Got Handcuffed Vaping My GLV

[Trev1138]

I had the same kinda thing happen on Saturday in Boone NC. But very differently. Had my roughstack hanging around my neck, grabbing a puff every now and then. Cop approached and told me "sir I'm gonna need you to have a seat on this wall" (there was a low stone wall there) and demanded to see my ID. I told him I dont support tge furor and he needed to explain what the problem was before he got all "deine papieren bitte" on me. He informed me that he doesn't like people openly smoking pot in his town. I explained what a PV was and was happily on my way. This guy definitely did think my pv was paraphanalia, and in a roundabout way I called him a Nazi. But he was polite, maybe a bit condescending, but polite. No physical force was used WHATSOEVER. This is how your incident should have gone, if it had to happen. Talk to the precinct.


Sent from my HTC Thunderbolt

 

[Tripster]

File a complaint, it'll go deeper than you think and maybe...just maybe the department might start educating other leos within the department about Personal Vaporizers. I have taken it on my own behalf to educate the leos/businesses in this area about Personal Vaporizers so situations like this won't happen to law abiding citizens who prefer these over analogs. I gave the security at a casino last night a brief 15 minute lesson on Personal Vaporizers and told them to check out ECF for facts/pictures and what have you (I did however respected that the security official stated that even though its just water vapor, there is absolutely no use of any tobacco products/personal vaporizers within the tobacco free areas...I had no right to argue with him about that).

Very sorry to hear you got shaken up a lil bit but never ever back down from a fight, always stand your ground and remember these leos are here because of you and therefore your word/voice needs to be heard by the higher ranked officials within the department.

Choose your battles wisely and know when to walk away, understand there are limits and if you push those limits, you are going to get defeated.

 

[dspin]

This is exactly right. All the naysayers, I wonder if they have been cuffed and hassled before. This is no way to treat the public. By the way, the public pays their wages also. I wouldn't want to spend 5 min. in cuffs let alone 15 min. On top of that, not even being allowed to explain myself. Very poor people skills on the part of the Rookie or whatever he was. Every dept. has some of those and they should be taken to task. Sorry folks you don't leave things like this alone.

The "dangerous" and "threatened" behavior you describe is a direct result of cops that do whatever they please with no concern for the consequences.

Failing to report the hostile conduct will only perpetuate it. You don't have to be a jerk about it, just report the police officer's over-reaction and the embarrassment it caused you and your wife.

Sadly, this "don't start any trouble" mentality is a significant factor in the increasingly bad behavior of America's public servants from the local LEOs to elected municipal, state, and federal officials.

 

[Scottitude]

And you will never have their respect.
You must have had PLENTY of run ins with the police. Most people haven't and don't feel the need to make a big deal out of things like this. Do what you want. However when you get older, you tend to see things in more of a mature way....

Not sure who that "PLENTY of run-ins with the police" is directed at but it's not wise (or very mature) to make broad assumptions about others' experiences.

The suggestion that standing up for our civil rights is "making a big deal" out of nothing flies against the very principles upon which America was built.

 

[dspin]

This is exactly right and it is very immature to make broad assumptions. For whoever cares, my occupation is Police Dispatcher so I'm not talking out my -------------ss

Not sure who that "PLENTY of run-ins with the police" directed at but it's not wise (or very immature) to make broad assumptions about others' experiences.

The suggestion that standing up for our civil rights is "making a big deal" out of nothing flies against the very principles upon which America was built.

 

[FreakyStylie]

I'll just toss in one more statement because it seems to fit.

"Ignorance of the law is no excuse."

This phrase is used by the legal system, and should also be followed by them also. If somebody detained and made a public spectacle of me, they would be dealing with a lawsuit . . . apology or not. They can't take away the very public and false accusation . . . and who knows who might have seen the incident, or what type of label it could put in their minds about me . . . maybe my boss's cousin saw, and there goes my promotion based on "oh yeah, I saw that guy getting arrested in the park . . .", all because the officer doesn't know the law completely.

