Outrageous Police Killing's Misconduct Police Brutality and Public Trust Is Now Gone!

You can truly grieve for every officer who has been lost in the line of duty in this country and still be troubled by cases of police overreach. Those two ideas are not mutually exclusive. You can have great regard for law enforcement and still want them to be held to high standards. This is a compilation video containing 10 incidents involving police officers, which had all been previously reported by various media outlets. This video is not created to elicit negative views towards the police in general. The purpose of this compilation is purely informative. This video does not contain any paid promotion and it is not monetized in any way.

These poll figures on police from 50 years ago provide a startling glimpse at the rise of the modern American police state.

Not quite half a century ago, and following the summer riots in Detroit and other cities across the U.S. no less, most Americans trusted and respected the police. Nearly eight out of 10 adults responded they had a “great deal” of respect for police.

In fact, only 6% of the 1,626 people polled across the country said they believed police brutality even existed at all. That figure had actually gone down from 9% on a prior poll in 1965, while the percent of people who claimed to have a “great deal” of respect for police rose from 70% in 1965 to 77% at the time of the 1967 poll.

This means that the declarations of martial law and police response to and presence following the summer riots actually strengthened Americans’ views of police, not the other way around. In fact, only 4% of 1967 Gallup respondents said they had “hardly any” respect for the cops. Now compare that with how people feel and what’s going on today.

In a 1999 Gallup Poll, 38% of Americans answered not only that they believe police brutality exists, but that they specifically believed incidents of police brutality had actually occurred in their area. Nearly a third (27%) responded that they personally felt they had been treated unfairly by police. By that time, 64% responded they had a “great deal” of respect for police, down 13% from the 1967 figures. The following year in 2000, only 60% said they had a “great deal” of respect for police.

While not exactly the same poll, Gallup asked people in 2015 how much “confidence” they had in the police just this past June. Only 25% said “a great deal,” which Gallup noted was the lowest since 1993. In other words, Americans’ confidence in police hit a 22-year low.

Wonder what it would be if they specifically asked Americans about police respect these days. Hardly a day goes by in recent years by that someone isn’t (or multiple someones aren’t) shot and killed by police in this country.

Because a database was never properly kept on these killings, we’ll never be able to properly compare these figures with those from 50 years ago… but just judging on the poll numbers above, it isn’t hard to take a guess at how much less death by cop there used to be in America.

Dealing with the problem of police being afraid to be afraid. With current police practices, one only need to be on the phone in your own home to be killed by police. I was almost killed by 2 Rhode Island state troopers. They purportedly came to the wrong address and, seeing me through the window, THOUGHT my phone was a gun. Having no gun, I also didn't comply with orders to drop the "gun" being clueless as to who they were talking to. Given current practices, deadly police force was allowed TWICE because:
1. they THOUGHT I had a gun and
2. I refused to follow a command when they had a "fear" of their life.
A cops "belief" that their life is in danger, even when it is not, is all that is necessary to kill you and get away with it. Do you see the problem yet? -- from the author of this document.

Either The Policing Problem Is Dealt With Effectively Or America Will Continue Being At War With Police Killing's and Brutality and Public Trust Is Now Gone!

Watch almost any cop show or movie and you will see a consistent theme. The "good" cop has to "cross the line" for the "greater good." The fact the line was crossed and Citizens were abused, killed or violated gets lost in the "effectiveness", the end result of the police action (the arrests, the accolades and the awards). Many, if not most cops reach this point - the point where they must pretend to not see wrongdoing. The problem with America in general, but especially in the areas of justice or law enforcement, is this - "being effective" (getting a result) trumps the law, justice, Constitutional rights and morality. Cops discover to be "good", they have to be bad or ignore the bad some or all of the time. The outlets for "effective" policing (getting results with secondary or no consideration of law, justice, Constitutional rights or morals) is, for the most part, institutionalized racism (see report) and oppression of the poor. (see report) Visit any of our courts or prisons and this will become painfully clear. See Seven Reasons Police Brutality Is Systemic, Not Anecdotal

