NorthernBigBuds
New member
Whether you have a 20k watt grow-op in your basement, or not a trichome in your home you should deal with the police coming to your front door the same way, every time. Many have heard that they should not open their door to Police, but no one can fully prepare for this scenario before it happens; it catches you off guard and the Police are extremely conniving as per their training.
I had a knock at my door a few nights ago, and I knew right away I would not be opening my door. Like anyone would after a tense encounter with the Police, I have been playing the mental tape over and over, non-stop since it happened. I will be ready to record the conversation next time.
I realize now that I could have ended this encounter within two minutes if I had changed my own tactics, all without opening the door, but minus the harassment, threats and insults I received as a result of my poor preparation. The next time this happens I pity the officers on duty, because I won't play nice if they don't.
Never forget that this crucial first step is the most important thing you can do to protect yourself: Never Open the Door!. I'm here to tell you why and how!
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK! "Police! Open The Door!"
Why Keep the Door Closed?
There are a few reasons why you should keep your door closed if the police show up unannounced, whether you are breaking any laws inside or not.
1) It is your right. I suggest to everyone that they learn all of their rights, and then exercise them as often as possible with the cops. Believe me, the police will exercise every available option to get what they want from you; including, but not limited to: lying, intimidating, threats, and physical force. If you know your rights, you can fuck with the cops as much as they fuck with you, just differently.
"But I don't want to fuck with the cops! I have nothing on me or in the house. I think I'll just open the door and see what they want."
Bad choice, you don't even know what they want yet!
2) Security. Many people have had doors, once slightly opened, instantly kicked in their face shattering all of their front teeth; they'll show you the warrant afterwards. People have had their homes invaded many times by criminals imitating the police, nevermind that the police have their own criminal element.
"I'm not scared of all that! The cops where I live won't just storm my house if I open the door for them, they have to have a warrant!"
Or PC! Maybe your hometown cops aren't the LAPD, but it is a well known fact that all cops are liars...
3) Protection. If you open the door at all, even with the chain on, you give the police the opportunity to fabricate probable cause to enter your home. Probable Cause(PC) is 'a good enough reason to enter/search your home without a warrant'. The exact laws vary place to place, so this is absolutely something specific about your jurisdiction you should know. If the door is open, and the police really want to get in, the three most common PC's they will fabricate are that they smelled drugs, they saw something in plain-sight(all it takes is a zig-zag in some places), or they thought there was a crime in progress. Police are inherently dishonest. If you don't open the door, none of this can happen to you.
4) The final reason to keep your door closed is that you stay in control of the conversation, which we will learn is an important thing to bear in mind when talking to the Police.
How Will It Go Down?
You hear a knock at the door. You should not be surprised, because one of the preparations to make is a realization that the visit will always come unexpectedly, so always be expecting it. Through the peephole you see two police officers. Take a few deep breaths to calm down if you're nervous, then realize that opening the door is a nonstarter, so you have absolutely nothing to worry about, and anything in your house is safe.
Everything will be ok, but you're in for a ride if your cops are typical. My encounter is definitely a worse-case situation, if you're lucky your cops will respect your polite requests, and leave you be.
Don't
- Scramble around to hide contraband in plain-sight before answering or speak rapidly in hushed tones.
- Pretend that you are not home. It works, but you have no closure and will wonder for a long time what they wanted. Don't hide from the Police; they are supposed to serve you.
- Immediately lock an unlocked door. This sets off alarms in the cops head. There is a time to lock the door if yours was stupidly left unlocked. Be patient.
- Open The Door. Am I making myself clear?
What To Do!
Do answer the knock as soon as you feel ready by saying: "Yes, can I help you?" To this the police will always ask you to open the door, because they do not want to talk to you through the door. They will confirm who you are and tell you they want to speak with you. By law, at least where I live, you are required to give a police officer your name and date of birth at minimum when requested.
