Don't Be Afraid To Call The Police

[Calypso]

A lot of people are afraid to call the police, even if they see something suspicious, because they don't want to look like fools if they are wrong.

I have several friends who are police officers, though, who tell me they would much rather be summoned for an honest mistake than not summoned and then find that a crime had occurred.

So...if you think something is amiss, don't hesitate to dial the emergency number. You may save someone's property or even someone's life.

[vicki2]

Depends on where you live. Here, it is rural and if you phone 911, you get the State Police with sirens. There's a real hesitancy to phone in unless you're sure of something. Too bad too.

[tater03]

I don't hesitate if I feel that someone is in danger or that someone is not where they should be. I feel that that is what they are there for.

[vicki2]

Oh, I do too ...but depending on the town, there are some lazy officers too lol.

[Calypso]

I guess there are bad police officers everywhere, just like there are good ones everywhere. Although I agree you don't want lights and sirens screeching into your neighborhood for the least little thing, I still think it's important to call if there's a situation you're just not sure about.

For instance, I remember when I was in college, there was a young couple living in the flat above mine. One night I heard the guy screaming at his girlfriend and hitting her. I called the emergency number and the police came and arrested the guy--he was stupid enough to swing on a cop! Later, the woman thanked me. She said that in all the years this guy had been abusive to her, no one had ever called the police before. And luckily, the story has a "happy" ending in that he went to jail on a parole violation and she moved out of town hoping he wouldn't find her again when his prison sentence was over.

[vicki2]

I give up ...does everything relate back to abuse?

In that situation, of course you were right to phone in ...the instances I was talking about are not quite that obvious. I also think that it really depends on where you live. If it's an urban area and you know there are patrol cars, that's one thing. When you know it will take a half hour for police to get to you, you try and think quickly to see what you can do yourself.