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samzhere
BannedPosts: 10,923 Senior Member
A tip of the hat to our Houston LEOs
samzhere
BannedPosts: 10,923 Senior Member
About an hour ago (530pm Fri) I was settling down to catch the news when I heard the "swoop" of a cop car siren, and right out my front window, a car w. lights flashing pulls across the curb, blocking the sidewalk.
They'd just cut off the running of this guy in a hoodie (surprise surprise, guy wearing a hoodie), the cop car blocking the gap from street to our security fence, with noplace to go, and almost instantly, the cops in the car jump out and grab the guy.
He took a swing at one of them which promptly got him tackled by 2, then 4 LEOs, as a 2nd car pulled up. The guy continued to thrash around on the ground for a bit, just like you see on "Cops" and with similar results. The cops actually weren't rough with the hoodie, showed restraint, just held him firmly till he was cuffed, pulled up, searched. The guy apparently had a backpack that the cops emptied on the trunk lid of the cruiser.
I've got no idea exactly what the hoodie had done but he was arrested and dealt with in a quick and professional manner. He was under control and going nowhere in about 20 seconds.
It was wide screen live TV right there for me to enjoy. A thumbs up to my first rate Houston LEOs! Sometimes things go just right.
They'd just cut off the running of this guy in a hoodie (surprise surprise, guy wearing a hoodie), the cop car blocking the gap from street to our security fence, with noplace to go, and almost instantly, the cops in the car jump out and grab the guy.
He took a swing at one of them which promptly got him tackled by 2, then 4 LEOs, as a 2nd car pulled up. The guy continued to thrash around on the ground for a bit, just like you see on "Cops" and with similar results. The cops actually weren't rough with the hoodie, showed restraint, just held him firmly till he was cuffed, pulled up, searched. The guy apparently had a backpack that the cops emptied on the trunk lid of the cruiser.
I've got no idea exactly what the hoodie had done but he was arrested and dealt with in a quick and professional manner. He was under control and going nowhere in about 20 seconds.
It was wide screen live TV right there for me to enjoy. A thumbs up to my first rate Houston LEOs! Sometimes things go just right.
Replies
And my answer to their whine is, "That's why it's good to take care of yourself!"
We get the occasional 911 call hereabouts, usually for some traffic crash late night. First cruiser will usually pull up in less than 5 minutes, about as good as you can get. There's a substation 3 blocks from my place.
I'm not a LEO and cannot speak for them, but from the LEOs I've known personally and from my experience working for a paper, I've never seen the sort of "thug" behavior that liberals attribute them. Naturally there are exceptions and sometimes cops overreact, but as a rule, they simply don't whale away on a perp. Not that they feel aggressive but as I see it, it elevates the common perp to higher status to receive a beating - they're just not worth the effort, ha ha.
I also have a very untested and only guesstimate about police overreacting and being too rough. Nothing to back this up and so it's only a "feel" i have, but if the police force has a pro-cop leadership in the chief's office and at city hall, the police feel more comfortable and are less frustrated, therefore more easy going. If there's an adversarial relationship with top brass, it can sometimes come out via the street cop being too aggressive. Just a theory.
You get a large city with thousands of cops, and sure, you'll get a few creeps and "black glovers".
Never worked LEO, but I was about as close as a citizen could get without attending an academy and taking an oath. Working armed security, in public housing, in a high-crime/gang/drug area, can open your eyes to a lot of things. One thing I found out quickly, you have to tread a fine line between being a tough guy and being a diplomat. The young turks can need a firm hand and a physical authority to keep from testing you, while a little respct goes a long way towards getting the same from most. I have vivid memories of both situations, and we had officers (some LEO's even) who could go overboard on the "bad cop". We had enough of those, so I tended to be the resident "good cop", and while my personal policy was to never shake hands with someone on the street, a nod and a professional attitude was worth a lot.
