And people wonder…

People wonder why I never trust the police…

Last Wednesday, I was walking to my bus stop (actually the 512 Park & Ride). I was very early in the morning (normally the Route 1 runs by my apartment, but I had to be at work so early that it wasn’t running). I’m walking on the sidewalk, minding my own business. This was a public highway. Ten minutes into my walk, a sheriff’s deputy pull up behind me and puts his lights on. Two deputies get out, one with his hand on his gun, and they ask me where I was going. When I told them where I was going, they said there was no service at that time. Bullshit. Route 574 runs from 2:30 in the morning northbound to 12:30 at night southbound. As I handed him my I.D., I asked why I was being stopped, and he said basically I was free to go. So I left. And I wasn’t even jaywalking.

Why was I stopped? Am I violating some unwritten curfew? Am I on double-secret probation because I live in Parkland? Or am I just beneath the protection of the law in general? It doesn’t really matter. According to the eyes of the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department, I’m a suspect. Even if they don’t have any evidence of a crime, I’m a suspect and I can be stopped at will. Even if I’m just a pedestrian trying to go to work. There has been a lot said in the media about cops killing unarmed suspects, and cops getting killed. I still say that violence is inherently evil, and I will not stoop to that level.

But the trust is gone. And it will never come back. I will no longer think twice about calling 911 if I’m a witness or a victim to a crime. I just won’t call. Period. Why should I? When I’m more afraid of the cops than I am of the crooks, it is pointless.

To protect and serve, my ass!