"In the real world, cops are far from independent agents, Rather, they act within the constraints of a very powerful organizational culture that significantly influences and constrains their judgements and conduct. For similar reasons, viewing police brutality as a string of unrelated incidents belies reality. Police officers who misbehave are often part of a larger pattern of misconduct involving multiple incidents and multiple actors. Such patterns cannot be attributed solely to the misbehaving individuals. Individual officers are behaving as their departments have trained them to behave--whether explicitly or implicitly--and the organizational culture that cultivated and sustained them must also bear some responsibility." -- Barbara E. Armacost, Organizational Culture and Police Misconduct, 72 George Washington University Law Review 453, 476 (2004).

Another way of saying that is "When Black Lives Matter, All Lives Matter. " Every civilized society needs structure and enforcement. This article is not anti-police; it is against excessive and unnecessary abuses and killings by police. Our Constitution was intended to protect us from abuses of government and law enforcement. The Constitution is now disregarded routinely for "effectiveness" at the expense of Law, justice, Constitutional rights and morality. What "works" has become more important than what is right. Today if you get charged, unless you have money, your innocence, if you are innocent, is irrelevant. More likely than not your lawyer and the prosecutor will work in collusion to force you into a plea which is always a guilty plea on some level. Resist that and they will throw the kitchen sink at you with threats and multiple charges with lengthy sentences. All this is done in the name of "judicial efficiency." Our Constitutional rights are being eroded. Couple that with policing that is more concerned with getting results with secondary or no consideration of law, justice, Constitutional rights or morals. Add to that the inherent tendency ALL of us have to abuse power (yes, YOU!) and we have the mess we have today.

Give cops the rules of "effective" policing as defined here coupled with the inherent human weakness to abuse power to people who, for the most part, start policing in their twenties and you have some of the reasons for the insanity we have today. Cops are killing with impunity, guns come out for practically any reason imaginable, SWAT teams are used to serve warrants, militarizing of police, police using weapons of war against peaceful protestors, escalating the situation upon arrival, etc. Abusing power comes easy. Learning not to abuse power takes a lifetime.

Terrorism And Tyranny Is NOT Policing! When the Ferguson police opened fire on peaceful protesters with 3 weapons of war, why wasn't THAT called rioting? Every American needs to watch the shocking, full video of this pathetic assault. Why wasn't the countless videos we have of police pointing guns at peaceful protesters "inciting a riot?" In some areas policing has become more about terrorism and tyranny instead of policing.

The response to the uprisings in Ferguson regarding systemic abuses and racism added to the death of Michael Brown and Eric Garner in New York and countless others along with the ensuing nationwide protests brought many police chiefs to the media level with one basic message:

SUBMIT AND OBEY AND ALL WILL BE WELL
First of all, when, in ANY of the world's history, did anything good come of it when the primary message of the enforcement arm of governments is for their people to SUBMIT AND OBEY? CHECK YOUR HISTORY!

Second of all, submitting to police usually is the PRELUDE to the beating and, in many cases, your death. We now have COUNTLESS videos and deaths attesting to these facts. Submitting to police does NOT mean "all will be well" at all.

Three Things Must Change Immediately Police Misconduct
This pathetic, insane legal "reasoning" that cops can kill when scared, even when the fear is all in their head, must cease NOW.
Cops are taught to view your humanity as resistance to their authority. The insanity of having cops classify every normal human reaction (pain, fear, emotion, mental or physical problems, inability to comply, a twitch, a turn etc.) as resistance to their authority requiring the use of physical or deadly force must cease NOW. The total, insane corruption of the legal process in handling complaints and deaths caused by police must change NOW.

If you don't see the logic or necessity of these 3 changes (like the guy on the left) you need your head examined. Denying the above SANE solutions shows either that power has gone to your head, you are a blind non-thinking follower or you are reality challenged. You have forgotten what the Constitution is. Your thinking is dangerous to any sane, civilized society regardless of what your position in society is. Do you really believe as Citizens in the United States of America

that we should have cops that can kill us out of fear even when the fear is all in their head? that we should have cops that can disregard our humanity and view it as resistance to their authority? that we should continue having a corrupt legal process when dealing with abuses and deaths caused by cops? Anyone thinking this is what this country should have is totally irrational. And to have people in power and/or wearing a badge and a gun that think this way is downright dangerous.

