Anyone know someone who has had off-duty cops pick a fight with him in a bar, then proceed to brawl with him and his wife?
Yep, but they didn't proceed to brawl with my wife--but they did with my partner, who was female.
A female agent and myself had been undercover for almost a year working outlaw motorcycle gangs--the one percenters. The female agent was "my old lady" and we'd been a team for quite a while.
One eveing, in a major U.S. city, we'd grown tired of hanging out at biker dives and wanted a decent, quiet bar to have a few drinks in. We're sitting at the bar, minding our own business when a couple of guys walk up and start making "long-hair" remarks, then "tattoo" remarks, and then finally, "biker trash commie hippie" remarks. The remarks kept getting cruder and cruder, and then the suggestion was made that they (the two guys) oughta kick our asses right here, right now.
We had no idea who they were. Clean cut, early to mid-30's white guys.
I turned around and looked at them and told them to "Eff off" and suggested they move on down the bar or find a booth or find another place to drink, and that it was in their best interest to leave us be.
The "leader" of the two turns to my partner and refers to her as the "c" word. I turn around and am getting ready to take these two boys to the floor and I'm met with two badges. The two guys finally ID'd themselves as officers (one was a sergeant) with the ------- Police Department.
My partner informs them that we haven't done a damn thing wrong, have not violated so much as an ordinance let alone a law so why don't they just move along and take their badges and show them to someone who might be impressed.
At that point, the second guy reached out and literally slapped my partner across the face. When she jumped up, reflexively, the leader took a swing at me and the fight was on.
My partner had kneed the second guy right in the crotch--and HARD. He was swearing and in between gagging, yelling at HIS partner to "Shoot these *******s! KILL THEM, G--DAMNIT!" And as bad cop number one reached for his gun, I stuck mine in his face and announced who WE were.
We had to have the bartender call the local FBI and U.S. Marshal's office to send out agents because we didn't (obviously) have any handcuffs or restraining devices on us and we had every intention of arresting these two yo-yo's.
Want to guess what happened to those cops?
No need to guess. They went to jail that afternoon. In the morning, they went in front of a U.S. Magistrate. That afternoon, they were being interviewed by their department's IAD boys and girls.
Both lost their jobs and both served almost a year of federal camp time. Both are convicted federal felons.
During my time at Quantico during basic academy and during subsequent undercover assignments, the civil affairs counsel at our USA's office repeatedly drilled into our heads that although we were cops, if we abused our discretionary authority even in the course of our (undercover) duties and were subsequently injured or killed as a result, the chances of the USA's office filing charges would be slim.
I worked with a lot of local cops during my years in the government. Without exception, every local cop I worked with told me that his/her department stressed the incredible duty and importance of proper and legal conduct
on and off-duty.
Many of these departments/agencies required that officers identify themselves as such when off-duty and responding/interceding in virtually ANY incident or instance.
I know the OP's question was hypothetical, but the results of following through on his question are very real and anything but hypothetical. In most instances, cops are ashamed and embarassed by dirty cops. And if a dirty cop is killed in a matter of self-defense by a righteous citizen, there isn't a whole lot of backlash against that citizen.
Good cops are just that--Good cops. They do not like the dishonest among them. They do not like the cops among them that are on the take or who do the "protection" rackets. They have disdain for the cops who coerce sexual favors in exchange for "tearing up the ticket."
I've arrested more than my fair share of dirty cops and rare was the occasion that once presented with the (normally overwhelming) evidence, their partners or other squad members would not stand by them and cooperate with us even BEYOND the call of normal duty.
The bottom line is that you have the right of self defense regardless of who may be threatening or attempting to injure you or end your life.
Jeff