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Posted by: Unregistered

Whats the best advice you would give to a rookie??

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Posted by: Delta784

UNWRITTEN RULES FOR ROOKIES





1. Everybody lies.
Out on the street, every non-police person that you come in contact with will lie to you. The criminals will lie to you because they have to. The victims will lie to you out of embarrassment, to hide their own criminal activity, or to hide all the stupid things they did that led to their being victimized in the first place. Witnesses and other citizens will lie to you just for fun. Always know, and just accept, that you are never, ever, being told the whole story.

2. They lied to you at the Police Academy.
Most of what you learned in training will need to be forgotten. Most of what you learned in training doesn't work. For example, unlike during training with your Academy classmates, the bad guys on the street will not hold still long enough for you to scream, "Stop, stop, stop!", step back, and deliver a perfect knee strike to the bad guy's midsection.

3. Never take the word of a drunken person over that of a sober person.
I cannot count the number of times I have watched a rookie agonize over whom to believe in a dispute between a drunk and a sober person. Simplify your life. The drunk is always wrong. The drunk is drunk, and therefore, can't remember what happened anyway. Referring back to rule #1, his drunken lies will be stupid and insulting, while the sober person's lies will be better thought-out, and therefore plausible. If you know that someone at a disorder call needs to get locked-up, and you can't decide which one, take the drunk, every time.

4. Sit back and listen to the veterans.
If you really did know everything about being a cop, they would have sent you straight to being Chief. God gave you two ears and one mouth because He wanted you to listen twice as much as talk.

5. Someone will try to kill you.
You don’t know when, who, or where, but it IS going to happen, sooner or later. Therefore, consider everyone with whom you come in contact to be a potential threat. That doesn't mean you draw-down on a soccer mom in a minivan, but NEVER let your guard down. Like Rowdy Roddy Piper says, “Just when you think you know the answers, we change the questions”.

6. If you need help, ask for it.
That goes for everything from asking your Sergeant for advice on a minor case where you are uncertain what to do, to calling for emergency back-up when facing a threat, to asking for professional help when the job gets to you, and you crawl inside a bottle. The only stupid question is the one that you don't ask.

7. Develop a “hand fetish”.
MAKE YOURSELF watch the hands before you even look at the face. They can only hurt you with their hands. If you don’t see two empty PALMS then assume they have something in it. I can’t over-emphasize this….develop a “hand fetish”! If you have trouble getting in this habit, watch “Surviving Edged Weapons” once, and think about that butcher knife penetrating and deflating your lung, and as you hit the barn floor, you’ve lost 50% of your strength.

8. Wear latex gloves.
Many of the people you will come in contact with on this job are walking Petri dishes. Sometimes covered in their own blood, they are a veritable potpourri of communicable diseases like Hepatitis, HIV, TB, etc. You may feel foolish wearing purple gloves that Barney the Dinosaur would be proud of, but they will save you from bringing something home that you really don’t want. The gloves are free, get a box from the hospital or an ambulance, always keep two pairs on your person at all times, and a well-stocked box in your cruiser. If you get a call that has even the slightest hint that you might have to touch someone, put the gloves on before you exit the cruiser. DON’T touch these people without gloves, unless an emergency dictates it.

9. Trust your instincts.
I don’t care what the courts rule…an experienced cop does have a “sixth sense.” You will develop it, over time. Use it. If you think you need to search someone over again, DO IT. If you feel you are being lied to, keep pursuing it. I truly believe God looks out for police officers a little more. You might get hurt and never see it coming, but NEVER go against the “hairs on the back of your neck” when they ARE telling you something. And, they will.

10. Handcuff EVERYONE. Search EVERYONE.
You WILL hear this in the academy, but you must practice it. Don’t assume a non-violent arrest for a minor offense means they have no reason to kill you and urinate on your grave after they do it. You won’t have this problem initially, mind you. You will be more nervous than the arrestee your first several times. You will do exactly like you were taught. It’s after you get a few months or years under your belt, you start feeling like you know enough, and then you may get lax. You try to be good to them and not cuff them on a warrant, or cuff them in front (NEVER!). Even if you see others doing this, you should ALWAYS cuff behind their back, every time, for every offense.


11. Have fun with the job and don't take yourself too seriously.
This doesn't mean be unsafe, just don't get uptight and think that we are on a holy crusade. Loosen up, see the humor in ugly situations, and fine-tune your sense of the ironic. You’ve signed-on for the E-Ticket ride of your life, so enjoy it!

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Posted by: NorwichAlum

Good comments Delta!

I would add.....

Trust no one. I had to teach myself to do this.
Dont be afraid to assert your authority. Don't be a jerk to everyone, but don't be afraid to show someone you are in charge before they go out of control.
Family first. If you've got a wife & kids, leave the job at work. Don't neglect your family. You'll gonna meet some messed up families, don't let yours become one.
Slow Down. When responding to an incident, figure out what you're gonna do when you get there before you get there. Don't go running in without a plan. Watch your speed. The lawsuit won't be worth it when you hit someone while going 80 MPH down Main Street to get to a MVC.
Dont be afraid to ask for backup. Delta mentioned this but it is important. If someone is coming out of the car, I always call for another car. The one time I didn't, I ended up going hands on because he didn't want me to find the bag of weed on the front seat.

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Posted by: Buford T

The allure of $$$$ is often times intoxicating with overtime and details. Keep in mid that you don't need to work everything right now, pace yourself. It's a 30+ year career if you play your cards right. There are those on the job who are nothing more than traffic barrels in uniform, don't live beyond your means.

Specialty positions and promotions are almost always political in nature. Education is one thing that cannot be taken from you. Get a good one and utilize the Quinn if your department has it.

Lastly, LEGAL DEFENSE FUND, you WILL get sued no matter where you work. Just the nature of the job invites it . The best protection $250.00 will buy.

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Posted by: 5-0

I printed this out for the day I get on the job F/T.

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Posted by: RPD931

Interesting.. I learned most of this in the first 3 months working PT in my shit-hole community.

To all the Rookies... Everything that Delta and Norwich wrote WILL happen!!

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