.

For example, I worked in a small medical electronics company some years ago doing chip level troubleshooting of proprietary hardware, as well as writing assembly language code for bench tests and for C libraries, and occasional field service work.

They hired a field service tech who was arrogant, dishonest and incompetent, that I had to work out of the same area with.

I treated him with OPEN contempt, and defended everybody he tried to bully, because somebody like him gives the profession a bad name.
He lasted a month before he quit thanks in large part to me...

There's NO CODE that says I should cover for anybody like this

NOBODY in any profession who's dishonest or incompetent should be covered for, and ANYBODY who does is an accomplice to them.

 

[Frank_N_Stein]

Denny, that Crossfit has been good for you!

 

[Denny347]

Denny, that Crossfit has been good for you!

Haha-touche...Damn, that was funny.

 

[steveh_131]

Ok, then. Explain to me who benefited from this situation, making it a "good experience"?

It's not like the OP was a meth-crazed lunatic. He didn't drive through a school zone and see a bunch of kids and think "well, ****, let's see how many of these little bastards I can mow down with my Honda Fit", until this officer showed up and set him straight.

He was probably driving at a speed that his brain and instincts told him was safe, since there probably weren't any damn kids around regardless of the "School Zone" signs.

This was a waste of his time and a waste of taxpayer money, and the only "good" that came from this is that more money wasn't tossed into the bottomless pit that we call the government.

Oh, and this gracious officer got to enjoy showing "mercy" to this poor lowly citizen who was stupid enough to think that he should ever be allowed to exercise his own judgment when driving.

 

[jsharmon7]

I'm sure the OP slowed his speed after the interaction. I'm sure many other drivers saw the traffic stop and thought "hmm they do patrol this area, I should slow down." School zone speed reductions are in place for a reason. The officer did his job and the OP felt he had a good experience. Nobody (but you) felt it was a huge hassle and awful experience. If you think a simple traffic stop that I'm sure lasted less than ten minutes is really that bad, then the picture I posted fits.

 

[steveh_131]

I'm sure the OP slowed his speed after the interaction. I'm sure many other drivers saw the traffic stop and thought "hmm they do patrol this area I should slow down."

You're right. In my list of negatives, I forget to list that "Responsible citizens made it to work even slower than usual thanks to this stop."

Thanks for the reminder.

 

[jsharmon7]

 

[Martin Draco]

Ok, then. Explain to me who benefited from this situation, making it a "good experience"?

It's not like the OP was a meth-crazed lunatic. He didn't drive through a school zone and see a bunch of kids and think "well, ****, let's see how many of these little bastards I can mow down with my Honda Fit", until this officer showed up and set him straight.

He was probably driving at a speed that his brain and instincts told him was safe, since there probably weren't any damn kids around regardless of the "School Zone" signs.

This was a waste of his time and a waste of taxpayer money, and the only "good" that came from this is that more money wasn't tossed into the bottomless pit that we call the government.

Oh, and this gracious officer got to enjoy showing "mercy" to this poor lowly citizen who was stupid enough to think that he should ever be allowed to exercise his own judgment when driving.

I wish I had a Honda Fit! Unfortunately I have an H2 Hummer so the gas prices are getting quite annoying.
Let's leave my meth habit out of this and who HASN'T thought about hitting some brat with their car.

My point was that the cop was polite and courteous while he did his job and after seeing my driving record used his discretion and didn't ticket me. Not all officers would have been that cool. The fact is I broke a law, albeit not a violent crime, I still should have gotten a ticket.

I do think school zones are stupid because the first thing schools should teach children is not to play in busy streets. If they can't do that, put a fence around the school and cage the little $%#@^s in.

 

[rockhopper46038]

Martin Draco, I think it is probably because we SHOULD expect Law Enforcement officers to behave in an exemplary manner, and we should root out any who don't. Yep, they're human. Yep, it's tough. Doesn't matter. If someone is going to take an oath to uphold the law, they better do it...or quit. Not too many people are as worthy of respect as a lawman who performs his duties in a professional, respectful and ethical manner, ALWAYS and WITHOUT exception. Not too many people are as worthy of disdain as an LEO who doesn't.

Unfortunately, in this day and age we have too many welfare cheats; too many LEO's that break the law; too many politicians that take bribes; a Secretary of the Treasury who cheats on his taxes, and pretty much we've decided to accept this state of affairs as "normal". It isn't going to end well.

 

[Benny]

LOL, some people can just never "win" with others.