Police Officers Dishonor themselves

The Hoboken New York SWAT team was caught at a Hooters restaurant taking pictures with the waitresses and allowing them to pose with their weapons. Is this another instance of police officers acting above the law, regulators of the plebs? Is this akin to the aggressive behavior that has been attributed to a sharp increase in police brutality? Or is this just a groups of cops blowing off steam?

media.myfoxny.com...

Police SWAT officers allowing busty Hooters waitresses to hold their assault rifles and sub machine guns isn't significant? In a time where policing is performed with zero tolerance, this behavior is acceptable?

I don't get it how is this above the law? Police officers are people too, so what if they wanted to go to hooters? i would understand if they were on duty and they skipped out to go to hooters, but if they are off so what? And in terms of the weapons, im sure many of us have gone to a gunshow and held (taken pictures with) the guns; i highly doubt trained SWAT members would hand fully loaded weapons to the waitresses...

if i was a cop i'd use the badge to get some free poontang from hookers. i dont see anything wrong with the their doing. i would be a cop like one from that movie superbad

I don't see an Issue with it either. So what, Good lookin Gals showing a hard working SWAT team a good time. Those men and women put their lives on the line everyday for people like you and I. In picture shown, the guns are empty, no Magazines. Good for them I say, I'd buy them a round if I was there!
(and want my picture taken too)

I think these officers had to have taken these firearms to the Hooter's with the intent to take pictures with the girls. There are too many weapons there, and too many officers there for it to just be 'happenstance' that these pictures were taken.

I don't care if some of you feel that it is 'okay' for these officers to allow civilians to pose with government owned firerms in sexual provocative poses and outfits becuase they 'work hard, and need to blow off steam'. That is asinine. If SWAT officers are not on a SWAT mission, these weapons should be under lock and key at the station. You and I are not legally allowed to carry assault rifles, and if these officers are off duty, then they are at that time 'civilians' and should not be allowed to possess assault weapons either. These weapons are specific 'tools' for a specific 'job', and that job has nothing to do with orange short shorts and hot wings.

I do feel that this behavior may be a symptom of the aggressive/egotistical behavior of police officers that results in Police Brutality. There was a time in this country, not long ago, that SWAT police officers took their job too seriously to pull a stunt like this. They understood that only in times of great danger would they even need the SWAT gear and weaponry.

Unfortunately, I am not sure how we as a society can curb the actions of overzealous and egotistical police officers that believe they are the law, instead of officers of the law...
DocMoreau

[edit on 18/12/2007 by DocMoreau]

You and I are not legally allowed to carry assault rifles, and if these officers are off duty, then they are at that time 'civilians' and should not be allowed to possess assault weapons either.

In my current jurisdiction and the several different ones I have worked in, this is not true...

A Cop is a Officer of the Law 24 hours a day and 7 days a week and 365 days a year and must be armed and physically fit enough to respond to an incident no matter where they are or what they are doing. (This is paraphrased from a General Orders Manual of my old department)

In many jurisdictions, if an officer does NOT respond to an incident, on or OFF duty, they can be held responsible and even civilly liable. That is a FACT.

It is also a FACT that the same ones that want us to lock up our weapons, are the very ones that will CRY huge crocodile tears and blame the officer for not responding, even off duty, if one of their loved ones gets hurt when the officer is around and off duty....

As a SWAT officer and SWAT Sniper, I am required to have ALL of my weapons in my near vicinity at all times.... If I choose to go drinking, I have to give 48 hours notice and I must be clear of all the effects in a 24 hour period... Hardly seems worth it huh?

I am not condoning the Hooters incident, in fact if they were my officers, they would have some 'splainin' to do. But there is no need for erroneous information put out as fact to support a point...

Semper

Originally posted by semperfortis

You and I are not legally allowed to carry assault rifles, and if these officers are off duty, then they are at that time 'civilians' and should not be allowed to possess assault weapons either.

As a SWAT officer and SWAT Sniper, I am required to have ALL of my weapons in my near vicinity at all times.... If I choose to go drinking, I have to give 48 hours notice and I must be clear of all the effects in a 24 hour period... Hardly seems worth it huh?

Semper,
Thanks for the clarification. I wasn't trying to be misleading.
I was trying to imply something similar to what you are stating about the 48 hour rule.
Cops + Guns + Girls + Alcohol = Bad Image

I am not a police officer, so I am not completely versed in your firearm protocols. Looks to me like these guys were partying, and cracked out the guns and gear to impress cocktail waitresses. Do you personally think that this only justifies some 'splaining'? Or are you just being casual, and these officers deserve something more like 'termination without benefits'? Or at least a unpaid suspension?

What about the fact that the Hooter's girls are not SWAT, they are civilians? Even without magazines, are those not tactical assault rifles? Still seems like a very slippery slope. Letting cocktail waitress wear your SWAT gear and hold your guns. Maybe I could get away with brandishing an assault weapon, if I wear orange spandex shorts and flirt with cops. Then again, me in orange spandex probably isn't as 'sexy'...

When I was young, before my father passed, he taught me how to shoot and respect firearms. One of the most important lessons he taught me was 'to treat all guns as if they are loaded', 'because there can accidentally be a round in the chamber at any time'. He was right, correct? Guns are not toys... Especially not 'sex toys'.

This is my rifle, this is my GUN!
DocMoreau

Originally posted by DocMoreau
You and I are not legally allowed to carry assault rifles....

I am.

If you aren't, you need to contact your legislators, join a Second Amendment group and become politically active.

There's nothing out of line here. There may be department policies in question, but other than that, I don't see that this is anyone else's business.

Ok, So do we have any more information other than just this picture? If not, Where are you getting that they were drinking? were they tested?

Secondly, I'm pretty sure that hooters is a "Family" establishment, not a strip club. And also, whos to say that the females were not unsupervised during the handeling of said weapons? or that they had no prior firearm training themselves.

My father was a CHP officer for 30 years, for as long as I can remember I was around firearms, and was tout proper handeling and saftey. It wasnt at all uncommon for me to go to the range during training sessions, and "shoot with the guys (and gals)".

If these officers were in Fact intoxicated, then yes, it was not at all a smart thing to do, they should be punished in one form or another. However, from the picture posted, there no proof of this, and from what i can see, saftey came first. Like I stated befor, no Magazines, And no fingers on the trigger, Not a single pair of hooters alone with a weapon, all being watched carefully.

If you have more info, please post it!

Why did the SWAT team bring their weapons into hooters? I don't believe there was a SWAT related call not with the pic presented. Hummmm any one else who walked into Hooters with an assault weapon would be meeting these guy out in the parking lot, end up hand cuffed or shot. This gives law enforcement a bad name. Shame on the cops in the photo, very unprofessional.