D.W.P.O Part 3 "Keep Calm And Don't Drop The Soap"

   To recap everything we went over this week prior to us hitting the last topic in this conversation, first you should understand that ensuring the officer that his safety is guaranteed will make your whole interaction with the officer a better one. Secondly you should always show respect to an officer, be him good or bad, for in the end of the day he's the one with the gun and the one that can send you to jail, jail's no fun, you don't want to go there. Thirdly, for more detailed instructions on one and two go read the first two blogs, it'll fill you in to what we've covered this week. Ok, so today we'll be talking about the very bottom situations, the worst of the worst situations, what to expect, what not to do and so forth, just some things people don't talk about or teach you but might aid you in life, you never know, sometimes you find yourself at the wrong spot at the wrong time.

 The Arrest


   You can be arrested for a variation of reasons, some of these are serious and will cause you to land some jail time, but for the most part the majority of infractions are small ones dealing with you being in jail for a few days or just overnight, knowing the difference in what crime you committed is important, be it possession, battery, drunkenness or whatever else you did to get you into this pickle you should be aware of the punishment for the crime, especially if you have the propensity to do these things, sometimes knowing the punishment before you break the law will keep you from breaking the law, or being more discrete on how you go about it, anyway ignorance is not bliss, ignorance is stupidity when it comes to gambling with your life.

  For most small cases you will spend about a day in jail and be let out, here are some simple scenarios that will land you a night in jail: 1. Being drunk and obnoxious publicly, 2. Assaulting someone, or even quicker jail time, a bouncer, 3. Possession of Marijuana, 4. Talking back to a police officer when being pulled over, 5. Home abuse, paired with overall disrespect of officers. There you go, here are five ways to land you a night in the cell, be it the drunk tank or the bail sell, being in jail is no fun and it does not make you feel good about life. One thing to understand before we progress forward is that the 5 things listed could land you a day in jail if they are your first infraction or if we are dealing with a smaller scale crime, but if you have multiple of any of these or commit these crimes to the extreme then you will receive real hardcore "no messing around" jail time, these are serious crimes, know that from the start please and be smart in your decision making skills.

    Here is how things will play out if you are arrested, firstly you will be handcuffed and it will hurt, never have I heard someone tell me that the officer was worried about hurting their wrists when the cuffs were put on, again the officer is worried about his own safety so he won't be too concerned with you until he realizes that either you are not a bad person or you are just a harmless fool, either one will land a police officer to start being nicer to you. The cop ride is the eventual conclusion of whatever happens while you are handcuffed, some police officers will want to talk to you and question you on everything that took place, sometimes they'll have to question other people so you'll just have to sit on the curb and wait, the scenarios are endless really.

   The key thing to remember is that you should always "Keep Calm", always use your head, keep your mind clear and your mouth shut, cooperate with everything he tells you to do even if your wrists hurt from the handcuffs, this is the wisest course of action, always. When you respect the officer and keep calm things will play out pretty much by the book, you'll get thrown in a cell and will wait out there till they let you go because someone payed your bail or they just decided your a nice enough person and they think you learned your lesson. The latter is generally caused by one being nice to the officers and showing respect, not being crazy while in the cell and maybe even attempting small talk with the officer, not pleading your case mind you but just trying to establish some type of mutual respect or understanding between you and the arrest officer.

Never underestimate the power of nice actions, being kind will always get you far in life, showing respect to those above you in dire situations is the best course to take to ensure that everything goes better for you regardless of your situation, no one wants to help a jerk. A true example of someone being an idiot through this process is my friend St, he was arrested for taking a swing at a bouncer (which he missed because he was too drunk) which is a legal charge of battery, meaning he gets to spend a few nights in jail and has to appear in court to fight the case. He decided that being obnoxious was the right response from the beginning so from the club to getting cuffed to being in the cop car he was yelling obscenities at everyone claiming that the bouncer swung first and so forth.

  While in the police car St decided to not only start dissing the police officer but to start swinging a slew of racial slurs his way, which further put him in a bad spot. We could hear him from the outside so we drove to the jail thinking we could help him somehow but when getting there and hearing his continual loud cursing the clerk wouldn't even give us a chance, he just looked at us and gave this little smirk, it wasn't a good smirk, it was a "we're going teach this guy a lesson smirk". Long story short instead of spending a few nights in jail St spent over a week, he got "lost in the system" and had to endure various days of jail life, all due to not only the stupid nature of his crime but the fact that he choose to be a complete fool about the whole process.