Beyond telling you only that they want to talk, and asking you to open the door, the cops will not go any further into detail as to their purpose if the door is still closed. Police like to ask questions and give commands and they expect to get answers and compliance in return. Regardless of why they are there, as soon as you ask a question rather than complying with their demand to open the door, they will get uneasy, defensive and offensive. Expect this reaction. All they will now be thinking in their little pea-brains is "I wonder what he's hiding in there, I have to get inside!"
Stay in control, your only priority is to find out why they are there. The cops will seriously resist giving you any information, because all they want is for you to comply with their order. Cops do not give straight answers. They answer questions with questions. Often the question-answers are completely unrelated to the original question to side track you and trip you up. This is why you should never talk to a cop.
When you get arrested and charged, if you do not have a lawyer, they will provide you with a long list of all available criminal lawyers for you to choose one. No matter which one you choose, they will all give you the exact same advice, right off the bat: Don't say anything to the police. This lawyer doesn't know if you're guilty of anything or not, it's just best practice for any person dealing with the police.
Do not, at any time, engage in any conversation with the police as to why you won't open the door. You're only job is to find out why they are there. This is how the conversation will go...
Cops: Open the door. We need to have a conversation with you.
Me: What do you want to talk about?
Cops: Just open the door, we only want to talk.
Me: What is it you want to talk about?
Cops: We want to have a conversation, that's all. Please open your door.
Me: What do you want to have a conversation about? Why are you here?
Cops: We're here because we need to speak with you. Open the door now.
Me, frustrated: Pretend I did open the door just now, what is it you would say to me?
I decided after they refused to answer my direct question, that I was done speaking to them entirely. I said I was not going to have a conversation, I had nothing to say, was not going to open the door, and I asked them to leave.
They did not leave. For 20 minutes afterwards, they tried every trick known to police to get us to open the door while knocking/banging/kicking the door nonstop. They threatened my wife's job. They insulted me: "You're being an idiot!" "Why are you being stupid?!". They threatened to stay all night and/or come back every hour to bang on the door and disrupt our neighbors. When their standard approach didn't work, they even tried to reason with me: "All you neighbors are in the hall, why cant you come out?"(haha). I did not engage them at all after my previous statement.
Eventually I agreed to talk to the cops in the lobby, because I felt like they would persist for another hour or two and I was getting frustrated. They were calling me now from the lobby, calling me a dipshit and an asshole. Truth be told, they wore me down, but I'm not afraid to speak to the cops, I'm afraid to open my door. I eventually find out that there was a complaint from one of my neighbors that there was excessive traffic in and out of the unit and that the smell of marijuana was coming from my unit. Neither of these things are true at all.
If I had just discovered this information when the cops were at my door, rather than getting frustrated with their repetitive question strategy, I would not have had to have this frustrating, intimidating and threatening conversation which led to the same end result as would if I had questioned the cops properly outside my door.
Most likely they are investigating you, or your activities, or a complaint or tip against you, or a traffic incident you might have witnessed. If it is something totally unrelated, then play it by ear. You're not being evasive, you're the one trying to get to the point.
Once the cops tell you why they are there then you tell them for the first time that you have nothing to say, that you won't be letting them in and that you would like them to leave. It is very important you don't say anything else. Now is the time to lock the door now if you have to.
You must not discuss the reason for the cops visit with them at all. Any attempt to deny, justify or argue anything is completely useless. They're probably lying about the reason anyway. You do not want to give the police any reason to think they can goad you into a conversation.
The cops will try anything to get you to open the door now, its like a fire in their pants they can't put out. They would lie and swear on their mothers if they thought it would get them in the house, (where in their mind there is certainly contraband). You have addressed the purpose of their visit when you said you had nothing to say. This is chosing to remain silent. You've politely asked them to leave and they should, but will not immediately.
Like a toddler throwing a tantrum, eventually they will calm down and leave.
If they have not left soon after I would take the following steps.
