So I dug up this story and thou it was run in the book and on the site a few years ago its still very on topic for alcohol abuse and issues in our society today.

Also just a side note – we hope to be back to shows soon. Personal family issues, schedules and other items have been coming up all over the place for us. Who ever knew that getting four people together in one place even online could be so hard at times. But when you wiegh life against a free podcast something has to give.

Stick with us and thanks for your ongoing support and questions – we will be posting more answers and sending out some books to those listeners soon.

Attitude and Alcohol…

It was Cinco De Mayo over the weekend, and I saw more fights than if I had ordered a weekend special from pay-per-view…

Went to a noise call which ended up being a juvenile drinking party. While Mom’s away up in Napa for the weekend, her 15 year old “responsible” daughter decides to have a party. (Wasn’t quite what she had told Mom in regards to how “she’d be staying at a girlfriend’s house”)

While we were responding to the call, the neighbor called back to say it looked like a group of male subjects were getting ready to fight in front of the house.

When I pulled onto the street, the cowardly 6 or 7 drunken idiots who had ganged up on one guy, scurried away into the darkness like scared little rabbits. 7 against 1 – now that’s pretty classy.

The 19 year old kid with his ribs and face kicked in was so drunk he couldn’t feel a thing.

God help him the next morning because he’ll be feeling it then…

Inside the house, we found 14, 15, and 16 year old girls passed out in various stages of being intoxicated, and waiting around like vultures we found 18, 19, 22, 24, year old guys, as well as a 34 year old guy trying to hide under a table when we entered the house.

I looked around the room at the group of losers and saw an 18 year old we had arrested a month ago for stabbing someone else. Dude, I thought you were in jail for attempted murder? His sheepish reply….. “I’m out on bail” (Great system we have)

Another 20 year old sitting on the couch had been arrested in the past for rape of a minor.

The 24 year old who fled is a well known drug dealer and burglar in the area who loves to fight and hang out with the high school crowd.

The 34 year old hiding under the table like he was a high school kid?

“Uh ya, well I, uh, well I was just here picking up my brother….”

Nice guest list Buffy!

But of course when we attempted to call Mom to let her know what was going on…

All we got was voice mail. Buffy didn’t know the name of the hotel Mom was staying at.

Mom hadn’t notified her neighbors as to where she would be staying in case of emergency. There were no family members there to keep watch over a 15 year old girl who suddenly decided she was grown up enough to have a party.

The parents of the drunk juvenile girls weren’t too happy when we called them to the house to pick up their offspring. Hey who knows, some of these parents might become grandparents in 9 months time… And the proud father will be a 24 year old unemployed drug dealing loser who likes to party with 15 year old girls. Nice!

Many kids of today haven’t got anything going in life, but they got plenty of hate and attitude! 7 guys against 1, brutally kicking a guy in the face and ribs whose down on the ground.

Attitude and alcohol – nice mix!

We go to another party call because the neighbors are tired of the yelling, swearing, and skidding tires in front of their houses. Oh yeah, they didn’t appreciate the groups of male juveniles urinating on their lawns either. A neighbor asked one of the kids to stop urinating on his lawn and the overly confident 18 year old threatened to get a gun and shoot up the house.

The attitude quickly went away when he was wearing handcuffs getting stuffed into a patrol car. You want to play Barney Bad Ass junior? Well come on, lets play!

Now you’re under arrest for public intoxication, and even better, the felony of making criminal threats to another.

5 minutes ago you had 3 dollars in loose change in your pocket that you stole out of your little sister’s coin jar at home, but now you get to call Mommy and Daddy from the big people’s jail and tell them how your bail is $75,000.

If junior had kept his mouth shut and showed a little respect to the homeowner, he never would have gotten into the situation of getting arrested – but junior wasn’t smarter than a 5^th grader, and when he starts filling out job applications so he can pay back Mommy and Daddy for bailing him out of jail, he’ll have to remember to check the little box that says “Have you ever been arrested – please explain”.

We’re sorry junior, we discovered you’ve been arrested in the past for a felony charge, and we can’t hire anyone with a felony conviction – so please

GET THE HELL OUT OF OUR OFFICE!

Attitude and Alcohol – Nice mix!

The kid hosting the party?

A nice 17 year old young man – dripping with attitude!

Where’s your parents?

They’re away?

Did they know you were having a party?

No.

How can I get a hold of them?

I don’t know, I don’t know where they’re at.

What if there was an emergency?

I dunno, like what?

You have a trash bag?

Yeah, why?

