OH HELL NO...

[The Reaper]

Ok, so im not sure if this would be the place for this topic, but here i go.

 

Tonight (about 20 minutes ago) i had a small run in with the police. Nothing big and certainly nothing anyone can get in trouble for jsut be reading this or by having me post this. But the cops pulled Brent, Blake and I out of the car to be searched. While searching me, the cop groped me. NO joke, he grabbed my nuts, not just for like a half a second. But for at least a minimum of 3 seconds. Now if you think about that, thats pretty damn long to be searching someones nut sack.

 

Secondly, after we all got back in the car and he was done searching the vehicle, he asked Brent (the driver) about the "Guys Gone Wild" video in his center console. He was surprised that was there seeing as he just got the car from his sister. Brent explained to him that he just got the car from his sister because his family got a new car all together. The cop looked relieved and told us there was some mascara and makeup under the seat. Brent explained he didnt know anything about that either. The cop stated, and i QUOTE, "Oh. Ok, good. You were scaring me a little there." (he said that jokingly) BUt what he said after wards will make your toes cringe. He said, AND I QUOTE, "Oh good; you're not some fag or anything." (he put an emphasis on the word fag btw)

 

I was about to FLIP OUT at him when Blake turned around and just gave me that look that said "Sit down and don't you DARE say anything." I sat back in my seat quietly and balled the fists at my side.

 

That mother f*cker. I was about to get out and beat the shit outta him. But knowing my record, i knew it was better to not say anything.

 

Now if any of you really know me i HATE police. I cant explain here but i HATE them.

 

 

So now i ask all of you, what do you think of that?

[blackbird]

First of all, I'm sorry that this happened to you. I've never met a cop I liked, aside from my grrlfriend, but she's no longer a cop, lol. In my experience, male cops tend to be very stereotypically male and very anti-queer. It may just be that I grew up in PA and then moved to a town mostly populated by rednecks, but I never felt safe around cops, either as a grrl or a queer person. I hate the way they treat my grrlfriend for being trans and I hate the "cops are above the law" attitude alot of them seem to have.

 

Honestly, in your place, I would have felt both angry and threatened. Probably more threatened at the time and angry later. Cops have the power to make our lives very difficult without being questioned by most people and bigots with badges are very dangerous.

[Drewbie]

There is a gay like community thing for cops, as like both I haven't really meet any nice cops, just one.

 

Onetime a cop pulled a gun on my aunt wasn't necessary at all.

[Razor]

Cops are weird, and usually idiots. There's two guys in my economics class that wanna be cops... and they're both so dense I'm surprised they don't have serious gravitational pull. It's kinda sad that being a cop is another one of those occupations that people take up when they can't do anything else... like teaching. Teachers, cops... good ones are few and far between.

[old bob]

Hey Ian,

Be careful ! Really, cops could be dangerous.

If you are not sure to be "clean" follow the advise of Blake, "shut up"and forget the case.

If you are, the best is to contact GLBT organisation,or a lawyer , if possible an "homophile" one, and ask him what to do.

As usual, cops dont like young people, gay or not, and its better if an elder person talk with them.

Take really care.

Old Bob, who has a long experience with cops !

[The Reaper]

Oh, believe me you guys, this is NOT the first time ive met the bad end of cops. But this is the only time ive heard one say fag and/or grope me. Cops are bad news in general, but im not getting into that.

 

But it gets me so angry that they can do all this, and believe me. Im the most leftist person i know of (cept for Chomsky!...one of my heroes btw. I lived in Detroit for eight years and i still go back their to this day. I have a lot of friends down there and we see crazy cop shit all the time. They are the dumbest ass people (Detroit cops).

 

 

 

 

Ian *grrrr......f*ckin cops calling me a fag...ill FAG you*

[Adrian Michaels]

Now my father is a cop, so when people start this generalization of police being stupid kind of irritates me.

 

I can understand there are instances, and I am in no way trying to dismiss your stories, but these seem to be isolated incidents with meatheads out on patrol. I'm also not trying to say that you think ALL cops are like this either.

 

Its just that the police in my area go around to schools and teach about harrassment and tolerance, and are pretty good at watching out for kids.

 

Now, I realize I'm kinda on my soapbox right now, but its just one of those things that get to me.

[NickolasJames8]

If you remember his name you ought to write a letter to the newspaper. That would be a quick and easy way to air him out for what he did. He deserves it, and you deserve justice. Nevermind the fact that he used a homophobic slur; you were groped. That's sexual assault and you were a victim, even if you don't see yourself as one. Even if you don't know his name, if you write a letter to the paper and it gets printed, if nothing else, people are probably gonna want to know who the pervert cop is and the police might do their own investigation

[The Reaper]

If you remember his name you ought to write a letter to the newspaper. That would be a quick and easy way to air him out for what he did. He deserves it, and you deserve justice. Nevermind the fact that he used a homophobic slur; you were groped. That's sexual assault and you were a victim, even if you don't see yourself as one. Even if you don't know his name, if you write a letter to the paper and it gets printed, if nothing else, people are probably gonna want to know who the pervert cop is and the police might do their own investigation

 

 

 

 

Im liking that idea right about now....but not the local newspaper of course lol. If i were to do that id hit the Detroit Free Press .