The pathetic, insane legal "reasoning" that cops can kill when scared, even when the fear is all in their head. Cops will routinely state they are putting their lives on the line every day. Yet, if they can kill when scared, even when that fear is all in their head, they are NOT putting their lives on the line at all. Every Citizen is putting THEIR lives on the line every day when around a cop. How is your life in danger when you can shoot out of fear, even when the fear isn't based on an actual threat? 21st Century policing has put every Citizen in danger of their lives daily with this pathetic legal reasoning that cops can kill out of fear - whether reality based or not. Cops are told to kill and ask questions later. And remember, cops are trained to shoot for one reason only - to kill.

One police chief was quoted as saying, "If someone fails to obey the command of an officer they should be shot." Another chief responding to a killing of a kid with a toy gun said, "We expect obedience." The time given in the video for obedience was about 2 seconds.
Another police chief stated, "Don't obey an officer's command and ANYTHING can happen." So, "Resistance" (which could be a twitch, a turn, anything at all) is cause for death without trial? The facts are some cops have been killing when their life is not in danger at all!

A cop killed a mentally ill kid whose mother had called because he was suicidal. Despite their being no one else in the house and the cop being a distance from the boy and able to step back, killed him as soon as the mentally disturbed kid took a step toward the cop.
Citizens have been killed with the cops being yards away and in no danger of their life whatsoever...yet these killings are considered good shoots.
Not obeying a command can now be justification for an instant execution...even if you are deaf, mute or blind and regardless of whether you are frozen from terror, mentally or physically sick or unable to comply. THIS IS INSANITY!
Citizens have been killed for having no gun, toy guns, because the cop THOUGHT they had a gun, having a water hose, having a game controller, acting "strange", moving too quick, moving too slow, turning too quickly, going for credentials the police asked for and for many other non life threatening reasons
A Citizen recently almost lost his life because he pointed a banana in his hand...that's right, a banana! A strategic retreat or de-escalation is now considered cowardice by many of today's police. Control or kill is the name of the game. This isn't policing. This is police being at war with America as their battlefield. All a cop has to say is, "I was in fear of my life" and he can get away with almost anything, including murder!

The insanity of having cops classify every normal human reaction (pain, fear, emotion, mental or physical problems, inability to comply, a twitch, a turn etc.) as resistance to their authority. Like soldiers at war on a battlefield, many cops disregard the humanity of American Citizens. Move too quick? SHOOT OR BEAT! Move too slow? SHOOT OR BEAT! Turn too fast, have a handicap, have a mental problem, confused, scared to death? NO MATTER - SHOOT OR BEAT! ANYTHING besides rapid and total submission to their authority is considered "resistance" requiring the use of physical or deadly force. Any exercise of Constitutional rights causes many cops to view you as an enemy of the state. Those that don't believe this either haven't had it happen to them or haven't been paying attention to the endless flow of news stories that continue to surface almost daily.

Cops appear willfully clueless regarding normal human reactions when a Citizen faces aggression, a threat to their life and/or the sight of a gun. Cops can kill when scared, even when the fear is all in their head. But the American Citizen is supposed to act with rapid and total submission when faced with aggression, it is clear their life is in danger, death or bodily injury seems imminent or when they see a gun. Normal human reactions to any of these life threatening behaviors might include freezing, panic, charging at or trying to remove the threat in a last ditch attempt to save their lives, running, irrational behavior, etc. NO ONE knows how Citizens will react to aggression or threats to their life until it happens. Cops get to react by killing or beating. Their humanity seems to be all that matters. Should Our Right To Life End Due To Nervous, Scared or Overly Agressive Cops?

