Training Day the DAC way

[Wolfman Walt]

So it occurred to me that I get asked abunch of police/law enforcement questions. I figured it’d be fun to just make that it’s own topic.

Just remember:
I have the right to remain silent; anything that I say may be used against me.

I have a right to an attorney. I choose Spazmo, but he’s not returning my calls, so I expect DaC to provide me one free of charge.


I have a right to stop questioning, but I probably won’t cause the chances of anyone reading this is pretty slim.

With these rights in mind, I will voluntarily answer questions.

[Jeff]

name three things movies always get wrong about being a cop

also did you smoke PCP to get the approval of your partner?

[Hyacinth]

Do you get to choose your own gun?

[Hyacinth]

Ever had to handle snakes?

https://youtu.be/Cg7VNv-tIEM

[Wolfman Walt]

“3 things”
I rarely have to read miranda rights, I can only charge people with misdemeanors under certain conditions (primarily having to witness it), When I was on patrol, my cruiser topped out at about 134 mph and anyone faster was a pain to chase.

“Smoke pcp”
We don’t get partners. Only undercover guys get a pass on doin drugs and I’m not quite so sure how lenient they are on that. PCP isn’t very common around here either.

“Do you get to choose your own gun.”
I chose my back up. It’s a little snub nose revolver. I feel like detectives should have a revolver.


“Snakes”
Never snakes, but we get a lot of loose cattle and horse calls. One of coworkers had to shoot a horse in the head cause we couldn’t catch it and we were afraid it was gonna run into traffic and kill someone. My glock has like 40 notches on it from deer I’ve had to shoot.

[Hyacinth]

Not bad, what happens with the deer after you relieves it of its life? How common are cowboy boots? Where do you carry the back up? Got a case that never was solved which keeps you up at night? :mismatch:

[Jeff]

I don't remember how long you've been the sheriff but do you feel that the job has changed in recent years? I'm thinking cops covering up badge numbers, defund the police, public scrutiny etc; what do you make of it, as a cop?

Is it cool to call you a cop or do you prefer police, or officer, or Sir

[Wolfman Walt]

“What happens to the deer”
If it’s in the road, I drag him out and that’s that.

“Cowboy boots”
No one wears them. We’re trying to convince the sheriff to add cowboy hats to the uniform policy though.

“Backup”
I don’t carry it often yet. I need an ankle holster for it. Right now I just have an iwb at the 4 o’clock holster.

“Case that keeps me up”
Not really, but sometimes cases are hard. I had a suicide back in december where the lady hung herself with an extension cord off the bed post while her boyfriend was in the living room. It was very suspicious, but there was no actual evidence of foul play and other factors that make it seem like it is what it is, such as lack of petechia which is generally present if you are forcibly strangled. Whole situation is fucked up.

I’ve chased someone before who ended up killing themselves shortly thereafter. I dunno if that counts. I won’t say they keep me up, but I do think of em.

“How long”
I’ve been in law enforcement for 13 years now, but I’ve only been a cop for 3.5.

“Job changed”
Yes. Very much. Not just from the police angle, but the entire justice system. There is a greater emphasis on putting dudes out on the street that don’t belong there now for rehabilitation because the state figured out it’s ten times cheaper to have someone report to a probation officer and do some AA classes than go to prison. It literally affects everything.

“Cover up badges”
I’ve never seen that, actually. Sometimes you’ll see someone with a black stripe across their badge, generally made of cloth, which is to recognize a fallen officer. One of my friends from academy was shot and killed last year and I wore mine for a month and wear it on the anniversary.

Not saying it doesn’t happen, just that I haven’t seen it. It’s stupid anyways cause if someone arrests you, their info is on the citation.

“Defund the police”
Luckily not as much a problem for me, but that whole movement still has an affect. No one wants to be a cop anymore, for instance. This has a negative feedback because it means the standards can be lowered - the lower the standards, the more you’re gonna have guys who have no business being the police. It also can affect policy. When New York got rid of it’s undercover violent crimes unit in an effort to appease the mob, violent crime skyrocketed to the point that the actual black community in New York started begging that unit to come back inspite of the BLM crowd. Trust me, I can type a book on the whole idea, but ultimately - it’s bullshit. Are there improvements to be made? Ofcourse. Defunding the police and having unrealistic expectations of the police are not it.

Cop is ok. I think people get uppity if you don’t differentiate type though (all leos are cops, but sheriffs offices have deputies, police have officers, feds generally have agents, etc.) Technically, since I’m a detective, I go by that title, but really any of the above is ok in my book. I don’t even care about “officer.”

[Jeff]

This is a very good thread, thanks Walt!

[SenisterDenister]

I still remember the story you told years ago of the killer you had to watch in prison that seemed completely normal, he tried to talk to the transformers movies to you. That shit stuck with me, you'd never know what somebody like that was capable of until it was too late.

