I can't comment on that ball cap thing. I got dinged by the gorilla the last time I tried to describe our term for it. It's not complimentary.

what county are you in I live in ca and would like to know where this is happening at I would also like to obtain my ccw but in ca we'll you know this is California.

I retired in '06 and my dept. Had been into the tactical look for awhile. I still wore the standard uniform and a real leather sam browne. Even as a detective all the young ones wanted to dress like bums.

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Support your Police, & NRA

And that is the way it should be. We, the police, took an oath to enforce, the law and protect the citizens of our city.

I remember in 1981-1982 an active shooter in a large office building, first responders refused, or were ordered not to enter building until they knew how many shooters there were and their specific location. In the mean time people were being shot.

I don't expect any officer to do something stupid and Sacrifice their life. I do expect them to remember police work is more than attitude and looking Tac-cool, It's about doing the job you took an oath to do.

This is an awesome thread. I am not a police officer, nor have I ever been. I am middle aged, and come from a time where police officers were people you looked up to. As children, we were told a police officer was someone you went to for help. Today, society tries their best to convince us police officers are bad.

I still, at my age, look at police officers as folks you go to for help. I can forgive the guy who gave me a speeding ticket 15 years ago because he was doing his job and I was driving too fast. It's as simple as that. I wasn't going to shout or whine or complain.

Thank you all for what you have done, continue to do, and will do to keep us safe.

The profession has changed, the nature of crime has changed, budgets are under pressure and the breadth of situations coppers find themselves in all drive the uniform and the equipment in a specific direction. Most of it into a very utilitarian, bland, low cost, low maintenance mode.

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Existimo ergo sum armis

I retired from my PD in '08.
It has remained a pretty squared-away place. Yes, there are 'special unit' uniforms, as would be expected for Mounted, Bicycle, K9, SEU (Selective Enforcement Unit, our 'SWAT). But by and large, still a very competitive, high-order department.

Can recall several very intensive training blocks in the weeks following Columbine. Every department in our state adopted the same general guidelines for 'active shooter' response.
The first 3 units to arrive make entry and go to the gunfire. Period. It may be a melange of LE types, perhaps a Trooper,a Deputy and PD unit, uniform or Detective. Doesn't matter. They go.

Felt a little ego boost when the Training Center Sergeant during a training segment for this pointed me out (an 'older' Detective at the time) in a room full of 30 or so young guns and said "Maybe if you're lucky, somebody like H. there will show up as one of your first three".

I had a little bit of a reputation as a shooter.

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Ret'd LEO
SWCA #2275

Was your nickname "Harry"?

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Existimo ergo sum armis

Its been 22 months since I posted on this still active thread, and I have to say, now that I have seen some of the new people in my old agency, my old supervisors would have been apoplectic.

We used to get dressed down for being out of the car w/o our hats, these people don't bear any resemblence to the idea of what a cop should look like.

Not just the sloppy "leisure" uniforms, I have nothing against wash & wear, these guys & gals don't even show a badge, those ball caps look like security guards in the supermarket, polo shirts, cargo pants, sneakers - but the worst is those damn cell phones.

How can you aware of your surroundings gabbing on a cell phone? Not to mention, try flagging them down - forget it!

Appearance has definitely taken a big hit, but the attitudes are not what we were taught is the proper demeanor to show the public. Its not too easy to find a cop that you respect these days (but they are still there, usually backing the other idiots up when they get jammed).

Rant off, I guess this is what old does to you.

This question leads to...When did nurses quit looking like nurses?

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Memory of Randy Freas-Rimfired

As a thirty one year veteran of the Chicago Police Department, I say thank you for posting this picture and embarrassing me. All kidding aside, I agree with you and the sentiments of this thread. These cops look like slobs IMHO. I detest those baseball hats and the black covered vests even though they do provide extra pockets. I like the old style crown hats and vest covers that match your shirt. The flip side of that is that when we asked these kids to go up against the Black Bloc idiots this Sunday at NATO, they did an OUTSTANDING job and handed them their butts so maybe we/I should lighten up on appearance. I dunno. BTW, the Chicago coppers are not Rahms or 9 1/2 detail as we call him here in Chicago, they are regular beat cops at an outdoor roll call.

Thank you very much. And believe me, we appreciate people like you also.