1) Say to the cops "You have told me why you are here and I have told you I have nothing to say. If you refuse to leave me in peace I will be submitting a complaint of harassment to the (enter police complaints organization). Could I please have your badge numbers." You're announcing that just because you will not open your door does not mean you are guilty of something inside which will prohibit you from contacting the police later yourself to report their misconduct.
2) Call the cops. Tell them there are two people outside your door who want to speak with you that you have told you don't want to speak with and they won't go away. Tell them they are banging on your door and making threats(They will be). Don't let these cops in either if they come. This will make the first group of cops look stupid.
Eventually they will leave. To speed up their departure you need to make it clear through your simple instructions that you understand the process involved, and will not be pushed around, because you have channels to voice complaints publicly. Any other thing said to the cop will keep them there longer, because you give them the hope that they can get you engaged in a conversation to incriminate yourself.
Your only job now, is to sit patiently and wait for them to leave. Be entertained by their shenanigans, not angry. They don't know any better and probably are not that smart.
In my case, I made the mistake of speaking with the officers at all. I trust myself to not say anything, but I would not trust many people. It is not easy to speak to police because they are programed a certain way and are always on-duty. The only time a cop isnt a cop is at the cop bar or with his immediate family. My wife who I love very much would almost instantly fold when faced with their threats and this was confirmed a few nights ago. Cops are tricky and deceiving, they make threats and in the same breath ask you why you're defensive. During the conversation I had I was threatened with bullshit a 12 year old could see through, lied to, and sworn at. I decided on the way downstairs that I would be assertive and sarcastic, but not disrespectful or angry; this after being called a dipshit and an asshole. Good thing I was baked or I would have been furious!
---------------------------------
Cops: "I could submit a report right now that could get you instantly fired from your job for having drugs in your apartment."
Me: "I don't have drugs in my apartment, nor did I ever say that. I highly doubt that I could be fired officer, I haven't done anything wrong. Plus, do you know how hard it is to get someone fired from my union? - he did not laugh.
---------------------------------
Cops: "Look man, I don't want to go, and get a warrant, and do it that way...
Me: "You couldn't get a warrant, you have one anonymous complaint, and you said yourself you couldn't smell anything."
Cops: "I didn't say I was going to get a warrant, I just said I didn't want to have to."
Me: "Yeah, and I just said you couldn't get one even if you wanted."
--------------------------------
Male Cop: "Look man, I'm not here to arrest you."
Me: "Obviously, or we wouldn't be standing here talking."
Female Cop: (laughs)"That's for sure"
--------------------------------
What to do Afterwards!
Once the cops are gone for good, go on the attack if you feel its warranted. Do what I did and file an official complaint of harassment against them. You don't need to remember to get their badge numbers during the encounter, there will be a report available with that information through the freedom of information section, or records dept of any police station. Never be afraid of revenge from the Police for making a complaint, it is quite the opposite. Once you are flagged as someone who filed against the police service for misconduct, assuming you have no criminal record, you will be given the benefit of doubt; as opposed to being treated like a criminal who has yet to be caught. It's like street credibility, but the opposite.
I also emailed the Chief of Police and asked for a personal apology and their assurance that there would be no "report" sent to my employer. I stopped short of writing the newspapers, but this would also be available if you felt it necessary. I embelished my description of the events as much as possible in my complaints.....I know the cops would always do the same.
Doing these two things is like opening a social door after having refused to open the wooden one. In most democratic societies, there exists an official complaint process against the Police Force which is highly regulated and very official due to the inherrent issues with reporting. You can be sure that these complaints reach the officers involved.
Finally, if the reason you were given for the visit was related specifically to some activity going on in your home, your location is compromised and must be shut down immediately and discreetly for your safety. A cop with a tip who is shut down at the door might decide to supeana your power usage and combine the two bits of info; generally sufficient for a warrant. Do you know what is recquired to obtain a warrant in your jurisdiction?