  The story does have a better ending, St did go to court and the bouncer did not show up, so he appealed the case two more times and got the charges dropped, he was still in "probation" for a little while but he didn't have any serious charges put on him, he escaped on luck alone, but I'm sure that his behavior had a big part to play on his sentencing and on him being "lost in the system". A lesson to learn from his stupidity is this, if you are going to be doing stupid stuff and getting arrested, don't be an idiot when talking to police officers, because if you are then you will be messed with and taught a lesson, don't get "lost in the system" and be wise about your decision making, especially if you find yourself in the back of a cop car.

    There is a ton more that can be said on the topic, I think I could write 20 pages on it easily, but honestly who wants to read 20 pages on this topic....anyway, just be smart about what you do, be wise in your decision making, and if you are not then at least try to not make matters worse by not being respectful of those that have power over you. Seek to live life by respecting everyone around you, specially those with authority, a little respect will take you far in life, especially when you get into trouble, respect goes a long way.

   I hope this has been helpful to some of you, and that maybe this might dis-sway some of you from breaking the law, in the end I just hope that I stop at least one person from behaving like St did, never a good idea. Hope you all have a great and safe weekend.

 Love from your humble blogger,

Dealing With Police Officers "The Ticket And The Beast" Part 2

    Some of you might think this post weird, you might be asking "Why is he talking about cop etiquette instead of talking about America and the 4th of July?", well the answer is simple, the amount of atrocities that occur every year between people and police officers during this day are astounding, thus the importance of this post. This is a great day where we celebrate our liberties, our freedom, our pride of being Americans but it is also the day many get drunk and cause accidents, where people do really dumb things with fireworks and basically the 4th has become to some a "green light" day to do whatever craziness they can think up, which can backfire two ways, the first is that you might get arrested and that if you are one of the people not being crazy, you might get in trouble just because police officers are on edge. This will be part 2 of 3 posts on this topic, dealing with the proverbial ticket and jerk police officers, I hope this might be informative. 

   The Ticket

 Sometimes regardless of what happened, regardless of what steps you took, of how much you cried, of how much you pleaded, you will get the proverbial ticket. There is no way to hide from it, we all get one, at least one, the amount of drivers out there that have never gotten a ticket is very small, the amount that has never been pulled over is even smaller, so prepare yourself for both. Remember that the police officer is not your enemy, he isn't, he is there to protect the people and so even though you are mad at him he has to do his job, if you break the law he can choose to look the other way but the right thing is for people to get what they deserve. Next time you get a ticket remember that it is better for the law to be upheld then for all cops to just look the other way.

   I'm not saying that getting a ticket doesn't stink, oh it does, but in the end of the day you can't really be angry at the officer for doing their job, that's just unfair, it's like looking at a doctor after surgery and being like "why did you heal me? why? how dare you do your job!". I also understand that this scenario only works if we are talking about good police officers, the ones that actually take being an officer as a big deal, as a responsibility to keeping the peace and being awesome. The scenario changes if we are talking about bad cops, which brings us to our next topic, the eventual pain in the rear cop.

  The Bad Cop

     When reading this post understand that I'm attempting not to curse, when "bad" is said the vulgar word for "rear" is being used, now that the picture is painted let us begin. There will be times where you won't do anything wrong, or when your infraction will be so small that getting a ticket will annoy you to the core. These times are generally heightened by the fact that there is a "bad" cop going through the motions with you, except instead of just going through the regular motions he treats you horribly, like you're the worst person in the world, he'll egg you on and try to get you to lose your temper, he'll push you to the limit till you are full to bursting, here is the key element to dealing with these cops, don't buy into their game, keep calm and bite your tongue. 

Think "Training Day" Denzel "bad"

    These are the cops that will make your life a living hell, all they want is for you to have a panic attack and retaliate, this will be the point where they will pull you out of the car and manhandle you, even to the point of handcuffing you and placing you on the curb. Your infraction could have been minuscule, but this guy doesn't care, he just loves to abuse his power, he loves pushing you down and elevating himself, so don't be that poor soul on the curb and bite your tongue, calm yourself, dealing with this "bad" as "by the book" as possible, trust, this is the best response.  Even during the worst of it, just keep calm, there is no talking to these type of cops, so the best response is silence and respect.

   On Friday we'll be talking about what to do in case you are ever arrested, we'll be talking about the worst case scenarios and true stories of people that just weren't wise with how they handled themselves and the disastrous consequences of following their example. Hope you all have a fantastic 4th of July, enjoy yourselves and watch "Independence Day" while you are at it, definitely my favorite 4th of July movie. And please, please be safe, be smart and don't drink and drive, never a wise decision.

