During my weekend activities I met with an associate who is a former peace officer from the Chicago area. I told him about the whole RLSH deal (he was unaware) and asked what he thought about it.
Being this was my first chance to ask someone affiliated with actual law enforcement I asked many questions. Most were standard but the one that got the most surprising answers were the following few.
Q: If you had ever come across one of these RLSH fellows in action (Fighting someone), would you have arrested them for vigilantism after all the dust had cleared and they told you what they were doing?
A: Honestly I would have handed them psychiatric department for evaluation. Processing someone for this kind of action would be a major waste of police time.
Q: What about good samaritan laws? Stopping crime that you observe is a good thing right?
A: A good samaritan is completely different then someone actively looking to stop crime in progress. A good samaritan just happens to be in the wrong place at the right time.
Q: So what would you suggest for these RLSH members that are patrolling and looking for crime.
A: Being pro active and part of a neighborhood watch are good ways to help your community deal with issues in your area. Going out and looking for problems will just make yourself a target from both sides of the law without proper sanction.
I have a few more law enforcement friends that I should see in the next few months. I believe next time I will bring the video camera for posting on Youtube. I am a little bummed he would not have taken in the masked hero to jail. But I suppose mental help is what they need more then jail time.
I'd like to hear more about what real cops think about RLSHs: the good, the bad, and the ugly.
ReplyDeletePoop Knife,
ReplyDeleteA very good post, something none of us are curious about, but have not been able to find answers for.
Keep up the Evil Work (and don't tell them you're a SuperVillain!)
-Lord Malignance
Two undercovers that I personally met respect what we do. They offered to back us up when we need it, and we're in talks with them for a mutual information trading relationship.
ReplyDeleteGranted, we've dropped the theatrics and have just decided to do the job.
But I understand that's not what you guys want to hear. Funny thing is, you go looking for your side of the story, that's all you'll ever see.
Me, I look at both sides of the story. Can you?
Very cool Z, it is nice you are coming around and loosing the mask.
ReplyDeleteThe mask was always for one on one confrontations, and/or a psychological edge when dealing with more fearless predators.
ReplyDeleteI haven't "patrolled" in that mask for years. Other than accompanying DG in the park. And that was only because there was media present. I'm certainly not going to put my face in magazines on purpose. It's one thing if i have to deal with the consequences of that if one of you guys did it, its entirely another to fuck myself over.
What is the distinction between "Being proactive and part of a neighborhood watch" and "Going out and looking for problems"?
ReplyDeleteThere is none.
The distinction is between intending to do surveillance openly ("we're watching you") and intending to engage people physically ("we're coming after you.")
If RLSHs really want to be effective, then they should organize more or less conventional neighborhood watches and safety walks. They should not use masks and secret identities when they are doing anything where there is a moderate likelihood of seeing crimes in progress. They should wear the masks when they go to give toys to kids, or during the day in parades and other contexts that promote safety and community cohesion against crime. Build relationships with police, let them know who you are as a watch group. You could still have a secret identity and public superhero persona--nobody would know which neighborhood watch members do this. It would draw more positive attention to the real valuable work that gets no media attention: people working together with police and elected officials to secure their streets.