Thread: The Police in Russia, USA, Europe..

Originally Posted by Johanna

No worries Whiplack, you clearly meant to say "I don't know about the REST of the US" but you accidentally missed the little word "rest". I thought you were Canadian or Australian. But no harm done and it's interesting to "meet" someone who comes from the real heart of the USA. Omaha is just such a funky name for a city. I don't care one bit for Hollywood, Disneyland or the statue of Liberty, but I'd quite like to see the "real" USA, cities such as yours or Rockzmoms. My location also looks "mysterious" at the moment. I put EU but I am Swedish temporarily living in London (UK).

Thank you for being so understanding. I believe Omaha is named after the Omaha tribe that settled in north-east Nebraska/north-west Iowa who still reside their on a Native American Reservation. Ever since I have learned that, I've wanted to learn the Omaha language. Omaha is a good city, especially for looking into the past. Our only problems are our crime, and that our city is in debt. Once we get over those two problems we will be set.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2H37rWn1TU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AKl5f8JSqsw

Originally Posted by Eugene-p

There are various types of police (милиция btw) here in Russia.
1. Criminal police
2. Road police

3. OMON (Russian S.W.A.T. + Anti-riot team) - they will hit you with their batons first and only then ask for documents People call their batons 'Демократизатор' (democratizer).

I have a lot of contact with the police (I'm a clerk - in between schooling right now).

Sometimes, the police in the US are not so good:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHjpOsGYxMo

It depends on the person, the department, the city, probably even down to the precinct and such. Every level. It simply depends.

Some cities are notorious for unethical policing, generally larger cities (Chicago, LA, NYC).

But every police department has a few wackos and dirty cops for every ten ethical ones.

The system in the US, though, is, on the whole, not as flowery as people would have you believe - sure, it may be that cop culture in the US is more ethically minded than in other parts of the world, but it has many shortcomings.

I was talking about this with my girlfriend today, as a matter of fact. There are cops on my "beat," in the neighborhood I work in, who turn a blind eye to things depending on whether they feel like dealing with them. They will disproportionately go after the easier targets, such as junkies, ignoring bigger criminal blights on the neighborhood. Others will turn a blind eye to "vigilante" justice if it suits their purpose. Others lazily enforce the law. But still some of them are truly hardworking and concerned about the state of the neighborhood and the people in it.

Here is a general picture of the types of cop I see every day in Tucson at the convenience store I work at:

1. Cops in squad cars - regular beat cops, the "grunts"
2. Cops on bicycles - they have somewhat of an inferiority complex. They are truly the meanest of the cops I've met.
3. Cops on motorcycles - generally only handle traffic-related offenses; they wear those weird horse-riding boots
4. Foot patrol - not actually "on foot," they generally sit around in highly populated areas in these weird little golf carts
5. K-9 Cops - Cops who have specially trained dogs with them, and wear special patches showing their detail, generally wearing olive-drab cammies
6. Detectives - I generally see people from homicide; they dress in white shirts and khakis, generally, wearing a gun and a badge.
7. Undercover cops - Technically they are "undercover," mostly narcotics divisions, but a couple of them have shown me their badge in confidence on account of wanting to use the restroom
8. Cops from neighboring cities - occasionally cops will come down to Tucson on warrants, to pick up fugitives or people wanted in connection to an unsolved crime.
9. Border patrol - a different kind of cop, usually looking for illegal immigrants and drug traffickers

The cops in the City of South Tucson (an adjoining city) are notoriously crooked...my friend's cousin was a dope dealer, had his drugs stripped of him by South Tucson police. And typically, you would be arrested (possession with intent to distribute is a SERIOUS crime) but these cops let him go, absconded with his crack/cocaine, and allegedly later sold it themselves, or else used it. There have been so many horror stories involving the cops down there ... one of the latest involved a cop who drank an entire "handle" of tequila in his patrol car, and was actually pulled over for drunk driving by another cop. Needless to say he was fired.

I guess this is what you would call the "Wild West."

Well, people, Russian police (милиция) isn't so bad (I mean regular guys, who are dealing with criminals every day) considering the enviroment they are working in. A couple of years ago some thieves broke a window in my car and I needed to get a paper from the police to get the insurance. I called the police. Then two guys arrived. They were very polite, did their job very carefully, although there were no witnesses around, they even asked the people from nearby apartment buildings, wich windows were facing the "crime scene" . It was 4 am, poor people who were woke up by door bell and asked stupid questions if they saw how some thugs broke into the car from their window (they even asked people from the high floors) . A couple of days later I went to the police station to get the paper for insurance company. Militia captain, who wrote me the paper was also very polite, but while I waited at the station during all the formalities were processing, I was shocked by the contingent of people policemen dealing with. Drug addicts, alcoholics, street robbers - the station was full of them . I rarely meet such personalities in everyday life and these poor guys from the militia are dealing with them everyday, brrr . But they (the policemen of course) were still very polite and pleasant to me. Of course I had also some unpleasant experiense with Russian police (a couple of cases when I was brought to the police station for drinking vodka in public places in my student years, and bribing the road police), but in whole I think our police (militia) isn't so awful and scary how it's usually shown in media.

