The law and the police are a particularly touchy subject right now. The police are under nationwide scrutiny for abusing their power.
But there are ways to avoid encounters with the police in day-to-day life. And then there are ways to draw attention to yourself like a neon sign. Some folks have trouble turning that sign off.
u/LeatherSwordfish8 asked:
"What's the dumbest way that someone you know has gotten in trouble with the law?"
Here were some of those answers.
Shouldn't You Be Able To Answer This?
Me, picking up my younger brother from elementary school (at the request of our parents) when I was 17 and asking his teacher "How do you know I'm actually authorized to collect this child? Is there a list or something?"
Police Abusing Power
In 05 I had a buddy I worked with. He was walking home after work. He passed by some kids who were smoking weed. He didn't think anything about it. Couple minutes later cop hits his siren and tells him to stop.
Buddy stopped the cop told him to empty his pockets. Buddy smokes cigs and had a lighter and pack of smokes on him. Cops cuffs him. Apparently the cops busted the kids smoking weed he passed. They said they got if from my buddy to try and get out of trouble. The cop considered the lighter drug paraphernalia. My buddy had to get a lawyer and go through 6months of court hearings and 10days in jail before a judge tossed the case. Lost his job apartment. Really f**ked him over.
Telling On Yourself
Knew a guy who was chatting with a friendly cop outside a local supermarket. Just for fun he asked the cop to look him up on his computer. Turns out he had a warrant, apparently for an unpaid ticket he didn't know about. The cop was really apologetic, but said "I gotta take you in." My friend spent a few hours at the jail before coming home.
Aaaand You're Arrested
Guy was driving around smoking weed with three friends in the car (windows shut) and saw some emergency vehicles at the entrance to an apartment complex his other buddy lived in. So, what does he do? Drives right over there to a line waiting to get into the parking lot. He can clearly see there's a police officer talking to every driver so as to only let in people who live there. Instead of turning around, he pulls up to the officer who promptly asks him to roll down his window...
A Saga On A Tail Light
A friend of mine got pulled over for having a burnt-out tail light. He was given a "fix-it ticket" -- if he provided proof of getting the bulb replaced within a certain time period, the violation would be torn up.
He didn't do it. A while later, he got pulled over again. This time, he had a bench warrant for his arrest over the ticket he never fixed or paid, so he spent a few hours in a holding cell while waiting for his wife to arrive. They paid the ticket, a penalty for not paying the ticket on time, and court costs. He also got his car impounded.
He went to the impound lot to get his car back, but he arrived ten minutes after the lot closed. There was nothing he could do... he had to let it sit there another day, accruing an additional $50 in fees -- on top of the $200 or it was already going to cost him.
When all was said and done, he ended up with many hundreds of dollars in penalties, and a lot of time wasted, all because he didn't replace a $5 bulb in his car. The kicker was that he had the bulb the whole time, even when the first officer pulled him over! He just didn't have a screwdriver, nor did he take the time to go buy one for $2 from Walmart or Home Depot or something and just fix the stupid car.
A DUI On A Silver Platter
A guy I know got a DUI in a McDonalds parking lot. He got into a belligerent argument with the worker through the intercom, and then insisted on eating his food in the parking lot after being threatened by the manager to call the cops. He really set that one up on a silver platter for the arresting officer.
A Sure Way To "Neon Sign"
A relative posted photos of themselves holding restricted firearms on FB along with a death threat to a neighbor that allegedly tried something inappropriate with their daughter.
Never threaten someone before you do something and definitely dont post your intentions on social media.
Probably Didn't Sit Well
Guy I worked with took it a little far at a work function. Saw an ambulance across the street, hopped in, locked all the doors then started playing with the sirens and loud speaker. The company President bailed him out.
The 90s had a different set of rules for work events.
Drunk People Telling On Themselves Part Two
Some dude crashed into the car of a friend of mine while he was still just parking there. It was totally the dudes fault.
My friend just wanted to go ahead and wanted to exchange contact info for insurance and just go on with his day.
But this dude is completely furious and insists to call the cops and make a scene there. He calls the cops. The cops show up and it turns out this dude is completely drunk.
It still boggles my mind how stupid this dude was. Losing his driver license and needing to pay all the damage out of his pocket because of this.
Don't Record Yourself
I know of someone who had a dash cam fitted. They did 90mph in a residential area and crashed, seriously injuring a passenger. The dash cam was used as evidence of how ridiculously fast they were going and he ended up doing a jail sentence. He probably wouldn't have gone to jail if his own dash cam didn't incriminate him (although I think he would probably still have lost his license or something, just not jail time.) Doing 3 times the speed limit is dumb but doing it whilst recording yourself is even dumber.