Now granted, our company had a reputation as a "hands-on", kick-tail-and-take-names organization from taking over the properties some years before, so I had that image backing me (for better or worse) in most instances. But it was amazing to me how far a little common respect could go in getting residents to comply with noise curfews or policy of no open intoxicants outside the home. Learned a lot in that gig.
Last night was a small housefire about 2 blocks down the street, and the fire truck was right there, asap. We've got a nice new station about 8 blocks from my house.
I'm overall very very pleased about our Houston LEOs and other first responders. Very professional, great attitudes. I've lived where the police response was very iffy -- El Paso for example -- but they've got their act together here. And if you wanna be a bad guy, you are not advised to try to shoot it out with Houston cops or the county LEOs either. They will shoot you quick as a flash, and they usually don't miss. None of this TV "standoff" stuff here.
This is, after all, Texas.
A friend and I were introduced to the uneducated thugs who's hiring he facilitated to right previous wrongs.
I lived just outside of Houston close to Katy off of Mason road. We always called the constables who would arrive in prompt fashionWhile, the County boys would drive around the block with lights and siren blaring before arriving at the requested location.
Just sayen
Tell him thanks from a conservative Montrose resident.
Are hoodies gonna be the new pick-up trucks?
:tooth:
Okay, that went over my head. Sorry.
:driving:
Instead of "cops nabbed baddie"........you make a point to mention "cops nabbed baddie, who was wearing a hoodie".
Perhaps the wearing of a hoodie automatically signifies nefarious intentions?
Yeah but we KNOW you have nefarious intentions. :tooth:
Luis
I got the first reference but what I missed was the mention of pickup trucks. What's that got to do with bad or good guys? Here in Houston it's a badge of honor to own a F-150 or whatever, makes you an instant cowboy, even if "all hat and no cattle" describes it.
No, as far as the hoodie goes, I tend to look suspiciously at anyone wearing a hoodie that's pulled down tight around his face as though it's 12 degrees out when in fact it's 65.
And who would wear a hoodie indoors?
Wait for it....
No.
Good ol' Houston Texas Cops, some of the best on the beat anywhere in the land. Although I agree with the saying "When seconds count the cops are only minutes away," this is not a bash on cops. It's the nature of the beast and I don't think this saying is meant to bash cops. This saying is to point out that a cop has other duties than to guard me and mine personally. That's life. Cops by and large do an exemplary job, no matter what city they're in. But this is why we need carry laws. If people that carry are responsible citizens they are an asset to the cops because the cops can't be everywhere at once.
Son that's somebody with nothing to do with his time but keep me in trouble with mom.
Police officers have my undying respect (with the provision that I can retract that respect if I have cause to) for doing what they do.
Incidentally, I've spoken to many many police and they have ALL quietly approved of civilian carry, just saying that people need to know how to handle their firearms and shoot them accurately, and know the law. Which makes perfect sense.
Most of the Houston area cops I know also shoot regularly and tend to carry fairly large handguns -- .45s, .40cal, and some look down a bit at 9mm, thinking it's okay but preferring something that begins with a "4". Most of the younger cops seem to like top quality polymer hi-cap pistols, Glocks and Sigs and XDs, those a bit older tending toward the 1911s.
But none of them are shy about shooting regularly and practicing a lot. We know that some "repressed" police forces up East are made to feel guilty about having guns by their liberal leadership, but following the disaster that Chief Brown was, Houston cops are very pro-gun. And their County area LEOs, Harris and Galveston county especially, are the same. I love 'em.
A note about HPD, my wife and I babysat half a cadet class a few years back.
The 40S&W is the standard caliber for HPD.
They can use almost anything for a backup but a 25cal (I think).
Any HPD you see with a .45 as his main Sidearm is old enough to be grandfathered.
Also… now they must either buy a Glock, M&P, Sig or an XD maybe one other.
BTW my son just requalified as an expert 95% out of 100%… and the HPD test is pretty darn hard.
One last thing HPD is required to buy their own guns AND ammo... I see the guns but the Ammo?