RogueReflections
Regular Member
Tacoma, WA – On 8/6/2015, at approximately 1:20 pm, I was walking down the street when I noticed about 3 marked police vehicles and 1 unmarked SUV in the area. Eventually a motorcycle officer pulled up and the officer directed me to come over to him. Upon complying with the officer’s request, he immediately asked me if I was “in some kind of bad mood or an erratic state of mind.” Knowing better than to answer questions from law enforcement, I politely informed him that I don’t answer questions from law enforcement. He then informed me that a citizen had “called” and reported that I was acting erratically. I thought that was perplexing, since I was simply ambulating with one foot in front of the other, like I normally do. The officer did not press the issue or resort to failed intimidation tactics. He simply was responding to a call. I informed him that I understood, but I still chose to exercise my right to not answer questions and go on about my way.
Some might think a citizen who refuses to answer questions is rude to a police officer who has a hard and dangerous job. I submit that no good can EVER come out of talking to a police officer (unless you have called them for a service) since the relationship between citizen and police officer is adversarial in nature. I believe it is best to be informed of the laws, exercise your right to remain silent, and go on about your business. Once a citizen starts answering questions, they run the risk of law enforcement officials using the words of the citizen against him/her. It is not rude to be free and decide not to comply with police officers, if you have done nothing illegal and there is no legal reason for an interaction with them. Often times “discussions” with citizens turn into probable cause for further investigation or detention.
The following is the video of the encounter with the law enforcement officer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7BH_WqK6yQ
- Rogue Reflections –
www.roguereflectionsphotography.com
Some might think a citizen who refuses to answer questions is rude to a police officer who has a hard and dangerous job. I submit that no good can EVER come out of talking to a police officer (unless you have called them for a service) since the relationship between citizen and police officer is adversarial in nature. I believe it is best to be informed of the laws, exercise your right to remain silent, and go on about your business. Once a citizen starts answering questions, they run the risk of law enforcement officials using the words of the citizen against him/her. It is not rude to be free and decide not to comply with police officers, if you have done nothing illegal and there is no legal reason for an interaction with them. Often times “discussions” with citizens turn into probable cause for further investigation or detention.
The following is the video of the encounter with the law enforcement officer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7BH_WqK6yQ
- Rogue Reflections –
www.roguereflectionsphotography.com