[Wolfman Walt]

Victor Taylor

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinity_murders

He’s still alive

http://kool.corrections.ky.gov/KOOL/Details/205240

He’s still a manipulative ass, in my estimation. Definitely one of the most evil people I’ve ever met.

[SenisterDenister]

Spooky stuff, man.

[Hyacinth]

Mr. Detective Sir, sounds you're climbing the ranks what's the next step in your career are you aiming for something particular?

[Wolfman Walt]

are you aiming for something particular?

Nothing particular at the moment. I have afew months to decide if I wanna apply for the secret service, which is an option.

I kinda wanna keep my mutton chops though and very few positions afford me that ability.

[Hyacinth]

That's pretty cool you can be our man on the inside, probably dac will show up on your security scan or whatever sorry about your career

[Jeff]

Have you been in any situations where you were afraid for your life, like "holy shit this cop thing is getting pretty real"?

Do you feel that constantly dealing with the delinquent elements of society has shaped your view of the fellow man? I feel like it could make one a bit cynical

[Hyacinth]

How many work in your precinct? Do you have a good vibe with the operators on the dispatch radio? Is there like a black middle aged woman who calls you sweetheart or something when you take a call? How's the after work?

[Jeff]

Whats your favourite cop tv show

[Wolfman Walt]

“you were afraid for your life”
Acouple. Generally pursuits. I’m a decent driver, but once you start going 130 miles per hour, shit gets real. I totaled a cruiser once. Came into a curve going 80 and since it was sleeting, my tires lost traction and I went off the road, over a culvert, and through about 5 fence posts. Pretty glad I had a push bar. Probably stopped any fence posts from flying through my windshield into me. I also probably launched that guys trashcan to the moon.

Luckily most on foot situations have been pretty controllable. I’ve had to fight afew folks by myself, but thats never been a problem. Drunks are my favorite to fight cause it’s like fighting in easy mode. Meth heads are abit less fun. When all else fails, a maglight does wonders. I’ve beaten the ever living fuck out of a number of people who were resisting with ol Lawbringer, and it works wonders every time. Expandable batons feels as effective as harsh language in comparison.

“the delinquent elements of society shaped your view”
Alittle bit. It definitely opens your eyes on some things. I try to remain optimistic, which is why I was never a dick during traffic stops to people… but there are definitely a fair share of turds out there. I’ve seen some people who do awful things to people and others who… I mean I’d barely call what they’re doing “living.” It’s more like they’re like NPCs and the guy tasked with doing their coding gave up halfway in and said “no one will notice.”

One thing I’ll say - you really do get to see the cycle of domestic abuse go full circle. I’ve literally had victims be put in the hospital with horrible injuries (choked till they pass out, brain bleeds, etc) only for them to turn around and talk about how much they love them and don’t wanna press charges. Law & Order SVU doesn’t mention that enough.

Minors are also the absolute worst to deal with. Both as victims and suspects. Suspects cause… nothing really happens to em. Like, unless they murder someone, they can only be held for 2 hours and then they’re generally released back to their guardian. I was in a 40 minute pursuit once with some teens who stole a car and after they wrecked out, we got em back and it was like “lol here’s your citation! Don’t do it again! Lmao!” As victims? It’s 50/50 if they’re lying, I feel like, which I ABSOLUTELY hate, because I never wanna treat someone complaining as though they’re lying… but I’ve had multiple cases where I felt I was putting in as much work to prove the suspect was guilty as the victim was making shit up.

“How many work in your precinct”
I think we have 18 road deputies, 4 detectives (2 general dicks, which I am one of, and 2 NARC detectives) and 3 command staff (captain, major, and sheriff). We also have 3 canines.

“Dispatchers”
Most are middle aged women or gay dudes, weirdly enough. I don’t think any of em are black though. Good dispatchers can make life easier though. Bad ones make life tough. Ex: had one call a reckless driver on the freeway saying he was traveling in the eastbound lane, but whenever she called out where he was, the mile marker kept decreasing, which meant that he was traveling west aka wrong direction in the eastbound lane and I couldn’t get a straight answer on if that was the case. Going the wrong way on a freeway is not a good time.

“After work”
I have a gym group that we try to work out together. I try to go five days a week now thanks in part to my failing marriage. Other than that, we occasionally hang out. I’m friends with most of my coworkers and that gym group are good friends.

“Favorite cop show”
I grew up on early seasons of Law and Order. Lennie Briscoe played by Jerry Orbach was my favorite cop. Second place would be True Detective. Even season 2 is pretty alright, if underwhelming compared to season 1. Season 4 sounds like it’s gonna be a shit show.


I was on TV for a 2 minute interview on Tuesday for a case I worked. God was that fucking weird. I even had someone stop me in Walmart to tell me I’m doing a good job because they recognized me.

[Hyacinth]

https://youtu.be/Z4iQxpwYhAg

I Like this, Do you Like this Walt?