Andrew Ikeman | News Editor
FOR THOSE OF you who don’t know, the Fulcrum shares an office building with the Ontario Public Interest Research Group (OPIRG). OPIRG generally posts about upcoming events on their bulletin board, which I rarely look at. However, I recently noticed a flyer entitled “Dealing with the Police” pinned on their board. I do not know whether this was posted by OPIRG, if it was a joke, or why it is on their board, but the flyer’s content left a sour taste in my mouth.
“Don’t wait for the cops to read you your rights,” opened the flyer. “They usually won’t. Law enforcement agents are legally allowed to lie, and they’re trained to be manipulative. The only thing you should say to them is, ‘I am going to remain silent. I want to see a lawyer.’ (Don’t sign anything, either, without showing it to a lawyer first.)”
Fact is, guys, the police don’t have to read you your rights until you have been arrested or are put in handcuffs. If you withhold information, they may be forced to bring you in. If you simply explain what happened, instead of clamming up and saying you want your lawyer, you will appear less guilty. The argument that if you don’t talk, you will be fine is flawed. Police, for the most part, are very reasonable people. If you talk to them openly and honestly and explain your situation, they will likely be able to let you go (depending on what you have done, of course). If, however, you decide to take this pamphlet’s advice, you will spend the night in a jail cell.
“When dealing with the police, keep your hands in view and don’t make sudden movements,” reads the flyer. “Avoid passing 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 majority of police officers in Canada do not act like wild animals. You do not need to fear them mauling you, and you are not at risk of being attacked if you look them in the eye. The only truth in the above paragraph is that you should never go for the officer’s equipment—they carry weapons and are trained to protect those weapons for your safety and the safety of those around you.
The pamphlet—which was credited to the website of a group called the Midnight Special Law Collective, who disbanded in 2010—is an example of propaganda against the police. Listen guys, police exist to make sure the law is upheld. Their mandate is to intervene on behalf of the state in order to keep the general population safe. The percentage of dirty cops, or cops who do not follow the law, is very low, and the fact is, if you don’t like the laws they are trying to uphold, that’s not the fault of the police. They don’t make the rules, they just enforce them.
The truth is, most officers treat you the way you treat them. For example, if you are belligerent and drunkenly yelling at them, they will be assholes. But if you are respectful and treat them as the human beings they are, they may be inclined to be nice. Just be careful of their horses.
