First Run-in With Police

[coplinb]

Haha, that story made my day tiny. Thank you.

[twoapplesplease]

I had to once explain my hookah to an F.B.I. agent after the party I was at got raided by a s.w.a.t. team.Trust me nothing kills a smoke session like a dude in riot gear and body armor pointing an M-16 in your face.
this was some 12 years ago when hookah smoking was less well known about.

[ahwahoo2006]

I brought my QT with me for tailgating the OAR concert I went to last weekend. The parking lot was crawling with regular and undercover cops busting all the underage drinkers, but not a single one said anything to me. I was a little sad.

[camelflage]

keep it civil...

[combs08]

Haha I'm loving all of these stories! Keep 'em coming!

[delSol_si]

Last warning guys, I hit the ban button on someone for NHT, but decided to back off this time. I delete the post and I am just going to send him a warning instead. Seriously, next person gets the ban and the topic gets closed, with mushs approval of course.

[HookDonHookah]

I had to once explain my hookah to an F.B.I. agent after the party I was at got raided by a s.w.a.t. team.Trust me nothing kills a smoke session like a dude in riot gear and body armor pointing an M-16 in your face.
this was some 12 years ago when hookah smoking was less well known about.

I didn't follow the rules so I will be gone for 7 days. Edited August 13, 2009 by delSol_si
NHT reference

[mushrat]

This is why we introduced NH and NHT, for conversations like this one. If you use those terms in this context you will be safe. If not, the vacations will continue. Also, keep it on topic and CIVIL.

That is all.

[liquidglass]

Fair enough mods, apologies if it wasn't civil on my end. Wanna stay in the game gotta play by the rules.

In my experience thankfully cops have been understanding, got a few of em to take hits lol. Some needed to smell the bowl, but never had big problems.

[Majid]

NHT is not illegal here so that shouldn't cause cops to bother me. Had 2 guys hurl racial abuse at me and threaten to throw me in jail for three months though. I'm not quick to anger though so i just shrugged it off. Guy i was with was pissed for about 800 days.

[liquidglass]

NHT is not illegal here so that shouldn't cause cops to bother me. Had 2 guys hurl racial abuse at me and threaten to throw me in jail for three months though. I'm not quick to anger though so i just shrugged it off. Guy i was with was pissed for about 800 days.

Your people hold grudges a long time, no?

[r1v3th3ad]

tonight

setup: MZ Nefertiti B, small tangiers bowl, last of my tangiers brambleberry, 3Ks coals

I went out to a bar with my buddy who I havent seen in a good 4month...he was my best friend in highschool, but I discontinued the continual contact due to his drug issues.

I asked the bar tender that since cigs are allowed, is pipe tobacco allowed? Her answer was yes. So I said "so it'd be cool if I bring in my hookah?" and she said yes.
I went to get my hookah and my buddy left.
I started to set up my hookah and the off duty cop working security said "you know those are illegal in PA?" "I said "no theyre not, its a hookah"...he shrugged and moved on.(Thought it was a NH)
A few people came over, took pictures and puffed a little.
Then the one kid comes over and says "just to warn ya, Brentwood cops rolled up and are coming"...I said I'm not doing anything wrong and this should be entertaining.
Two cops walk up to me..."pretty cool device you got there"
ME: Good evening officers, how are you tonight? This is a hookah, wanna try?
Them: Whats goin on here?
Me: Just smoking my hookah...I asked the bartender and she said its cool. If you wanna check the bowl, I'll take the coals off for you, its no trouble.
Them: No its fine, we just got a call from the owner, he didn't know if its legal or not...you're not smoking nht are you?
Me: Hell no
Them: You understand we just had to respond to the concerned call then?
Me: Ya, its no problem at all...you wanna try, its a raspberry/blackberry blend?
Them: (both)No thanks, never smoked a day in my life
Them: Whats that in the jar?
Me: O thats the shisha, its the tobacco.
they open the jar and look and smell
Them: this looks disgusting but smells amazing
Me: its tobacco blended with molasses, are you sure I cant pursuad you into trying it?
Them: No, we're sure...hey, you be careful walking out of here with that
Me: Will do, you guys have a great night and be safe...I appreciate what you do for the community.

Then, the bar owner walks over and start appologizing and explaining himself...I tell him to not bother and that I fully understand. He told me I'm welcome to set up anytime I want.

I ended up having a mini panic attack when the cops first showed up(I have an anxiety disorder) and a semi-bad one after they left so I wrapped up about a half hour later or so and took off.
It was pretty cool. Now I have a bar to smoke at and a neighborhood that I wont have any problems in.

it was kinda funny that after the cops left, the security cop started taking pics with his I-Phone

[Zinite]

tonight

setup: MZ Nefertiti B, small tangiers bowl, last of my tangiers brambleberry, 3Ks coals

I went out to a bar with my buddy who I havent seen in a good 4month...he was my best friend in highschool, but I discontinued the continual contact due to his drug issues.

