Better ride in Police car- the front seat

[ls99]

The police car, explained.

Anatomy of a cop car - The Globe and Mail

[Fireup2020]

I had a cushy ride in the FRONT seat of a cop car once. The ambulance that had been called by the road crew guys could not take me through the tunnel to the VA hospital (poor starving college student with no insurance who had a "down to the muscle" gash in my leg obviously needing a lot of stitches - mountain biking accident at Seashore State park), so the policeman at the scene of stopped traffic heading into the HRB tunnel was nice enough to let me ride shotgun and dropped me off at the Hampton VA hospital.

[Leonidas]

"Screen test"...heh heh heh



A good case of "Waffle Face" usually calmed the troublemakers right down. Or so I've been told.

[Orchidflower]

I, too, had some nice officers give me a ride to the hospital more than once when I had a motorcycle accident.

But I sure didn't know they could tell how fast I was going from the BACK as well as when I was in front of them...yowza! no more speeding at all for Orchidflower.
They can catch you coming and going.

[bbbamI]

I've had a few rides in a police car...fortunately they'll all been in the front seat. If your city offers a ride-a-long program, you should definitely sign up for it. Usually the ride-a-long form will ask info from you, they may do a background check and in most cases the form has to be notarized. Then you get to go out with a cop for a three or four hour run.

It's very educational...and can be exciting depending on the calls the officer gets.

[Walt34]

Wow, they have computers in them? Dual batteries? We all carried jumper cables. We didn't have screens, let alone bullet-resistant glass.

True story: When one of the adjacent jurisdictions was one of the first to get computers with wireless access to the database of stolen stuff (which includes cars) almost all officers quit their part time jobs. Why? Well, they'd wait until about a half-hour before getting off and then sit by the side of the road running tags numbers, looking for a hit on a stolen one. When they got a hit, go lock the guy up and there's your two to four hours of easy overtime.

And now they have tag-reading scanners that do that automagically for you! Those guys cannot appreciate how easy that is.

[Khan]

About 30 years ago ex-DH and I were in an auto crash (bagged a Pinto). It was about 8F so the police guy had us sit in the back of his car while we filled out the forms.
Weird feeling when I went to get out of the car and realized there were no door handles.

[Meadbh]

I've done some ride alongs in the BACK seat during a volunteer assignment. When I arrived for my first ride, the officer asked me to wait while he cleaned the blood off the back seat and sanitized it. It was very interesting to watch the reactions of drivers in the other lane when we stopped at traffic lights. I could see the wheels turning: "Wonder what SHE got arrested for!".

I also discovered that cops get free coffee at neighbourhood donut shops. Proprietors like the visibility as a deterrent to crime.

[Orchidflower]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bbbamI I've had a few rides in a police car...fortunately they'll all been in the front seat. If your city offers a ride-a-long program, you should definitely sign up for it. Usually the ride-a-long form will ask info from you, they may do a background check and in most cases the form has to be notarized. Then you get to go out with a cop for a three or four hour run. It's very educational...and can be exciting depending on the calls the officer gets.

Great idea, bbbam! I didn't even know anything like that was available from the Police Dept. I've had the electric company out and the Fire Dept. out for free checks of my house in Houston, but this is a new one. Sounds really informative and worth the time. I'm going to do it!

[bbbamI]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Orchidflower Great idea, bbbam! I didn't even know anything like that was available from the Police Dept. I've had the electric company out and the Fire Dept. out for free checks of my house in Houston, but this is a new one. Sounds really informative and worth the time. I'm going to do it!

Thanks...I hope it works out for you!

The best times would be on Friday and Saturday night as there would be more calls. The officer I rode with showed me how to use the radio and told me his # just in case he needed assistance, I could call in for back-up. The first call was a domestic dispute...fortunately it was low key.

You may want to check and see if there is a Public Relations dept at your local p.d. There may be others areas that may interest you as well.

[FinanceDude]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bbbamI Thanks...I hope it works out for you! The best times would be on Friday and Saturday night as there would be more calls. The officer I rode with showed me how to use the radio and told me his # just in case he needed assistance, I could call in for back-up. The first call was a domestic dispute...fortunately it was low key. You may want to check and see if there is a Public Relations dept at your local p.d. There may be others areas that may interest you as well.

We have a Citizen's Police Academy in my town. You got to 16 training sessions over a 4 month session. When you graduate, you can be called upon to help do drivethroughs in areas where minor crimes have taken place, help catching shoplifters at the big box stores the day after Thanksgiving, etc...........pretty cool.........

[bbbamI]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FinanceDude We have a Citizen's Police Academy in my town. You got to 16 training sessions over a 4 month session. When you graduate, you can be called upon to help do drivethroughs in areas where minor crimes have taken place, help catching shoplifters at the big box stores the day after Thanksgiving, etc...........pretty cool.........

Yes indeed...mine has a CPA too! I went to the first class in 1999. Our class was 12 weeks long and I had a blast. We work inside the police department and have access to police vehicles when we patrol. So far, I've been a desk jockey, but have experienced a lot in my nine years.

Oh...the stories I could tell...

[Westernskies]

I have ridden in the front (and back) of a police car. The front is definitely better...

[Walt34]

Most medium to large size police departments do have some sort of ride-along program. It can be informative, as many people think that all the police do is write traffic tickets. Actually that was about 5% of what I did.

As bbbamI suggested Friday and Saturday nights tend to be busier since the alcohol flows more freely then.

[cantlogin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Walt34 ...As bbbamI suggested Friday and Saturday nights tend to be busier since the alcohol flows more freely then.

Hmmm. It looks like some calendar profiling is going on.