You've made it through your encounter, the cops have gone and you realize nothing has changed. Now, ask yourself what could have happened if you opened the door?
Never Open the Door!
I had a knock at my door a few nights ago, and I knew right away I would not be opening my door. Like anyone would after a tense encounter with the Police, I have been playing the mental tape over and over, non-stop since it happened. I will be ready to record the conversation next time.
I realize now that I could have ended this encounter within two minutes if I had changed my own tactics, all without opening the door, but minus the harassment, threats and insults I received as a result of my poor preparation. The next time this happens I pity the officers on duty, because I won't play nice if they don't.
Never forget that this crucial first step is the most important thing you can do to protect yourself: Never Open the Door!. I'm here to tell you why and how!
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK! "Police! Open The Door!"
Why Keep the Door Closed?
There are a few reasons why you should keep your door closed if the police show up unannounced, whether you are breaking any laws inside or not.
1) It is your right. I suggest to everyone that they learn all of their rights, and then exercise them as often as possible with the cops. Believe me, the police will exercise every available option to get what they want from you; including, but not limited to: lying, intimidating, threats, and physical force. If you know your rights, you can fuck with the cops as much as they fuck with you, just differently.
"But I don't want to fuck with the cops! I have nothing on me or in the house. I think I'll just open the door and see what they want."
Bad choice, you don't even know what they want yet!
2) Security. Many people have had doors, once slightly opened, instantly kicked in their face shattering all of their front teeth; they'll show you the warrant afterwards. People have had their homes invaded many times by criminals imitating the police, nevermind that the police have their own criminal element.
"I'm not scared of all that! The cops where I live won't just storm my house if I open the door for them, they have to have a warrant!"
Or PC! Maybe your hometown cops aren't the LAPD, but it is a well known fact that all cops are liars...
3) Protection. If you open the door at all, even with the chain on, you give the police the opportunity to fabricate probable cause to enter your home. Probable Cause(PC) is 'a good enough reason to enter/search your home without a warrant'. The exact laws vary place to place, so this is absolutely something specific about your jurisdiction you should know. If the door is open, and the police really want to get in, the three most common PC's they will fabricate are that they smelled drugs, they saw something in plain-sight(all it takes is a zig-zag in some places), or they thought there was a crime in progress. Police are inherently dishonest. If you don't open the door, none of this can happen to you.
4) The final reason to keep your door closed is that you stay in control of the conversation, which we will learn is an important thing to bear in mind when talking to the Police.
How Will It Go Down?
You hear a knock at the door. You should not be surprised, because one of the preparations to make is a realization that the visit will always come unexpectedly, so always be expecting it. Through the peephole you see two police officers. Take a few deep breaths to calm down if you're nervous, then realize that opening the door is a nonstarter, so you have absolutely nothing to worry about, and anything in your house is safe.
Everything will be ok, but you're in for a ride if your cops are typical. My encounter is definitely a worse-case situation, if you're lucky your cops will respect your polite requests, and leave you be.
Don't
- Scramble around to hide contraband in plain-sight before answering or speak rapidly in hushed tones.
- Pretend that you are not home. It works, but you have no closure and will wonder for a long time what they wanted. Don't hide from the Police; they are supposed to serve you.
- Immediately lock an unlocked door. This sets off alarms in the cops head. There is a time to lock the door if yours was stupidly left unlocked. Be patient.
- Open The Door. Am I making myself clear?
What To Do!
Do answer the knock as soon as you feel ready by saying: "Yes, can I help you?" To this the police will always ask you to open the door, because they do not want to talk to you through the door. They will confirm who you are and tell you they want to speak with you. By law, at least where I live, you are required to give a police officer your name and date of birth at minimum when requested.
