One thing that can potentially get the owner of a SSP in trouble, or make us all look bad, is taking pictures or videos and posting them online. There were a few examples I found where the owner was acting inappropriately, but I didn't want to give them additional publicity by posting those pictures/videos here. The types of questionable behaviors caught on film included:
- Being shown with alcohol in-hand during parking lot light shows.
- Owner (non-LEO) behind the wheel wearing a "county mounty" hat with a beer in-hand.
- Simply driving around on public streets with the emergency lights uncovered.
- Assuming the position on the fender of a police car.
- Staging a pull-over with lights/sirens and the owner(s) as actors.
- In-code pictures showing the owner/driver peeling out to respond to a call.
- Personally re-enacting an arrest with handcuffs next to a SSP.
- Justifying their bad behavior because they are a LEO.
- Displaying a badge at a show (a real LEO knowns not to flash his badge around).
All of the above situations demonstrate a lapse in judgment, albeit some things are certainly worse than others. But it reminds us that we need to be careful about what we capture on film.
Over the weekend, I spoke with a fellow SSP owner that we all enjoy having here - Andy. Most of us know Andy for his comedy, but he is VERY careful about what he does with his '85 CHP Mustang. I recently spoke with Andy about the responsibilities associated with owning/operating a SSP, and got his permission to use his good example as a reference here. Some time ago, Andy posted a couple of pictures of his CHP taken out-of-state along the side of the highway, which are shown here:
Andy was very quick to note in his original thread that he never drives on the street with the logos/lettering/lights exposed. For the pictures, he selected the location and camera angle, and then quickly removed the covers on that side to snap a few pictures. Once that was done, he covered up that side, changed angles, removed the coverings, snapped a few more pictures, and quickly got the car covered up again. Taking pictures of a fully marked car on a public roadway can turn into a bad situation too, but Andy is VERY considerate about displaying his car in the public eye and included information about the care he used to take the pictures.
As was stated previously, the laws vary by state. So it is difficult to establish a set of guidelines to cover all situations. Hopefully, we will give some thought to the circumstances we may find ourselves in, and exercise good judgment when the time comes.