Police Officer

Police Officer

BlueSheepdog

10 Years Experience

Around the Way, FL

Male, 40

Cheating death and fighting communism: that is how a fellow officer once described our job. It was meant to be funny, but as time went on it seemed all too true.

I spent more than ten years in law enforcement, all of it on the street in uniform patrol. I've been a patrol officer, instructor, sergeant and lieutenant.

Do not report crimes here. Nothing here should be considered legal advice. All opinions are my own.

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Last Answer on October 29, 2014

Best Rated

Does a police officer have the authority to decide not to give someone a ticket for a traffic violation and instead give them a warning with the hope that the offender will appreciate it and take the message?

Asked by In over 11 years ago

Generally, yes.  Some departments may have policies that restrict the use of discretion.

my brother just came home for out of state and been here fore about 2 weeks I did some investigation and found he has a warrant out for hi arrest in another state what should I do

Asked by froggy almost 12 years ago

Will the foreign state extradite?  If so, feel free to call the local authorities.  If not, the local cops will not be able to arrest him for the warrant.

Are big city police stations more likely to be smaller than suburban stations? Because in the NYPD for example, there are many of them, so they can spread units out. Whereas a suburb has to have all its units working in a few or one station.

Asked by Ryan over 11 years ago

It varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.  There are no rules, and I doubt anyone can make any accurate generalizations.

How are police radio channels used? It seems like if officers are just patrolling, then one dispatcher could handle like 50 units on one channel. But if there's something going on, how is people cutting each other out avoided?

Asked by Name about 12 years ago

Essentially, officers take turns.  It is a team sport and everyone has to share the radio.  Many agencies have more than one channel, so when something comes up, officers can move to different channels if needed.  But fundamentally, everyone has to take turns and officers give right of way to anyone that has emergency or urgent traffic.

Who takes the call from a 911 dispatcher? How do 911 dispatchers relay info to cops? If a 911 call happens at night who is there to take it? Are off duty members of the force contacted as well?

Asked by Writer23 about 12 years ago

Many 911 centers have call takers who answer the phones.  They enter information into a computer (often called a call screen because it shows information about all of the active calls for service).  

A dispatcher pulls the information from the call screen and relays it to the patrol officers.  This can be done via computer (many agencies use computer aided dispatching), by voice transmission on the radio, or through a combination of both.

As the call taker gets more information, the call screen is updated in real time.

Depending on the size of the agency, call takers and dispatchers may be separate positions or all of the communication staff may be cross-trained and do all of the jobs.  At a small department, only one or two people may be on duty and have to do all of the call taking and dispatching.  Other departments may employ dozens or even hundreds of communications employees.

Off duty officers are rarely contacted.  In those cases it is typically because of manpower shortages and/or emergencies.  For example, a hostage situation requires the presence of a large number of officers, so off-duty officers could be called in to assist with normal patrol calls.   This tends to be uncommon at most departments.

(Continued) I would be afraid of them finding out it was me and these kids aren't kids who no one likes who drinks. They are popular and I think they drink mostly to be cool. I'm not sure if I have a responsibility to act in this situation. Thanks!

Asked by Julian over 11 years ago

This sounds like something you should discuss with your parents.  Good luck.

an acquaintance of mine has managed to obtain numerous credit with a range of catalogs using a fake name and contact details nevertheless has used her address is that still fraud

Asked by wolfgirl over 12 years ago

Most definitely.  Since there is a pattern of fraudulent activity, this could be treated as a much more serious criminal enterprise akin to organized crime.  The specific laws vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.