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In Praise of Good Cops
Wednesday, October 6th, 2010Also, kudos to the protesters for uploading the video to YouTube.
46 Responses to “In Praise of Good Cops”
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I wish every cop had that attitude.
Wow, that was impressive. Like the guy said at the end, he didn’t ask for ID, he wasn’t fishing for a reason to arrest them, he was respectful and amicable. I’ve never even seen a cop react that way. In my entire life. I’m floored.
That was encouraging, and I’m glad you posted it. Although it is also a bit sad to realize how surprising it is to see this type of situation handled correctly.
You wait till the rest of the police force in that town see this video. They’re gonna jump all over him for acting like a pussy. “That was dangerous! You have to make people respect you or you’re putting yourself and the rest of us at risk! You made a serious rookie mistake.”
My experiences with cops tend to be like this, which is something I try to keep firmly in mind when I meet the rare uniformed swine. the swine ARE out there, though. The worst I even encountered was so bad that his small-town police force had been trying to ditch him for years. Sad to say, his union managed to block his termination, even though he was the direct cause of three expensive lawsuits.
I wish police officers saw videos like this in training along with the videos demonstrating normal situations leading to violence.
See, no one got shot, no one got hurt, everyone goes home happy (yes, even the cop got a laugh)
Well, of course this went well. The protestors didn’t have a dog, and were white.
/sarcasm
This was in Illinois, where videotaping a police officer without his consent is a Class I felony. So double extra points to this officer.
I am stunned. A cop that figures out the situation before pulling out his tazer and gun. And treats those he meets like equal human beings. I’m gonna go to the psychic today and get ahold of Richard Nixon. Ask if hell froze over.
Thanks for sharing this Radley. Someone should set up a site dedicated to documenting examples of constitutional police work that exhibits basic human decency. It’s as important to reward that behavior as it is to punish the thuggery.
Huzzah !! That is how it is suppose to happen. That LEO is a professional and I hope this behavior spreads like a virus. Keep up the good work!
“We got a kinder, gentler machine-gun hand.” — Neil Young
[...] this on The Agitator’s blog. It’s an example of the way police officers should behave when confronting [...]
Thanks for posting this. I think it’s important to remind people that there are good cops out there even while we make sure to shine a light on the bad apples.
Amazing! I have to agree with everyone else here. LEOs don’t have to automatically treat everyone like a perp. If more cops were like this guy, there would be much less violence perpetrated by and towards LE.
A wise old cop once told me, “You must have and use well three things to be a good police officer – a brain, a heart, and a sense of humor.” Nice to see a street police make use of all three. Well done.
I hate to rain on everyone’s feel-good parade but if you scroll through the other videos you’ll will find a long drawn out video of Puppycide.
Heartbreaking.
Amen to police pros! We need more like this guy, and he should get a cookie (doesn’t look like a donut eater, he’s in sharp shape) for his attitude, and good response.
Prolly was of consequence that the protesters weren’t raging a-holes out of the gate too. [Standard disclaimer about having higher standards for police behavior applies]
Also, they came all the way from Colorado and the second guy forgot his sign? He couldn’t make another along the way?
The officer in “Policing 101 …” appeared to be by himself, the only responding officer. I wonder how his behavior might have changed had he a partner or two.
Its sad that its seems so remarkable that the cop acts like a decent guy.
Effingham is pretty damned rural. I grew up in a semi-rural Illinois town.
I cannot believe that this cop is an Illinois cop. My money says that as soon as this video gets enough attention, dude’s superiors are going to call him on the carpet.
“Someone should set up a site dedicated to documenting examples of constitutional police work that exhibits basic human decency.”
Such a site would likely only generate one or 2 posts a month.
Nice thought though.
I want that guy in the cop uniform’s identification- he’s obviously an impostor!
good job by the officer and the protestors….
