Is this what cops commonly say to POC that they've pulled over?

[raccoon]

That the driver matches the description of a suspect?

Reason I ask is since George Floyd’s murder, I’ve seen several stories on the Internet of people of color being stopped by cops and the cop says something like this. Seems a convenient excuse if the cops need one.

[if..fish..had..wings]

1. You are black

The suspect is black

You all look alike

You match the description

If you're not the right suspect, doesn't matter, you probably are a criminal anyway

Give me LIP?

You're toast.


Yes this is 'Murica and Serve & Protect

[on edit]

In any largish city there will always be something going on somewhere where one of the people involved will be black so even if the cop doesn't have a particular crime/suspect in mind the statement is still "accurate".

Or, in the case of Ahmaud Arbery, just make up the crime and suspect.

[WhiteTara]

9. Welcome to DU

and that's what happens. (referring to your post)

[Dream Girl]

10. They lie. There is no "suspect".. it used to happen to my brothers all the time.

[live love laugh]

12. You pretty much summed it up. Sadly. nt

[Cirque du So-What]

2. Seems you're answering your own question

This has been used as an excuse for as long as i can remember, and I'm no spring chicken.

[dalton99a]

3. Regardless, it is always escalated to arrest or summary execution

[Buckeye_Democrat]

4. It happened to me, and I'm white.

I was middle-aged, and later learned that the suspect was a teenager. (After the cop checked my ID for any warrants and such.)

I'm sure it happens to PoC even more frequently.

Edit: My suspicious behavior was smoking a cigarette while sitting outside my door, apparently.

[LuvNewcastle]

11. Yeah, it's happened to me a couple of times.

Sometimes cops get bored and they go out looking for trouble. They're not supposed to bother people who are simply walking down the street, so they use the 'you fit a description' excuse when they want to arrest somebody. They're betting that you have an unpaid fine or a warrant out for you.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

17. I was super-naive when it happened to me.

I even walked about 40 yards toward the cop after he yelled at me to "C'mere!"

I could have just opened the door of my residence, inches away, and walked inside. No telling what might've happened then, however. (It's what coworkers said I should've done, when I told them about it the next day.)

[captain queeg]

19. Me too. Cops were canvassing the neighborhood and I was visiting my sister

They questioned both me and my brother in law saying we both fit the description. I’m 6-2, 200 lbs and my brother in law was about 5-6 120 lbs and had red hair. I guess the only description they had was a male.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

21. Did they "run your ID" too?

I grew up in a "friendlier cop" town, so it really shocked me back then.

The cop even grabbed his gun tightly when I warned him that I'd have to get my ID out of my car's glovebox.

He initiated the whole encounter over complete BS, and what would've happened if he filled me full of holes because he supposedly felt "threatened" after following me back toward my apartment and car just so he could check me for warrants or whatever?

Too many of them are idiots, and just hoping to nail somebody because that's obviously their main incentive.

Edit: It happened before the internet and online videos were more prevalent, or I might've known better.

[captain queeg]

29. I don't remember it was a long time ago

But I think they were detectives, plain clothes, so maybe a slightly higher caliber. I was a weekend security guard for awhile when going to college. They also hired guys that couldn’t get into a police dept and they left me very unimpressed.

[onecaliberal]

5. Reason I pulled you over sir/ma'am is you seem to be breathing while black.

We all know it. I’m completely over the racist fascist fucking pigs destroying everyone. I’m not going to tolerate it.

[rzemanfl]

6. Years ago I was pulled over because my car matched a description. n.t

[spinbaby]

18. Happened to me, too

But I’m an old white lady, so I was treated nicely.

[rzemanfl]

28. I was a young white man back then. Now I am old. n/t

[Iggo]

7. Yes.

[Afromania]

8. Yes and yes again

Ive been pulled over a number of times with that excuse. I guarantee you that I dont look like anybody else in a 5 mile radius at any given time. The last time it happened to me I had this really really bright rainbow stripe shirt on and a old beat up cap. I had to talk myself out of asking if there was really somebody out here with a rainbow shirt doing shit on a Monday morning.

[Mariana]

13. I suspect that most of the time, there isn't any suspect.

There's been no crime, no report of suspicious activity, or anything else. It's a handy lie for the cops to use when they want to pull someone over, or stop them while they're walking or whatever, and harass them for fun. Cops lie as easily as they breathe, we all know that now, and it's not like you're in any position to demand they prove what they say is true once they've stopped you.

[sop]

14. Reasonable suspicion and probable cause. Cops need a legal reason to stop (black) drivers.

A traffic stop is a Terry stop, and a "seizure" by police. The Supreme Court (Terry v. Ohio) found temporary detentions require only "reasonable articulable suspicion that a crime has occurred or is about to occur." Traffic stops using this justification are done to determine if cops have probable cause for an arrest. Police have to claim this "matches description" bullshit to make it a legal stop.

[oasis]

26. "Crime has occurred or is about to occur". Real life "Minority Report".

With emphasis on the word "minority".

[Hotler]

15. A reminder, what ever your skin color is, never ever...

talk to a cop without an attorney present, period.. Never allow them to search your vehicle without a warrant. Roll your window down only enough to pass your paper work through. If you feel threatened by the cop pulling you over, do not asked them to call for a supervisor. Call 911 and request the supervisor yourself.

[DVRacer]

20. Also now

Have a dashcam make sure it works even if you only get audio it’s more than you had.

When approached ask “please make sure you activate your body camera for our safety” use a voice loud enough and clear enough it’s on your own camera.

Have a ziplock or plastic sleeve or something that has current information together and within reach, BUT Do Not reach for it yet.

When asked for license and insurance state I have some hearing loss (we all have some to a degree so not a lie) please either keep speaking like that or speak louder. What you want to be sure of is it’s on a record yours and theirs and avoid what is the mumbles. They are a tactic to say you weren’t following commands and pull you out of the car later. Now hand them what they asked for and shut the fuck up. Keep your hands on the wheel don’t fidget in the car.

If you are asked questions smile and say I’m sorry I don’t answer questions without an attorney present. Then STFU no small talk. This is what they teach their own kids.

[Hotler]

24. Thank you. nt

[RobinA]

25. Yes

And never answer the question, "Do you know why I pulled you over?" You don't need to tell them you were going 100mph in a school zone, let them prove it.

Personally, I have a hard time keeping a civil tone when they pull that testosterone-fueled cop attitude. It just triggers me to start mouthing off, which is a very bad idea. One of my best friend's husband is a police chief, so when I get pulled over I just remind myself it's all a big act, this guy sits down to eat dinner with his family same as my friend's husband, who I like very much. Repeat consistently until the encounter is over.

[CousinIT]

16. If the suspect is black, then the driver matches the description.

No doubt they use that one a lot. Of course they never do that to anyone who's white.

[KY_EnviroGuy]

22. Another one: "we've had reports of trouble in the area".....

which is about as universal an excuse as you can get....... ........

[StarfishSaver]

23. If the suspect is black, pretty much any black person matches their description

regardless what they actually look like.

[hunter]

27. The cops in my home town pulled every black person over. Every black person was a suspect.

That kind of harassment kept the city 99% white.

California had "sundown towns" as well. Any black or Mexican caught in those cities after dark was beaten up.

There are still plenty of cities in California that do not welcome people who are not white. A surprising number of people who live in these cities don't know how non-white people are harassed. They believe their police and racist neighbors are nice. They may see themselves as colorblind.

I'm white but I haven't lived in a majority white community since the mid 'eighties. Nevertheless I'm still accorded many white privileges.