The latest incident of a police shooting in a local neighborhood caused Robert to reflect on his teenage years and dealing with local police. Robert and a small group of six or seven friends would almost daily and nightly hang out in front of Al's candy store. We would often pitch pennies against the wall, play cards, shoot crap, or just shoot the breeze. Al didn't mind us hanging there as long as we didn't block the front door and interfere with customers. And we were among of his best customers when it came to Squirrel Nuts, Jawbreakers, and Ice Pops. Al also knew that he was never in danger of a stick up as long as we were in front.
We rarely saw the cop on the beat but on occasion a squad car would pull up to the curb and one or two cops would approach to see what we were doing. We knew the drill. You answered all questions as best you could. No wise cracks and no mouthing off, because that could result in getting smacked around. You emptied your pockets and said as little as possible. We all considered this normal police practice that was no big deal. We also knew that any resistance or mouthing off could put you in the squad car with a trip to the precinct where you might be charged, or they might only try to throw a scare into you. If you were lucky, your main problem was walking back from the precinct to your neighborhood.
The big difference between then and now is that we were young kids (14-15 year olds). Men, young or old, did not hang out on street corners. They were in store-front men's clubs, or in local bars. If you stayed off the street you stayed away from police.
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