[colinian]

Im liking that idea right about now....but not the local newspaper of course lol. If i were to do that id hit the Detroit Free Press .

Jeez, Ian, I'd think the Detroit Free Press would be where you'd want to have your letter printed! Is there a reason you don't? Just make sure that you have the other guys lined up as witnesses and that they'll be willing to talk.

 

Another approach would be to find a lawyer who specializes in pro-bono lawsuits and file against the cop and the police department.

 

Colin

[JamesSavik]

Cops are paid so poorly that they attract a lot of people that have bad motives.

 

A lot of them a losers that get off on the power of the badge. Others use the badge as a means to prey on people at the margins of society: kids and criminals.

 

A great many sexual predators become cops (or they try to) because the job gives them power and protection to some extent.

 

Usually when it is a matter of one person's word over a cop, most people will side with the cop. The trick is to get a NUMBER of people singing the same tune. Then they have to listen because if they ignore the allegations and he offends and is caught, they are hella liable.

 

BTW- sexual predators gravitate toward jobs which give them power, especially power over young people. FBI stats taken a few years ago show that of new sex offenders caught, over 75% of them were cops, teachers, coaches, preachers and so forth.

 

I don't like cops but what I am saying isn't merely cop bashing. Police Departments need to screen their recruits much better and improve their training and oversight. Some of the people that they are giving a badge & a gun to these days aren't a hell of a lot better than the criminals.

[Krista]

Hello,

 

I honestly don't think being loud about this is the way to go. You're only sixteen years old, people wouldn't take you as seriously as an adult under the same circumstances. They should hold minors at a higher priority, but in many times that's not the case. Now, what I do think you should do is have your friends, witnesses to the act and file a complaint with your State's police not a small town department.

 

Also, the media idea is going to attract a lot of attention to yourself at the same time. It could be too big to handle if the media becomes involved. Really, the only thing it'll do is make the person that did this to you nervous. If you don't know who the cop was anyway then it'd be difficult to get anyone to listen and to take notice. The best thing from the media idea would possibly prevent something like that from happening to someone else. It's really up to you if you want to do that.

 

 

Krista

[Luc]

I

[AFriendlyFace]

Hi all,

 

First off:

There's two guys in my economics class that wanna be cops... and they're both so dense I'm surprised they don't have serious gravitational pull.

HAHAHHA

 

and now to the point. I must say that I agree with James, Krista, and Luc; your word won't hold up against the cop's, and it sounds like you don't have enough evidence. I think all that would happen if you pushed this is that you'd get a great deal of attention (much of it negative), out yourself, and probably make your friends uncomfortable. I hate to be so cynical and negative, but my advice is to just let it go and press for gay rights in other situations and at other times when you're in a better situation.

 

If you do do anything about this particular situation my suggestion would be to write a much more general, anonymous essay and see if you can get it picked up by the newspapers. I would suggest not including anything specific, including the groping, just focus on slur and negativity towards homosexuality, and focus on how you felt. In the long run I think the fight for gay rights will be won through a gradual shifting of public opinion and values. A teenager who feels scared, angry, and disillusioned as a result of the behaviour of the people who are supposed to be protecting him is a sympathetic case. Something more direct, that might actually get the cop in question reprimanded, would lose a great deal of the sympathy in the controversy; it would also only succeed (at best) in removing one bad cop, it probably wouldn't do much to improve the overall climate of the force.

 

Just my opinion though, anyway I'm sorry it happened at all

Take care,

Kevin

Edited March 1, 2007 by AFriendlyFace

[rknapp]

I would recommend you watch the movie "Crash". It's a very good movie that shows exactly what you experienced, Ian (minus the fag comment), but also shows how not all cops are like this, and even the bad ones can show their colors when called on.

 

That said, I hold the belief that cops who are not traffic enforcers are good. This comes from someone who has been pulled over five times. Twice for speeding, once for having my front plate in the windshield, once for not speeding (sister was driving, cops was a dueschbag and threatened her, for no reason at all), and once for not weaving (friend was driving...). They used weaving as a excuse to get to me since I had yelled something out of the window when they had just stopped somebody, and elected to go after me instead and yell at me... said I should be thankful that they weren't taking me in... right, ok, taking me in for excercising my right to free speech, stfu pig before you lose your job. The whorebags even gave her a written warning, for something she didn't do.

 

Again, some are on a power trip, others actually do what the decals on their patrol cars say, "to serve and to protect."

[The Reaper]

Ok, HELL NO AM I PUTTING MY NAME IN THE PAPERS!!! 1. if i put my name in the paper, the media is ognna look up my record (underage driving, theft, shoplifting, arrest, valdalizing neighborhoods............theres more but ill stop). and 2. if i go to the press, no way is my word gonna win. most of hte cops own he judges round here and would kick my ass in court. but thats just how corrupt they are. Infact, my next blog entryis gonna be about the government, the media, and the police. check it out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ian

[x Trevor x]

Me and My boyfriend had a bad run in with a cop he didnt let it be known he was homophobic or anything and it never got physical but he was very rude.

