Kehaar over at Silflay linked up this harrowing account of one man's first-hand experience of a raid conducted under the auspices of the USA PATRIOT act.

Some of it I understand. Police use intimidation and certain forms and procedures that are undignified but have proven effective in allowing them to control a situation in a way that nobody gets hurt. What I find inexcusable is the lack of professionalism exhibited by the police in this situation. You're there to do a job, not get your jollies by preaching, lying, or browbeating people into seeing it "your way." The main things, perhaps the only things, that distinguish a cop from a thug with a gun is their training and their professionalism. These were thugs, pure and simple.

Ok, so I'm not a cop, and have never been a cop. What I know about policing comes from a few criminology classes in college, a handful of books, and a lifetime watching Cops and various court- and crime-related TV documentaries. With that said, I would recommend if you are ever in a similar situation with unprofessional members of law enforcement:

• Ask firmly and politely for what you believe is due to you under your rights, once. A lawyer, a phone call, a walk out the door, etc. If you're refused and are in a public place with a lot of other people around, ask as many times as you like. If not, sit down and shut up. The rest will go much faster if you do, and there's a far smaller chance of you antagonizing one of the bad ones into taking you somewhere for a "private interrogation" (it does happen, and it is very, very bad.)
• If you see name tags and badge numbers on the unprofessional cops, start memorizing them. If they're hidden ask (again, politely) to see some identification. Don't write anything down if you can manage it until you're far away. Again, we're trying not to antagonize people with guns who have a decent chance of shooting you and getting away with it.
• Once the dust settles, take your knowledge of badge numbers, names, dates, and times, and go file a formal complaint against the officer(s) that you feel treated you unprofessionally. State only what happened. DO NOT LIE. In many jurisdictions, simply filing such a thing will seriously impede their career, enough that officers appear to frequently file for damages in small claims court in an attempt to intimidate you into retraction. This may happen to you, but by keeping your statements as factual as possible and clearly marking your opinions as your opinions, they will lose.
• Keep the cats and dogs inside, your nose clean, and drive 5 mph under the speed limit until it all gets resolved. You do not want to give a bad cop's buddies a free shot at you or your loved ones.

Now, some of you may think this is a jab at police in general. Not so. My own opinion is that most cops really are trying to do the best job they can. However, there are always going to be troublemakers and unlike most professions a troublemaking cop has a gun.

Others may think this is all straightforward common sense, and that is true. However, as most cops will testify, there are some amazingly unreasonable and pigheaded people out there who think nothing of shouting insults, loudly proclaiming their innocence, and telling cops exactly what the cop can and cannot do. It's these people I'm trying to reach.

Power flows from the end of a gun, and at that particular time and in that particular place, the cop has a gun and (hopefully) you don't. Act accordingly and you will go far. Act like an idiot at your peril.