Cuz you have 5 minutes to get the street cleaned up of all the broken bottles and red plastic cups or you’re going to be figuring out what Mommy and Daddy’s phone number is from juvenile hall.

I grew up in Oakland California. If I ever showed any disrespect to an officer, not only would the officer kick my ass, but my Dad would do it all over again after the officer took me home! I learned at a young age to respect the cops, the firemen, and the paramedics who are out there to keep the rest of us safe.

But in this day and age?

What’s being taught to these youngsters dripping with attitude?

I left a phone message for junior’s Mom and Dad to call me upon their return so I could discuss the party their son had while they were away. They never called. Guess it wasn’t important enough to be bothered with.

I drove past the house a week later and saw Mommy and Daddy’s car at the house so I stopped in to talk to them. Mom came to the door drunk as a skunk – nice!

So glad to see it runs in the family!

Another nearby police agency called for mutual aid because a large fight was taking place inside and outside a popular nightclub. Some drunk dude throws a punch at another drunk dude, and all of a sudden every drunk dude in the place has to show how tough they are by getting into a fight not even involving them. And then when the cops get there, the cops become the target of everyone’s drunken hostility….but in the end, the cops aren’t there to lose and order is quickly restored.

Man, what a cool way to end Cinco De Mayo… sobering up in a smelly room, with a bunch of other smelly drunks at the county jail… You take your girlfriend out for a nice night to be with friends, have a couple drinks, listen to some music, and the night ends up in the toilet because you can’t handle your alcohol, and you have way too much attitude to mix with it… Nice!

But don’t worry about your girlfriend. As you were being driven off to jail in the police car, she was the one the bar staff was leading out of the bar because she could barely walk… She was the one with her arms around the 5 gallon bucket that she was puking into. Yes, someone’s parents are very proud!

Attitude and alcohol – Nice mix!

At least in my area, we don’t have shootings on a regular basis although they are becoming much more frequent. Watch the evening news. Read the newspapers.

Nightclub shooting leaves 3 dead and 9 injured. Don’t think attitude and alcohol doesn’t cause these.

Stupid 1 says something that makes Stupid 2 angry, and Stupid 2 runs out to his car in the parking lot to get his 9mm manhood. Stupid 2 shoots blindly at Stupid 1, but of course misses and hits 12 other innocent people. Stupid 2 then finds himself wearing a spiffy little blue jumpsuit for the rest of his life after he gets sentenced to life in prison…

And for what I ask?

Attitude and Alcohol – nice mix!

Guy with a 2 year old being kept up by loud music and swearing from a backyard party at 2am, drives around to the party house to ask the homeowner if they can lower the music because of the late hour. The guy is instantly surrounded by 10 drunk people from the party who literally chase him out onto the street. When he tries to get into his car to leave, someone throws a bottle from across the street which hits the guys in his jaw.

As he tries to drive away, the attitude and alcohol kicks the mob mentality trait into high gear, and the subjects began punching and kicking every inch of the car to the point where all the windows were smashed out.

The guy hosting the party jumped up onto the hood of the car and began stomping out the windshield. 26 years old, 5-9, and 135 lbs. Yes, that’s 135 lbs. A real brute!

I’m thinking if this little scrawny 135 wimp was by himself, he wouldn’t have attacked his “neighbor” simply for asking for the music to be turned down.

But attitude, alcohol, and 9 dumb ass friends? Nice Mix!

Know what the sad thing is?

I used to enjoy an ice cold beer. I used to enjoy a cold margarita.

I used to enjoy a glass of wine with dinner. I used to enjoy going out to nightclubs every now and then to hang out, meet new people, and listen to some good bands.

But now whenever I feel like having an occasional drink, all I can think of is all the drunk losers I run into during my shifts at work. Juveniles and adults alike… You can have it!

I’ll stick with my venti non fat iced lattes, but here’s some free friendly advice.

If you can’t drink alcohol responsibly – then don’t drink.

If you go to a night club and see trouble brewing – leave.

If a fight breaks out nearby – stay out of it and leave.

If you’re a designated driver – don’t drink!

If you’re drinking and driving – you’re an idiot and I can’t wait to meet you.

If you have teens at home and you leave for the weekend without them, don’t leave them unsupervised at home. You might have the greatest kids in the world, but their friends may not be as responsible or trustworthy, and more often than not, it’s the “friends” who will influence good kids into making poor decisions.

Leave contact information with the neighbors, and tell them to call you, or the police, at the first signs of anything unusual taking place.

If you’re going to have responsible kids, you have to show them you’re responsible parents. Don’t leave them unsupervised with no way of you being contacted!