I asked the bar tender that since cigs are allowed, is pipe tobacco allowed? Her answer was yes. So I said "so it'd be cool if I bring in my hookah?" and she said yes.
I went to get my hookah and my buddy left.
I started to set up my hookah and the off duty cop working security said "you know those are illegal in PA?" "I said "no theyre not, its a hookah"...he shrugged and moved on.(Thought it was a NH)
A few people came over, took pictures and puffed a little.
Then the one kid comes over and says "just to warn ya, Brentwood cops rolled up and are coming"...I said I'm not doing anything wrong and this should be entertaining.
Two cops walk up to me..."pretty cool device you got there"
ME: Good evening officers, how are you tonight? This is a hookah, wanna try?
Them: Whats goin on here?
Me: Just smoking my hookah...I asked the bartender and she said its cool. If you wanna check the bowl, I'll take the coals off for you, its no trouble.
Them: No its fine, we just got a call from the owner, he didn't know if its legal or not...you're not smoking nht are you?
Me: Hell no
Them: You understand we just had to respond to the concerned call then?
Me: Ya, its no problem at all...you wanna try, its a raspberry/blackberry blend?
Them: (both)No thanks, never smoked a day in my life
Them: Whats that in the jar?
Me: O thats the shisha, its the tobacco.
they open the jar and look and smell
Them: this looks disgusting but smells amazing
Me: its tobacco blended with molasses, are you sure I cant pursuad you into trying it?
Them: No, we're sure...hey, you be careful walking out of here with that
Me: Will do, you guys have a great night and be safe...I appreciate what you do for the community.

Then, the bar owner walks over and start appologizing and explaining himself...I tell him to not bother and that I fully understand. He told me I'm welcome to set up anytime I want.

I ended up having a mini panic attack when the cops first showed up(I have an anxiety disorder) and a semi-bad one after they left so I wrapped up about a half hour later or so and took off.
It was pretty cool. Now I have a bar to smoke at and a neighborhood that I wont have any problems in.

it was kinda funny that after the cops left, the security cop started taking pics with his I-Phone

You handled that pretty well man. I read stories about cops abusing their power almost every day... it's nice to see that some are level headed enough to ask questions first.

[Amn_sinclair]

I've never had any bad run ins with cops, but being in th air force and being an air force cop myself there is usually no problems. There have been times though that ill take the hookah from my house to the dorms and smoke and the night cops that work opposite days from so dont know me will roll by and see us all out there smoking from something and they always have to come look. i find it entertaining that they even bother to come investigate. They need to use their heads a little more if u ask me. But either way i can usually get them to sit out there and smoke with us for about ten minutes or so. For the most part i have everyone in the dorms wanting hookas but that is a no no so they always wanna come over to my house and smoke

[hookah hippie]

I had to once explain my hookah to an F.B.I. agent after the party I was at got raided by a s.w.a.t. team.Trust me nothing kills a smoke session like a dude in riot gear and body armor pointing an M-16 in your face.
this was some 12 years ago when hookah smoking was less well known about.

Thats intense my friend

I haven't had a run in with cops of hookah for years now last time was when I was smoking near my dorm room when I was a freshman and he really was talking to me because I think he was bored.

I was one of the first people to move in and I was smoking outside at around 2 AM

Nice guy

[Red_Pyramid]

tonight

setup: MZ Nefertiti B, small tangiers bowl, last of my tangiers brambleberry, 3Ks coals

I went out to a bar with my buddy who I havent seen in a good 4month...he was my best friend in highschool, but I discontinued the continual contact due to his drug issues.

I asked the bar tender that since cigs are allowed, is pipe tobacco allowed? Her answer was yes. So I said "so it'd be cool if I bring in my hookah?" and she said yes.
I went to get my hookah and my buddy left.
I started to set up my hookah and the off duty cop working security said "you know those are illegal in PA?" "I said "no theyre not, its a hookah"...he shrugged and moved on.(Thought it was a NH)
A few people came over, took pictures and puffed a little.
Then the one kid comes over and says "just to warn ya, Brentwood cops rolled up and are coming"...I said I'm not doing anything wrong and this should be entertaining.
Two cops walk up to me..."pretty cool device you got there"
ME: Good evening officers, how are you tonight? This is a hookah, wanna try?
Them: Whats goin on here?
Me: Just smoking my hookah...I asked the bartender and she said its cool. If you wanna check the bowl, I'll take the coals off for you, its no trouble.
Them: No its fine, we just got a call from the owner, he didn't know if its legal or not...you're not smoking nht are you?
Me: Hell no
Them: You understand we just had to respond to the concerned call then?
Me: Ya, its no problem at all...you wanna try, its a raspberry/blackberry blend?
Them: (both)No thanks, never smoked a day in my life
Them: Whats that in the jar?
Me: O thats the shisha, its the tobacco.
they open the jar and look and smell
Them: this looks disgusting but smells amazing
Me: its tobacco blended with molasses, are you sure I cant pursuad you into trying it?
Them: No, we're sure...hey, you be careful walking out of here with that
Me: Will do, you guys have a great night and be safe...I appreciate what you do for the community.