The Citizen doesn't? Perhaps he wasn't being clear but this came across as arrogant and elitist. I had a problem for a while where I could not get on my knees. This would be viewed by some cops as a green light for abuse or even my on the spot execution had I been given an order to get on my knees. I could go on for an hour about people beat and killed for having legitimate reasons to not respond to a command. Americans are no longer Citizens. They are treated like enemy combatants on a battlefield. Our humanity is irrelevant. The totally insane corruption of the legal process in handling complaints and deaths caused by police.

Systemic Racism, Abuse & Oppression Of The Poor: It stands to reason that the race disparity regarding police abuse, arrests and killings must be stopped. Likewise, the oppression of the poor by communities trying to finance themselves via excessive enforcement of petty crimes and traffic violations has to stop also. But the goal of the reforms we seek is not to have "equal opportunity and racially neutral" police beatings, killings and petty enforcement. We want all unnecessary and unreasonable enforcement, beatings and killings stopped. What good will the laudable goals of having a police force staffed to reflect the race of the community and have them all trained in racial sensitivity yet still have them kill, beat and enforce unjustly and with impunity?

Unreasonable Legal "Reasoning": The law today can be likened to Silly Putty - creative interpretations abound. Like Silly Putty, law is stretched in all directions and can be bounced from the "spirit" of the law to the "letter" of the law resulting in differing legal opinions despite similar circumstances.

In this case it is ruled a cop can be confused on traffic laws opening the door to more harassing police stops. (Whatever happened to "ignorance of the law is no excuse?")
There was a recent change to the 5th amendment reducing incentives for cooperating with police and practically making it necessary to invoke the 5th when having ANY encounter with police. Also see this timeline for some historical rulings on the 5th.
Think it is a cops job to protect? Think again.
Read about the special treatment some police with a much higher rate of domestic abuse receive
Read about the special treatment some police receive when caught driving drunk.
Rhode Island Law § 12-7-10 Resisting legal or illegal arrest is an open door to have an officer make up a reason to arrest you and needs to be clarified.
Also see below where rampant lying, testilying and perjury committed by police is routinely winked at by police, judges, lawyers and prosecutors.

The Grand Jury Process: To have prosecutors that have ongoing working relationships, and perhaps even friendships, with police handle the grand jury process is a pathetic joke. Any death of a Citizen at the hands of police, unless the verifiable circumstances clearly justify it, should be handled by an independent prosecutor and/or a trial process should commence. The Blue Wall Of Silence: (also called Blue Code or Blue Shield) The common mantra that most cops are good is true but MUST be tempered with this fact - most cops also will not report misconduct of their departments resulting in all police departments being complicit with wrongdoing. This MUST change. Special Bill Of Rights: Many areas have a special bill of rights for police making it harder to discipline or get rid of bad cops. Most all cops have unions and civil remedies available to them and these bills have to be either drastically altered or eliminated. James Vincent, President of the Providence branch of the NAACP said, "Right now there's a policeman's bill of rights that some officers use to protect themselves from being punished...There's a tiny minority of police officers, I call them bad apples, who feel they can do whatever they want." No Citizen Oversight: We need Citizen involvement regarding oversight and complaints against police. The secrecy must stop. Police would laugh at any Citizens saying they can police themselves yet insist they be allowed to do just that. Lying, Testilying And Perjury: While cops are allowed to lie under certain circumstances (See Can Cops Lie?), false reports, lies, testilying and perjury are an epidemic in policing and cause immeasurable suffering affecting countless lives. Some cops seem to think they have a green light to lie about everything. We have countless examples of cops lying about the law, lying to take a stop to the next level, lying saying it is illegal to film them etc. Police lie so much the legal profession calls it testilying. Given the importance of truth in policing added to the fact lives can be drastically and negatively affected by lying cops, all cops should be prosecuted, punished, fired and and/or personally sued for lying, whatever is appropriate for the situation. The current attitude in the legal system to the systemic problem of lying, perjuring cops is, "So what?" Add that to the problem of cops planting evidence...do you see the problem YET? One way to protect against police misconduct is cop cams. Read Cops, Lying, Testilying And Perjury to see how prevalent this problem is. Erosion Of Civil Rights: Slowly but surely our government, case law and the US Supreme Court are chipping away at civil rights by carving out more and more exceptions to them. This has opened the door for a lot of the police misconduct that has given rise to the latest uprising. A prime example of what happens when civil rights erode was the stop and frisk practices in New York. Unconstitutional - The War on Our Civil Liberties ? So America, DO THE MATH. First we have police able to kill when afraid even when the fear is all in their head. Add that to training that teaches them to disregard normal human reactions and consider them as resistance to their authority. Add special bills of rights making it hard to get rid of wrong doers. Add the Blue Wall Of Silence and a legal system that considers rampant perjury of cops as inconsequential. Add to that prosecutors who work and are friendly with police being in charge of prosecuting their wrongdoing and all the other things mentioned in this article. DO YOU SEE THE PROBLEM YET?

