Question for the C5 Law enforcement officers

[Bosco]

DOCUMENT DOCUMENT DOCUMENT!

Eventually his boss will keep an eye on him.

[Chief Bob]

Originally Posted by Bosco

DOCUMENT DOCUMENT DOCUMENT!

Eventually his boss will keep an eye on him.

Very true document the whole incident--A digital pocket voice recorder works great. Only one party needs to know about the recording and that would be you.

[Steve Dallas]

Not to threadjack or anything, but I also have a question for Police Officers.

If you haven't seen these videos, you should. And, opinions, please.

[Scrappy Doo]

Originally Posted by Big Brunsy

If your x-wifes boyfriend is a police officer, and pulls you over for bullshit reasons (crowding the yellow line) can that be considered harassment? or would it hafta happen several times b4 one can say anything?

It would have to develop into some sort of pattern. A one time occurence does not show harassment. It probably wouldn't hurt to call the Sheriff or the Chief and let them know what is going on. That should put a stop to it. If it doesn't I would make a formal written complaint.

Also make a note of when and where it was and keep it. He may not be calling out the stop, so this is how you keep track of that.

And yes I am a member of an organization so I know what I am talking about. I really disagree with all the cop bashing that goes on here lately.

That being said, this type of childish/junior high/mickey mouse behavior by law enforcement is what gives all of us a bad name. He obviously knows who you are and was just trying to get you doing something wrong.

Also OP, I would try to keep it on the straight and narrow when you are in his jurisdiction though. don't give him or anyone else any reason to stop you.

Hope for the best for ya.

[ssjoe]

Originally Posted by flyinglow57

cant you see somehow if this is the first time that he has ever pulled someone over for crowding the yellow line? if this is his first time in 10 years on the force and it was you kinda sounds to be more then a coincidence

I would go with the above statement. That would speak volumes. Also WTH is crowding the yellow line? I would think you are either over it or not. Was he sitting in wait for you? That would be harassment, or was he just sitting there and you passed him.

[ssjoe]

Originally Posted by Steve Dallas

Not to threadjack or anything, but I also have a question for Police Officers.

If you haven't seen these videos, you should. And, opinions, please.

Thats some funny sh*t.

[DiverRich]

Originally Posted by Steve Dallas

Also, if this has happened more than once...it might happen again. Have your camera phone ready to record what goes on during the next stop (don't make it obvious, just have it for the voice alone).

I'd be careful of this idea. In Oregon recording someone's voice without their knowledge is a crime and cannot be used as evidence. Oddly that rule doesn't apply to phone calls though. Every state has different rules on this.

[Steve Dallas]

They might have laws against this, but if they have a problem with it...I'd still take the recording to a public outlet like the local TV/Radio station and make a big deal about it.

Also, you can claim that you didn't get an ok for wiretapping/surveilance of the police because you were worried about retaliation, and that might make a difference even if it was "illegal". Simple fact is that if the recording showed illegal behavior, it's going to be worth something.

[DiverRich]

@ Steve - the only thing it's worth in Oregon is a year in jail an a $6250 fine. it hardly seems worth a criminal conviction to get a cop a write up. All a person has to do is advise the other party they are being recorded. I have worked patrol for 15 years and use a dashcam on every stop. People always turn nice when you tell them the camera is on. Again I'd check with state law tho.

[streetshark]

Originally Posted by Scrappy Doo

It would have to develop into some sort of pattern. A one time occurence does not show harassment. It probably wouldn't hurt to call the Sheriff or the Chief and let them know what is going on. That should put a stop to it. If it doesn't I would make a formal written complaint.

Also make a note of when and where it was and keep it. He may not be calling out the stop, so this is how you keep track of that.

And yes I am a member of an organization so I know what I am talking about. I really disagree with all the cop bashing that goes on here lately.

That being said, this type of childish/junior high/mickey mouse behavior by law enforcement is what gives all of us a bad name. He obviously knows who you are and was just trying to get you doing something wrong.

Also OP, I would try to keep it on the straight and narrow when you are in his jurisdiction though. don't give him or anyone else any reason to stop you.

Hope for the best for ya.

If you take anything else away from this thread, listen to this. Good advice from someone in the profession which makes sense.

[tightchevelle69]

Originally Posted by Scrappy Doo

I really disagree with all the cop bashing that goes on here lately.

sorry, but i dont think anybody in this thread has done any COP BASHING.

[brtaus]

Originally Posted by tightchevelle69

sorry, but i dont think anybody in this thread has done any COP BASHING.

Just wait, it will get there soon enough; it always does.

[Steve Dallas]

Originally Posted by DiverRich

@ Steve - the only thing it's worth in Oregon is a year in jail an a $6250 fine. it hardly seems worth a criminal conviction to get a cop a write up. All a person has to do is advise the other party they are being recorded. I have worked patrol for 15 years and use a dashcam on every stop. People always turn nice when you tell them the camera is on. Again I'd check with state law tho.

I don't bash cops, and have the highest respect for them. That being said, there are a few bad apples out there...and as a citizen, it's hard to protect yourself against those that do abuse their power.

Laws are different in each state, but lets say the laws were similar here in Washington State as they are in Oregon. And I'm going to be hypothetical here as well. I've never had this kind of issue with a cop as I've always been polite and forthcoming with the police so I wouldn't expect to be in this situation. But if I was...

Let's say a cops girlfriend broke up with him because she found me irresistable because I was a fireman. He found out about this and started pulling me over on an almost daily basis, but only issued verbal warnings so that they wouldn't appear on the public record.

In this case, yes I would make the recording, even though it's "illegal". I would still pursue getting the officer disciplined per legal channels, but if things turned ugly (Officer suing me for defamation, my pets starting to mysteriously die)...then I would go to the superiors and say that I had recordings of these actions.

Without the recording, how else could I protect myself. You can argue that technically it is illegal, but personally I think with the widespread use of phone recorders in so many other incidents, that there is precedent for these being used to record illegal actions by police officers in many other states. The officers that beat Rodney King didn't give permission to be recorded, and there are many incidences of actions taking place and being recorded by security cameras as well.

I'd take my chances on recording the illegal actions of a police officer if this was happening...

[Onereign]

Just inform him that you are recording audio (have that part recorded as well) and it's perfectly legal. Legally he can't MAKE you stop recording, though the law doesn't seem to apply to some cops (I speak from personal experience there).