Are off-duty law enforcers obligated to act?

Question

Let's say I befriend a law enforcement official, and during some off-duty time the two of us go clubbing. And during that off-duty time, s/he sees a fight break out or notices somebody smoking pot or whatever. Is s/he obligated to act, and if so, how? Is s/he required to step in on the situation, like paramedics are required to stop and render aid, even when not on duty? Is s/he merely required to report the incident via phone so a co-worker can handle it? In the case of a fight, is s/he allowed to just blow it off as drunk people getting stupid? (I don't expect s/he would be allowed to just "blow off" possession of an illegal substance.)

Answers based off direct personal experience (from either end! ;) are preferred, but anything reasonably intelligent is welcome.

Answer 1

I went through the police academy, and we were told at that time that officers were indeed obligated to enforce the law, even off-duty.

Legally, there is a little-used law in most states that allow ordinary citizens to also enforce laws that they see broken. But they are not obligated to do so.

Answer 2

1

Answer 3

If paramedics are off duty, they are not required to stop and render aid. If they choose to do so, they can only render care up to the EMT-Basic level; they can't do any of the paramedic stuff unless they are "on the clock". Volunteer paramedics are only required to respond when they are officially volunteering.
I don't know about police officers. Personally, I think that they would rather ignore the offence (if it was minor) or put in a call to a coworker to keep an eye on a certain address, etc. It would be a really big pain if you had to stop and be a cop during social situations. I'd imagine that if they witnessed an assault or something serious, they'd be required to act.
Hope this helps!

Answer 4

Like most questions on law and politics, the answer may be different in different states.

My father was a cop all his life. State law there required a police officer to be on duty 24 hours a day. They were required to carry a handgun with them at all times off duty.

So if an off-duty police officer saw a crime committed, he is legally obligated to take action. Almost universally, this absolute requirement is not taken literally. Once my wife and I took my parents to a Billy Eckstein (his favorite singer) concert. There was a whole lot of weed floating around. My dad did not try to take any action though, technically, he was supposed to.

Off-duty cops can be very dangerous at times carrying their handguns 24 hours a day. Next time you walk into a bar or lounge you have never been in before, take a quick look at the ceiling over the bar. I few bullet holes in the ceiling is a dead giveaway that this is a cop hangout where they do a little handgun trickery with a wee too much Jack Daniels in their system.

Answer 5

Referencing the police manual for a very large California police department on the subject of off-duty enforcement, the policy is that officers should refrain from taking any on-view enforcement actions while off duty, but to call (just as a private citizen would) for on duty police to handle the task. The off duty officer is encouraged to be no more than a witness - preferably a very good witness, not the first responder. Exceptions can be very serious, life threatening offenses, where failure to act may result in someone's serious injury or death.

In the scenario you describe (fight) it would also be against the policy of many departments to send only one officer to a violent crime. So there's an inherent danger for your off-duty officer to attempt a solo action. It doesn't make good sense.

A less tenured off duty officer may well go to the phone, call for on duty officers, point out the offender when the officers arrive and assist in the arrest, and be a good witness.

A veteran officer may do the opposite. He/she may have had their fill of seeing pot, smelling pot, and everything that goes with it, and is already occupationally educated to know they can't save the world or protect the world (as they originally imaged as a recruit) and decide that they'd also like a private life and not get involved in things that aren't life threatening. So he wont call and will have a nice dinner, drinks, and go home on schedule with his wife or girlfriend.

You may get other opinions from people associated with other departments that have different polices, and from officers who have a different individual perspective. Mine is based on one agency and knowledge of other similar Calif. agencies.

Answer 6

If you and your friend have been out "clubbing", the most he/she should do is make a call. Your friend should not even be armed if he/she is clubbing and under the influence of alcohol. Your friend would end up in far more trouble if he/she were pushed into a situation that ended up requiring them to use any force beyond voice commands than the person in possession of an illegal substance or just being drunk and dumb. So, as far as taking action, non is advised unless friend has not been drinking. Play like a civilian if it is not a life threatening situation under those conditions.

Answer 7

"Are off-duty law enforcers obligated to act?"

The quick answer to this question-- despite many answers to the contrary-- is "No."

Of course, this is one of those issues that has a lot of answers because laws concerning law enforcement officers differ not only from state to state but also from municipality to municipality and policies may even differ from department to department.

However, generally speaking, police officers do not have a legal, affirmative duty to do anything about the vast majority of unlawful activities about which they may become apprised. While they may be sworn to uphold the laws in their jurisdiction, law enforcement officers have the discretion (consistent with department policy) to decide in which instances they will assert their authority.

There are some notable exceptions. Police officers are often "mandatory reporters" for child abuse or neglect. And domestic violence laws may force certain arrests and actions on the part of law enforcement officers witnessing certain acts.

But off-duty officers are not "on the job" and therefore are, generally, not expected to be working. Some departments even discourage off-duty officers from getting involved in all but the most serious threats to public safety.

Would it be prudent for an off-duty police officer to attempt a traffic stop in his personal automobile? Probably not. Again, some departments even specifically prohibit it. We can say with certainty then, that off-duty law enforcers are not always obligated to act in the face of unlawful activities.

[This is not legal advice. You should consult a licensed attorney-at-law for legal advice and representation before making decisions that may affect your legal rights.]

Answer 8

they are suppose to do what they can. within safe means, if they are not in uniform and in a loud dark night club or bar it will be tough to identify themselves as a police oficer, they woudl not have immediate back up or a gun, cuffs etc, as for drugs if someone has a joint they coudl do somethign about, but it depends on the situation, half the nightclubs you go to have a lot of people with drugs, the same way half the people who leave a bar are considered a dui, but police do not sit right outside the bars.
so with all that the answer would be a cop is always on duty, however you normal only intervine if it is a felony, or a life is in danger

Answer 9

Several factors, if they are in thier jurisdiction or not.

But many departments will have specific rules on that.

In general if it is a minor issue, pot smoking ( sorry that is minor to most) shop lifting and so on, they may call it to the attention of security but besides that they just live thier lifes.

If someone is getting hurt or harmed and someone may be in seroius trouble, yes they normally have a obligation to take action.

Funny thing, my biggest arrests were off duty, just walked up on something.

Answer 10

law enforcement officers swear an oath to the office. I would assume that any officer would feel it was their duty to step in.

Now having said that.....would everyone of them feel the need to stop someone from smoking pot or doing a minor crime??? I don't think so.....but if they witnessed a robbery or fight or murder...They probably would.