What would you do if a police officer ordered you to put your baby down and submit to arrest?

I’d do it. I was taught to respect authority.

As I think Kojak once said…“I ain’t down with that…baby!”
I’m of the same opinion in the sense that there’s no way i’m letting go of my kid in that scenario.

@kritiper I am fascinated to know more. Can you describe how you integrate your respect for authority with your responsibility for the kid’s safety? Or maybe you’re saying that part of your respect for authority is the presumption that they will do their human duty to your kid, to keep him/her safe and deliver him to your spouse? I’m kind of guessing that’s not what you mean. How do you balance your respect for authority with your respect for parental obligation, your respect for your child?

Not every cop (and probably an extreme few) is going to tell you to “put the kid down.” If the cop says such a thing, he/she probably has probable cause. Just like in a court of law, one must be assumed, be it cop or anybody else, to be innocent.
You sound like you don’t trust any police person, ever, like they’re ALL “bad guys.”

I think I would be so scared that I would do as ordered. Too many stories on TV where cops shoot first and ask questions later.

I think this is one of those things where you really don’t know what you’d do until and unless you’re actually in that situation. The circumstances might be different so it would be hard to answer, hard to envision, hard to really know what you’d do.

I would hand the baby to the cop. Then get on the ground spread eagled.

I shouldn’t be too upset with that video and the event other than to point out the rather obvious credence to the long held “rumors” that black folks are in for “special” treatment at the hands of the police. As it is, based on information so far, there will be one cop less to live up to the stereotype universally familiar to black people everywhere, and the woman involved will be handsomely paid to avoid the airing of that clip before a jury.

I’d ask him to tell me where to put the baby so it would safe.

People.have been known to use their kids as shields.

Hard to know for sure. If I was afraid I might not be thinking like I am now, but I would hold the baby away from me and show my hands if I was afraid putting the baby down would harm the baby. If the ground was hot, I would state I was afraid the baby will get burned, or that ants might get the baby in the grass. I live in Florida, so these things occur to me at least right now, again when a cop is in front of me I am not sure if I would be able to think straight. If there is no immediate danger of putting the baby down, I would do it.

One good thing about cities that require cops to be in pairs, this sort of thing can be handled better. One cop can take the baby, while the other maintains control over me.

The cop wants to know you don’t have anything hidden between you and the baby, and that you are not going to run, and that you aren’t going to reach for a weapon.

I don’t know. I’m bad at being told what to do. I can see myself letting my anger get to me and getting into a bad altercation with cops.

But if I had a baby involved, I think I would do what I thought would protect the baby first and foremost.

@kritiper I hope you won’t let my sound turn you off of answering my questions. There are very few rightward-leaning people who’ll talk openly with me, so it’s hard to get a clear picture of what you guys are like as individuals. Stick around and represent!

@zenvelo If I think about doing that with my kid, I think **I** might be the one getting into trouble for violating the **cop’s** civil rights. It’s funny to imagine offering to put your baby into the cop’s arms, only to find out he wasn’t all that committed to the idea of arresting you.

@Dutchess_lll Good point. That’s what makes it tricky, I guess. I can’t even imagine letting go of my kid and letting someone incapacitate me. It’s hard for everyone involved.

Hey everyone, a follow-on, I’d love to know your thoughts.

What if some random guy, not a police officer, pointed a gun at you and told you to put your baby down? Can you describe how your feelings about this scenario differ from the one where it’s a law officer pointing the gun and giving you the order? Do you think you’d do the same thing in both cases? If not, can you explain how your choice would differ and why?

(I’d ask this as a separate question, but I used up my allotted three questions within the first three minutes of logging in, as usual.) Cheers

No. If some Joe did that I’d pull my baby to me and turn my back on the guy and bend over the baby to to shield it.