The one and only time I phone police is after a car accident, and only because insurance claims require a police report to go anywhere. Even then, most cops fuck up the report or leave out important details, so it’s out of legal obligation and not actually wanting the service.

I’ve no idea why anyone would willingly call the police of their own accord. They will not help you. If you’ve been robbed, it’s already gone. If you’ve been stabbed or shot, you want an ambulance. If your spouse is abusing you, they’ll side with your spouse. Statistically speaking, U.S. cops do less than nothing for the communities they pretend to serve. It’s the equivalent of calling a motorcycle gang to solve your problems, except a motorcycle gang would probably be motivated to achieve better results.

Not a call, but while on vacation a few years ago my wife and I were rear-ended on a highway by a drunk driver. Our car spun around and off the highway before coming to a stop. The other car stopped in the middle of the 4-lane highway.

When our rental car came to a stop we learned that it had one of those OnStar types of things because we suddenly heard a voice asking if we were ok, etc. I was a bit panicked at that point and was having a terrible time trying to tell them where the accident occurred. I could hardly remember what city we were in, much less what highway we were on, or what exit we were near.

Luckily within a minute or two a state trooper on a regular patrol arrived on the scene. He was very professional in his handling of everything, and I feel like from the very start he could tell what happened. He had paramedics on scene in minutes to ensure we were ok, and spent a good 10 minutes interviewing the other driver. When he finally came to talk to me he mostly just asked if we were ok then told me the other driver was going to be arrested for DUI. He didn’t try to blame me for anything, etc.

Bottom line is that I was very glad he showed up as quickly as he had.

I distrust them they’ve tried to stitch me up and failed a few times now, I’d be more likely to talk to paramilitary groups if I needed real justice (I live in Belfast).

Maybe if I saw someone else being robbed or something I’d make an anonymous call and get out of the area but that’s about it.

I frequently call the police (2 to 4 times a year) and have the number saved for all my local cities.

Why?

Anytime you see something in the road that doesn’t belong there (chains, pieces of debris, a block of wood, trailer ramps, shredded tire) they will send someone to come move it. I’m my city this service is very reliable.

One of the most important videos I’ve ever watched:

https://youtu.be/d-7o9xYp7eE

I’ve called the police twice, once while walking home in the early hours, a car left the road and decided to try and run me over on a football field. Another time, after hours in a closed pub, people were trying to break in, throwing chairs at the windows and pepper spraying through the side door. Both times was equally pointless.

When I need a police report for the insurance.

In many jurisdictions you can just file a police report on a self-serve website. This avoids them showing up and shooting your dog and usually suffices for a claim.

I have no issues calling law enforcement. I actually have done so a few times in my life, for various reasons (reporting safety issues, traffic accidents, crime). And I feel quite safe with it, as I live in a civilized country, where the police is a very professional service of highly trained people, and not just some jerks who got hired because the knew how to hold a gun and then got a few weeks of (online) training on how to write tickets.

If I’m in a country where police mostly do what they’re supposed to do. I don’t live in the USA and I’ve called the cops for unclear and probably dangerous situations, traffic accidents, people sleeping at the bus stop when it’s too cold and they don’t respond to me yelling… So far everything turned out well. I mean I don’t call them for fun, though.

I had construction workers break into my business because they decided to work while I was closed. Called the police, they let them stay.

While walking in the bosque near the Rio Grande someone was shooting into the trees and nearly hit us. The cops’s solution was I should carry a gun and shoot back next time. This is within city limits. Same solution when I called them about hunters illegally hunting (both out of season, and within city limits).

There were meth heads squatting in the house next to my parents. They broke into the garage and stole multiple of my wife’s firearms. The sheriff’s deputies told us if the suspects turned up dead no one would really investigate it. They never investigated the theft, it took months to get a report, and even longer for the serial numbers to be entered into the database as missing.

While riding my bike a cop ran a red light and nearly hit me. He started to write me a ticket until he realized I was wearing a camera on my helmet. He told me to be more careful in the future and he was letting me off with a verbal warning.

It would likely take a dead body for me to call the police.

Think of it this way. You are in a courtroom and the lawyer asks 'why didn’t you call the police?"

If your home was burglarized and you don’t call the cops, the police will assume you’ve been doing something illegal. Most people will call the cops just to have a police report on file for the insurance or to claim a tax loss.

A traffic accident. Cops, as simple minded creatures of habit, fundamentally categorize calls into “I can shoot people” and “I probably can’t shoot people” events, and traffic accidents are usually the latter.

Plus my insurance requires it.

drunk drivers all day long

In my experience police have always been kind and helpful. Not everyone has the same experience I suppose.