# Things I learned from watching TV cop shows **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted\ **Created:** [May 9, 2023, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820 "2023-05-09T18:54:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 10
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2023, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/181 "2023-05-15T18:22:12Z")
This isn’t about cops, but cop shows: a person is an important witness, or they’ve been attacked, or they’re being stalked, and it’s nighttime. They go home, or to a hotel, or to stay with someone, and they walk around the well-lighted room in full view of uncurtained, unshaded windows. 🤦🏽‍♀️ Sometimes they even stand at the window and look out for a while. I never do that at night, even when I’m **not** being stalked. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2023, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/182 "2023-05-15T19:25:36Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Sometimes they even stand at the window and look out for a while. I never do that at night, even when I’m **not** being stalked. Seriously! And at night you can’t see out, but people can sure look in. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2023, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/183 "2023-05-15T19:29:52Z")
When someone tells you to do something, the only correct response is “copy that.” ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2023, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/184 "2023-05-15T20:50:16Z")
> [@Asuka](#): > > The police will either pushback against this investigation or simply not care even if this isn’t one of those “Police Dark Conspiracy” cases. So when a 20 year police veteran who’s well regarded gets murdered at a construction site mysteriously and the civilian checks the crime scene out after hours, they will be chewed out by responding officers for trespassing on a crime scene unsympathetically. Yeah, well police really do not like Jessica Fletchers. Often the “concerned amateur” helping out is actually the killer. > [@BobLibDem](#): > > A cop can instantly tell the exact caliber of the bullet that entered the victim by looking at the entry hole made in the clothing while standing up over the victim in a dimly lit room. Yeah. Oddly, a .357, a .38 special, and a 9mm make the same size hole. If it is a .22 or something you could guess 'a small caliber", myabe. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2023, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/185 "2023-05-15T21:21:49Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > cop can instantly tell the exact caliber of the bullet that entered the victim by looking at the entry hole made in the clothing while standing up over the victim in a dimly lit room. They learn that in the academy, right after learning how to taste a tiny bit of powder in a baggie, and instantly identify it. Without being affected by it, at all. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2023, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/186 "2023-05-16T13:06:26Z")
If you’re the first cop at the scene of a bomb threat and find the bomb, you’ll immediately see that there’s no time for the bomb squad to arrive, because all bombs have big red digital readouts that show exactly how many minutes and seconds are left until it goes off. So disabling the bomb will be up to you. You’ll see a red wire and a blue wire. ALWAYS cut the blue wire. …or, is it the red wire?? ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2023, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/187 "2023-05-16T16:47:29Z")
> [@solost](#): > > You’ll see a red wire and a blue wire. ALWAYS cut the blue wire. > > …or, is it the red wire?? The blue wire. Whenever there’s something wrong with my dishwasher, I jiggle the blue wire. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2023, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/188 "2023-05-16T18:04:41Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Every crime at any level in New York City involves at least one member of the Reagan family. Or multiple members. Not limited to the present generation. Or to living family members. I mentioned it somewhere up above. There doesn’t seem to be any concept called “conflict of interest.” 9 times out of 10 no one cares that the prosecution’s witness is the brother of the prosecutor questioning him. As if the entire cross examination wouldn’t be “so she’s your sister and you’re her star witness? The one time out of ten that they are told to not be involved they are involved anyway will no Ill effects. ---
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2023, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/189 "2023-05-16T21:15:02Z")
Iirc isn’t the modern way to defuse a bomb by freezing the detonator? ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2023, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/190 "2023-05-16T21:49:50Z")
No!! You fool!! (or just jiggle any wire you wish) ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Q](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/898d66/32.png) [@Johnny\_Q](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Q)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2023, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/191 "2023-05-16T22:33:23Z")
They all look gray to me. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2023, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/192 "2023-05-16T23:24:45Z")
Sorry, but ethically, you’re going to need to quit your bomb squad job. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2023, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/193 "2023-05-17T00:19:16Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > No!! You fool!! > > (or just jiggle any wire you wish) Do the boot test first. ---
**Author:** ![Tripler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripler/32/21807_2.png) [@Tripler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tripler)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2023, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/194 "2023-05-17T00:25:50Z")
> [@solost](#): > > You’ll see a red wire and a blue wire. ALWAYS cut the blue wire. NEVER cut the blue wire. ALWAYS cut the wire when the soundtrack stops as you hover over it with your diagonals. Tripler If ever I had an authoritative post, this’d be it. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2023, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/195 "2023-05-17T01:10:01Z")
> [@Tripler](#): > > If ever I had an authoritative post, this’d be it. And to think, we were here when The Tripler Suggestion made its debut. The corollaries are yet to be claimed, such as “Pay attention to that out-of-place object, it’ll be a crucial clue an hour later” and “You know he/she’s the one when the background behind them goes out of focus.” ---
**Author:** ![El\_DeLuxo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_deluxo/32/9043_2.png) [@El\_DeLuxo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_DeLuxo)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2023, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/196 "2023-05-17T02:12:44Z")
Oh, I hate that. The bloodless shootings and stabbings in TV shows and older movies are so unrealistic they can jerk me right out of the story. My brother and I used to joke about the advanced sound-wave weapons everyone apparently had in the Old West and other old-movie milieues, that killed you without leaving a mark on your body. ---
**Author:** ![simster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/simster/32/1047_2.png) [@simster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/simster)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2023, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/197 "2023-05-17T02:49:00Z")
Fuck it - I’m pulling ALL the wires - [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/yCFdaNS2oJM/hqdefault.jpg "Castle defuses the bomb. 3x17") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCFdaNS2oJM) ---
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2023, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/198 "2023-05-17T03:35:04Z")
> [@El\_DeLuxo](#): > > Oh, I hate that. The bloodless shootings and stabbings in TV shows and older movies are so unrealistic they can jerk me right out of the story. I feel like things have gone 180 degrees the opposite direction in “darker and grittier” modern cop shows/movies, with any bullet wound producing a gaping hole spewing absolute geysers of blood and viscera. And it’s inevitably the _entry_ wound that produces the big spurt, even though entry wounds are often just small holes. It’s the exit wound that causes the most visible damage. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2023, 8:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/199 "2023-05-17T08:28:58Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > Whenever there’s something wrong with my dishwasher, I jiggle the blue wire. I was actually quoting a TV show. I was wondering if anybody would recognize it. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2023, 8:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820/200 "2023-05-17T08:34:03Z")
If you find yourself in the presence of a celebrated amateur detective, get OUT. RUN! Murder follows those people like a shadow - you could be the victim of the next case they solve. (It really should have been titled ‘Murder, She Caused’) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820.md?page=9) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-learned-from-watching-tv-cop-shows/983820.md?page=11)