Why are officers allowed to take their weapons home?

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primalclaws1974

Well-Known Member
I do not understand why police do not have turn over their badge and gun at the end of their shift. Showing a badge and waving a gun around continues to give the officer power and authority even while off the clock. Off-duty police also arrest people. How can this be right? Are they not a civilian when they're not being paid? How many police in this country have committed crimes with their guns while off duty? I realize that the number of American police that abuse the badge and weapon while off the clock is small, but there are enough that it has made national news several times
 
You are right in a way, but when you look at it in details, it is good and bad to let the police officers go home with their guns, the bad thing is they get to threaten civilians, not all but the ones who really like to show off, but at the same time, if you are in trouble and you have called 911, maybe it is taking long to respond, and a cop happens to be passing by, with that gun and badge on him or her, thay might be able to save your life.
 
Determined2014 said:
You are right in a way, but when you look at it in details, it is good and bad to let the police officers go home with their guns, the bad thing is they get to threaten civilians, not all but the ones who really like to show off, but at the same time, if you are in trouble and you have called 911, maybe it is taking long to respond, and a cop happens to be passing by, with that gun and badge on him or her, thay might be able to save your life.
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I see your point. I was looking at it as a negative. I am sure that officers are "always on duty" in a sense. They wouldn't be able to shut it down. They wouldn't be very effective without a gun and badge if the time came to act, even when off-duty.
 
primalclaws1974 said:
I do not understand why police do not have turn over their badge and gun at the end of their shift. Showing a badge and waving a gun around continues to give the officer power and authority even while off the clock. Off-duty police also arrest people. How can this be right? Are they not a civilian when they're not being paid? How many police in this country have committed crimes with their guns while off duty? I realize that the number of American police that abuse the badge and weapon while off the clock is small, but there are enough that it has made national news several times
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I feel the same way too about cops taking home his or her equipment. I think it is because the police departments want the officers to be safe while going back home. Its a dangerous job and I heard that a New Jersey police station got shot up a while back. This could also be the same reason why the cops are allowed to take the guns home.
 
Yes so it also works for us in a way when they are on duty 24 hours, they can surely save us with their badge and weapon while off duty.
 
I don't think it happens too often, like you see in the movies and TV, but I suppose a criminal could be gunning for a particular policeperson. If an officer had a family, they would be an even easier target. If he didn't have his weapon, they would be defenseless. On the other hand, he could also have his own weapons, and not police issue.
 
This really is a dual question... Personally, I don't think that they should have to turn over their badge at the end of the day but I do feel that their gun should stay at work. It's just too risky for them to be toting it around with them all of the time. Not that they'd use it unwittingly but it's still a risk. Police officers are under a lot of stress and if they ever snap... That's like I also don't understand why they take their canine home at the end of the day. Shouldn't he live at the station?
 
Officers can be called at any time and they are technically still on duty. It never hurts to be prepared in the case of an emergency. Of course, it the cop is not responsible then I think they should return the gun.
 
I always thought that whenever a police officer went home for the day, they were done for the day. I didn't know that they were always "on call." I guess I learn something new everyday LOL Nevertheless, I think that it's a lot of responsibility to be a police officer and that they should be required to have a mental health check occasionally. I think that would help a great deal, not only for public safety but also for their own sake as well.
 
CyberGal said:
This really is a dual question... Personally, I don't think that they should have to turn over their badge at the end of the day but I do feel that their gun should stay at work. It's just too risky for them to be toting it around with them all of the time.
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So how's this different from you or I having a concealed carry permit that allows us to go into McDonalds and munch on our Big Mac with a gun in our Vera Bradley or waistband? Why would police officers have to be less protected than the rest of us?

Maybe I misunderstood the original question because to have an officer leave their gun at the station while I can take mine to WalMart in my handbag... well, that's not really a good idea.
 
Kate said:
So how's this different from you or I having a concealed carry permit that allows us to go into McDonalds and munch on our Big Mac with a gun in our Vera Bradley or waistband? Why would police officers have to be less protected than the rest of us?

Maybe I misunderstood the original question because to have an officer leave their gun at the station while I can take mine to WalMart in my handbag... well, that's not really a good idea.
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I do see your point there but I guess maybe it's all in my thinking that I personally don't believe that anyone should have a concealed carrying permit. I'm sorry if you want to bash me for that but I hope you won't since we are all welcome to our own personal opinions/beliefs. Now you at least know why I think/feel the way that I do on this subject.
 