Beyond telling you only that they want to talk, and asking you to open the door, the cops will not go any further into detail as to their purpose if the door is still closed. Police like to ask questions and give commands and they expect to get answers and compliance in return. Regardless of why they are there, as soon as you ask a question rather than complying with their demand to open the door, they will get uneasy, defensive and offensive. Expect this reaction. All they will now be thinking in their little pea-brains is "I wonder what he's hiding in there, I have to get inside!"
Stay in control, your only priority is to find out why they are there. The cops will seriously resist giving you any information, because all they want is for you to comply with their order. Cops do not give straight answers. They answer questions with questions. Often the question-answers are completely unrelated to the original question to side track you and trip you up. This is why you should never talk to a cop.
When you get arrested and charged, if you do not have a lawyer, they will provide you with a long list of all available criminal lawyers for you to choose one. No matter which one you choose, they will all give you the exact same advice, right off the bat: Don't say anything to the police. This lawyer doesn't know if you're guilty of anything or not, it's just best practice for any person dealing with the police.
Do not, at any time, engage in any conversation with the police as to why you won't open the door. You're only job is to find out why they are there. This is how the conversation will go...
Cops: Open the door. We need to have a conversation with you.
Me: What do you want to talk about?
Cops: Just open the door, we only want to talk.
Me: What is it you want to talk about?
Cops: We want to have a conversation, that's all. Please open your door.
Me: What do you want to have a conversation about? Why are you here?
Cops: We're here because we need to speak with you. Open the door now.
Me, frustrated: Pretend I did open the door just now, what is it you would say to me?
I decided after they refused to answer my direct question, that I was done speaking to them entirely. I said I was not going to have a conversation, I had nothing to say, was not going to open the door, and I asked them to leave.
They did not leave. For 20 minutes afterwards, they tried every trick known to police to get us to open the door while knocking/banging/kicking the door nonstop. They threatened my wife's job. They insulted me: "You're being an idiot!" "Why are you being stupid?!". They threatened to stay all night and/or come back every hour to bang on the door and disrupt our neighbors. When their standard approach didn't work, they even tried to reason with me: "All you neighbors are in the hall, why cant you come out?"(haha). I did not engage them at all after my previous statement.
Eventually I agreed to talk to the cops in the lobby, because I felt like they would persist for another hour or two and I was getting frustrated. They were calling me now from the lobby, calling me a dipshit and an asshole. Truth be told, they wore me down, but I'm not afraid to speak to the cops, I'm afraid to open my door. I eventually find out that there was a complaint from one of my neighbors that there was excessive traffic in and out of the unit and that the smell of marijuana was coming from my unit. Neither of these things are true at all.
If I had just discovered this information when the cops were at my door, rather than getting frustrated with their repetitive question strategy, I would not have had to have this frustrating, intimidating and threatening conversation which led to the same end result as would if I had questioned the cops properly outside my door.
Most likely they are investigating you, or your activities, or a complaint or tip against you, or a traffic incident you might have witnessed. If it is something totally unrelated, then play it by ear. You're not being evasive, you're the one trying to get to the point.
Once the cops tell you why they are there then you tell them for the first time that you have nothing to say, that you won't be letting them in and that you would like them to leave. It is very important you don't say anything else. Now is the time to lock the door now if you have to.
You must not discuss the reason for the cops visit with them at all. Any attempt to deny, justify or argue anything is completely useless. They're probably lying about the reason anyway. You do not want to give the police any reason to think they can goad you into a conversation.
The cops will try anything to get you to open the door now, its like a fire in their pants they can't put out. They would lie and swear on their mothers if they thought it would get them in the house, (where in their mind there is certainly contraband). You have addressed the purpose of their visit when you said you had nothing to say. This is chosing to remain silent. You've politely asked them to leave and they should, but will not immediately.
Like a toddler throwing a tantrum, eventually they will calm down and leave.
If they have not left soon after I would take the following steps.