WAKE UP AMERICA !! You may be fortunate to live in an area where there is very little police misconduct. If you are rich, white or live in certain areas it is very easy to pretend, deny or imagine that all these things in this article aren't true. Well, they are true and we need to wake up FAST. You may think, "The cops I know would never do this." You may be right. Thank God most cops DON'T do these things.
But, do you want a system in place that ALLOWS for the misconduct and killings addressed here? Do you want them to be able to conduct themselves in the manner described here? THAT is what we have now and THAT is why changes are long overdue.

A Citizenry and law enforcement that are mutually cooperative is essential to any civilized society. Individual rights and liberties are equally essential. This article is not intending to encourage being uncooperative with law enforcement. We encourage all Citizens to assist in any way they can to contribute to a healthy, safe, civilized society. Given that, this article is written because of two very harsh realities:

Eroding civil rights and a badly broken justice system and
Law enforcement that sometimes act outside of the public interest and with disregard for constitutional law and individual rights
This article is trying to strike a healthy balance regarding police encounters
It is unfortunate that sometimes an encounter with the police can turn into a nightmare. While we all hope police are properly trained, we are at a point where we have to educate the public on how to deal with some police officers that may be nervous, irrational or overly aggressive. Know your rights, be respectful and stay calm.
The following information is NOT legal advice as no one involved with this website is an attorney. Nothing here should be construed or relied on as legal advice. However, this is information that is commonly said by attorneys and public safety officials on the media level.

A note to those that are police officers: While many say they became police officers because they wanted to help people, the reality is most became police officers because they wanted power over people. This desire for power over others is, in and of itself, enough to make anyone dangerous. Human beings have an inherent weakness towards the abuse of power. Don't think you are immune...you are not.

Regarding Police Encounters In Routine Traffic Stops
Once you become aware you are being told to pull over, wave and let the police know via hand gestures that you acknowledge them without speeding up. Don't cause an accident or endanger by trying to stop too quickly, drive erratically or pull over in a bad spot. Give hand gestures if necessary that you are driving ahead to pull over. Stop slowly and safely. Stopping too quickly or driving irrationally to attempt to pull over is a common problem with routine traffic stops.
If it is an unmarked car and you believe you are in danger, you can call on a cell phone to tell the local police you are unsure who is trying to get you to stop so they can communicate this to the officer.
Once stopped, if it is dark, immediately turn on your interior lights.
Turn off the engine, roll down the window and keep your hands on the wheel of the car where they can be seen. If asked to get something say something like, "I have to go into my glove compartment [or reach into a pocket], can you please shine your light here."
Do not get out of the car unless told to.
Regarding More Serious Police Encounters:
First - Remember These Two Lines:
I am going to remain silent. I want to see a lawyer.
I do not consent to this search.
When dealing with the police, keep your hands in view and don't make sudden movements. Avoid movement that would put you behind them. Nervous cops are dangerous cops. Also, never touch the police or their equipment (vehicles, flashlights, animals, etc.) - you can get beat up and charged with assault.

The police do not decide your charges; they can only make recommendations. The prosecutor is the only person who can actually charge you. Remember this the next time the cops start rattling off all the charges they're supposedly "going to give you."

