The woman who wrote this observed a lot of it in Philadelphia, my closest actual "city," and so in some sort of way still "my home."
Philadelphia is a sad and filthy and angry place. It has good things too.
- In running from each other, from their girlfriends, and in a few cases their mothers, Reggie and his friends learned how to navigate the alleyways, weave through traffic, and identify local residents willing to hide them for a little while.
This reminds me of when I was in college and not able to stay at my parents during unenrolled periods (like summer). I began to keep a running list of houses I could crash at, monitoring houses I had recently crashed at to make sure I didn't overstay. I developed contacts (in at least one case FWB) and filed them away knowing they would be able to help me (or not) if I needed somewhere to crash. It's helpful to know these things - though of course, don't develop friends just so you have a place to crash...though also of course, only those with the ability to not worry about such things would say such things - when you are facing the street for a night I think most people will try and find a "friend" instead. And TO BE CLEAR I liked the FWB too; the ability to crash at his place was just a big benefit. A big "pro" in the column.
They're doing it wrong. If they are wrongfully arrested, they can sue. Lawyers work on contingency basis. A night in jail is worth about $10k.
Of the 41 cases she witnessed....
Those who interact rarely with the police may assume that running away after a police stop is futile. Worse, it could lead to increased charges or to violence. While the second part is true, the first is not.
In 24 of these cases, the man got away. In 17 of the 24, the police didn’t appear to know who the man was and couldn’t bring any charges against him after he had fled. Even in cases where the police subsequently charged him with fleeing or other crimes, the successful getaway allowed the man to stay out of jail longer than he might have if he’d simply permitted the police to cuff him and take him in.