Cop Disarms Burglary Victim for Her “Safety”

[tracker722]

Please don't paint all LEO with the same brush as this idiot, (the officer involved). I would say the vast majority of us in uniform would respond the same way as the officers did in Templars situation.

One thing that does upset me though is when I come into contact with a subject and I find a weapon and they "forget" that they have a CCW, acting instead as though I should have known. PISSes me off to no end.

I do teach new officers to respect a CCW when they are in the FTO program with me. No, alot of CCWs don't have tactical training, but it is another weapon and set of eyes we in LE can use to our advantage. We just need to be careful in how an individual with a CCW is utilized because we assume the liability if things go south and the CCW is injured or worse.

Would I want the officer in the OP to be backing me up? Doesn't sound like it. In fact, if all statements are correct, I would probably be filling out the paperwork to have her dismissed from the force prior to the end of her probationary period. It sounds to me that she not only violated department regs, but risked anothers life in the process. I am only assuming here as I don't have all the particulars, just reading between the lines, but the Training staff of LVMP need to keep an eye on this one.

[dbrowne1]

I grab my Beretta 92F and a couple spare mags and get over there as fast as I can. The county police had just gotten on the scene as I pulled up and as I identified myself, one of them asked "You got a gun?" I responded that I did. The same officer said "Follow me!"

Ah, Chesterfield County of 20 years ago. The good old days.

[d90king]

No damages to sue for, but it was not the proper actions for the LEO to take IMHO.

[Business_Casual]

I have no idea, so I'm asking - is it a good idea to leave a handcuffed person unattended? I'd never put a dog in a crate wearing a leash, for instance. I realize that is a rather inartful comparison but...

M_P

[dbrowne1]

One thing that does upset me though is when I come into contact with a subject and I find a weapon and they "forget" that they have a CCW, acting instead as though I should have known. PISSes me off to no end.

I realize that both resources and notification requirements differ, but at least where I live, there is no requirement to notify LE and they can see that I have a permit if, and as soon as, they run my DL. There are legitimate differences in opinion on how to approach this as the person who is CCW, but in general I don't volunteer information. If the officer wants to know, he can ask (and I have had one do so on a traffic stop).

I do teach new officers to respect a CCW when they are in the FTO program with me.

I'm glad that you have this mindset and that you try to instill it in trainees. The problem is that many of your colleagues do not share your view, and I have no way of knowing at the moment whether I'm dealing with an officer like you, or with one who will overreact and endanger me due to lack of training or just a poor attitude toward non-cops with guns. The law (where I live) says I don't have to say anything, and so I don't. If the cop wants to make it an issue, he can bring it up.

[d90king]

I have no idea, so I'm asking - is it a good idea to leave a handcuffed person unattended? I'd never put a dog in a crate wearing a leash, for instance. I realize that is a rather unartful comparison but...

M_P

Not sure if that was the case, it said she was waiting on backup before clearing... I would say to handcuff someone and leave them alone would not be a good thing to do and could have created a lot of liability if things had gone bad and he was injured by the purp...

[tracker722]

Point taken DBrowne.

But one thing to keep in mind, if you are not going to inform the officer you are packing, don't make it obvious. I hate surprises and I may not have run your DL before I have spotted your weapon. This has happened and I have screwed my .45 into many an ear only to learn they had a CCW.

Keep your weapon secure, not on the front seat next to you or in the glove box where you keep your registration and insurance. If it is visibly secured, (belt or under dash-type system), you may want to go ahead and inform the officer of your status.

Same rules apply to off-duty officers, especially out of their jurisdictions. I have had several prayer sessions with officers who have been yanked out of their vehicles by unsuspecting officers prior to our officer informing them that they were LEO. NOT SMART.

Bottom line...use common sense and have awareness of the situation.

[jsebens]

I have no idea, so I'm asking - is it a good idea to leave a handcuffed person unattended? I'd never put a dog in a crate wearing a leash, for instance. I realize that is a rather inartful comparison but...

M_P

Once I cuff you, I am personally responsible for your safety and well-being. I have to account for anything that happens to you from that point to when I turn you over to the jail. Same with putting you in my cruiser. Armchair quarterbacking the officer in question is bad policy; I'll freely admit that there may have been a better way of doing things, but there are many worse ways as well. Let's view this as an educational and training opportunity.

[kwelz]

I have a question for those of you who are officers.

In a situation like this are we forced to comply with a request like that from the officer even though there is no arrest being made, etc. In other words if she had told him to turn over his firearm and he told her no, would he have broken any laws?

[dbrowne1]

But one thing to keep in mind, if you are not going to inform the officer you are packing, don't make it obvious. I hate surprises and I may not have run your DL before I have spotted your weapon. This has happened and I have screwed my .45 into many an ear only to learn they had a CCW.

Keep your weapon secure, not on the front seat next to you or in the glove box where you keep your registration and insurance. If it is visibly secured, (belt or under dash-type system), you may want to go ahead and inform the officer of your status.

Same rules apply to off-duty officers, especially out of their jurisdictions. I have had several prayer sessions with officers who have been yanked out of their vehicles by unsuspecting officers prior to our officer informing them that they were LEO. NOT SMART.

Bottom line...use common sense and have awareness of the situation.

I agree with you 100% on this being situational, and for those very reasons, keep my registration somewhere that there will never be a gun. I'm very aware of how an officer is likely to react if he finds out about a gun by surprise. If I think he's going to see it, feel it, or otherwise detect it, I'll give him the heads up. Until then, though, I'd just rather not make it an issue.