So we were harassed by the cops
May. 25th, 2014 12:04 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
vicarzSo living my old teenage life, as a 45 year old attorney I got to be harassed by the cops at a movie theater! No really.
We went to see a movie last night, and tried to arrange an old group of club friends to go; only our old friend who wears a flak jacket and his wife came. Yes, we have a friend, the one accused of "goth fu" dancing (a valid criticism), who dresses like a bomb squad technician. He's a sweet guy, and in my opinion an idiot in some ways. I've politely pointed out why the way he dresses is silly, and gone so far as to argue that if he had put the time he puts into his worthless literal defense mechanisms into the gym, he'd be 208% better defended naked that a pasty guy with a flak jacket on. So, he's our friend but he's an idiot who sticks out and is embarrassing to be around.
He shows up wearing a flak jacket, big boots, and various pieces of security guard looking gear like a mall cop on steroids. Well, we're watching a comic book movie so it's not really that different than wearing costumes, and other than some looks nobody seems to mind or give us grief. We watch the movie and leave the theater. We stay through the credits, leave, and head out to our cars. That's when a youngish frat boy looking guy, perhaps slightly older, comes up and tries to talk to our friend.
"Hey, can I ask you a question?" Our friend responds curtly no. Guy acts indignant, hey man I just wanted to talk to you - I flank him and echo his no, thanks sorry, good night in rapid order. Now I realize my friend looks like an idiot and I'd say dressing funny you might expect to be asked questions - but he didn't like the approach and this guy wouldn't let go so I'm willing to support his decision; plus the guy is acting like a douche.
Then he identifies himself as ... what did he say? Security or something - I noticed by then he was wearing a wire like an old fashioned secret service agent. Only then did I realize we weren't being picked on by a frat boy (so I also decide hitting is probably a bad idea, and our safety isn't in jeopardy from a quick haymaker as frat boys are apt to do - also no crowd of boys behind us to egg him on and join in). He repeats his "demand" to get his questions answered, and our friend repeats no, he doesn't want to and will not answer questions. He follows us into the parking lot. We keep walking, he keeps following. We go our friend's wife's car, the guy is still on us and bothering us, and our friend turns and approaches him now - I join behind him. He now identifies himself as an off-duty police officer working part-time security at the movie theater - friend asks to see his badge, he gruffly pulls out a badge on string around his neck, briefly flashes it before sticking it back under his shirt. He's also now turning from us and speaking into a radio. He whines that he tried to be nice, but now he has to call it in. This complaint makes no sense - call what in? We're leaving the place.
His wife is a public school teacher, who is not happy about random police activity or the fact they're calling her license plate in. She starts to get belligerent with the cop - we all stop her quickly. Our friend sends her on her way without him, says he'll be fine and asks us to go as well. I check that he lives nearby and has cab money, he does, but after a quick discussion with my girl (who also doesn't want her librarian job search affected by them doing who knows what with her license number) I say fuggit let's stay. Around then the cops show up...and everything gets to normal!
No really, the uniformed cops are fine, 4 cars of them. The off-duty guy says there was a call-in (huh?) from a local mall, and tried to goad our friend by saying it was for a neo-nazi and he looks like a neo-nazi. Nobody takes the bait. In fact, nobody is answering questions, and saying so. Me and my girl aren't asked much of anything (but certainly are observed), and my friend asks curt things like "Have I broken a law?" and says "I'm reaching for my hat." I say things like "You don't need to volunteer information," and "I do not think you are being detained." The 4 cops don't seem the least bit interested and this also seems to frustrate the off-duty guy, and after a "Are we free to go?" Gets a yes, we leave.
So that was neat, not particularly scary, but a curious experience for me. See, I know about that shooting in CA the other day, and we're around B'more while the batman movie shooting was in friggin Columbia - fresh in our minds and geography. The honest truth is I'm kinda glad the cops take a guy wearing body armor to a densely populated public place as something to investigate. At the same time, we
WERE LEAVING.
If there was a threat, it was perhaps when we sat for 2 hours in a crowded theater, not when we were leaving. In fact we were obviously all but to our cars when the guy, who was in plain clothes and in no way id'd himself, started in with questions. I tend to think he really just wanted to ask what the costume was about, and got high and mighty after being rebuffed - it's hard to imagine a security risk.
So curious for me was being of a split mind where I think my friend is an idiot for soliciting that type of attention, but also respecting the potential good interest of the authorities. I defended my friend as I didn't see him doing anything flagrantly wrong, but even in the car repeated an old subject I've noted before that...well I told him calmly that I'm glad in this age someone wearing armor to a public place is investigated, even if the point of engagement was not proper and the guy was a jerk.