 

We went down to a town about 24 miles south of here I forgot why we went but we drove to mcdonalds to get something to eat well we didnt have but like seven dollars on us and mcdonalds charged us ten so we had to cancel our order so i said "lets go find wendys" so we kept riding up and down the main road trying to find it and we couldnt so i said "screw it lets go to taco bell" so we went and got us some tacos and my boyfriend said "i wanna find the little caesars down here" because thats where he worked except not this one so we asked the taco bell girl how to get there and she said it was with the k-mart so we went to k-mart and parked the car beside the store and seen the little caesars inside and just at that moment a cop flashed his lights and pulled up behind us.

 

He came to the window and my boyfriend rolled the window down and the cop kept flashing his flash light in both of our eyes and he asked us over and over non stop "why are You cruising?" after he stopped ranting I managed to tell him the story as he continued flashing the flash light around our car and in our eyes and he finnaly let us go and get this...He stalked us all the way until we got out of city limits ofcourse then he was forced to turn around

[AFriendlyFace]

Is it against the law to cruise around? I mean if I wanted to wouldn't it be perfectly legal for me to hop in my car and just drive around without a specific destination or purpose? I ask because I'm often just unaware of such things.

 

Anyway I'm glad you guys didn't get in too much trouble, Baby, and welcome to GA by the way!

 

Have an awesome day and take care all!

Kevin

[Bondwriter]

Is it against the law to cruise around?

I don't know about this, but is it legal to give so many brand names in a single post?

[Demetz]

Maybe he though you were looking for prostitutes?

[Graeme]

Is it against the law to cruise around?

In Australia there is no explicit law against cruising around. However, because of problems in certain neighbourhoods from excessive or inappropriate cruising (such as kerb-crawling while checking out the local ladies-of-the-night), the police and local councils can act to try to discourage it. If you did the same thing in other neighbourhoods, you wouldn't have a problem.

[glomph]

There are places that don't really have anything else for teenages to do but go cruising, and it became such a high school tradition on Saturday nights, and maybe Fridays outside football season, that some towns have outlawed it.

 

That is in addition to the problems associated with cruising to buy/sell drugs or sex as suggested above.

[rknapp]

Some municipalities have laws against cruising, defined as driving your car up and down the same street three or four times, depending on the local government.

 

The cops I hate the most (and anyone, really) are the ones who ASSUME you are doing something, no matter how many times you tell them that you are not doing this thing. Last year, while I was in the dorms, I left my room to go drop the kids off at the pool. At that same exact moment in time, cops stormed my building, looking for somebody involved in a fight who ran from them and was seen entering the building. They asked me if I was doing drugs or drinking and I said no. They said. "Are you sure?" HOW CAN I NOT BE f**kING SURE IF I HAD BEEN POPPING PILLS OR CHUGGIN BUDWEISER? Christ almighty! I said no several times, and when he finally believed me, he took my license to call my name in. Now, I am not a law-breaker by nature, nor do I drink or do drugs, so when the other guys on my floor came out to see what all of the commotion was about, and saw the cops calling MY name in, they were all confused as hell.

 

This past summer I went to see Clerks 2 with my sister, near where it was filmed, and on the way back she was pulled over. She wasn't doing anything wrong, and was pissed off, but she remained calm throughout the ordeal having been more concerned with what the cop was smoking and how this would affect her insurance. The cop claimed she was doing 70mph in a 55mph zone. She said, very calmly, that her speedometer read 55mph. He said, and I quote, "Are you argueing with me?" She said no. "If you're going to be hostile with me, then you can step out of the vehicle and do so out here." OH MAN did I want to kick his ass. He gave her a $104 ticket for obeying the law and the entire way home, her friend who was with us was calling the guy a swarmy bastard. She paid the ticket (we thought she didn't have to since he didn't check off what he used to determine her speed, which further proves he was lying, but the station said he doesn't have to check that off) and never got any points because the "violation" (and I use that term loosely) occured in New Jersey, but her driver's license is in Pennsylvania. Couple that with the fact that no matter what, he had no way of knowing her speed since the only device that was available to him was radar, and radar does not work in the pouring rain (and it was pouring rain that night).

[colinian]

Some municipalities have laws against cruising, defined as driving your car up and down the same street three or four times, depending on the local government

People where I live tell about "dragging the main" on Friday and Saturday nights which is when kids would drive up and down Main St. in a solid line of cars talking to the kids in the cars that are going the other direction (Main St. is only one lane in each direction) and the kids who are walking on the sidewalks. It's supposed to have been a real big deal here years ago. My folks and their friends talk and laugh about doing it. There's even a movie that was supposed to have been made about it. The cops are supposed to have put a stop to it because it completely tied up downtown traffic because the kids would drive very slowly and there were so many cars full of kids that they'd block the cross streets.

 

Colin