Person Puts Up A Sign About Police Officers’ Legal Knowledge And It Starts A Heated Discussion

A simple search on YouTube might give you plenty of videos featuring police officers “getting owned” by law experts. And a lot of cop jokes next to them. But all kidding aside, how big of a problem is this? Recently, one protester put up a sign comparing the time it takes to become a police officer and a lawyer, asking if it’s reasonable for someone to put equal amounts of trust in their actions. After a photo of the sign went viral, people began searching for the answer.

One of the people who replied to the thread referred to the Heien case, where the Supreme Court ruled a “police officer’s reasonable mistake of law gives rise to reasonable suspicion that justifies a traffic stop under the Fourth Amendment.” A motorist’s broken tail light caused an officer to make a traffic stop, which lead to evidence of a separate violation of the law. However, in North Carolina, a broken tail light wasn’t illegal, thus there wasn’t sufficient cause to justify the stop — nor the arrests stemming from it, lawyers argued, because that should be a violation of unreasonable searches and seizures.

The Supreme Court, however, ruled the officer’s ignorance of the law essentially didn’t matter, effectively allowing police around the country the ability to make stops if they ‘reasonably’ believe the cause for the stop is legal. To put it in simple words, police can stop and search you despite ignorance of the law.

Person Puts Up A Sign About Police Officers’ Legal Knowledge And It Starts A Heated Discussion

As a Visual Editor at Bored Panda, I indulge in the joy of curating delightful content, from adorable pet photos to hilarious memes, all while nurturing my wanderlust and continuously seeking new adventures and interests—sometimes thrilling, sometimes daunting, but always exciting!

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Rokas is a writer at Bored Panda with a BA in Communication. After working for a sculptor, he fell in love with visual storytelling and enjoys covering everything from TV shows (any Sopranos fans out there?) to photography. Throughout his years in Bored Panda, over 300 million people have read the posts he's written, which is probably more than he could count to.

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What do you think ?

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Foxxy 5 years ago (edited)

6 months is a ridiculous amount of training for cops, no wonder there is a lot of incompetence when it comes to dealing with things without the use of guns. In most countries where longer training and education is required, gun use by cops is extremely rare. How can you learn risks, diffusion techniques, understanding mental states and how to deal with them in an effective and safe manner, de-escalation tactics etc in just 6 months. No wonder it’s common that US cops shoot before they talk. They are not equipped with the right tools (and I don’t mean weapons) to deal with what it actually means to be a police officer.

28points

India Frost 5 years ago

I think foxxy's point is that cops have a vast amount of power and their training should reflect the amount of responsibility. They have human life and law in their hands.

13points

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John Smith 5 years ago

Foxxy doesn't have a comprehensive grasp on this topic. Instead she's 'informed' by the 'stories' she reads on Vox, MSNBC, NPR and Slate. Don't be like Foxxy.

-3points

John Smith 5 years ago

Um, no, it's not common for US cops to shoot before they talk. Not at all.

-3points

Wyomudder 5 years ago

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Hans 5 years ago

After another ridiculous incident at an airport I was explained that to work for TSA, you esentially need to be able to write your name. This puts the requirements to become a police office into perspective. And now look at the requirements to be a teacher for preschool children...undoubtedly the most delicate time in life. Education and responsibility do not always play together, unfortunately. Neither do payment and responsibility. Just look at those who care for the elderly. This is a huge societal problem.

14points

Dave P 5 years ago

TSA is 40 hours of training, my local mall's rent a cops have 60 hours. TSA also has the highest incompetence rate of any federal enforcement agency for a reason

12points

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Victoria Swift 5 years ago

TSA is just a replacement for the welfare to work program.

1point

John L 5 years ago

What do you expect from a job that was literally advertised for, with flyers on pizza delivery boxes?

1point

Gisele 5 years ago

Unfortunately, it will be easier to become a cop going forward if recruitment trends continue downward: https://reason.com/2019/06/25/u-s-cops-are-facing-a-recruitment-crisis-will-it-force-them-to-change-their-ways/.................."The number of full-time sworn officers per 1,000 residents decreased, from 2.42 in 1997 to 2.17 in 2016," the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) reported last summer. The raw number of police officers in the U.S. also declined slightly, from 724,690 in 2013 to 701,169 in 2016.

10points

CP 5 years ago

Cops have a bad reputation right now. I would guess that is part of the recruitment problem. Getting them trained properly will most likely help their reputation.

3points

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Foxxy 5 years ago (edited)

28points

India Frost 5 years ago

I think foxxy's point is that cops have a vast amount of power and their training should reflect the amount of responsibility. They have human life and law in their hands.

13points

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John Smith 5 years ago

Foxxy doesn't have a comprehensive grasp on this topic. Instead she's 'informed' by the 'stories' she reads on Vox, MSNBC, NPR and Slate. Don't be like Foxxy.

-3points

John Smith 5 years ago

Um, no, it's not common for US cops to shoot before they talk. Not at all.

-3points

Wyomudder 5 years ago

This comment is hidden. Click here to view.

Hans 5 years ago

14points

Dave P 5 years ago

TSA is 40 hours of training, my local mall's rent a cops have 60 hours. TSA also has the highest incompetence rate of any federal enforcement agency for a reason

12points

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Victoria Swift 5 years ago

TSA is just a replacement for the welfare to work program.

1point

John L 5 years ago

What do you expect from a job that was literally advertised for, with flyers on pizza delivery boxes?

1point

Gisele 5 years ago

10points

CP 5 years ago

Cops have a bad reputation right now. I would guess that is part of the recruitment problem. Getting them trained properly will most likely help their reputation.

3points

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