Why do Cops or Police act the way they do?

[Non-RedNeck Westsider]

And it's not just cops....

Most uniformed personnel from cops to fire dept to nurses and emts and uniformed military...  they all get discounts in many establishments.

I don't see a big deal.   So do senior citizens...   Are they supposed to declare every 15% discount from Famous Amos?

[The_Choose_1]

And it's not just cops....

Most uniformed personnel from cops to fire dept to nurses and emts and uniformed military...  they all get discounts in many establishments.

I don't see a big deal.   So do senior citizens...   Are they supposed to declare every 15% discount from Famous Amos?

If you are a Public worker you should pay for your own meals. Unless like Adam White said "Regardless, they should be required to report each and every free thing they get." 

[Adam White]

Bribery Act of 2010 is a UK thing.  The reason cops are offered free stuff is because business owners like the car being in their parking lot.  I have no problem with it.  Now if the officers are camping out there for hours at a time, that is an issue.

I know it's a UK thing. You asked me if I disclose everything I receive gratis and I said yes and explained why.

[spuwho]

This occurred about 60 days ago off the Arlington Expressway.

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/RQUAu8QnKVs" target="_blank" class="new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/RQUAu8QnKVs</a>

[The_Choose_1]

This occurred about 60 days ago off the Arlington Expressway.

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/RQUAu8QnKVs" target="_blank" class="new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/RQUAu8QnKVs</a>

I was told by an FBI friend he said If Police want to do a lie detector test on you tell them No because even if you pass the test they will tell you that you failed the test to get you upset.

[The_Choose_1]

http://www.cnet.com/news/dashcam-video-catches-off-duty-cop-threatening-to-put-hole-in-head-of-driver/#ftag=YHF65cbda0

[Bill Hoff]

It was once in a "blue moon" when Police were caught doing something Stupid now it's almost daily across America Why is this? And a good quote “Society had a crime problem. It hired cops to attack crime. Now society has a cop problem.” WHY?
― Tom Robbins, Still Life with Woodpecker

You can find people making bad judgements in any profession daily.

This is not new, the level of media coverage on this particular profession is.

That said, cops deal with crap all day. When humans deal with stress all day, even with training, occasionally they may snap and do/say something they shouldn't. It's human nature.

Unless we hire Robocops, or Robo-any profession,, emotion and psyche will influence humans to make incorrect decisions in their jobs (and lives) - especially those under high stress.

[Adam White]

This occurred about 60 days ago off the Arlington Expressway.

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/RQUAu8QnKVs" target="_blank" class="new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/RQUAu8QnKVs</a>

I was told by an FBI friend he said If Police want to do a lie detector test on you tell them No because even if you pass the test they will tell you that you failed the test to get you upset.

AFAIK, polygraph tests are inadmissable in court. As a general rule, I would refuse to answer any probing questions from the police in the absence of a lawyer. And I also wouldn't submit to questioning unless I had been arrested. If you are not arrested, you can leave.

[The_Choose_1]

You know something I felt better about JSO Police Officers when the NEWS MEDIA had better checks on them? But several years ago the scanners that the JSO once had at News Stations were removed. Which makes it harder to Watch the Watchmen.

[Gunnar]

It was once in a "blue moon" when Police were caught doing something Stupid now it's almost daily across America Why is this? And a good quote “Society had a crime problem. It hired cops to attack crime. Now society has a cop problem.” WHY?
― Tom Robbins, Still Life with Woodpecker

You can find people making bad judgements in any profession daily.

This is not new, the level of media coverage on this particular profession is.

That said, cops deal with crap all day. When humans deal with stress all day, even with training, occasionally they may snap and do/say something they shouldn't. It's human nature.

Unless we hire Robocops, or Robo-any profession,, emotion and psyche will influence humans to make incorrect decisions in their jobs (and lives) - especially those under high stress.

I sorta agree with you here - as cops deal with criminals every day (that is their job), they tend to start seeing everyone as a potential criminal who poses a danger to them. If they are insecure and / or have a weak character, all the worse.

Next issue - all that "war" talk - war on drugs, war on crime, war on this and that... this will probably give cops the feeling that they are soldier fighting in a war with a focus of eliminating their enemies (read: everyone else) rather than being there to protect the citizens. Blame  politicians who like tough sounding slogans for that one.

What makes this problem worse is the probably very basic nature of police training - could not find exact data on how long training takes in Florida but I would guess it is not much longer than the 3 months it takes in other states. If it were two to three years with supervised on the job training, I would bet that officers would be much better qualified to do their jobs plus this would weed out the inept candidates.

[Gunnar]

Why do Police officers get a free Lunch? Isn't it there job to come when called at any business? I have seen with my own two open eyes Police Officers pull out a little card at McDonald's and get a free meal. This shouldn't be aloud, police officers should pay for their own meals. Unless they are off duty and working at said restaurant as paid protection. IMO!

Why shouldnt it be allowed?
If the owner doesnt want to, do you think the cops will break the owners legs or something?

