A True Story
It was just a while ago that I read NIcholas Power's article "The Gropes of Wrath" on Village Voice regarding Police harassment and it brought one of my own very first experiences with the police to mind.
This is a story that I tell every friend of mine who is a law enforcement major or every law enforcement major I meet and happen to talk to in general. It's also something that comes back to mind 'EVERY TIME' I see a police squad car or come across a police officer. It's amazing even to me because thinking back now I can see how wrong and prejudiced this guy who stopped me for no reason was.
This is a story that I tell every friend of mine who is a law enforcement major or every law enforcement major I meet and happen to talk to in general. It's also something that comes back to mind 'EVERY TIME' I see a police squad car or come across a police officer. It's amazing even to me because thinking back now I can see how wrong and prejudiced this guy who stopped me for no reason was.
The Story
I was about 15 years old and had just come to Minnesota to visit my Aunt for the Summer. It was the early summer and it was still a bit cool and not as hot as it was in Oklahoma at the time. I liked Minnesota right away, everything was green and people were nice, really nice. I spent a lot of otime talking to my Aunt's neighbors and hanging outside of the house despite the flocks of mosquitoes waiting to get any chance at filling up.
At about three weeks into my stay at my Aunt's house. I'd become more comfortable with the area and one night I wanted something sweet and I decided to walk to a Super America convinient store which wasn't more than five minutes away from the house. It was warm and I had nothing but a t-shirt and a pair of shorts on that that looked like boxers.
I had to cross a pretty busy road and walk through a brush field to get to the store. I crossed the road, and half way through the field a car pulled up right next to me. This car didn't just 'pull up', it swerved so fast that I thought I was unfortunately in the wrong place during an accident and thats when a bright light swept from my face down to my feet. I didn't see the white section of the car until the light had gone down the full length of my body. Something told me... "you should be running, right now", but I wasn't; I'd never dealt with the police before and had no idea as to what the hell was going on.
"HEY!.... Where You going?" Somebody said from the car. I was still a bit stunned from the light being shone in my face, so I just stood there and didn't answer for a good 2-3 minutes.
"You Hear Me!?" the person yelled again. "Umm... to buy Butterfingers", my eyes darted about because I was really confused as to what the hell this police guy was asking where I was going ( this was when I really liked The Simpsons and they'd advertised butterfingers on the show all the time)
"Oh yeah? Well we're looking for someone that kinda looks like you", at this point he opened his car door, got out and walked towards me. "Turn Around" he said, "Somebody that looks like me?" I asked the guy whom if I can clearly remember must have been in his late 30's to early 40's. "What was he wearing?" I asked again as he lifted my shirt and patted me down.
"T-Shirt and Boxers." he answered back just as quickly as I'd asked. "Got any I.D?"....
"Yeah I do but I don't have it in my boxers" (I'd just gotten a state I.D and I carried it almost everywhere with but not this time) "Been arrested before?", "How old are you?"........"No", "15" I answered in single word answers. "You sure?....", "amazing"....... I stood as he looked at me, this time with his flash light on.
"Get in the car, lets go get your ID" he said as he stood behind me. At this point , I was ready to shit on myself because I had no idea what the hell was going on. I was 15, had never had as much as more than two words with the police and here I was being put in the back of a squad car.
The door slammed behind me as he walked to the driver's side. The backseat of a police car is the most frightening place I've ever imagined and although I was close to only five feet in height, I still had to sit sideways to stretch my feet. All I could think of while in the back of that car was 'what the hell is going on'?
"I just moved here" I abruptly said, "I live with my Aunt, but I'm only going to be here for the summer though" ....... not a single word was uttered from the front seat as he calmly asked for directions to my Aunt's House. Once there He parked the squad car as close as possible to the door, got out and opened my door. "com-an" he said in an almost New York like accent. I got out of the car walked into the house , ran upstairs and frantically searched for my I.D. In what seemed like forever but must have been 2-3 minutes. I ran down the stairs and nearly losing my balance, stumbled downstairs. "Whoa... careful there fella" he said with his hands on his waist... on his holster.
"Here...." I said as I handed him my I.D, almost out of breath. He stared at it and called in on his radio, I stood there for what seemed an even longer time and waited. About 5 minutes later, he handed me back my I.D and walked out....................
I held my I.D and sat at the bottom of the stair with my heart beating at the speed of light. I was so frightened, I couldn't even walk back upstairs and instead opted to walk a few feet to the living room where I collapse on the most comfy sofa I could find to be awaken by my Aunt.