 

[Dalton63841]

I just happened to see this thread and thought I would post my experience. I live in a VERY small town(population of maybe 1500). I was pulled over while walking a few weeks ago with my Provari. The officer never even got out of his vehicle. You could tell he was smart enough to know I wouldn't use "drug stuff" with a cop coming down the road. He asked me what the device I was using was. I spent a minute explaining PV's and e-liquid, what they are, how they work... Well apparently he took that information back to the department, and now the only time I get stopped is when an officer wants to know how well they work because they are interested in getting one.

 

[Seabrook]

oops, sorry, wrong thread.

 

[player30]

With all due respect for the various opinions, the cop did nothing wrong if he thought you were doing something illegal. If I were putting my life on the line everyday (which most NYC cops do), I would protect my life plus others lives by cuffing someone before I asked questions. They NEVER know when a gun may be pulled. Without a doubt there are over-zealous cops and cops with bad motives, but this cop didn't use excessive force. And he did not have the luxury of deciding if you would be cooperative or pull a gun on him.

 

[AlmightyGod]

With all due respect for the various opinions, the cop did nothing wrong if he thought you were doing something illegal. If I were putting my life on the line everyday (which most NYC cops do), I would protect my life plus others lives by cuffing someone before I asked questions. They NEVER know when a gun may be pulled. Without a doubt there are over-zealous cops and cops with bad motives, but this cop didn't use excessive force. And he did not have the luxury of deciding if you would be cooperative or pull a gun on him.

Using this line of reasoning, we should all be cuffed and stuffed when pulled over for speeding, or jaywalking, or any other non-violent infraction. I've spent my entire life around policemen...relatives, work environment, and socially. I wouldn't hesitate to file a report on a police officer for conduct which didn't truly fit the situation.

 

[dspin]

Agreed and agreed again

Using this line of reasoning, we should all be cuffed and stuffed when pulled over for speeding, or jaywalking, or any other non-violent infraction. I've spent my entire life around policemen...relatives, work environment, and socially. I wouldn't hesitate to file a report on a police officer for conduct which didn't truly fit the situation.

 

[Shaitaan]

....being my father is a retired officer from a city here in NY, I've heard tons of stories about this type of thing over the years... in this state, the officer has every right to detain you if he/she thinks you have paraphenalia in your possession, whether they saw it, or someone else on the street saw you and made a complaint, that is called 'probable cause'. yes that's all they need to put you in cuffs 'for their's and your safety' so they can search you... either example above though could have happened... and yes, 'going overboard' is still no excuse... at least there was an apology in this case, and mention of filing a complaint. I would've done so anyways, even if it was used to 'educate' our so-called-protectors what PV's are and what vaping is...

you have to remember peeps, what we do is still unknown to a majority of the public...that includes our local authorities. of course it can be misconstrued thinking we are smoking illegal substances with our sometimes funkey looking PV's...with the drug problem across our nation not letting up much, and there's a constant war going on to deal with it, sometimes you really can't blame the police for doing their job the way they do...some areas for drug enforcement are worse than others...at least I can sleep at night thinking there are officers out there trying to stop the illegal substances from getting into the hands of our children...

 

[AlmightyGod]

^^^^Politically Correct Apologist BS^^^^

 

[strprswpr]

You need to relax, it happened to me and you more ...... than I was.

 

[bmwjen]

I would have filed a report immediately. There was no reason to be cuffed.