Funny video (Russian police dealing with a hooligan, who is resisting arrest):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3g2DR-m9Gc

Another funny video about Russian police:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUYp9tt_8qs

Russian policemen are corrupted and cruel. Believe me, I know that pretty well, my father was a policeman and I was put on probation.

Haha Eugene-p, that second video was hilarious!

I don't understand Russian all that well but i think he was saying "nope, i'm not getting out" and then when the officer asked for his documents, "nope, i'm not giving them." then rolled up the window on him haha.

Originally Posted by Ramil

3. OMON (Russian S.W.A.T. + Anti-riot team) - they will hit you with their batons first and only then ask for documents People call their batons 'Демократизатор' (democratizer).

Bart: Can I hold your club?
Officer Lou: It's not a club it's a baton!
Bart: What do you use it for?
Officer Lou: We club people with it. ...

One way in which the police in the US are different than in most other countries (maybe all other countries???) is the way that they are divided into many different independent levels and jurisdictions.

At the "highest" level is the FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigations). They are highest only in the sense that they cover the whole country. Most people will rarely if ever have anything to do with the FBI because they only deal with "federal" crimes, which are usually things that cross state borders. FBI police are referred to as "agents."

State police cover each state individually. They handle traffic on the large highways and many of the more serious criminal investigations. State police are referred to as "troopers."

Each state is divided into counties, and each county has its own police force, known as the sheriff's department, headed by a sheriff. They handle many parks, airports, jails, and land which is not part of a city. County police are referred to as "deputies."

Cities have their own police force, headed by a police chief. They handle most of the crimes and some emergencies that take place within a city. If you live in a city, these are the police that you are most likely to see. They are the people you call if you see a crime or have some other non-medical emergency. These police are referred to as "officers."

The real strength of this system is that it is immune to wholesale corruption. While any particular part of it could be corrupted by some wealthy criminals, the various parts are all separate. Thus a criminal group who has paid off the city police could still be caught by state or federal police.

There are some other police agencies as well (BATF, DEA, alcohol regulating agencies in various states, game wardens, etc.) but the are relatively less important.

Hmm, I've never thought of it this way but yes, this system appears to be pretty well defended against a 'wholesale' corruption (but nothing prevents a county sheriff to 'organize his private business' somewhere). Still it's a rather good system. I wonder whether it would work in Russia. The authority of the federal government is *VERY* strong for local officials. A governor can simply depose an inconvenient chief of police and assign a 'reasonable man' to this post. As long as the chief of police depends on the local government it wouldn't work, I'm afraid

Originally Posted by Ramil

I wonder whether it would work in Russia.

There should be at least one reliable, reasonably fair system people could actually appeal to. The US depends on the courts. Russia on the federal executive power. As a result, whoever is closer to that power he has the right. Anything else doesn't matter in practice.

I unfortunately have not yet been to Russia and have no experience over there - and my total time in Europe was less than a month so I can only draw inaccurate outlines of the Fraternal Orders in W. Europe - and I couldn't even speak for all of the US (моя родная страна), but in the state of Arizona where I live there is enough corruption to write a book about. Шериф моего графства - очень развращенного человека по имени Джо Арпэйо. Они не берут маленькие взятки. Вместо этого они собирают плату от различных организаций. Они позволяют ограниченные свободы мексиканской организации "coyotes," но только некоторые в группе, не всех. Арпэйо выиграл выборы неоднократно, но люди фактически не голосуют за него. Много подозреваемых, что он обманывает систему голосования. Кроме того, его чиновники останавливают автомобили в движении, не из-за подозрения в преступлении, но главным образом из-за появления. Этнические меньшинства, люди, которые, кажется, бедные, люди от недорогого соседства - автомобили этих людей, которых они останавливают только. Шериф - от итальянской семьи, и имеет связи с мафиозо, корни, которые отбегают к старым семьям преступления Ист-Коста. Шериф борется против групп, которые защищают права граждан меньшинства. Он изобрел тюрьму, которая хуже чем нормальная Аризонская тюрьма; эту тюрьму называют "Городом Палатки." Его ненавидят многие в Аризоне, и он боится возмездия. Когда он уезжает домой, он транспортируется в пуленепробиваемом автомобиле. People in my city do not get pulled over or harassed by cops if they donate to the police force (look up Arizona-born actor David Spade who recently bought automatic rifles for the entire force), or drive an expensive car (which is common but I am not so rich ).

Sorry for the ramble and bad Russian - please correct the stuffing out of me, if you like.
I think because of the systems in place, there is not so much corruption in very small sizes (like individual briberies) or in very large (country-sized) sizes; but there is a lot, from what I have seen and heard here, on the state level. Здесь полицейские всегда приносят больше вреда, чем пользы людям. Мужчины улицы не телефонируют полиции - 'street cats don't call no cops.'

