Here's my experience with cops.

The overwhelming majority of the experience of any beat cop is boredom. The daily grind involves very little that really requires them to be cops. Nonetheless, "keeping the peace" is much more interesting than "watching the odometer tick over" and hey - that's the job.

Some cops take this opportunity to interact with people. Build rapport. Keep an eye on things while reminding you that the law is your friend. We had a guy in my town who went by Johnny Law. He pulled my buddy over once. No surprise; my buddy was driving a lifted Land Cruiser with 33" mud tires and was having fun driving on the sidewalk. Johnny Law asked my buddy why he was driving on the sidewalk; my buddy foolishly explained that with the new tires, the truck was hard to control.

Now - rather than issue my buddy a citation for driving a vehicle he couldn't keep off the damn sidewalk, Johnny Law gave him a look askance and advised him to try harder. Six months later, when Johnny Law arrived on the scene of the citation of my sister and two of my friends for starting a bonfire inside a piece of play equipment at the park, he advised the officer on the scene (Corcoran - or "Cock Ring" - we'll get back to him) that there would be lots of paperwork involved in hauling three minors down to the station for starting what was clearly a completely controlled burn inside a cement pipe in half an acre of sand and that since they would both be doing that paperwork.... hint hint...

Cock ring gave me a dirty look when I came to pick up my sister... and my two friends... from the police station ("taken into custody" is not the same thing as "arrested" - I think the "paperwork" angle finally worked) because one of Cock ring's favorite pastimes was following me around.

All night.

And into the morning.

Fucker once tailed me for seven hours, with five of my friends in the van, just waiting for me to give him a reason to pull me over and search the van. I never gave him one.

Cock ring also wanted to "keep the peace." His method of interaction was different than Johnny Law's, however, and a lot more of a pain in the ass. Just passing the time for the 99% of the time that the job is pure boredom. It's that other 1% where things get interesting.

I have no doubts whatsoever that I would have been shot dead had either of them feared for their lives, and no doubts whatsoever that had I flashed any attitude I would have spent the night in jail (a judge threatened me with that once for observing that "I'm sure it's in here somewhere" is not proper legal procedure when citing someone for a non-existent moving violation). The thing that makes cops cops is their handling of that transition between "sheer boredom" and "sheer terror." Not all cops are good at it. Just ask Oscar Grant. It is in your best interest to keep your interactions well clear of that transition at all times and in all places.

Trust me. You'll know when it's in your best interest to shut the fuck up. Even when I had two LAPD damn near break down my door to accuse me of domestic violence at 2am, I had full understanding of the necessity of open dialogue.