I think age and experience just means nothing is black and white. As nobody got shot, tazed, or arrested, I think overall it was just an interesting night and great beer fodder after we left him with his wife.
We went to see a movie last night, and tried to arrange an old group of club friends to go; only our old friend who wears a flak jacket and his wife came. Yes, we have a friend, the one accused of "goth fu" dancing (a valid criticism), who dresses like a bomb squad technician. He's a sweet guy, and in my opinion an idiot in some ways. I've politely pointed out why the way he dresses is silly, and gone so far as to argue that if he had put the time he puts into his worthless literal defense mechanisms into the gym, he'd be 208% better defended naked that a pasty guy with a flak jacket on. So, he's our friend but he's an idiot who sticks out and is embarrassing to be around.
He shows up wearing a flak jacket, big boots, and various pieces of security guard looking gear like a mall cop on steroids. Well, we're watching a comic book movie so it's not really that different than wearing costumes, and other than some looks nobody seems to mind or give us grief. We watch the movie and leave the theater. We stay through the credits, leave, and head out to our cars. That's when a youngish frat boy looking guy, perhaps slightly older, comes up and tries to talk to our friend.
"Hey, can I ask you a question?" Our friend responds curtly no. Guy acts indignant, hey man I just wanted to talk to you - I flank him and echo his no, thanks sorry, good night in rapid order. Now I realize my friend looks like an idiot and I'd say dressing funny you might expect to be asked questions - but he didn't like the approach and this guy wouldn't let go so I'm willing to support his decision; plus the guy is acting like a douche.
Then he identifies himself as ... what did he say? Security or something - I noticed by then he was wearing a wire like an old fashioned secret service agent. Only then did I realize we weren't being picked on by a frat boy (so I also decide hitting is probably a bad idea, and our safety isn't in jeopardy from a quick haymaker as frat boys are apt to do - also no crowd of boys behind us to egg him on and join in). He repeats his "demand" to get his questions answered, and our friend repeats no, he doesn't want to and will not answer questions. He follows us into the parking lot. We keep walking, he keeps following. We go our friend's wife's car, the guy is still on us and bothering us, and our friend turns and approaches him now - I join behind him. He now identifies himself as an off-duty police officer working part-time security at the movie theater - friend asks to see his badge, he gruffly pulls out a badge on string around his neck, briefly flashes it before sticking it back under his shirt. He's also now turning from us and speaking into a radio. He whines that he tried to be nice, but now he has to call it in. This complaint makes no sense - call what in? We're leaving the place.
His wife is a public school teacher, who is not happy about random police activity or the fact they're calling her license plate in. She starts to get belligerent with the cop - we all stop her quickly. Our friend sends her on her way without him, says he'll be fine and asks us to go as well. I check that he lives nearby and has cab money, he does, but after a quick discussion with my girl (who also doesn't want her librarian job search affected by them doing who knows what with her license number) I say fuggit let's stay. Around then the cops show up...and everything gets to normal!
No really, the uniformed cops are fine, 4 cars of them. The off-duty guy says there was a call-in (huh?) from a local mall, and tried to goad our friend by saying it was for a neo-nazi and he looks like a neo-nazi. Nobody takes the bait. In fact, nobody is answering questions, and saying so. Me and my girl aren't asked much of anything (but certainly are observed), and my friend asks curt things like "Have I broken a law?" and says "I'm reaching for my hat." I say things like "You don't need to volunteer information," and "I do not think you are being detained." The 4 cops don't seem the least bit interested and this also seems to frustrate the off-duty guy, and after a "Are we free to go?" Gets a yes, we leave.
So that was neat, not particularly scary, but a curious experience for me. See, I know about that shooting in CA the other day, and we're around B'more while the batman movie shooting was in friggin Columbia - fresh in our minds and geography. The honest truth is I'm kinda glad the cops take a guy wearing body armor to a densely populated public place as something to investigate. At the same time, we
WERE LEAVING.
If there was a threat, it was perhaps when we sat for 2 hours in a crowded theater, not when we were leaving. In fact we were obviously all but to our cars when the guy, who was in plain clothes and in no way id'd himself, started in with questions. I tend to think he really just wanted to ask what the costume was about, and got high and mighty after being rebuffed - it's hard to imagine a security risk.
So curious for me was being of a split mind where I think my friend is an idiot for soliciting that type of attention, but also respecting the potential good interest of the authorities. I defended my friend as I didn't see him doing anything flagrantly wrong, but even in the car repeated an old subject I've noted before that...well I told him calmly that I'm glad in this age someone wearing armor to a public place is investigated, even if the point of engagement was not proper and the guy was a jerk.
I think age and experience just means nothing is black and white. As nobody got shot, tazed, or arrested, I think overall it was just an interesting night and great beer fodder after we left him with his wife.
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