Police chasing after doughnuts — am I stuck in one of Uncle Larry’s jokes? No, not this time: Someone stole a van full of doughnuts and led police on a merry chase for it through Portland, OR, before cops were able to apprehend the suspect and make him drop a pilfered pastry he was apparently munching on during the pursuit. No doughnut left behind. [More]
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Police Officers Finish Delivering Order After Pizza Hut Driver Is Injured In Car Crash
By 9.23.14
It’s the joke that must be made — Portland Police not only protect, but they serve… pizza. Because after a Pizza Hut delivery driver was injured in a car crash, the cops made a special effort to ensure that his customers didn’t go hungry, and delivered up the pizza in his stead. [More]
The Police Can’t Order You To Stop Filming Them In Public, Or Force You To Delete Pics From Phone
By 8.14.14
A good deal of the footage coming out Ferguson, Missouri, this week has been provided by non-journalists, using their phones to record and photograph events. At the same time, reports claim that police are attempting to block both ordinary citizens and journalists from documenting the situation. What these officers either don’t know or aren’t saying is that you have the legal right to photograph the police, even when they tell you not to. [More]
Police Somehow Not Fooled By $100K Maserati Painted Like A Cop Car
By 8.12.14
Cop car paint colors? Check. Some sort of shield with some sort of saying on the side? Done. K-9 and 9-1-1 decals in appropriate spots? Got’em. Yet somehow, police in Massachusetts realized that a Maserati isn’t likely to be a real cop car. Because hello, $100,000 (give or take a few thousand) sports car, you’ve clearly got better things to do than impersonating a police cruiser. [More]
Seattle City Attorney: Anyone Who’s Gotten A Ticket For Marijuana Should Fight It
By 8.11.14
After the Seattle Police Department announced at the end of July that a police officer had been reassigned and was under investigation for issuing 88% of the city’s marijuana citations, the city attorney is telling anyone who got a ticket to contest it. [More]
Using Your Phone As A GPS Is Awesome Until You Get A Distracted Driving Ticket
By 8.7.14
Smartphone GPS apps are extremely useful tools for people who want real-time traffic information and/or you don’t want to drag around a separate GPS unit. Yet motorists should be careful: even if they’re just choosing a different route or reporting a construction zone, they can get in serious trouble for simply holding a phone in their hands. [More]
Seattle Police Officer Reassigned After Review Finds He Wrote 80% Of City’s Marijuana Tickets
By 7.31.14
While marijuana has been legal in Washington state since the beginning of this year, it’s not like the streets are filled with people lighting up bongs and toking on pipes. Because if you do, you’re going to get a ticket for public marijuana use. That being said, the Seattle Police Department says one officer has been reassigned after apparently going a bit ticket-happy and issuing about 80% of the city’s pot citations so far this year. [More]
Guy Arrested For Allegedly Stealing Beer Says He’s “Wrongfully Accused” Of Ordering 5 Pizzas From Jail
By 7.17.14
A man accused of boosting beer and being drunk in public somehow found himself in more trouble after he was booked at the police station, with officers claiming he used his cell phone to order a pizza delivery under the name of his arresting officer. [More]
Driver Sues Police For Making Her Remove Bumper Sticker, Violating Her Constitutional Rights
By 7.1.14
It’s nothing new for drivers to poke fun at the police, but two Indianapolis police officers weren’t in a joking mood when they pulled over a driver with a bumper sticker reading “unmarked police car” taped in her back window and made her remove it. She’s now suing, claiming her First Amendment rights to free speech were violated. [More]
Police Must Now Have A Warrant To Search Your Phone
By 6.25.14
The Supreme Court today put an end to years of contentious debate over whether or not police can search the phones of people they arrest without first getting a warrant, ruling unanimously that law enforcement must always have a warrant before they can do the search. [More]
Police Use Pinterest To Get Victims’ Stolen Stuff Back To Them
By 5.5.14
If you’re a police department and want to reunite people with their stolen property, you need to get pictures of recovered items in front of the public. What’s the best way to do that? Social media, of course. By posting albums on Facebook and Pinterest, departments can get pictures of recovered items in front of a maximum number of eyeballs, increasing the odds that someone will recognize a piece. [More]
“I Just Won $50,000” Is A Pretty Good Way To Talk Yourself Out Of A Speeding Ticket
By 2.28.14
“I’ve got to deliver this encryption key to super secret government operatives before aliens blow up the world” and “Seriously, I’m on my way to save puppies from a burning pet store” are pretty good excuses, but the truth worked great for one man caught speeding — he’d just won $50,000 in the lottery. [More]
Supreme Court To Decide If Cops Can Search Phones Without A Warrant
By 1.17.14
The U.S. Supreme Court announced today that it will hear two cases that involve the ability of law enforcement officials to search arrestees’ phones without a warrant, an issue that has divided multiple lower courts around the country. [More]
Police Tag Pink Barbie Jeep Blocking The Driveway As “Abandoned Vehicle”
By 10.8.13
Listen, you think just because your car is teeny tiny, pink and splashed with a famous name like “Barbie” makes you immune from police attention? Oh no, not even little girls are above the long arm of the law. Utah cops wanted to make sure Barbie and her cohorts didn’t get away with abandoning a vehicle in the street where it was blocking a driveway, and left a ticket on the wee set of wheels. [More]
Best Buy Shoppers And Employees Save 9-Year-Old Girl From Violent Attacker
By 8.27.13
It isn’t just every parent’s nightmare: it’s the nightmare of every human being with a functioning soul. Police in Florida say that a stranger attacked a 9-year-old girl in the ladies’ rest room of a Best Buy store on Friday night while her mother was paying for her purchases. Another customer heard her screams, and witnesses say that employees and other bystanders rushed in to save the child. [More]
Seattle Police Ran Out Of Hempfest Giveaway Doritos In 10 Minutes
By 8.19.13
Maybe it was all of the publicity. Figuring that people ignore flyers and throw them away, but that visitors to Hempfest might pay attention to containers of snack foods, the Seattle Police Department had the idea to distribute mini bags of Doritos with a stickers outlining the basics of current marijuana laws in Washington state. It was a great PR move, and successful: they ran out in ten minutes. [Twitter] [More]
Burglary Victim Finds Suspected Thief’s Phone, Calls His Mom To Tell On Him
By 7.10.13
Calling the police is a natural reaction when your car has been ransacked and your stuff has been stolen, sure. But if the suspected thief happens to leave behind his cell phone? Don’t call him and try to yell at him for what he’s done — just dial up his mother and get him in a whole lotta trouble, like one Seattle woman did recently. [More]
ACLU Files Suit To Stop Police From Searching Cell Phones Without Warrant
By 3.20.13 — Updated: 1.17.14
A decade ago, searching someone’s cell phone would give you a list of names and numbers, maybe some recent texts. But now, the average smartphone could contain as much personal and sensitive information as a desktop computer, yet many law enforcement agencies argue they don’t need a warrant to search these devices. That’s why the American Civil Liberties Union has filed suit against the city of San Francisco and its chief of police. [More]
