SPD Backs Up Mystery Cop on Reddit

The Seattle Police Department doesn't know which cop did it, but officials say they like it: Over the weekend an articulate, concise patrol officer launched an "Ask Me Anything" thread on Reddit where he or she fielded inquiries about legal pot, reporting crimes, videotaping officers, and vigilante superdouche Phoneix Jones.

Posting under the name GoHawks206, the cop expressed some trepidation at the outset, writing: "Policy says we aren't supposed to speak to the Media but the way it's worded it doesn't seem to include sites like Reddit. I've been on Reddit for about four years and like the dialog that other officers' AMAs have opened up."

SPD spokesman Sergeant Sean Whitcomb says the officer shouldn't fear any reprimand.

"It was all well done. It’s very informative," says Whitcomb, who laments that Seattle cops have had a "culture of fear" about speaking publicly about their work. Holding an AMA on Reddit lets a cop "explain what we do and why we do it. We are in the process of writing new policy to perhaps encourage some of these interactions. Had this officer called our office and presented this as a concept we likely would have approved it."

So what'd the mystery cop say?

Asked how pot legalization changed police work, the cop said: "Not at all really. I never bothered with marijuana. We've had that 'lowest priority' thing for a while. We still get calls about people smoking in public. I just ask them to do it elsewhere."

On being filmed: "I just act like I'm always being filmed. Between people with cell phones, my in-car camera, the news, and security cameras I'm pretty much always on tape." Asked about the situation I wrote about last week, the cop writes: "I don't know the SPD officer involved. We were talking about this at work though. Officers know the public is allowed to film them. I wonder what the whole exchange was between the SLOG guy and the officer."

What's the officer think about Phoenix Jones and his "vigilante buddies"?

"It all seems a little silly," the cop writes. "He has gotten in the way of one of my felony investigations. I have no problem with him walking the streets and calling in complaints but it seems like he's going to get himself hurt."

And then the cop explains—I've always wanted this explained—why some theft and burglary seem to get so little traction.

"So there are prosecuting standards that have to be met for a case to be taken to court, which are usually higher than what the law states they are," the officer says. "Theft cases seem to not get much attention unless they are chronic or of high amounts. It doesn't really reflect at all on the officer taking the report. It's just much more fun to be on the street than writing paper. Paperwork is the real enemy."

This sounds like a smart cop—and a good cop—who's building the bridges that crappy cops have spent years burning to a cinder. So it's great he or she has backup from the SPD.