Muddyshoes
New member
So you're a cop in this upscale town... it's getting dark, and you pull into an abandoned post office parking lot to fill out some paperwork. You sit in your cruiser, and off to the side, you see some nervous, ragtag, dirt-laden person approaching your vehicle...a quick assessment indicates a long polelike object in one hand, and what appears to be a large bone of some kind in the other hand. He's not a zombie, you're pretty sure. Do you:
A. Unhook the shotgun?
B. Get out of the vehicle quick and draw down on him?
C. Call for backup and drop this dirtbag with three shots to the center mass?
D. Roll down the window and see what this good Samaritan wants?
Conversely...
So you're a metal detectorist in this upscale town... it's getting dark. You've been hitting this one area pretty good with several dollars in clad and numerous pennies. You just found a spill hole with several quarters after moving a buried stick aside...and then you realize it isn't a stick. After cleaning it off a bit, you realize it's the joint end of a large bone. You see a cop about 100 yards away stopped at an abandoned post office parking lot. You really think he should see this but you're a bit wary of approaching his cruiser with a metal detector in one hand and a bone in the other. But being the good Samaritan, you do just that.
Being the metal detectorist in this scenario, obviously, I slowly closed the gap between the hole and his vehicle, and pondered the best way to approach. I figured hiding my digging tools would only arouse suspicion, so I left them open and visible. I pondered whether to wrap the bone in the towel I was carrying which I kneel down on while digging, but figured that would show I was hiding something he might interpret as a weapon. I decided to just hold the bone open-handed inside the towel, clearly visible to him and smiled as I approached his vehicle slowly. Fortunately, in the first scenario above, this officer chose choice D, although with extreme caution and I understood that.
"Excuse me Sergeant.. (I always call officers by rank when possible as it conveys respect and they take you a little more seriously when you do so.) I was metal detecting here and I found this bone and just wanted to report it,." I said. I offered to him and he nervously exclaimed, "NO, DON'T GIVE IT TO ME, I DON'T WANT IT.." He asked, astutely, how I was able to find a bone with a metal detector and I told him that there were coins around it and that I thought it was just a root or a stick.. until I cleaned it off.
He exited the vehicle and interviewed me for a few minutes and examined the bone after which, he called his supervisor to the scene. I stood calmly and non-threatengly. I still had my large digging tool and pro pointer on my belt, out and visible. When the supervisor arrived, he asked some additional questions and after determining I wasn't a crazy person, I led them to the hole and explained what I had found. The supervisor then called the crime scene investigation unit who, when they arrived, took the bone, examined it and decided to cordon off about a 30 foot radius from the hole where I found it. The original officer then took a full statement from me and said I'd be notified if they had any further questions. I was tired after a long day, it was after dark, I was hungry and my Jeep was on the far side of this park. I walked past the area where the crime scene people were and waved. They thanked me and continued to peer into the hole with gloves on and with flashlights... I had done my duty.
This was several weeks ago and have not heard anything back. As for Mrs. Magilicutty, it probably wasn't her legbone, but it was an interesting choice for the subject line of this missive, wouldn't you say?
- Muddyshoes
A. Unhook the shotgun?
B. Get out of the vehicle quick and draw down on him?
C. Call for backup and drop this dirtbag with three shots to the center mass?
D. Roll down the window and see what this good Samaritan wants?
Conversely...
So you're a metal detectorist in this upscale town... it's getting dark. You've been hitting this one area pretty good with several dollars in clad and numerous pennies. You just found a spill hole with several quarters after moving a buried stick aside...and then you realize it isn't a stick. After cleaning it off a bit, you realize it's the joint end of a large bone. You see a cop about 100 yards away stopped at an abandoned post office parking lot. You really think he should see this but you're a bit wary of approaching his cruiser with a metal detector in one hand and a bone in the other. But being the good Samaritan, you do just that.
Being the metal detectorist in this scenario, obviously, I slowly closed the gap between the hole and his vehicle, and pondered the best way to approach. I figured hiding my digging tools would only arouse suspicion, so I left them open and visible. I pondered whether to wrap the bone in the towel I was carrying which I kneel down on while digging, but figured that would show I was hiding something he might interpret as a weapon. I decided to just hold the bone open-handed inside the towel, clearly visible to him and smiled as I approached his vehicle slowly. Fortunately, in the first scenario above, this officer chose choice D, although with extreme caution and I understood that.
"Excuse me Sergeant.. (I always call officers by rank when possible as it conveys respect and they take you a little more seriously when you do so.) I was metal detecting here and I found this bone and just wanted to report it,." I said. I offered to him and he nervously exclaimed, "NO, DON'T GIVE IT TO ME, I DON'T WANT IT.." He asked, astutely, how I was able to find a bone with a metal detector and I told him that there were coins around it and that I thought it was just a root or a stick.. until I cleaned it off.
He exited the vehicle and interviewed me for a few minutes and examined the bone after which, he called his supervisor to the scene. I stood calmly and non-threatengly. I still had my large digging tool and pro pointer on my belt, out and visible. When the supervisor arrived, he asked some additional questions and after determining I wasn't a crazy person, I led them to the hole and explained what I had found. The supervisor then called the crime scene investigation unit who, when they arrived, took the bone, examined it and decided to cordon off about a 30 foot radius from the hole where I found it. The original officer then took a full statement from me and said I'd be notified if they had any further questions. I was tired after a long day, it was after dark, I was hungry and my Jeep was on the far side of this park. I walked past the area where the crime scene people were and waved. They thanked me and continued to peer into the hole with gloves on and with flashlights... I had done my duty.
This was several weeks ago and have not heard anything back. As for Mrs. Magilicutty, it probably wasn't her legbone, but it was an interesting choice for the subject line of this missive, wouldn't you say?
- Muddyshoes