To all the great parents out there with great kids who know more about love and trust than how much orange juice to pour in with Meyers Rum…. God bless you!

My frustration isn’t directed at you.

But to those of you with Attitude and Alcohol on the brain?

See you soon!

Attitude and Alcohol – Nice Mix!

Can’t wait for next years 5^th of May celebrations!

JL

Comments(0)

I have always been confused about what constitutes entrapment. Can you please talk about entrapment and how law enforcement structures their undercover sting operations to ensure entrapment is avoided? – Howard

Good question Howard,

I remember a fraud case I was investigating where a suspect was using a stolen ID to order a large amount of car parts. He’d have packages delivered to vacant houses and pick them up from the porch shortly after delivery. It was discovered one day when a package was delivered to an occupied home and the resident called the police regarding a suspicious package left on the porch that they didn’t order. I did a records check on the name on the package and found that he was the victim of identity theft recently. I contacted the victim who confirmed that he has been been getting unauthorized charges made on his credit card recently and that he did not order the auto parts which were left on the porch. I took the package as evidence and called the auto parts store who gave me the phone number used for the order. I then asked a friend of mine at a local mail / package center if I could run a "sting" at his business.

I called the phone number that was used to make the fraudulent order which was the suspect’s number. The suspect had used the victims name to order the parts so pretending to be a mail store employee, I asked for Mr. so and so (the victim’s name) and told the suspect that I had a large box of auto parts which required a signature and that if he wanted them, he’d have to pick them up at the store. I told the suspect that the package had been misplaced for awhile and that it was going to be returned to the auto parts store the following day if it wasn’t picked up. Claiming to be the victim, the suspect asked if his girlfriend could pick up the package and I stated no, the person who ordered the parts had to sign for them. The suspect stated he would come to the store to pick up the parts the following morning.

Another detective and myself waited in the back room of the mail store until the suspect came in asking for the package. We had told employees in advance to have the suspect sign for the package and bring us the receipt and then we’d bring out the package. The employee brought me the signed receipt where the suspect forged the victims name and we carried two empty boxes out to the counter. I asked the suspect if he was Mr. so and so (the victims name) and he replied yes. Me and my partner dropped the boxes and grabbed the suspect taking him into custody. A search of his truck later turned up a lot of stolen property obtained by similar fraudulent means and several more victims names. 

In this case, the suspect initiated the illegal act by stealing an ID, ordering the auto parts, and he came in voluntarily to claim the package by forging the victims signature. I simply presented the "opportunity" for the suspect to commit the illegal act.              

People have different perceptions of entrapment. Cops have a pretty wide range of things they can do to catch crooks and I’ve seen some pretty creative undercover stings. Although every situation is different, there are certain guidelines that cops have to follow. The most common and probably contested situations of alleged entrapment is prostitution and drug cases. Cops have the right to present the opportunity of someone to commit an illegal act (such as an undercover officer posing as a prostitute, drug dealer, drug buyer, etc), but they cant induce or persuade a person to do so or it could be entrapment. Here’s a description from the Wikipedia encyclopedia:

Entrapment

From Wikipedia, Entrapment is constituted by a law enforcement agent inducing a person to commit an offense that the person would otherwise have been unlikely to commit. In many jurisdictions, entrapment is a possible defense against criminal liability. However, there is no entrapment where a person is ready and willing to break the law and the Government agents merely provide what appears to be a favorable opportunity for the person to commit the crime. For example, it is not entrapment for a Government agent to pretend to be someone else and to offer, either directly or through an informer or other decoy, to engage in an unlawful transaction with the person. So, a person would not be a victim of entrapment if the person was ready, willing and able to commit the crime charged in the indictment whenever opportunity was afforded, and that Government officers or their agents did no more than offer an opportunity.

On the other hand, if the evidence leaves a reasonable doubt whether the person had any intent to commit the crime except for inducement or persuasion on the part of some Government officer or agent, then the person is not guilty.

In slightly different words: Even though someone may have sold drugs, as charged by the government, if it was the result of entrapment then he is not guilty. Government agents entrapped him if three conditions are fulfilled:

1. The idea for committing the crime came from the government agents and not from the person accused of the crime.
2. Government agents then persuaded or talked the person into committing the crime. Simply giving him the opportunity to commit the crime is not the same as persuading him to commit the crime.
3. The person was not ready and willing to commit the crime before the government agents spoke with him.

On the issue of entrapment, the government must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant was not entrapped by government agents.

There are many legal challenges and case law regarding entrapment that can be found on the internet.

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