Seedy Hotel--knock on the door at five AM

[Keith]

If a cop gets a report of "Some guy knocking on a door and asking for Dave...", I don't think he'll drop his donut and race over there with the siren on! No crime has been committed, so maybe he'll drive through the area if nothing else is going on... but probably not. Cops should be called after crimes occur, or when you see an actual crime about to go down

To the person in the room however, it's certainly a suspicious and alarming incident and it would be smart to ratchet up your awareness to high orange, or whatever.

If the guy comes back and kicks down the door, then you can call the cop to come take a report and make those little chalk lines around the body.

Keith

 

[abaddon]

I would call, if only because if something happens later in the night with the guy you're on record as calling. It could go a long ways towards proving to the jury that you "feared for your life" if you should have to shoot the guy later in the night (maybe he comes back with some friends after "Dave" wouldn't let him in.)

Jeff

 

[AZLibertarian]

I stay in a lot of hotels all over the country, although most of the time, not the seedy ones. If I felt the need to call someone, I'd call the cops as well as the front desk. Not every hotel staff wants to have the police called to their business...it makes the other guests feel like the place might not be exactly safe (which is why you posted this in the first place). The best a hotel will do is to send up their "Security" guy, who, for all you know is on parole for something.

Unless I thought my name might turn up in some search of outstanding warrants, I wouldn't think twice to call the police. I wouldn't volunteer that I was armed, but I would have called them if I'd been in your place. The advice about establishing a police paper trail regarding this BG, if he should later return and you end up having to shoot him, seems to be well founded.

 

[Cosmoline]

Part of the problem here is how I was raised. I have never called the police, just like I've never sued anyone. These are things I would never consider doing. To my knowledge, no member of my family has ever done either. We settle disputes ourselves.

However, the point about a paper trail is well taken. I'm just not sure it's in me to complain to the authority figures about anything. I don't like them, and I would prefer never to speak with them.

 

[Scout.308]

Not to flame you too hard, Cosmo, but I guess the way I was raised, we identified more with our community and our police force than with the bad guys.

I always figured that the police are hired primarily to protect my community, particularly those less able than me to protect themselves. If a nutcase is wandering around looking for trouble, he may find it with someone's mother or sister or grandfather. If he comes for me, I'll handle it. If he's looking, I'd rather he find it with a sworn officer than with an innocent. Most LEOs feel the same way, at least the ones I've known.

I live my life so that I'm not afraid to talk to police. Given that, I would also never give them personal information they have no need of, or right to, like whether I'm armed while minding my own business in my motel room. Bad (or at least stupid) guys pounding on stranger's doors, they should know about, for the sake of the community. At the very least, cops busy with people more dangerous than me are too busy to worry about whether my seat belt is on or whether I'm 3mph over the limit.