A decent argument in favor of it not being allowed is that it could be viewed as a bribe. It's unethical for a police officer to take stuff for free - even if it's offered. Of course, businesses do this to ensure there are cops around. That's why a lot of convenience store give free coffee to cops - as a former 7-Eleven Field Consultant, I certainly appreciated late night visits from the police when I was stuck working a third shift.

You are making a good point here - so the shop owners are essentially paying the officers to provide a supplementary service, i.e. additional protection, making their store a less likely target for criminals due to the frequent police visits.

This also in turn means that those who offer no financial incentive to the police will end up less protected - so I would agree that this constitutes a bribe, no matter how small.

[The_Choose_1]

Why do Police officers get a free Lunch? Isn't it there job to come when called at any business? I have seen with my own two open eyes Police Officers pull out a little card at McDonald's and get a free meal. This shouldn't be aloud, police officers should pay for their own meals. Unless they are off duty and working at said restaurant as paid protection. IMO!

Why shouldnt it be allowed?
If the owner doesnt want to, do you think the cops will break the owners legs or something?

A decent argument in favor of it not being allowed is that it could be viewed as a bribe. It's unethical for a police officer to take stuff for free - even if it's offered. Of course, businesses do this to ensure there are cops around. That's why a lot of convenience store give free coffee to cops - as a former 7-Eleven Field Consultant, I certainly appreciated late night visits from the police when I was stuck working a third shift.

You are making a good point here - so the shop owners are essentially paying the officers to provide a supplementary service, i.e. additional protection, making their store a less likely target for criminals due to the frequent police visits.

This also in turn means that those who offer no financial incentive to the police will end up less protected - so I would agree that this constitutes a bribe, no matter how small.

YES!

[Adam White]

Why do Police officers get a free Lunch? Isn't it there job to come when called at any business? I have seen with my own two open eyes Police Officers pull out a little card at McDonald's and get a free meal. This shouldn't be aloud, police officers should pay for their own meals. Unless they are off duty and working at said restaurant as paid protection. IMO!

Why shouldnt it be allowed?
If the owner doesnt want to, do you think the cops will break the owners legs or something?

A decent argument in favor of it not being allowed is that it could be viewed as a bribe. It's unethical for a police officer to take stuff for free - even if it's offered. Of course, businesses do this to ensure there are cops around. That's why a lot of convenience store give free coffee to cops - as a former 7-Eleven Field Consultant, I certainly appreciated late night visits from the police when I was stuck working a third shift.

You are making a good point here - so the shop owners are essentially paying the officers to provide a supplementary service, i.e. additional protection, making their store a less likely target for criminals due to the frequent police visits.

This also in turn means that those who offer no financial incentive to the police will end up less protected - so I would agree that this constitutes a bribe, no matter how small.

I think it's also worth considering that while it's not likely to cause a police officer to intentionally act a certain way, the concern is that it could possibly cause them to compromise their objectivity unwittingly. There should be no question in anyone's mind that the practice of accepting freebies creates a conflict of interest on its face. And perhaps even more important is the possible appearance of impropriety.

That said, I don't think most cops are affected by getting the occasional free cup of coffee.

[Bill Hoff]

This occurred about 60 days ago off the Arlington Expressway.

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/RQUAu8QnKVs" target="_blank" class="new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/RQUAu8QnKVs</a>

Just watched this. What a jerk that driver was. Get a grip.

[The_Choose_1]

Why do Police officers get a free Lunch? Isn't it there job to come when called at any business? I have seen with my own two open eyes Police Officers pull out a little card at McDonald's and get a free meal. This shouldn't be aloud, police officers should pay for their own meals. Unless they are off duty and working at said restaurant as paid protection. IMO!

Why shouldnt it be allowed?
If the owner doesnt want to, do you think the cops will break the owners legs or something?

A decent argument in favor of it not being allowed is that it could be viewed as a bribe. It's unethical for a police officer to take stuff for free - even if it's offered. Of course, businesses do this to ensure there are cops around. That's why a lot of convenience store give free coffee to cops - as a former 7-Eleven Field Consultant, I certainly appreciated late night visits from the police when I was stuck working a third shift.

You are making a good point here - so the shop owners are essentially paying the officers to provide a supplementary service, i.e. additional protection, making their store a less likely target for criminals due to the frequent police visits.

This also in turn means that those who offer no financial incentive to the police will end up less protected - so I would agree that this constitutes a bribe, no matter how small.

I think it's also worth considering that while it's not likely to cause a police officer to intentionally act a certain way, the concern is that it could possibly cause them to compromise their objectivity unwittingly. There should be no question in anyone's mind that the practice of accepting freebies creates a conflict of interest on its face. And perhaps even more important is the possible appearance of impropriety.

That said, I don't think most cops are affected by getting the occasional free cup of coffee.

Free cup of coffee is fine, unless that cup is from Starbucks and it would have cost $4.00? And if one cop is getting it free at a location does this also mean that any cop can have a freebie also?  "32 administrative employees, 897 corrections personnel, 389 working in investigations and homeland security and more than 1,200 patrol and enforcement officers." If you add up all of these people working for the Sheriff then that free coffee sure adds up.