Ask a detective/undercover cop

Thaluikhain

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Jan 16, 2010
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GenericAmerican said:
How would you feel if say, something/someone like Inquisitors from W40k existed?

If you don't know anything about 40k, it's basically an Investigator who is sanctioned by the government. He is encouraged to work within local laws but has the authority to conduct his investigation in whatever way he feels best, and is allowed access to whatever local or government resources he feels necessary.
Er, since when are Inquisitors encouraged to act within local laws? Some might do that, but they are under no obligation whatsoever to adhere to anyone's rules but their own. They are totally beyond the law.

In context, they are forever using extreme measures because of the extreme circumstances. If they aren't resorting to mass murder, they don't really fit the bill (on the other hand, unless LA is overrun by aliens or daemons, it doesn't work either).
 

Heronblade

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Apr 12, 2011
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Dags90 said:
Restriction enzymes (used in DNA fingerprinting) only cut at double stranded DNA. This is why they're almost always palindromic, both strands have the same sequence. Also, gametes don't contain homologous chromosomes, but their DNA is still double stranded.

Here's the most common restriction enzyme used in texts, EcoRI:


All nucleated cells contain all the genetic material, at least. A kidney tubule (or cheek swab) cell has all the DNA required to become a brain cell. The difference is only in the expressed genes. They're there, just not doing anything.
...

Upon review, I've come to the conclusion that I need to go and get a refund for this bloody Biology textbook of mine, which still says almost exactly what I did, and possibly for the related courses I took. This is the second time I found I have been fed questionable information.
 

ace_of_something

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Sep 19, 2008
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trollpwner said:
I have to say this has been a very informative and interesting thread. However, I do wonder: you do frequently refer to an "us and them" mentality between the police and the public. What do you think causes this and what do you think would help fix it?

CAPTCHA: Come clean.

Oh wow. Interesting timing much?
*deep breath*

I'm trying to think of the most concise way to say what causes the us v. them thought process but it isn't easy to explain.

Day in day out as an officer your every move is scrutinized by your partner, superior, the mayor whatever one screw up your career is over, one mistake and the whole world calls for your blood. Now more than ever with this new trend of people video taping half an officer encounter and cutting out the parts that tell the whole story. Then there's the knowing that if you screw up. People's lives can be shattered. People's treasured possessions lost for ever. People could die. The pressure is not for the faint of heart.

Then you get a call about say, a gang shooting, you go there, you have 20 witnesses but no one saw anything... you think "why won't they help us don't they know what's at stake?"

Right there you've entered part of the process that separates you from the public. I believe the best way to stop this is something called 'community' policing (i'm a huge, vocal, activist for it in our dept) Essentially it means listening to the community and eventually they won't see you as the enemy either.

Me and a couple other guys some years ago spearheaded a survey for some of the most crime ridden neighborhoods to see what people were most concerned about we got something like 9,000 responses. This neighborhood was one with a body count. Sons and daughters going to jail every day. The number #1 concern of this neighborhood by a wide margin more than half the people that responded said this was their big concern...

What do you think it was?

We thought for sure i'd be drug deals, muggings, gang warfare but no.... it was Stray dogs and dogs without leashes.

Once we focused on that particular problem the people in that area we never got calls from before were reporting crimes. They felt listened to and the door was open...

this sort of thing is the key to solving the problem.
 

ace_of_something

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Dags90 said:
ace_of_something said:
They are usually only called if there is a biohazard mess. Two of the companies my dept uses are family owned and have about 3 employees each. This is all a town of 500,000 really needs.
Unless there were more gory murders...Just sayin'...

Does your squad car have one of those fancy laptops? Also, are you a union member?
As a detective I know longer drive a 'squad car' I drive one of the unmarked cars. My station has about 12 of them they're all ugly as sin by typically under the hood they are unreasonably good and souped up. All of them are as of 6 months ago equipped with a touch screen in console computer. The squad cars still have the laptops.

I'm a union REP unions are essential for law enforcement. Guess how many times I've been sued? (never once lost btw) 3 times! I've had stuff that hasn't made it past a grand jury like 10 times as well. Usually it involves use of force. I'm what is called a 'lawsuit rod' because I'm a tall and big. Officers who are larger tend to get accused of being rough more often cuz people perceive everything you do as more 'powerful'. When a 5'10" takes a cracked out woman to the ground to handcuff her 'he did what he had to' if a 6'6" guy does it he's 'being a bully he could've done something else'
Thankfully I'm part of the union who will pay for my attorney otherwise most cops would be broke. That and they fight for making the work conditions bearable. Without union involvement the dangerous often times thankless job of being an officer would have even more people quitting in the first 2 years than it already does.
 

5-0

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Apr 6, 2010
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Are you familiar with the show The Wire? What are your thoughts? I hear it often praised for its realism, since it was written by a police reporter with assistance from a former homicide cop.
Great thread by the way!