Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:This is a DC thing with MPD. You would think I'd be used to it by now but I'm always doing double takes when I see the lights and wondering if I should pull over.
It has been DC's police department (MPD's) policy for years to drive with lights on to show a visible presence. It is disconcerting, because it can be hard to tell if an officer just has the lights on (per department policy), or is responding silently to a call (like a couple of PPs have described). I wish they'd drop the lights-on policy - I don't think it has made any measurable difference in neighborhoods, and it just confuses drivers.
Anonymous wrote:In DC they drive with static lights on, they are not flashing.
Anonymous wrote:It's a DC police thing. Make their presence more visible.
(I think it's both obnoxious and dumb, since it desensitizes drivers to flashing lights. But that's just me.)
Anonymous wrote:This is a DC thing with MPD. You would think I'd be used to it by now but I'm always doing double takes when I see the lights and wondering if I should pull over.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:My husband is a retired cop. In our state lights OR siren mean pull over. Siren is used when needed or at all intersections where requiring running of a red light. Or when lights alone don't work to get someone to pull over.
Sometimes cops also get a silent call, which means that while they are responding to an emergency they are trying to not make their approach to the scene known. My husband got this a lot with touchy domestic disputes, not wanting to escalate the situation even more, for example.
THANK YOU! The ignorance in this thread is astounding. Really? It's "obnoxious and dumb"? Or maybe....just maybe, there are times when the police don't want to announce their presence? In some situations it is safer for the officer. Sometimes it is safer for a potential victim. There are many other reasons an officer may be running just lights. My DH is Federal Law Enforcement and my brother is a Police Detective. The anti-cop nonsense is getting so old.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:My husband is a retired cop. In our state lights OR siren mean pull over. Siren is used when needed or at all intersections where requiring running of a red light. Or when lights alone don't work to get someone to pull over.
Sometimes cops also get a silent call, which means that while they are responding to an emergency they are trying to not make their approach to the scene known. My husband got this a lot with touchy domestic disputes, not wanting to escalate the situation even more, for example.
THANK YOU! The ignorance in this thread is astounding. Really? It's "obnoxious and dumb"? Or maybe....just maybe, there are times when the police don't want to announce their presence? In some situations it is safer for the officer. Sometimes it is safer for a potential victim. There are many other reasons an officer may be running just lights. My DH is Federal Law Enforcement and my brother is a Police Detective. The anti-cop nonsense is getting so old.
Anonymous wrote:My husband is a retired cop. In our state lights OR siren mean pull over. Siren is used when needed or at all intersections where requiring running of a red light. Or when lights alone don't work to get someone to pull over.
Sometimes cops also get a silent call, which means that while they are responding to an emergency they are trying to not make their approach to the scene known. My husband got this a lot with touchy domestic disputes, not wanting to escalate the situation even more, for example.