Yep, that’s the way it’s supposed to go. Respond to a radio call, size up the scene for safety hazards, criminal activity, etc., and if you don’t find any problems, make friendly conversation and say have a nice day folks.
He seems like a friendly, professional trooper, more interested in safety and service than in writing chicken shit seat belt tickets (I’ve talked to IL troopers that HATE that seatbelt law by the way). The Illinois State Police should be happy to have him on the road. As a citizen of IL, I say thanks for doing your job and treating those guys like fellow citizens, not “anti-American war protestors” or something like that.
Helmut O’Hooligan “I say thanks for doing your job and treating those guys like fellow citizens, not “anti-American war protestors” or something like that.”
Or “civilians”…as if cops aren’t civilians.
#21 Cynical in CA:
“I wonder how his behavior might have changed had he a partner or two.”
Ah Cynical, always there to piss on our warm fuzzies ;)
Look, I’m not going to argue about anarchy this time. I think we should just take note of this exchange, and commend a public servant for going about his business in a legal and respectful way. Still, your mention of partners is not without merit.
As a criminal justice student, I was introduced to studies about 1 officer cars and 2 officer cars. I don’t have the data now, but I believe officers assigned to patrol on their lonesome used less force. I don’t remember if they suffered more injuries, though that can be a concern (particularly to unions, largely for political reasons). Illinois State Troopers patrol on their own unless they are in training. The same is true for most county and municipal agencies in this state.
One officer is plenty for the vast majority of police calls for service. Furthermore, if multiple officers arrive, this can put people on the defensive and make them more likely to act out. I have seen this scenario play out as a healthcare security officer. I advocate one officer responses and one officer patrol units unless the call involves a potential crime in progress, violence, a major traffic incident or some other crisis.
#27 JS:
“Or ‘civilians’…as if cops aren’t civilians.”
I hear you, JS. That annoys me too, and I have seriously considered law enforcement careers.
In the event I do work as an LEO at some point, I will of course understand that I am a civilian. If police weren’t civilians, then they would be jailed for not showing up to work. They would not be allowed to quit unless discharged (honorably or otherwise). They would not be unionized. And they might be held to a higher standard than they currently are. Tell that one to the police union president and watch him do a spit take!
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#11 Rhyader:
“Thanks for sharing this Radley. Someone should set up a site dedicated to documenting examples of constitutional police work that exhibits basic human decency. It’s as important to reward that behavior as it is to punish the thuggery.”
I agree wholeheartedly. As much as I value The Agitator, I believe it can give criminal justice critics tunnel vision sometimes. I know it’s bad out there, but I continue to believe that major change could occur in the field of policing if we ended police involvement in vice “crimes” and took another look at our priorities in other areas (overzealous and/or paternalistic traffic laws come to mind).
In another society, I would probably be a police officer right now. The field interests me, yet it seems to shun “freethinkers” like myself every time it gets the change. In another society…
http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/2010/10/06/20101006phoenix-police-officer-in-fatal-shooting-arrested06-ON.html
I guess this goes on this thread; cop who shoots domestic violence suspect (criminal damage in his mother’s trailer) after holding his gun against the guys head, and may also have shot the guys dog, is turned in by his partner cop.
@ TED
And the partner gave evidence that the other cop was out of control.
Shocking
I hope the cop that crossed the blue line doesn’t get punished more than the cop who shot and killed someone.
And serious kudos to the officer in the video.
WOW!!! Just speechless. Now we need about 200,000 more like this guy. I take back everything I have said about ALL cops. It now just applies to all of you but this guy :)
Sometime in the not so distant future, in any encounter with you, a cop will be able to pull up your name on a laptop and it will automatically list everything you’ve ever said about cops and that will determine whether you get arrested. Then the prosecutor will pull up your name on his laptop and it will list everything you’ve ever said about prosecutors and that will determine whether you get prosecuted. Then the judge will pull up your name…
RE: AZ shooting
Johnson commended Officer Virgillo, 41, a 14-year veteran, for “coming forward” and “telling the truth” about the shooting.
