What power do rent-a-cop on public street have?

[randomguy]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? CA

If i am posting this in the wrong forum, please do not shoot me for it

What power does a rent-a-cop have on public street while working as security say for a movie industry on a set. I am talking about those guys that have cop cap on, maybe holster with a gun and either off-duty pd or retired with bike that a general public might mistaken for real police bike. They are working for private company and are not in any uniform that would clearly identity them as police officer. No police badge, proper uniform etc.


So what power do they really have except for obvious ones like citizen arrest and calling black and white.

[CdwJava]

What power does a rent-a-cop have on public street while working as security say for a movie industry on a set. I am talking about those guys that have cop cap on, maybe holster with a gun and either off-duty pd or retired with bike that a general public might mistaken for real police bike. They are working for private company and are not in any uniform that would clearly identity them as police officer. No police badge, proper uniform etc.

So what power do they really have except for obvious ones like citizen arrest and calling black and white.

If they are private security and not law enforcement then they have the same powers of arrest as a private citizen, and they have the authority of the owner or legal representative of the property or business by which they are contracted.

So, if trespassing and they ask you to leave and you refuse, they can place you under arrest and call the cops. If you commit any public offense in their presence, they can arrest you and call the cops. If they have probable cause to believe you committed a felony, they can arrest you and call the cops.

Is there more to this query?

[randomguy]

If they are private security and not law enforcement then they have the same powers of arrest as a private citizen, and they have the authority of the owner or legal representative of the property or business by which they are contracted.

So, if trespassing and they ask you to leave and you refuse, they can place you under arrest and call the cops. If you commit any public offense in their presence, they can arrest you and call the cops. If they have probable cause to believe you committed a felony, they can arrest you and call the cops.

Is there more to this query?

The reason i really asked is that a movie is being filmed near us couple of blocks down from our street and i see guys on motorcycle nd having either flag jacket(same type that tow guys put on when they are outside) or cap on them that says police. From time to time they will stop traffic for couple of minutes. Before I ever challenge their authority to do so(honk at them,ignore them) I want to know what legal power they actually have. When you say if they are private security and not law enforcement how do you tell when they are working for private company at the time. It's one thing when you violate an order from police officer and its totally different when you do it to someone that is not what you consider to be in police uniform at least what you would associate with someone being police officer.

[CdwJava]

The reason i really asked is that a movie is being filmed near us couple of blocks down from our street and i see guys on motorcycle nd having either flag jacket(same type that tow guys put on when they are outside) or cap on them that says police.

If they say "police" then the guy had better be an actual police officer.

It is common - and, in L.A. it used to be required - that off duty police officers are employed when dealing with movie sets in public places. So, it could very well be that the guy IS a real police officer. If not, and he has anything on that implies he is, he could be in very deep trouble if anyone mistakes him for a cop.

From time to time they will stop traffic for couple of minutes. Before I ever challenge their authority to do so(honk at them,ignore them) I want to know what legal power they actually have.

The same as anyone blocking traffic. If he is blocking traffic for safety reasons and you decide to go around him, you could find yourself cited for any of a number of possible violations. Usually these restrictions are placed for safety. Or, in the case of a movie set, it may be to stop outside noise during a shooting scene.

If they are police officers, and you ignore them, you might expect their friends in the black and white to come a calling. And if you become a problem, you might expect a black and white to park there just for you.

If a couple of minutes is that much of a problem you need to move to the country.

It seems as if you are trying to create a confrontation when there is no need. If your other post is accurate, they'll be gone in a week or so and life will go on.

[randomguy]

Thanks for answering while not directly Basically while working as security they can't really go after you and will need to call black and white. That is what i really need to know. Their friend coming after me is not big deal/or them parking black/white car there. As for "Or, in the case of a movie set, it may be to stop outside noise during a shooting scene." the only they would do is create much more noise from car honking.

Again thank you for posting an answer while not totally direct one

[CdwJava]

Thanks for answering while not directly Basically while working as security they can't really go after you and will need to call black and white.

Not necessarily.

If employed in their capacity as a police officer, but off duty, they can still exercise all the powers of a police officer. That means they can still cite and arrest.

Once more, it seems like you are seeking a confrontation when there is no need. You very well may come out on the losing end of such a conflict. Why do it?

[CdwJava]

You can honk at even the police if you are not happy with them;

Well, one shouldn't do that unless they want a ticket. We have laws governing when and why to sound a horn.