In retrospect... I realize that what happened to me was wrong and unlawful and extremely prejudiced. I've realized that not running when that car pulled up next to me so fast was the best thing I did that day, I realized that another thing I could have done that day to make that 'officer' pay for what he did was to take his badge number and report what had happened to me, but I was scared..... I was only 15 and I thought my aunty would freak out if she found out that the police had picked me up. It wasn't until about four years later when I told her what had happened that she was even angrier that I didn't do the right thing and tell what had happened.
Now I know that there is nothing I can do for not reporting what had happened, I make it a personal duty of mine to tell every person majoring in law enforcement that story even going as far as talking to a Law Enforcement professor about the incident.
At about three weeks into my stay at my Aunt's house. I'd become more comfortable with the area and one night I wanted something sweet and I decided to walk to a Super America convinient store which wasn't more than five minutes away from the house. It was warm and I had nothing but a t-shirt and a pair of shorts on that that looked like boxers.
I had to cross a pretty busy road and walk through a brush field to get to the store. I crossed the road, and half way through the field a car pulled up right next to me. This car didn't just 'pull up', it swerved so fast that I thought I was unfortunately in the wrong place during an accident and thats when a bright light swept from my face down to my feet. I didn't see the white section of the car until the light had gone down the full length of my body. Something told me... "you should be running, right now", but I wasn't; I'd never dealt with the police before and had no idea as to what the hell was going on.
"HEY!.... Where You going?" Somebody said from the car. I was still a bit stunned from the light being shone in my face, so I just stood there and didn't answer for a good 2-3 minutes.
"You Hear Me!?" the person yelled again. "Umm... to buy Butterfingers", my eyes darted about because I was really confused as to what the hell this police guy was asking where I was going ( this was when I really liked The Simpsons and they'd advertised butterfingers on the show all the time)
"Oh yeah? Well we're looking for someone that kinda looks like you", at this point he opened his car door, got out and walked towards me. "Turn Around" he said, "Somebody that looks like me?" I asked the guy whom if I can clearly remember must have been in his late 30's to early 40's. "What was he wearing?" I asked again as he lifted my shirt and patted me down.
"T-Shirt and Boxers." he answered back just as quickly as I'd asked. "Got any I.D?"....
"Yeah I do but I don't have it in my boxers" (I'd just gotten a state I.D and I carried it almost everywhere with but not this time) "Been arrested before?", "How old are you?"........"No", "15" I answered in single word answers. "You sure?....", "amazing"....... I stood as he looked at me, this time with his flash light on.
"Get in the car, lets go get your ID" he said as he stood behind me. At this point , I was ready to shit on myself because I had no idea what the hell was going on. I was 15, had never had as much as more than two words with the police and here I was being put in the back of a squad car.
The door slammed behind me as he walked to the driver's side. The backseat of a police car is the most frightening place I've ever imagined and although I was close to only five feet in height, I still had to sit sideways to stretch my feet. All I could think of while in the back of that car was 'what the hell is going on'?
"I just moved here" I abruptly said, "I live with my Aunt, but I'm only going to be here for the summer though" ....... not a single word was uttered from the front seat as he calmly asked for directions to my Aunt's House. Once there He parked the squad car as close as possible to the door, got out and opened my door. "com-an" he said in an almost New York like accent. I got out of the car walked into the house , ran upstairs and frantically searched for my I.D. In what seemed like forever but must have been 2-3 minutes. I ran down the stairs and nearly losing my balance, stumbled downstairs. "Whoa... careful there fella" he said with his hands on his waist... on his holster.
"Here...." I said as I handed him my I.D, almost out of breath. He stared at it and called in on his radio, I stood there for what seemed an even longer time and waited. About 5 minutes later, he handed me back my I.D and walked out....................
I held my I.D and sat at the bottom of the stair with my heart beating at the speed of light. I was so frightened, I couldn't even walk back upstairs and instead opted to walk a few feet to the living room where I collapse on the most comfy sofa I could find to be awaken by my Aunt.
In retrospect... I realize that what happened to me was wrong and unlawful and extremely prejudiced. I've realized that not running when that car pulled up next to me so fast was the best thing I did that day, I realized that another thing I could have done that day to make that 'officer' pay for what he did was to take his badge number and report what had happened to me, but I was scared..... I was only 15 and I thought my aunty would freak out if she found out that the police had picked me up. It wasn't until about four years later when I told her what had happened that she was even angrier that I didn't do the right thing and tell what had happened.
Now I know that there is nothing I can do for not reporting what had happened, I make it a personal duty of mine to tell every person majoring in law enforcement that story even going as far as talking to a Law Enforcement professor about the incident.
posted by claudius_max at 1:12 PM
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