Interrogation isn't always bright lights and rubber hoses - usually it's just a conversation. Whenever the cops ask you anything besides your name and address, it's legally safest to (respectfully) say these Magic Words: "I am going to remain silent. I want to see a lawyer." This invokes the rights which protect you from interrogation. When you say this, the cops (and all other law enforcement officials) are legally required to stop asking you questions. They probably won't stop, so just repeat the Magic Words or remain silent until they catch on. Remember, anything you say to the authorities can and will be used against you and your friends in court. There's no way to predict what information the police might try to use or how they'd use it. Plus, the police often misquote or lie altogether about what was said. So say only the Magic Words and let all the cops and witnesses know that this is your policy. Make sure that when you're arrested with other people, the rest of the group knows the Magic Words and promises to use them.

One of the jobs of cops is to get information out of people, and they usually don't have any scruples about how they do it. Cops are legally allowed to lie when they're investigating, and they are trained to be manipulative. The only thing you should say to cops, other than identifying yourself, is the Magic Words: "I am going to remain silent. I want to see a lawyer."

Here are some lies they will tell you: "You're not a suspect - just help us understand what happened here and then you can go." "If you don't answer my questions, I'll have no choice but to arrest you. Do you want to go to jail?" "If you don't answer my questions, I'm going to charge you with resisting arrest." "All of your friends have cooperated and we let them go home. You're the only one left." Cops are sneaky buggers and there are lots of ways they can trick you into talking.

Here are some scams they'll pull: Good Cop/ Bad Cop: Bad cop is aggressive and menacing, while good cop is nice, friendly, and familiar (usually good cop is the same race and gender as you). The idea is bad cop scares you so bad you are desperately looking for a friend. Good cop is that friend.
The cops will tell you that your friends ratted on you so that you will snitch on them. Meanwhile, they tell your friends the same thing. If anyone breaks and talks, you all go down.
The cops will tell you that they have all the evidence they need to convict you and that if you "take responsibility" and confess the judge will be impressed by your honesty and go easy on you. What they really mean is: "we don't have enough evidence yet, please confess." Jail is a very isolating and intimidating place. It is really easy to believe what the cops tell you.
Insist upon speaking with a lawyer before you answer any questions or sign anything. The Golden Rule: Never trust a cop. The police do not have to read you your rights (also known as the Miranda warnings). Miranda applies when there is:

(a) an interrogation
(b) by a police officer of other agent of law enforcement
(c) while the suspect is in police custody (you do not have to be formally arrested to be "in custody").
Even when all these conditions are met, the police intentionally violate Miranda. And though your rights have been violated, what you say can be used against you. For this reason, it is better not to wait for the cops to tell you your Miranda rights. Know what your rights are so you can invoke them by saying the Magic Words, "I am going to remain silent. I want to see a lawyer."

If you've been arrested and realize that you have started answering questions, don't panic. Just re-invoke your rights by saying the Magic Words again. Don't let them trick you into thinking that because you answered some of their questions, you have to answer all of them.

There are three basic types of encounters with the police: Conversation, Detention, and Arrest. The "conversational" encounter: When the cops are trying to get information, but don't have enough evidence to detain or arrest you, they'll try to weasel some information out of you. They may call this a "casual encounter" or a "friendly conversation". If you talk to them, you may give them the information they need to arrest you or your friends. In most situations, it's better and safer not to talk to cops.

The detention encounter: Police can detain you only if they have reasonable suspicion (see below) that you are involved in a crime. Detention means that, though you aren't arrested, you can't leave. Detention is supposed to last a short time and they aren't supposed to move you. During detention, the police can pat you down and go into your bag to make sure you don't have any weapons. They aren't supposed to go into your pockets unless they feel a weapon. If the police are asking questions, ask if you are being detained. If not, leave and say nothing else to them. If you are being detained, you may want to ask why. Then you should say the Magic Words: "I am going to remain silent. I want a lawyer" and nothing else. A detention can easily turn into arrest. If the police are detaining you and they get information that you are involved in a crime, they will arrest you, even if it has nothing to do with your detention. For example, if someone gets pulled over for speeding (detained) and the cop sees drugs in the car, the cops will arrest her for possession of the drugs even though it has nothing to do with her getting pulled over. Cops have two reasons to detain you: 1) they are writing you a citation (a traffic ticket, for example), or 2) they want to arrest you but they don't have enough information yet to do so.

