To keep you safe and alive.
On September 14th, a man posing as a police officer pulled over a woman on Robert C Byrd Drive in Beckley, West Virginia, detained the woman in the back of his car and sexually assaulted her. He was later arrested by Raleigh County sheriff's deputies.
This happens far too often, and since surprisingly most of my readership is women I thought I'd write down some helpful hints. If you don't already practice these, I strongly recommend you start as soon as possible, like immediately.
1) If you are driving alone at night and a vehicle that seems to be a police car tries to pull you over and the area where you are is un-lit or deserted, only pull over where there are people around and it is well lighted. Shopping malls, gas stations and convenience stores for example. If there are no places like that where you are, continue to drive at the speed limit until you find a place mentioned above. Better yet, if you know where the police station is located, drive directly there. But above all else, MAKE SURE that there's plenty of witnesses. Any good cop will understand your actions when explained.
2) "Undercover" police officers DO NOT pull people over for traffic violations. If they are going to be pulling you over for something, there WILL be plenty of other cops IN UNIFORM with MARKED police cars there too. If the "Officer" shows you a badge, ask for an ID card. If he won't show a government-issued ID card, he's NOT a cop.
3) Keep your doors locked and only roll down your window enough to allow the passage of your driver's license and vehicle registration.
4) If you still feel unsafe, asked the officer to have his supervisor report to the scene. He has do do that. If you are carrying a cell phone, call 911 and tell them your fears, making sure to let them know precisely where you're at, if you don't know, describe what you see and any landmarks.
Like I said before, any good cop will understand your actions when explained and you shouldn't be cited for not immediately stopping, if it's a real cop.
Hope this helps.
Copyright 2005 Thomas J Wolfenden
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8 comments:
Great post, Tom.
I've also heard it said that if you are unsure of whether the car trying to pull you over is a real police car or not, put your hazards on while driving to the well-lit public place. This alerts to the officer - assuming it is one - that a) you see him, b) you understand he is pulling you over, and 3) you will comply as soon as circumstances safely permit.
True Kev, forgot about that... Been off the job to long.
Dam, and I fantasize about Police Officer's frisking me.
One of the great cultural differences between Orstraya and the U.S. is the different protocols observed when pulled over. In the U.S. you wait in your car for the cop to come to you; in Oz you get out of your car and go to the cop, the theory being that he will be more comfortable and therefore more lenient.
My (aged) uncle was pulled over in the States and followed the Oz method. The coppers threw him on the ground with a gun in the back of his head. My Aunt is pretty fiery and got out and started berating the cops. It could of gout of hand, but the cops worked it out before long and let my uncle go without a ticket. I guess they were embarrassed.
Great tips for the ladies. Thanks.
It does help. Thanks for sharing with all of us ladies.
You know, I think the scariest thing ever is the thought of a criminal dressed up as a police officer...
You always think you can trust policemen, ya know?
It's a scary world though...
Dreamz: I'm not even going to go there... LOL
Dirk: It is sad. Sorry to hear about what happened to your Aunt and Uncle. It was the same here in the States for a long while and then things changed for the worse. It got to a point when I was a cop if I didn't or couldn't see both your hands out the window, you'd definately have my gun in your face.
Bev & Cheryl: No problem... I just read the story in the paper and it pissed me off and thought I'd share some saftey tips.
Courtney: What's really scary is that on the PD where I worked, about fifteen years ago, a cop in uniform raped a woman at gunpoint in the back of his police car. It is a sad, sad statement on society.
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