@ Trzeci_Wymiar - Tucson? Are you from AZ too? Maybe you can back me up on some of this, idk about you but I've seen everything you listed except the 'hardworking and honest' cop.... (Send one of those over to Phx please)

Originally Posted by kidkboom

Шериф моего [s:28f51sgn]графства[/s:28f51sgn] округа - очень развращенный человек_ по имени Джо Арпэйо. Они не берут маленькие взятки. Вместо этого они собирают плату [s:28f51sgn]от[/s:28f51sgn] с различных организаций. Они [s:28f51sgn]позволяют ограниченные свободы[/s:28f51sgn] I didn't get this мексиканской организации "coyotes," но только некоторым в группе, не всем. Арпэйо выигрывал выборы неоднократно, [s:28f51sgn]но[/s:28f51sgn] хотя люди [s:28f51sgn]фактически[/s:28f51sgn] на самом деле не голосуют за него. Многие подозревают, что он [s:28f51sgn]обманывает систему голосования[/s:28f51sgn] фальсифицирует / подтасовывает результаты голосования. Кроме того, его чиновники останавливают автомобили [s:28f51sgn]в движении, не из-за подозрения в преступлении, но главным образом из-за появления. Этнические меньшинства, люди, которые, кажется, бедные, люди от недорогого соседства - автомобили этих людей, которых они останавливают только[/s:28f51sgn] I didn't get this. Шериф - [s:28f51sgn]от[/s:28f51sgn] из итальянской семьи_ и имеет связи с мафиози [s:28f51sgn], корни, которые отбегают к старым семьям преступления Ист-Коста[/s:28f51sgn] и старыми преступными семейными кланами на Восточном побережье. Шериф борется против групп, которые защищают права [s:28f51sgn]граждан меньшинства[/s:28f51sgn] (национальных меньшинств?). Он [s:28f51sgn]изобрел[/s:28f51sgn] завел/учредил тюрьму, которая хуже, чем [s:28f51sgn]нормальная[/s:28f51sgn] обычная аризонская тюрьма (better: хуже обычной тюрьмы в Аризоне); эту тюрьму называют "Городом Палатки." Его ненавидят многие в Аризоне, и он боится возмездия. Когда он уезжает домой, он [s:28f51sgn]транспортируется[/s:28f51sgn] едет в пуленепробиваемом автомобиле.

Здесь полицейские всегда приносят людям больше вреда, чем пользы _ . [s:28f51sgn]Мужчины улицы не телефонируют полиции[/s:28f51sgn] Люди на улице не звонят в полицию - 'street cats don't call no cops.'

Originally Posted by kidkboom

Шериф моего графства - очень развращенный человек по имени Джо Арпэйо. Его люди не берут маленькие взятки. Вместо этого они собирают плату с различных организаций. Они могут арестовать людей из мексиканской организации "coyotes," хотя и не всех, а только некоторых из них. Арпэйо выигрывал выборы неоднократно, но люди на самом деле не голосуют за него. Есть много подозрений, что он обманывает систему голосования. Кроме того, его подчиненные останавливают автомобили на дороге, не из-за подозрения в преступлении, а просто так. В основном останавливают машины людей, которые принадлежат к этническим меньшинствам или выглядят бедно или едут из бедных соседних городов. Сам шериф из итальянской семьи, и имеет связи с мафиозо, корни которых уходят к старым преступным семьям (кланам) восточного побережья. Шериф борется против организаций, которые защищают права меньшинств. Он построил тюрьму, которая хуже чем любая нормальная Аризонская тюрьма; эту тюрьму называют "Городом Палатки." Его ненавидят многие в Аризоне, и он боится возмездия. Когда он едет домой, он едет в пуленепробиваемом автомобиле.

Thanks Оля and CC...

'графства / округа' Оля, I meant to say "county," particularly "Maricopa County." I think I might've missed a subtlety betwixt the two words..

Sorry for the messy Russian. I'm very much still learning. Your corrections are so helpful to me, though, I can't even put it into words - I'll be studying this paragraph for another couple hours.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2H37rWn1TU
Чувака приговорили условно. Блин. Сажать надо было!!!
http://www.pavlovoportal.ru/forum/index ... t&p=165104

Originally Posted by Eugene-p

Сажать надо было!!!

За что? Я бы тоже в рыло дал если бы какой-то имбецил снимал меня на камеру.

I don't understand what's happening but everyone in the video sounds friendly and nice. What's the problem?

Yesterday I saw 8 policemen standing over a man who was laying on the floor at an Underground (metro) station, just by the ticket barrier. He was shouting really loud for them to get off him, but they actually STEPPED right on his hands to hurt him on purpose..!

Me and some other women asked they police why they were being so violent, and why so many of them were surrounding just one, normal-looking man: They said that we didn't understand the situation and that there was "more going on than what we could see."

The man was a regular English guy with normal clothes and a briefcase! Hardly a terrorist or dangerous criminal!

It was really creepy and I had a strong feeling that the man had just tried to enter the underground without paying, or been rude to the underground staff, or the police...

Originally Posted by Eugene-p

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2H37rWn1TU
Чувака приговорили условно. Блин. Сажать надо было!!!
http://www.pavlovoportal.ru/forum/index ... t&p=165104

Я тут скорее на стороне гайцов. Толпа молодых оболтусов ведёт себя достаточно провокационно. У мента просто сдали нервы.