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Bill's story about the security guard reminded me that just 3 days ago I had a brief run-in with 2 cops. In my case, the encounter was not prompted by the fact that I have long hair; but I'm sure that once i stepped out of my truck (as they had instructed me to do), that they probably couldn't help but notice I'm a longhair. Anyway, here's my experience...
I decided to take a nap in my truck, due to the fact that I had just worked a 10-hour day, and I have a 40-minute commute to get back home across the SF Bay Bridge. I've always been told the advise of NOT driving when you're really tired; but to pull over to the side of the road for a nap, first. So, that's exactly what I did. I chose a remote spot in a Safeway parking lot, not far from some quiet private homes.
I woke up when I heard some noises of car doors slamming, followed by a flashlight beaming through my passenger-side window. I sat up. after which boomed a policeman's vice, "Step out of the truck, sir!"
I did exactly as instructed, followed by a very cooperative & friendly, "Sure, no problem!"
"We need to see your driver's liscence."
Again, I indicated no problem with my total cooperation.
At this point I couldn't help but notice that one of the 2 cops was EASILY 6 feet 4 inches tall... and both VERY "built"!! They also both had crew cuts. The tone of their interrogation started off a little accusatory, at first; but I chose to ignore the tone, and simply aswered their questions as straight-forwardly as possible. Once they checked out my driver's license, they brought over 2 women who were standing near one of the homes.
"So, you don't know either of these 2 women?"
"No, sir, I don't."
Then one of the cops turned to one of the women, asking, "And this is not the guy you have the restraining order on?"
She answered in the negative also; but said that I have a truck that looked just like his. By this time the cops had totally lightened up, and were even joking with me a bit. I then found out that it was the women who reported my vehicle as suspicious of some stalker guy that was an ex-boyfriend of one of these women. I almost joked about the fact that I'm a gay guy; but decided it would be best not to push my luck (lol)!!
Anyway, although I didn't appreciate being treated as, "guilty until proven innocent", I also felt it was wise to realize that a cop's job is hard enough as it is, --- and that my cooperation with them was my best 'ticket' to being let go without incident.
The topic of my long hair never came up during this experience, --- although as I said before, I'm sure it was pretty noticeable. All the more reason, in my opinion, to help police realize that longhairs don't have to fit into the rebelious, cop-hating stereotype.
- Ken in San Francisco
Being "physically built" helps one be a cop, guard, or bouncer, just like being "mentally built" helps one be an attorney. The illegality of it aside, because of their being "built", tangling with cops is a fight most average guys will lose.
The storm-trooper demeanor not only gets compliance from most people, but also if they can make you nervous you'll drop some shields and perhaps subtly or openly reveal facts you had hoped to hide. Nervous people tend to revert to the accent of their youth, for example, a matter which customs officers exploit by being nasty. If you really have nothing to hide, of course, you'll be relatively relaxed through it all, and this can rapidly exonerate you of suspicion. This is what you did, and what I did with the security guard yesterday. I did not feel threatened about it at all. It was just weird.
One of the advantages of looking unique is you match a lot less suspects. There are very few guys wandering around this town with long hair and a white beard as long as mine.
Yeah, providing minimal information is best. Chatting them up without telling them anything with substance to it is wise.
Sometimes officers will ask questions without substance, and the questions may seem weird, like when the guard asked me if I was from out of town. In this case they are likely to be summing up your demeanor more than seeking an answer to the question.
I was stopped by the border patrol on a lonely highway in New Mexico once. The guy asked me and my passenger, also a longhair, where we were headed for the night. We really had not decided that, and that was NOT what he wanted to hear. He was very irritated that we did not give him an answer. I then said, "Somewhere over in Arizona, I a reckon," and he immediately lightened up and let us go. Maybe Mexicans don't use the expression, "I a reckon."
Yeah, for all he knows, you might be the one guy he fears, the one who will blow his shorthaired head off. Besides, cops are public property. We are paying for them. Making their lives easiest is wise, since burning them out and then having to replace them is expensive.
If you ever watch the TV show "Cops", you'll see that cops have a lot of encounters with longhairs. Whether they get good at sizing longhairs up or not, they do get a lot of practice. ;-)
Bill
ah Ken,I see you handled the situation very well.good job!! :)
I would sleep in a rest area or something... if you park too close to a private home some people get uncomfortable for some reason. I hate sleeping in cars though unless its the SF bay area... cause in Texas the heat and mosquito kills me. Might actually be better to go to a public library and pretend you're studying (find a THICK book on chemistry or whatever) and open the book and fall asleep. People will think you fell asleep studying a big boring chemistry book.
Avoid places like shopping malls because people always get nervious when you sleep there. With all this BS with terrorism you never know what could happen, best to avoid law enforcement officers by not looking suspicious.
You could pass for a professor...