The arrest: Police can arrest you only if they have probable cause (see below) that you are involved in a crime. When you are arrested, the cops can search you to the skin and go through you car and any belongings. By law, an officer strip searching you must be the same gender as you. If the police come to your door with an arrest warrant, go outside and lock the door behind you. Cops are allowed to search any room you go into, so don't go back into the house for any reason. If they have an arrest warrant, hiding won't help because they are allowed to force their way in if they know you are there. It's usually better to just go with them without giving them an opportunity to search.

Reasonable suspicion must be based on more than a hunch - cops must be able to put their suspicion into words. For example, cops can't just stop someone and say, "She looked like she was up to something." They need to be more specific, like, "She was standing under the overpass staring up at some graffiti that hadn't been there 2 hours ago. She had the same graffiti pattern written on her backpack. I suspected that she had put up the graffiti." Cops need more proof to say they have a probable cause than to say they have a reasonable suspicion. For example, "A store owner called to report someone matching her description tagging a wall across the street. As I drove up to the store, I saw her running away spattered with paint and carrying a spray can in her hand."

Never consent to a search! If the police try to search your house, car, backpack, pockets, etc. say the Magic Words: "I do not consent to this search." This may not stop them from forcing their way in and searching anyway, but if they search you illegally, they probably won't be able to use the evidence against you in court. You have nothing to lose from refusing to consent to a search and lots to gain. Do not physically resist cops when they are trying to search because you could get hurt and charged with resisting arrest or assault. Just keep repeating the Magic Words so that the cops and all witnesses know that this is your policy.

Be careful about casual consent. That is, if you are stopped by the cops and you get out of the car but don't close the door, they can search the car and claim that they though you were indicating consent by leaving the door ajar. Also, if you say, "I'd rather you didn't search," they can claim that you were reluctantly giving them permission to search. Always just say the Magic Words: "I do not consent to this search."

If the cops have a search warrant, nothing changes - it's legally safest to just say the Magic Words. Again, you have nothing to lose from refusing to consent to a search, and lots to gain if the search warrant is incorrect or invalid in some way. If they do have a search warrant, ask to read it. A valid warrant must have a recent date (usually not more than a couple of weeks), the correct address, and a judge's or magistrate's signature; some warrants indicate the time of day the cops can search. You should say the Magic Words whether or not the search warrant appears correct. The same goes for any government official who tries to search you, your belongings, or your house.

Undercover cops sometimes infiltrate political organizations. They can lie about being cops even if asked directly. Undercover cops can even break the law (narcs get hazard pay for doing drugs as part of their cover) and encourage others to do so as well. This is not legally entrapment. The essence of the Magic Words "I'm keeping my mouth shut until I talk to a lawyer" not only applies to police but also to the FBI, INS, CIA, even IRS. If you want to be nice and polite, tell them that you don't wish to speak with them until you've spoken with your lawyer, or that you won't answer questions without a lawyer present. If you are being investigated as a result of your political activity, you can call the National Lawyers Guild at (415) 582-1055; they will help you find a lawyer you can talk to.

Whenever you interact with or observe the police, always write down what is said and who said it. Write down the cops' names and badge numbers and the names and contact information of any witnesses. Record everything that happens. If you are expecting a lot of police contact, get in the habit of carrying a small tape recorder and a camera with you.

Be careful - cops don't like people taking notes, especially if the cops are planning on doing something illegal. Observing them and documenting their actions may have very different results; for example, it may cause them to respond aggressively, or it may prevent them from abusing you or your friends. People deal with police in all kinds of circumstances. You must make an individual decision about how you will interact with law enforcement. It is important to know your legal rights, but it is also important for you to decide when and how to use them in order to best protect yourself.