1) Say to the cops "You have told me why you are here and I have told you I have nothing to say. If you refuse to leave me in peace I will be submitting a complaint of harassment to the (enter police complaints organization). Could I please have your badge numbers." You're announcing that just because you will not open your door does not mean you are guilty of something inside which will prohibit you from contacting the police later yourself to report their misconduct.
2) Call the cops. Tell them there are two people outside your door who want to speak with you that you have told you don't want to speak with and they won't go away. Tell them they are banging on your door and making threats(They will be). Don't let these cops in either if they come. This will make the first group of cops look stupid.
Eventually they will leave. To speed up their departure you need to make it clear through your simple instructions that you understand the process involved, and will not be pushed around, because you have channels to voice complaints publicly. Any other thing said to the cop will keep them there longer, because you give them the hope that they can get you engaged in a conversation to incriminate yourself.
Your only job now, is to sit patiently and wait for them to leave. Be entertained by their shenanigans, not angry. They don't know any better and probably are not that smart.
In my case, I made the mistake of speaking with the officers at all. I trust myself to not say anything, but I would not trust many people. It is not easy to speak to police because they are programed a certain way and are always on-duty. The only time a cop isnt a cop is at the cop bar or with his immediate family. My wife who I love very much would almost instantly fold when faced with their threats and this was confirmed a few nights ago. Cops are tricky and deceiving, they make threats and in the same breath ask you why you're defensive. During the conversation I had I was threatened with bullshit a 12 year old could see through, lied to, and sworn at. I decided on the way downstairs that I would be assertive and sarcastic, but not disrespectful or angry; this after being called a dipshit and an asshole. Good thing I was baked or I would have been furious!
---------------------------------
Cops: "I could submit a report right now that could get you instantly fired from your job for having drugs in your apartment."
Me: "I don't have drugs in my apartment, nor did I ever say that. I highly doubt that I could be fired officer, I haven't done anything wrong. Plus, do you know how hard it is to get someone fired from my union? - he did not laugh.
---------------------------------
Cops: "Look man, I don't want to go, and get a warrant, and do it that way...
Me: "You couldn't get a warrant, you have one anonymous complaint, and you said yourself you couldn't smell anything."
Cops: "I didn't say I was going to get a warrant, I just said I didn't want to have to."
Me: "Yeah, and I just said you couldn't get one even if you wanted."
--------------------------------
Male Cop: "Look man, I'm not here to arrest you."
Me: "Obviously, or we wouldn't be standing here talking."
Female Cop: (laughs)"That's for sure"
--------------------------------
What to do Afterwards!
Once the cops are gone for good, go on the attack if you feel its warranted. Do what I did and file an official complaint of harassment against them. You don't need to remember to get their badge numbers during the encounter, there will be a report available with that information through the freedom of information section, or records dept of any police station. Never be afraid of revenge from the Police for making a complaint, it is quite the opposite. Once you are flagged as someone who filed against the police service for misconduct, assuming you have no criminal record, you will be given the benefit of doubt; as opposed to being treated like a criminal who has yet to be caught. It's like street credibility, but the opposite.
I also emailed the Chief of Police and asked for a personal apology and their assurance that there would be no "report" sent to my employer. I stopped short of writing the newspapers, but this would also be available if you felt it necessary. I embelished my description of the events as much as possible in my complaints.....I know the cops would always do the same.
Doing these two things is like opening a social door after having refused to open the wooden one. In most democratic societies, there exists an official complaint process against the Police Force which is highly regulated and very official due to the inherrent issues with reporting. You can be sure that these complaints reach the officers involved.
Finally, if the reason you were given for the visit was related specifically to some activity going on in your home, your location is compromised and must be shut down immediately and discreetly for your safety. A cop with a tip who is shut down at the door might decide to supeana your power usage and combine the two bits of info; generally sufficient for a warrant. Do you know what is recquired to obtain a warrant in your jurisdiction?
You've made it through your encounter, the cops have gone and you realize nothing has changed. Now, ask yourself what could have happened if you opened the door?
Never Open the Door!
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