“I was stopped, arrested, or jailed for no reason.” How often is this actually true?

[Anonymous]

Almost never, there’s always a reason.

Happens sometimes

Happens frequently

[MotorcycleMan]

It happens sometimes.
I've been pulled over a couple times in cases of mistaken identity. One, my car matched the description of an armed robber, but fortunately while I was pulled over they caught the guy.
Another time I didn't actually get pulled over. I had been at a bike shop for about 30 minutes waiting for UPS to bring some parts. I walked out to my bike for something and as I walked away a police officer came screaming in and told me to stop where I was. He accused me of speeding past him and evading arrest. I told him I'd been here for 30 minutes waiting on UPS for parts. He touched my exhaust pipe and it burned his hand (I'd been on the freeway for an hour before that). If he was angry before, he was seriously pissed off now. He turned around and asked an employee if he knew who's bike that was, pointing at mine. Unfortunately he asked the most smartass mechanic who replied "I don't know, tow it". The officer spins around to me pulling his cuffs out and says "You want tell me another story?" I said "Sure" and walked inside to the parts counter and asked "How long have I been here?" and they replied "He's been here about half an hour. He's waiting for parts from UPS" We then watched the officer act like a complete ass, still pissed off for the next 10-15 minutes before he left.
The thing is, I completely understand where the officer was coming from. He thought it was me. I was just fortunate enough to have someone there to collaborate my story. If not for the parts person, I would probably have gone to jail and have no proof that it wasn't me. Traffic tickets don't need proof beyond a reasonable doubt, they are judged by a preponderance of evidence. When it comes down to my word against a police officer, I'm probably going to lose.
I was also cited for failure to come to a complete stop at a stop sign. I know without a doubt that I stopped. I pulled up and saw the police officer sitting there and thought "make sure you come to a complete stop" and did. I pulled away and he pulled me over.
Sometimes I just figure I owe them for the ones they didn't catch anyway, so whatever.
Also, look at all of the convictions that are being overturned by DNA evidence. It does happen. We have a system set up with two lawyers on opposite sides. One for the defendant, one against. What happens then is that instead of looking for the truth, they're looking for the "win". Prosecutors are often worried about their win rate. A good win rate can land you a political office. A good win rate will let you charge more. It's becomes a lot less about finding the truth and more about finding a conviction.

[Lost_in_the_Woods]

It didn't use to happen very often (in America), But I have a video of the cops dragging me out of my house and admitting on camera that they literally don't even know why they are doing it and don't have any paperwork. They said if they didn't arrest me they would go to jail instead, but they wouldn't tell me who sent them.

I know who sent them and why. The VA government absolutely hates me because I have seen too much, know too much, and tell anyone who will listen how they lie cheat steal, abuse their power, and violate international human rights agreements on a regular basis. They do anything and everything they can to keep me from having a job or paying my bills, and convince people that I am an insane violent extremist conspiracy theorist.

I don't have conspiracy theories. I have factual evidence to show that my human rights were violated by the VA government. (videos, police reports, medical records from the psych ward they sent me to that were blatantly falsified... but luckily the incompetent fucks also sent me the original copy with time stamps on both so I have two opposite reports supposedly written by the same doctor 4 minutes apart)


Things have gotten really out of hand with the censorship and the silencing and the making people disappear. I heard from the DLCVA that thousands of people had called them with similar stories, mostly in March and April of 2020 right after they made everybody stay home and distracted them with all the fearmongering over covid.

We're living in the first scene of V for Vendetta. I just hope we're headed towards a similar ending.
And we will if they keep this shit up. People are starting to catch on by the millions.

[Smoke-n-Growls]

Police in America are literally financially incentivized to book people. They literally have quotas.

Until how policing is financed, incentivized, and de-militarized - and heck, like, just a full overhaul of everything from laws to policies to the entire private prison industry (why the fuck do Americans make prison a fucking for profit private industry? Damn America, y'all really don't care for your people and it's obvious) - there will always be someone on the edge of losing their job who will make up a crime or stop just to avoid being yelled at by their boss.

What? Police are human, too. They don't get paid enough for the shit they do - wage slavery doesn't exactly make for highly scrupulous workers.

[A_Bell]

Anyone who thinks the police rarely or never arrest people without just cause is an idiot and has never worked for a law firm.

If you are female, you can go into any police station and accuse any man of a long list of crimes that will have him in jail by nightfall. My mom has two active cases right now of a spouse and one as a girlfriend making false accusations to harass they ex. One sat in jail for two months pending a probation revocation when it was clear from the beginning that she made up the charges. They just kept him sitting until court. All over a custody battle.

[CookiesAndCream2]

@A_Bell - talk about a load of stinking bullshit. Police can't detain someone without cause. They can charge someone, you simple minded fool, but without evidence generally won't be detained for more than a night. ... As for your moronic last bit about the custody battle, the asswipe more than likely issued threats which is very common & that's why he spent some justified time in jail.

[OlderAndWiser]

In my jurisdictions, the police have a rule that on a domestic violence call, if someone is injured, someone must go to jail. This results in some bad arrests.

