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Hello,
Mods, I've posted a similar thread (Off topic I think) so if this counts as a dupe, I apologize and please delete.
Second off, I want to say that I have the utmost respect for law enforcement, and hope to pursue a career once I earn my bachelors. Part of the reason I'm posting here is that, when I call the local PD, I do NOT want to come across as threatening or difficult in any manner. That being said, I also don't want to continually being awoken at odd hours of the night and am hoping for some insightful feedback from those in this community that may be more in the know, and under more informal circumstances then a phone call to the local PD.
On monday morning, I was woken up about 4am by what sounded like someone knockin at my door. I rarely have people over, and NO ONE I know would be knocking at 4am. That's what phones are for. I waited 5 mins or so hoping whoever was there would leave, and the knocking continued increasing in urgency and frequency until they knocked on the window next to the door. At this point, I was worried about who would be knocking for so long with out leaving, and 1/2 worried they might break out the glass and try to come in, so I left the bedroom with my pistol feeling the need to potentially defend myself and walked to the door, asking who it was. They only at this point, not during the previous 5 mins, identified themselves as police officers. I confirmed through the window quickly, and said "Give me just a minute" so I could go put the gun away and avoid one more potential complication. They said, "Open it now or I'm kicking it down!" I barely had time to put the gun in a kitchen drawer, or I'm sure they would have done just that. As it was, I'm very glad they didn't force their way in prior to identifying themselfs as it just wouldn't have been good, probably would have ended up with me in cuffs or worse.
The officers were really cool when I opened the door. Apparently an African American male lists this apartment as his address, or listed it as his last known address. Well, I'm white so it's obvious I wasn't their man. I told them they could come in and confirm I was the sole occupant if they wanted, but they quickly declined and left. I've been here for almost 2 years, and never even seen an African American in this complex, so it's very interesting why this address was listed by this guy.
Only thing that bothered me about the whole situation was their failure to identify themselves from square 1. It would have reduced the stress a great deal for both parties I think, and if they had, I would never have armed myself or felt the need to.
This morning at 1am, I was awoken again by a knock at my door. Ironically, it sounded identical to the first knock. I doubt it, but it almost gave me the impression that they train their officers in how to knock. That's how consistent it was with the last occurence. Anyways, I wasn't near as bothered by this, simply went to the door without arming myself, confirmed they were PD, and opened the door. They were looking for the same guy (by name AND appearance) and I informed them that I was the sole occupant and had already been visited on monday by their department. They quickly went out of their way to apologize, and even went as far as to inform me to "be aware that this guy has multiple warrants out for his arrest from multiple agencies and that you may get a visit from other people." I asked that they make sure that they clear their systems of the need to visit me again to ascertain whether or not the guy in question was here, and they said that they would. I also got an incident number and badge number this time, whereas last time I was to tired/ worried about an encounter with law enforcement while armed to do so.
Basically, I've got zero problem with the way the officers acted during each seperate encounter aside from not announcing themselves until well after the first knock. My questions, if you are able to answer, are thus:
Is it common pratice to NOT annouce yourself when serving warrants? Especially at extremely late hours? My common sense would say that this could potentially invite trouble as the people inside wouldn't know what was going on and may react exactly as I did.
Secondly, I feel compelled after the second occurence to contact the capt., seargent, or whomever seems most relevant of the local PD and make sure that this doesn't happen anymore. I'd kind of like some answers about the officers not identifying themselves, but I DO NOT in the slightest want to come off as threatening and potentially create trouble for myself.
I also don't want to file a complaint, just make sure they make whatever changes in the computer to reflect the fact that I've already been visited.
Any and all opinions/ help is appreciated, and thanks in advance.
Mods, I've posted a similar thread (Off topic I think) so if this counts as a dupe, I apologize and please delete.
Second off, I want to say that I have the utmost respect for law enforcement, and hope to pursue a career once I earn my bachelors. Part of the reason I'm posting here is that, when I call the local PD, I do NOT want to come across as threatening or difficult in any manner. That being said, I also don't want to continually being awoken at odd hours of the night and am hoping for some insightful feedback from those in this community that may be more in the know, and under more informal circumstances then a phone call to the local PD.
On monday morning, I was woken up about 4am by what sounded like someone knockin at my door. I rarely have people over, and NO ONE I know would be knocking at 4am. That's what phones are for. I waited 5 mins or so hoping whoever was there would leave, and the knocking continued increasing in urgency and frequency until they knocked on the window next to the door. At this point, I was worried about who would be knocking for so long with out leaving, and 1/2 worried they might break out the glass and try to come in, so I left the bedroom with my pistol feeling the need to potentially defend myself and walked to the door, asking who it was. They only at this point, not during the previous 5 mins, identified themselves as police officers. I confirmed through the window quickly, and said "Give me just a minute" so I could go put the gun away and avoid one more potential complication. They said, "Open it now or I'm kicking it down!" I barely had time to put the gun in a kitchen drawer, or I'm sure they would have done just that. As it was, I'm very glad they didn't force their way in prior to identifying themselfs as it just wouldn't have been good, probably would have ended up with me in cuffs or worse.
The officers were really cool when I opened the door. Apparently an African American male lists this apartment as his address, or listed it as his last known address. Well, I'm white so it's obvious I wasn't their man. I told them they could come in and confirm I was the sole occupant if they wanted, but they quickly declined and left. I've been here for almost 2 years, and never even seen an African American in this complex, so it's very interesting why this address was listed by this guy.
Only thing that bothered me about the whole situation was their failure to identify themselves from square 1. It would have reduced the stress a great deal for both parties I think, and if they had, I would never have armed myself or felt the need to.
This morning at 1am, I was awoken again by a knock at my door. Ironically, it sounded identical to the first knock. I doubt it, but it almost gave me the impression that they train their officers in how to knock. That's how consistent it was with the last occurence. Anyways, I wasn't near as bothered by this, simply went to the door without arming myself, confirmed they were PD, and opened the door. They were looking for the same guy (by name AND appearance) and I informed them that I was the sole occupant and had already been visited on monday by their department. They quickly went out of their way to apologize, and even went as far as to inform me to "be aware that this guy has multiple warrants out for his arrest from multiple agencies and that you may get a visit from other people." I asked that they make sure that they clear their systems of the need to visit me again to ascertain whether or not the guy in question was here, and they said that they would. I also got an incident number and badge number this time, whereas last time I was to tired/ worried about an encounter with law enforcement while armed to do so.
Basically, I've got zero problem with the way the officers acted during each seperate encounter aside from not announcing themselves until well after the first knock. My questions, if you are able to answer, are thus:
Is it common pratice to NOT annouce yourself when serving warrants? Especially at extremely late hours? My common sense would say that this could potentially invite trouble as the people inside wouldn't know what was going on and may react exactly as I did.
Secondly, I feel compelled after the second occurence to contact the capt., seargent, or whomever seems most relevant of the local PD and make sure that this doesn't happen anymore. I'd kind of like some answers about the officers not identifying themselves, but I DO NOT in the slightest want to come off as threatening and potentially create trouble for myself.
I also don't want to file a complaint, just make sure they make whatever changes in the computer to reflect the fact that I've already been visited.Any and all opinions/ help is appreciated, and thanks in advance.
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