 Love from your humble blogger,

Dealing With Police Officers: "Pull Over Etiquette" Part 1

    As you learn to drive and join the world of the road there are a few things you must know in order to survive it. For some reason most people don't talk about the proper way to dealing with police officers, its just not a common topic among people, you learn how to drive, you take the test but when it comes to proper "pull over" etiquette there are almost no lessons ever given, thus the importance of this post. Recently I've seen this come to light more than just a few times, thus prompting me to write this post, the steps here are not a rule, or a uniform "you must do things this way" type deal, but these are helpful insights that might make the whole experience go better for you and aid you in avoiding a few tickets, or God forbid, jail time.

  Organize

    A very simple first step that you should take is to organize your glove box, don't just throw random papers in there but keep it organized in order to not waste your time or the officer's time. The best way I've found is to keep two envelopes in there at all times, one containing your insurance and registration and the other containing your car check-up history. The first will make it easier for when you eventually get pulled over and the other will come in handy when your car breaks down, trust that doing so might save you tons of cash. After you have labeled both envelopes it doesn't really matter what else you keep in the glove box, personally I try to keep it clean, it just sends the right message when police officers pull you over, it shows you are a responsible adult, keeping the car clean helps you in the same way.

   Keep Calm

    Take a deep breath now and realize this, you will eventually be pulled over and most likely you will receive at least one ticket in your lifetime this is just how the world of the road works, there is no escaping it. After you have realized this fact everything else will fall into place, so don't be nervous, relax your muscles and just be honest with the officer. Honesty is important, officers deal with people lying to them every day, day in and day out people feed them lies and so they know the signs to watch out for, the best policy here is to be honest with them for they can spot a lie, this will show that you respect his or her authority and will get you in the officer's good side (please use discretion when being honest, don't lie but don't be naive). So when you eventually get pulled over take a deep breath, count to ten and prepare yourself for what is coming.

   Proper Steps

  Here is where there are no definite rules as to the "overarching definite true answer" as to how to go about doing this but I feel that the steps we're about to go over are the best ones and will possibly aid you in not getting a ticket. When you find yourself being pulled over the first thing you should know is that you should pull over to the right side of the road, parking lots are a great idea as well, this will show that you care about the safety of the officer that is about to approach your car thus enforcing his respect for you. After you have placed your car in park you should lower every window in your car, this will show that you have nothing to hide, it will secure the idea within his mind that you're a good driver and that you are not being shady.

  The next step is small but crucial, the officer is always dealing with crazy people thus he will be on alert as to what you are doing with your hands, so after you have lowered all your windows place your hands in front of your steering wheel and wait for him to approach your car. The reason for him taking his time coming to your car is that he is watching you to see what you are going to do, most people that are doing wrong things will panic and start hiding things, which just proves one's guilt even more, so where you put your hands is very important as to how the officer will react to you as he approaches your car. An important advice to remember is that the officer deals with crazy people all day so he'll be on alert, for your safety and the officer's safety the more you assure him that you are not one of these crazies the better.

  An important step that most people forget is that you should not make any sudden movements and that you should announce what you are about to do before you do it, here is what I mean, the officer comes to your door and asks for your license, while your hand is propped on the wheel look at him and say "yes sir, it's in my wallet" and slowly reach for it, this will keep him from thinking that you're reaching for something you are not (like a gun or knife). When he asks for your registration and insurance you should always ask "it's in my glove box, my I reach for it?" this will again re-affirm to the officer that he is safe and therefore you will be safe, also it'll demonstrate respect. Once he has seen your information you should answer his questions honestly and allow him to go through the process of going to his car and running your license.

   While he is at his car you should place your hands on the wheel again so he can see that you are not doing anything suspicious, and wait patiently for him to come back to your car. Regardless of what he gives you, a warning, a ticket, you should always thank him, apologize and do as instructed, affirming that you respect the officer is the most important step in the whole process, most people disrespect him so be the one that shows  a real respect for authority, in the long run this will pay off big time. After you receive your warning or ticket you should always wait for the officer to get back in his car before taking off and use your blinkers as you get back on the road, this will again re-enforce the fact that you are a good person and will again ensure the officer that you are not of of the crazies he has to deal with.

  Again these steps might aid you in not getting a ticket, but there is no full proof plan as to how to avoid tickets, you will eventually get one and it'll ruin your day, start preparing for it now. Following these steps will just aid you in establishing respect between you and the officer, which will ensure your safety and the officer's safety. On Wednesday we'll be talking about part 2 of this whole process, the second post will be life lessons I can share on what to do when all goes wrong, from arrest to having a jerk officer come to your window, hopefully these two posts will help some of you to avoid getting tickets and having a bad time with police officers. Again these are not concrete rules, but good guidelines that might aid you.

  Hope you all had a fantastic weekend and pray that this week might be a good one for you,

  Love from your humble blogger,