More from the dumb choices files

Only on the road one night this week, due to some training stuff going on. It managed to be a busy one, though I avoided the majority of the drama - friends got tied up in one homicide & then another shooting, while I ran around covering the more mundane calls...

Stuff finally slowed down a little bit after midnight & I had a chance to search for good stops on the (now-empty) roads. Finally when I was headed up to grab a drink since I was having no luck I found a car with recently expired plates, so pulled him over for the chat.

Well, lo & behold he happens to be suspended due to some recent court fines.

So, I take care of the ticket for his plate, give him his suspension notice & let him know that a tow truck is on the way. I can't very well let him drive after all, and his car is sitting on the roadway so it is a safety hazard.

While we are waiting on the tow truck he's dialing every number he can trying to get a ride and getting more and more frustrated. Then, when the tow shows up he rolls up his window and is refusing to get out of the car... Then when he does roll down his window he starts ranting and raving that I NEED to wait for his girlfriend to get here to drive the car for him, that he can't afford a tow bill, etc.

SIGH

What is it that makes people think that they are going to win a simple pissing match like this on the side of the road? That throwing a tantrum is going to suddenly make cops change their minds and go "Awww shucks, you win!"

I spend several minutes clearly explaining his options to him - that his car is getting towed either way you cut it, the only real choice he's making right now is whether or not he's going to let me get my job done & if he is going to jail or not. I don't raise my voice, I'm as polite as can be, but I make it VERY clear to him that his options are dwindling the more he plays this game...

Well, he refuses to budge, so into the cuffs he goes - this guy (who seems nice enough, and certainly didn't give me any problems other than this) turned a simple pre-payable expired plates ticket into that and an obstruction charge. I let the magistrate know the full story, and that he was polite and otherwise cooperative with me, so he was released on his signature. But it still annoyed me - I've got other people I'd much rather be taking to jail than just someone who felt he had to be stubborn at the wrong moment, and I am sure he'd much rather have gotten a ride home and sorted out the tow bill later. But, once I tell you that if you don't do X, and you call me on it, I pretty much have to arrest you - it's the same as when your kids call you on cleaning their rooms, if you don't do it things only get worse down the road... or at least that's my "child care theory of law enforcement."

After that the rest of the shift went pretty slow. Had three different deer kamikaze into the side of officer's cars last night - so apparently their is some great Bambi offensive planned in the near future or something. One of my district partners apparently couldn't handle putting his out of its misery last night, so I took care of that for him - not out of any bloodthirst or cruelty, but because the poor thing was stuck there suffering & I would rather it be done quick then everyone sit around dithering and staring. Of course, being cops this means he has now been opened up for a world of grief for the next week or so, as people were asking him if we needed to drive his car for him, do his reports and all that... all in good natured fun.

So that's the excitement of last night. Wondering how many (if any) bomb callouts we will get tomorrow with the election & post-election fun, and otherwise just waiting for the rest of the week to go by.

To close, please make sure you vote tomorrow if you haven't already - I won't lecture on candidates or platforms, just ask you to make sure your voice is heard if you are eligible.