[Medlife]

Mistaken identity happens. I was personally a witness in a case of mistaken id. My partner and friend was arrested while we were in a restaurant and taken to local holding cell. Simply because he had the same name and day of birth as a man who was accused of a crime. My partner shared the same day, however not year of birth and a first name and surname, as the other man and was about a foot taller. It was very scary and I was sitting at a police station for good 4 hours before we got it sorted.

[RolandCuthbert]

Again with a question that does not show much thought.

I have been stopped and harassed by police many times. But never jailed. Because you know, that would be false arrest.

And you know, it isn't even considered to be a serious offense.

[CookiesAndCream2]

In a way I have only heard of this happening ONCE. My professor had the same name & DOB of a guy who had warrants for arrest. So what was a traffic stop - speeding (so he wasn't stopped for "no reason") - turned out to be a real seriously bad situation.

Really anyone with half a functioning brain - unfortunately many people today are lucky they've the intelligence to breathe for themselves - would realize this. The police can't imprison people without cause. It's illegal.

[hellionthesagereborn]

Almost never. If your stopped it is almost always for a reason (erratic driving, suspicious behavior, speeding, running a light or sign etc.). If your arrested it is almost always for a reason because they literally have to give a reason when filing paper work, that is extra work for them to document the events in order to arrest you.

[TallAndNerdy]

there's always a reason it's just how valid that reason actually is

[BeenThereLovedIt]

Protesters are often jailed and then released before the 72-hour deadline for the police to press charges. They use this "tactic" to try to stop people from speaking out against oppression. Charges are never filed of course, so there's no legal action for those jailed.

Outside of protesting, it's probably quite rare, but it happens I'm sure.

[MCheetah]

There's always a reason. The reason is sometimes just f*cked-up law enforcement officers making mistakes, though. And I'd say that happens 5% of the time or less, when it does. Especially in the digital age.

[rcljr]

You may think there’s no reaso, but with the over sensitive whiny pieces of shit in America these days you can get arrested for holding a door open for a woman ( sexual harassment) arrested for domestic violence ( no reason at all, just some woman’s word) and you are automatically arrested.

[Brainsbeforebeauty]

It has happened but not to the extent people claim... Most people that get arrested did deserve to send most people in prison are guilty of the crime they were charged with.. That's not to say people haven't ever been wrongly convicted

[Andres77]

I've never known anyone to whom this ever happened.
There might not have been a clear reason so an investigating officers questions and/it detains someone in the course of the investigation and the individual becomes belligerent and causes a problem that didn't need to happen.

They create a reason.

[ToastyOats]

Karma is a real thing. If you really pay attention even little things like bumping your head occcur after some lapse in mental discipline. Times in my life where I was technically correct and broke no traffic law but was pulled over I was always distracted or sleepy. If Im distracted and acting unconsciously it invites others to do so to me. Karma 101. The more moving part the more complex. People can spend lifetimes studying and not be able to predict every outcome.

[neeeeeeeko]

Lots of people get accused of crimes they didn't commit by people that just want to watch them suffer.

[MrOracle]

It's not "lots." Police have roughly 3.3 million interactions per year in the US alone, and while you might be stopped, questioned, and even arrested, only a few hundred are actually booked for crimes they weren't involved in. Just because a few cases make the news doesn't mean that it's the huge problem some people think it is.

Police have an incredibly difficult, dangerous job, and lots of them are killed or injured every year, most by violent criminals who intended to do so. If YOU had to go to a job every day with a 2% chance of being shot or stabbed, and yet you also HAD to interact with the most dangerous, violent, unstable, or mentally unwell people, you'd be lucky to do as well.

[neeeeeeeko]

Maybe they should pick a different career if it bothers them so much

[MrOracle]

So, who is going to do this incredibly difficult, dangerous job? Without it, the entire society devolves into crime, chaos, and death. Look at Portland, which cut police officers - MURDER is up over 800%! Violent crime and property crimes are also way, way up. The same is true for other cities that cut cops - crime shot up and stayed up, and citizens are begging for the cops back, but no one wants to work as cops in those cities, when the city doesn't have the back of the cops.

Would you rather just have unabated crime? To be robbed and raped and have no recourse?

[neeeeeeeko]

I would rather have people who are more readily able to handle stressful situations

[ARealHonestHuman]

there's always a reason. The reason coukd be discrimination, racism, jealousy, hate, etc. Its always negative emotions attatched to it. Its not cause you went 190 on a 60 or you're drunk driving, or causing a disturbance in a neighborhood.

[scentoflavender]

It happens. Does it happen as much as people claim? No. But it does happen.

[Gwenhwyfar]

Not sure. I have very little personal experience with this area.

[jshm2]

According to statistics in the USA. It happens enough times to warrant the police being called institutionally racist.

[Blackcupcake]

Option A where I live... can’t speak much for other countries

[katiesmuff]

There is always a reason!

[EnglishEuropean]

In the UK we have a policy called Stop and Search. Police can stop anyone who is acting in a suspicious manner or appears to be black.