CyberGal said:
I do see your point there but I guess maybe it's all in my thinking that I personally don't believe that anyone should have a concealed carrying permit. I'm sorry if you want to bash me for that but I hope you won't since we are all welcome to our own personal opinions/beliefs. Now you at least know why I think/feel the way that I do on this subject.
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Oh my, I sure hope no one would bash you here for stating your opinion. I'm certain that wouldn't be tolerated. Yep, you've stated your views clearly. Actually what I'd do personally (I'd never carry a gun, for instance) and what I feel is necessary in today's society are two different animals.

My way of thinking... if someone like the dude I saw smacking his kids around & cussing and threatening customers at a store last summer for DARING to give him dirty looks for what he was doing can legally be carrying a weapon on him, I *sure* hope there's an officer in the same store with his or her weapon. I wouldn't have thought that way 15 or 20 years ago, but things are so very different now, sadly, and it has become a necessity.
 
As far as I know only marshals and detectives carry concealed weapons. Uniformed police have their weapons within sight, strapped to their belt. The sad truth is, we have police for a reason. In a perfect world an officer could turn his weapon over at the end of the shift and go home happy and content that he and his family are safe. I know I started this thread as a skeptic, but after reading the comments here and thinking about it over the last several days, it probably is in the best interest of the officer and the people around him to carry his gun all the time. Certainly, a few probably abuse the right to carry off-duty, but when do we not have at least one bad apple in a bunch?
 
I get what you are saying completely. Abuse of power is huge and its a scary horrid thing. The thing is however that police with ethics will always stop something bad from happening. In order to do this they need to assert authority and be safe also. I mean why do doctors not stop bring doctors. Or accountants not stop being accountants.
 
I see the point and I do believe that they should not be given the weapons to take their home. I do believe it is important that one understands how bad it can turn out if something goes wrong .
 
Kate said:
Oh my, I sure hope no one would bash you here for stating your opinion. I'm certain that wouldn't be tolerated. Yep, you've stated your views clearly. Actually what I'd do personally (I'd never carry a gun, for instance) and what I feel is necessary in today's society are two different animals.

My way of thinking... if someone like the dude I saw smacking his kids around & cussing and threatening customers at a store last summer for DARING to give him dirty looks for what he was doing can legally be carrying a weapon on him, I *sure* hope there's an officer in the same store with his or her weapon. I wouldn't have thought that way 15 or 20 years ago, but things are so very different now, sadly, and it has become a necessity.
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That very same officer would end up saving lives even while off duty. The angry citizen would not know what hit him.
 
I know what you're trying to say, but they're police officers. They are public servants, not just regular employees. If there's something going around in the neighborhood or in your house, and the cop is off-duty, but you couldn't contact 911 or the headquarters, who would you turn to, right? Of course, your neighbor who's a cop. Would you like it if he/she says to you, "Sorry, I can't help you. I'm off-duty."
 
dyanmarie25 said:
I know what you're trying to say, but they're police officers. They are public servants, not just regular employees. If there's something going around in the neighborhood or in your house, and the cop is off-duty, but you couldn't contact 911 or the headquarters, who would you turn to, right? Of course, your neighbor who's a cop. Would you like it if he/she says to you, "Sorry, I can't help you. I'm off-duty."
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I agree with you! This is the best response one can give. A cop should always have a gun on him, even when he's off-duty.
You never know what could happen.
 
I think many people who have never encountered law enforcement officials in a non-official capacity don't understand that the job is 24/7, and that they are required to respond, whether or not they are technically on the clock. In addition to the reasons stated above, police can be targets, and it wouldn't be safe for them to be unarmed. I certainly wouldn't want an officer and/or his/her family to be endangered because someone recognized him/her and the officer was unarmed. In a perfect world, not only wouldn't police need to be armed whether officially on or off the clock, but they wouldn't need to exist. We certainly don't live in a perfect world, and it seems to be getting more violent by the day. There are always going to be a few bad officers who will create difficulty for the good ones, and tarnish the reputation of their agencies and the law enforcement community as a whole, but I feel much safer knowing that the good ones exist, and will put their lives on the line for me and others. I like when I see stories about police participating in events with youth and others in the community, in a social capacity, because it helps to counteract negative stereotypes.
 
First of all, they are licensed to own one anyway so I personally don't see any problem with that. It is up to their integrity if they use for all the wrong reasons.
 
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