 

[demon72]

I was in a Boardwalk Amusement Park last night with my wife. We go every once in a while just to walk around and relax. New laws in NY don't allow smoking cigarettes in NY Parks. I saw lots of people smoking....not that I care. I still love the smell of a cigarette. Well there we are just walking around and enjoying ourselves when all of a sudden I get grabbed from behind and forced up against a wall.....It's a cop and he tell me to spread my legs and he starts to frisk me. I tried to turn around and he got forceful and told me not to resist as he pulled my arms around and cuffed me. I asked him what the *#ck was happening and he didn't answer. PS....he finds my GLV in my pocket and asks me "What's This". Like he thinks he knows what it is. Tells me it's paraphernalia. I tell him what it is and he just ignores me. Now a crowd starts to gather and more cops show up. To make a long story short....15 minutes in cuffs and then I was cut loose after finally getting the chance to explain what it was. The supervisor showed up and apologized and I was on my way. Now I'm debating on whether or not I wanna file a complaint against the department. Would that even go anywhere??? My wife was very upset.

No way man....his behavior is unexcusable... especially because he was a young cop.... you are a man walking with your wife on the boardwalk... not an 18 year old boy hangin with three friends. The idea that he would stop and question you is perfectly legitimate.... especially since a GLV resembles an old school sneak a toke from a distance. Its not what he did but how he did it.

The young cops are full of little testosterone filled power trips and need to learn proper respect for civilians that pay their checks... I am sure there are plenty circumstances that his behavior was appropriate, but it sounds to me like yours was NOT one of those.... I dont know if I would file a formal complaint.... that would depend on whether I thought that he was properly chastised and informed as to the proper protocol in dealing with such a situation, when it was just him, his seargent or whatever and myself in the room. If I felt like he got the point and would make a batter choice in the future, then I would not file a formal complaint.... if he acted as a cocksure little pissant, then absolutely I would.

 

[strprswpr]

I understand, but I can't help think about all the BS that these guys deal with in these parks.....Full of little wisely wannabe gangsta kids. I'm not a kid or a gangsta at all.....but if you saw the punks that run around this area you might feel differently. It's over, he apologized.......I'm a big boy....I'm not gonna agonize over whether or not I handled it the right way. #*it happens sometimes....I guess. Don't be disillusioned, I am no pushover....I just think I've matured enough to know what battles to fight. This one was not one of them. It's just the nature of the beast.

 

[demon72]

I understand, but I can't help think about all the BS that these guys deal with in these parks.....Full of little wisely wannabe gangsta kids. I'm not a kid or a gangsta at all.....but if you saw the punks that run around this area you might feel differently. It's over, he apologized.......I'm a big boy....I'm not gonna agonize over whether or not I handled it the right way. #*it happens sometimes....I guess. Don't be disillusioned, I am no pushover....I just think I've matured enough to know what battles to fight. This one was not one of them. It's just the nature of the beast.

I agree with you on choosing your battles... I just think this might be a good oportunity to open that officers eyes and teach him some proper manners in a way that, depending on him, might not get him in any formal trouble.

Ya never know.... the next guy that he does something similar to might not be so nice about it and may file and push a formal complaint, causing the officer his job or something... In the long run you might be doing him a favor by schooling him early in the proper way to handle a given situation.

 

[birdbrains]

Yikes I vape in nyc a ton. Is boardwalk park coney island? Never heard of it.

 

[VpnDrgn]

Dude, I have to vote the other way. They let you go, they apologized, they probally wont hassle the next guy they see vaping your gear.
You go after them you will piss them off. Be prepared to get every ticket known to man. Get pulled over constantly. Possibly worse. These are cops, they are very dangerous when they feel threatened.

No offense, but it is this kind of attitude that has allowed the problem of police over stepping the rules of conduct
to get as bad as it is.

Yes, police have a very difficult and dangerous job to do. But, it seems like the only people wanting to become police
are the ones that already have a bit of a "bully" or "power trip" kind of personality.

The OP said he was grabbed from behind and pushed against a wall. Even if it wasn't rough or violent, if someone
grabbed me like that they would have got a very quick lesson in un-armed combat courtesy of Uncle Sam.
I probably would have ended up in jail for assaulting an officer when all I was doing was defending
myself from an unknown assailant.

Think of it this way, if a cop pulled you over for a traffic stop and pulled you out of your car, put you over the hood
and started frisking you without saying a word to you; would you complain then?