I usually ignore the guys in the street trying to direct traffic unless they are marked as police & when they are in their police uniform I call up the chief & ask him if they are on-duty & if not, I lodge a complaint that they are using their tax-dollar-paid-for uniforms for personal gain. I usually only see them around xmas time.

You can complain all they want. I am not sure what state you are in, but out here in CA when officers work off-duty gigs in uniform, they do so with the permission of the agency. Many cities allow quite a lot of this. I used to do it in Sacramento at the Fairgrounds and at a mall. The city of San Jose used to REQUIRE that special events and nightclubs in the college district hire a certain number of uniformed officers for security for special events or weekends as a condition of their conditional use permits. One nightclub was even required to pay for a marked patrol vehicle (in addition to 4 officers) because they had so many arrests in and around the club. The city also mandated officers for any public or private street construction in certain areas of the city. I am not sure if these practices still exist, but I would not be surprised if they did.

Driving around someone directing traffic for safety reasons can also lead to other citations for operating in the wrong lane, reckless driving, unsafe speed, or whatever else might be appropriate.

Some cities will not permit it, some bless it wholeheartedly, others deny their officers the opportunity to work in uniform or to work as "police" at least within their primary jurisdiction. But, the agency CAN permit off duty employment in uniform and with agency gear if they choose to.

[randomguy]

Not necessarily.

If employed in their capacity as a police officer, but off duty, they can still exercise all the powers of a police officer. That means they can still cite and arrest.

Once more, it seems like you are seeking a confrontation when there is no need. You very well may come out on the losing end of such a conflict. Why do it?

If they are employed in their capacity as police officers would they not be on police bike and working cops? I like pushing right to the line

[CdwJava]

If they are employed in their capacity as police officers would they not be on police bike and working cops?

Maybe ... maybe not. Not all cops working off duty assignments are dressed out.

I like pushing right to the line

There's a 7-letter word for people like that ... but it's not a word I like to use.

All because you CAN do something does not mean you should. And karma can be a real bitch.

[disneykid52]

Maybe ... maybe not. Not all cops working off duty assignments are dressed out.


There's a 7-letter word for people like that ... but it's not a word I like to use.

All because you CAN do something does not mean you should. And karma can be a real bitch.

try retal orifice

[randomguy]

Maybe ... maybe not. Not all cops working off duty assignments are dressed out.

If they are off duty they are off duty. They are welcome to call their friends if they are pissed that I ignored them. There is a reason why red/yellow ambro light in the back and no blue/red in front gives them permission to pull over motorist.

There's a 7-letter word for people like that ... but it's not a word I like to use.

All because you CAN do something does not mean you should. And karma can be a real bitch.

I am of opinion if you give someone a foot they will take try to much more.

[CdwJava]

If they are off duty they are off duty.

That is not always the case.

I am of opinion if you give someone a foot they will take try to much more.

What's that mean?

You sound as if you want to create a confrontation just for grins and giggles. That's beyond childish.

[Zigner]

If they are off duty they are off duty.

Perhaps you need to re-read what Carl said about this.

If employed in their capacity as a police officer, but off duty, they can still exercise all the powers of a police officer. That means they can still cite and arrest.

[randomguy]

Perhaps you need to re-read what Carl said about this.

If employed in their capacity as a police officer, but off duty, they can still exercise all the powers of a police officer. That means they can still cite and arrest.

Except for the fact that they are not equipped to do either. They are not on police bike, meaning they are no on bike that have proper lights to pull vehicle over. Having ambro yellow lights on front and yellow/red in the back is enough to pull someone ass over. They are not in proper uniform/displaying badge etc for public to associate them with being police officer. Basically after reading all of the replys from carl it's pretty clear that most they can do is to call their friends. That might not do much in California being that an officer must keep an eye on vehicle at all time before pulling them over for infraction.

[Zigner]

Except for the fact that they are not equipped to do either. They are not on police bike, meaning they are no on bike that have proper lights to pull vehicle over. Having ambro yellow lights on front and yellow/red in the back is enough to pull someone ass over. They are not in proper uniform/displaying badge etc for public to associate them with being police officer. Basically after reading all of the replys from carl it's pretty clear that most they can do is to call their friends. That might not do much in California being that an officer must keep an eye on vehicle at all time before pulling them over for infraction.

Thank you for posting this. It proves you have no clue