# What do cops call us? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 21, 2003, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409 "2003-11-21T00:57:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2003, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/1 "2003-11-21T00:57:01Z")
There’s a thread about people calling police [“cops”](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?postid=4255367), and I got to wondering. What do cops call us non-cop folks? Some I’ve heard are “perp” (even if you didn’t do anything), Joe Citizen, civilian, hink??? and some others I don’t remember. No need to be gentle. Peace, mangeorge ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2003, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/2 "2003-11-21T01:15:23Z")
suspects ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2003, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/3 "2003-11-21T01:37:44Z")
“skells” ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2003, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/4 "2003-11-21T01:59:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Dooku \* > \*\*“skells” \*\* Really? ---
**Author:** ![adirondack\_mike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b5a626/32.png) [@adirondack\_mike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adirondack_mike)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2003, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/5 "2003-11-21T02:30:36Z")
From military experience I would guess “civilians.” ---
**Author:** ![Ruby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/13edae/32.png) [@Ruby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruby)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2003, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/6 "2003-11-21T02:44:27Z")
My experience in talking with friends in law enforcement, most of the names I can’t repeat in mixed company. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2003, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/7 "2003-11-21T02:59:50Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by mangeorge \* > \*\*Really? \*\* According to every episode of _NYPD Blue_ I’ve ever seen. 🙂 Googling skells +cops seems to back it up… ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2003, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/8 "2003-11-21T03:11:49Z")
Working with a lot of cops at one of my jobs: Residents of the jurisdiction where they partolled: **residents** Others who weren’t law enforcement officials: **civilians** Criminal-types, repeat offender residents not in custody: **skells** Residents of the adjacent town: **whisky tango** ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2003, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/9 "2003-11-21T04:32:32Z")
Geeze. None of this sounds particularly _mean_. C’mon, **Ruby** , out with the dirt. I’ll start, Original SNL style; “Pigs” ---
**Author:** ![Cub\_Mistress](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea666f/32.png) [@Cub\_Mistress](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cub_Mistress)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2003, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/10 "2003-11-22T20:04:14Z")
For ordinary citizens I’ve heard: Sheep Sheeple K-Mart Shoppers Dickheads (when they are annoying you by telling you a story that ends with “can a cop do that?”, usually involving some sort of White Trash Lawn Theater they were involved in; but, I digress.) Civilians or citizen is usually used when non-cops can hear you. Public relations are big in law enforcement. Teens are sometimes call “tots.” For actual criminals, the most common I’ve heard is scrotes, which is short for “scrotums.” I never heard skell until NYPD Blue, but NY is different in a lot of their nomenclature. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2003, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/11 "2003-11-22T21:04:58Z")
There was a comment that somebody made on the boards in times gone by about how police refere to the general public. He said that it is becoming more common for police to refer to people as civilians, but that is probabaly a bad thing. Cops are civilians also, that is why they are civil servants. By taking themselves out of the civilian context they are promoting an us against them attitude that probably has been fostered for too long. I’ll see if I can find the thread. ---
**Author:** ![ccwaterback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@ccwaterback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ccwaterback)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2003, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/12 "2003-11-22T21:16:29Z")
Unrelated, but kinda funny. In Key West, FL there is a big yacht race. When the yacht people are there, the locals refer to them as “snotty yachties”. They, in turn, refer to the locals as “dope heads on mopeds”. ;j ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2003, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/13 "2003-11-22T21:26:29Z")
Civvies? ---
**Author:** ![wnorthr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ecccb3/32.png) [@wnorthr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wnorthr)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/14 "2003-11-23T01:40:22Z")
Cub Mistress, thanks for the laugh. I never heard the phrase " White Trash Lawn Theater" before. Hilarious ---
**Author:** ![shea241](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@shea241](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shea241)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/15 "2003-11-23T03:27:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by adam yax \* > \*\*There was a comment that somebody made on the boards in times gone by about how police refere to the general public. He said that it is becoming more common for police to refer to people as civilians, but that is probabaly a bad thing. Cops are civilians also, that is why they are civil servants. By taking themselves out of the civilian context they are promoting an us against them attitude that probably has been fostered for too long. I’ll see if I can find the thread. \*\* In the Army Reserves we are taught that we serve the civilians. We are civilians on our own time . The term civilians has a much higher context in that civilians are a good group of people. We are also not taught that we are out of the civilian context rather that we are held more accountable for our own actions as we represent an orginazation. IMO the term civilians does not promote us against them. It may be diffrent elsewhere. ---
**Author:** ![doctordoowop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecc23a/32.png) [@doctordoowop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doctordoowop)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/16 "2003-11-23T03:41:12Z")
Listen to a police scanner- “male mental” comes to mind. In LA County " a 415 male" means often drunk, disturbing the peace, & usually in a fight. In private conversation asshole is a cop favorite ---
**Author:** ![stockton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5a626/32.png) [@stockton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stockton)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/17 "2003-11-23T04:13:45Z")
Perps. Suspects. Defendants. Depends on when you ask them. ---
**Author:** ![wolf\_meister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf_meister/32/15202_2.png) [@wolf\_meister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolf_meister)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/18 "2003-11-23T04:49:41Z")
**shea241** I wholeheartedly agree with that. I think the police referring to non-police as “civilians” is offensive and almost implies a “we’re better than they are” attitude. We put our life on the line everyday, blah, blah, blah… Also, their use of civilian implies a military context. Really ?? Far form it. If you don’t like the Police Chief, Commissioner, etc you literally could speak your mind to them. You might get fired but I think it would be a “tad” worse in the military. If a police officer gets assigned to a lousy district, if nothing else, he (or she) can always quit. Not so for someone in the military. There are other comparisons I could make but you get the idea. ---
**Author:** ![toque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9e8a1a/32.png) [@toque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toque)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/19 "2003-11-23T13:43:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by doctordoowop \* > \*\*Listen to a police scanner- “male mental” comes to mind. In LA County " a 415 male" means often drunk, disturbing the peace, & usually in a fight. In private conversation asshole is a cop favorite \*\* What does “415 Male” mean? Is that a dis on San Francisco (area code 415)? ---
**Author:** ![Cub\_Mistress](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea666f/32.png) [@Cub\_Mistress](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cub_Mistress)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409/20 "2003-11-23T14:14:52Z")
Wnorthr: Thanks, but it’s not original to me. I stole it and now use it liberally. Feel free to do the same, if you are so inclined.🙂 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-cops-call-us/214409.md?page=2)