And so do I. Yes, Officer Virgillo is only doing what is right if the facts are as they seem. But he is still to be commended for striking a blow against the “blue wall” mindset that would suggest that murder should be overlooked because the vic was an asshole, and he had it coming. Or the idea that we don’t condone it, but it’s not worth “ratting” out another cop over it.
These rationalizations, which sadly still exist nearly forty years after the Frank Serpico case came to light, must be banished from law enforcement. Thanks to Virgillo for doing his part. If he catches any hell from his colleagues, I hope he exposes it for the world to see. Maybe that kind of humiliation is what it will take.
Does anyone know if those protestors are virgins? Because I think I just saw a unicorn.
Helmut you’d make a great cop! If they were all like you Radley wouldn’t have to report on police issues very much.
Andy Taylor goes to F-ingham, ha.
I go through Effingham on my way to Miss’ippi. I call it f**kingham because 6 hours of cornfields, barns, silos, hogs and spotted cows will do that to you. It’s the “Crossroads of America” because it’s where two major interstates N-S and E-W merge, right there in “f-ingham” (I-57 & ?). It’s quite the place. There is a huge, ginormous steel cross about 20 stories high right there at the crossroads and if you don’t know it’s coming it can scare the crappies out of you cruising along at 80. It’s like something out of the crusades.
Full Video (right thread this time!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njb6X-nmW2M&feature=related
It’s worth noting that the protesters were some of the most mild-mannered I’ve seen, as well. 99 times out of 100, if you’re nice to a cop, you’ll be treated nicely in return. (This cop does seem to be unusually friendly though–that’s probably just his personality.)
idk, it seems like most protesters are just minding their own business protesting.
No one else noticed?
From Ben Folds:
If there’s a God, he is laughing at us
and our football team.
Effington could be a wonderful effing place
I can see it from the highway and I’m wondering
Are they effing in their yards?
Effing in their cars?
Effing in the trailers in the back
roads and the parking lots
of Effington? Making my way to Normal, Illinois.
Maybe I should ditch this little white
rental on the interstate,
start a new effing life in Effington.
I could change my name, grow a beard, start a family
or I could just keep on moving on, moving
on, moving on, moving on….
and not stop ’til I get to Normal.
I want to live in Effington.
I want to die there too.
[ Find more Lyrics on http://mp3lyrics.org/pFgP ]
Please bury me in Effington
in Effington, in Effington, oh
I’ve got this movie in my mind of Effington
and the soundtrack to it sounds like
this (da da da da da da)
I want to live in Effington.
I want to die there too.
Please bury me in Effington
in Effington, in Effington, oh
If there’s a God he is laughing at us
and our football team.
And then the people who live in Normal
can buy the movies that I’ll make in Effington
that’s what Normal people do
Do Normal people do it too?
Normal people do it, people do it, people do it….
I want to live in Effington.
I want to die there too.
Please bury me in Effington
In Effington, in Effington, in Effington,
in Effington, in Effington!
#38 JS:
Thank you very much for saying so. I think I have the proper mindset and skill set for protective services work. I don’t doubt that. It’s all philosophical at this point.
I think there will always be a need for someone like Radley. Police work is done by human beings, so police will always need to be monitored (Myself included, if I become an LEO). Right now, however, Radley’s work is extremely crucial due to perverse incentives and degradation of values due to the drug war and fear mongering over terrorism and crime in general.
Here’s to a better tomorrow.
Ahhh….An Illinois State Trooper. Some of the best trained police officers in the nation. The ISP is a top-notch outfit. Thousands apply, but only a few get hired. I imagine that’s why they get such good officers. I’m sure some bad ones get through, but definitely a top-notch organization.
Wow! Cop’s actually treat people like they are real people. Should send cops from UK over for training. Never been treated like that by a cop in the UK!