Why do they let women be cops again?

[Asher]

I guess it depends on the neighborhood and type. Foot patrol is probably pairs, routine traffic stops probably solo.

[Kitschum]

I don't know if this has been mentioned, but women in all kinds of leadership, management, authority positions get insecure on a level that men don't. At least I often seem to find myself off on the wrong foot with them from the start.

[Imran Siddiqui]

In that case, maybe it's you

[Jon Miller]

My mom worked with troubled kids and had to learn some self defense. I was definitely not strong in college, was very weak in fact, but she still couldn't do her restraints on me.

JM
(She probably wasn't going all out either, but still...)

[KrazyHorse]

That is so weird and creepy, Jon

[Timexwatch]

DinoDoc:
SLAP?

Stupid Lazy Ass Police

KrazyHorse:

The average male beat cop I see in Baltimore is circa 190 lbs. Not pure muscle, but not fatsos either.

I could outrun most of them, but I wouldn't rate my chances in a fight against any but the very weakest.

Timex would know better than me, but from what I see, most patrols are individual cops, with a fair number of pair patrols.

Interviewing, investigation etc. are different than rolling around looking for people doing bad stuff.

Charm City cops are nobody I'd **** around with either; as bad as DC was I heard Baltimore was worse.

And of course you'd probably outrun the average patrol officer. You ever try running flat out in boots and an additional 15 to 30 pounds of gear while trying to talk on the radio? Not easy.

Most units in DC, insofar as I know, are 10-99 (single officer) , but it varies by district. It's because of manpower; you can 'patrol' more areas with more people in cars. However, a lot of calls require a 10-4 (two person) unit or two 99 units, so two officers will end up getting dispatched to a call anyway.

Interviewing, investigation, etc. are a majority of the job. Fights happen once every so often. I've been on the street a couple of months and haven't had one yet. But I agree, IMHO, female officers are at a disadvantage against the average suspect, but that's what they made OC spray and batons for.

Asher:

I guess it depends on the neighborhood and type. Foot patrol is probably pairs, routine traffic stops probably solo.

Foot patrol depends; the same goes for Segway and bike patrols. For traffic stops, it doesn't matter. However, a good officer when making stops voices their location, how many times the vehicle is occupied, the plate, etc. over the air. If I hear that there's a stop on a vehicle occupied five times and there's only one officer, I'd head in that direction to back them up. Most good officers will do that because it's the informal honor system: I'll back you up and you'll back me up, no questions asked.

[Kitschum]

In that case, maybe it's you

Probably, in part. But I think women more often want to appear to make decisions by consensus even when it isn't there. I deal with authoritarians in the open just fine, but I have a much harder time dealing with dishonesty (even if it's more or less acknowledged!) and anything that seems like shirking from responsibility. It makes everyone else feel insecure too, which isn't good leadership.

Rarely have I had problems working with men, and women on the same 'level' as me is never a problem.

[KrazyHorse]

I agree that no cop should be asked to be by himself making a suspicious stop against multiple occupants.

I also know that it's not nonstop fights as a beat officer, but when a cop knows she can't allow herself to get in that situation, she has to back off, call for backup more often, and escalates the situation by drawing her piece when a male cop might just unbutton and put his hand on it, etc.

[Asher]

how many times the vehicle is occupied

The wording of this seems awkward to me...

It's only occupied once.

[KrazyHorse]

I've noticed that cops say that ("occupied 3 times")

It's weird. Might make for better clarity over the radio.

[KrazyHorse]

I also think that a lot of cops use copspeak just for the sake of using copspeak...

[MrFun]

Seriously, dude: 140lbs?

The average male beat cop I see in Baltimore is circa 190 lbs. Not pure muscle, but not fatsos either.

I could outrun most of them, but I wouldn't rate my chances in a fight against any but the very weakest.

Those are the kind of guys who make me horny - the beefy kind who are not fatsos.


But seriously, back to my point. I know that light-built male cops such as someone weighing 140 pounds is not as common as the 175 - 190 pound range so often found among male cops. But that still does not negate my example, as there ARE light-built male cops out there.

[KrazyHorse]

I've already explained:

1) There are very few such cops
2) They're STILL stronger than female cops
3) I think they should be subject to some relatively stringent physical fitness requirements

[KrazyHorse]

Timex: even without all that extra crap I can outrun most cops. Even most cops in their 20s

[Timexwatch]

how many times the vehicle is occupied

The wording of this seems awkward to me...

It's only occupied once.

It's just how it's done down here. So a standard radio call for a traffic stop might be: "Traffic Stop. 1600 block of Pennsylvania Ave., NW. Vehicle occupied X times. Maryland hard tag when you're ready"

KrazyHorse:

It's weird. Might make for better clarity over the radio.

I also think that a lot of cops use copspeak just for the sake of using copspeak...

Yep, radio speak is optimized to convey info quickly without clogging up the air for everyone else. Also the reason why cops use ten-codes. And copspeak is used because that's how they talk at work and that's the terminology used. And god forbid you try to use TV or New York/LA/etc. copspeak in a different department. If someone said they, "Had a collar" as opposed to "Had a lockup" (or other similar terms) in D.C. they'd be ridiculed relentlessly. Also, copspeak is useful if you want to convey something and you don't want someone standing there to understand, i.e. if you're talking to someone who's obviously mentally ill but not to the point where they need involuntary psychiatric treatment, you can say to the dispatcher or your parter that the subject is "M.O."

Timex: even without all that extra crap I can outrun most cops. Even most cops in their 20s

Probably. I don't like running that much anyway, but then again most foot chases don't last more than two or three blocks anyway because most suspects aren't track stars. All you have to do is tire them out. Besides, if you don't get them today, you'll get them tomorrow.