Then, the bar owner walks over and start appologizing and explaining himself...I tell him to not bother and that I fully understand. He told me I'm welcome to set up anytime I want.

I ended up having a mini panic attack when the cops first showed up(I have an anxiety disorder) and a semi-bad one after they left so I wrapped up about a half hour later or so and took off.
It was pretty cool. Now I have a bar to smoke at and a neighborhood that I wont have any problems in.

it was kinda funny that after the cops left, the security cop started taking pics with his I-Phone

I tried that before, though with me loosing out. Thought I'd bring it one night to my usual weekend bar, so I called up to make sure it was okay and told them that I wasn't smoking anything illegal (a buddy of mine works there and knows I smoke the hookah). They gave me the green light and everything was fine that first night, no complaint or hassle. However, come the second night I set up there, the owner came up and told me I couldn't smoke it in the establishment anymore. I found out latter that an off duty cop came up to him and told him that I was making a big production out of my NHT. I tried asking the bar behind them if they would allow me to smoke there and I came to find that hookahs aren't really permitted in Myrtle Beach. The hookah is considered paraphernalia that comes with a chargeable offense and any establishment that wants to be a hookah type bar has to have a special permit. It bothers me I can't enjoy it casually outside me or my friend's places, but at least I can still smoke it... Edited August 17, 2009 by delSol_si
NHT

[srawas89]

Damn that sucks...You really should send a letter or something to an official to let them know that it isnt paraphernalia. I know its easy to get that kind of stuff reversed on a college campus but it will probably be harder to get that overturned in a county/locality. Anyway if you have the time I say it would be worth it because especially near a beach it would be nice to smoke watching the sun set or on a nice day at the beach.

[hartwell778]

Hookahs are actually banned at the college I am attending for this reason, but I figure I will just bust it out anyway and see what happens

[delSol_si]

Hookahs are actually banned at the college I am attending for this reason, but I figure I will just bust it out anyway and see what happens

Come over to SEMO and smoke with me then.

[srawas89]

Hookahs are actually banned at the college I am attending for this reason, but I figure I will just bust it out anyway and see what happens

I would def. not do that since they will most likely confiscate your hookah. What you should do though is write a letter to the dean (or whoever makes the rules) explaining hookah and how it should not be misconstrued as an NHT device. Make sure you throw in some things about the culture behind smoking the hookah and that its intended purpose is for Tobacco only. This will only work tho if smoking is allowed on campus. Did that here at Xavier University and hookahs were allowed the very next year. Trust me if you make it sound like they are being discriminatory they will un-ban hookahs faster than it takes to light a 3kings coal lol.

[redjako]

Surprised any bar would let you bring it in, just for the coals and space your taking up.

[Arcane]

Surprised any bar would let you bring it in, just for the coals and space your taking up.

if i was a bar owner, i wouldn't mind it...just as long as they buy drinks or something. think about it, your regular customer will walk into your bar, hang out for a few...maybe get a couple drinks and then bounce.

mr. hookah asks to set up and you agree as long as they buy drinks...mr. hookah agrees and sits for 2-3 hours. maybe buying 6 drinks...or 12-15 in my case. all the while, you may get people walking by and become interested in some guy with storm clouds coming out of their face. this may draw in more business, so more money for mr. bar owner.

tada!

[chris.mallia]

Luckily I haven't run in police just yet (only had my personal hookah since last May). I mainly smoke at our lovely Maltese beaches while having a BBQ, it's quite a nice experience for us to gather round my hobo, have a chat and watch the sun setting. LOL and eating great food from the BBQ ^^

I get occasional stares from the people there though, frequent questions and a few try smoking it too.

[dakur001]

Hookahs are actually banned at the college I am attending for this reason, but I figure I will just bust it out anyway and see what happens

I would def. not do that since they will most likely confiscate your hookah. What you should do though is write a letter to the dean (or whoever makes the rules) explaining hookah and how it should not be misconstrued as an NHT device. Make sure you throw in some things about the culture behind smoking the hookah and that its intended purpose is for Tobacco only. This will only work tho if smoking is allowed on campus. Did that here at Xavier University and hookahs were allowed the very next year. Trust me if you make it sound like they are being discriminatory they will un-ban hookahs faster than it takes to light a 3kings coal lol.

I agree 100%. My college used to have a no-hookahs policy, and a kid took this same angle mentioned by srawas89 and the rule was revised. If you just smoke hookah and wait to see how they react, you'll only be reinforcing whatever misconceptions they already hold; it might be a stupid rule, but it's still a rule and by breaking it you may be giving them more ammunition against hookahs. Don't give them that, instead just explain why the rule should be changed in a thoughtful and well-supported manner.

[gunsboy]

Cops never really bother me, I have had one cop actually remove the foil and inspect the bowl. I have had several run ins with people around here. They see hookah and they assume the worst. They try to take matter in their own hand and boom a situation is on my hand. I have two options, just stick around and have many half drunk people get riled up and hope this does not get violent or just try to briefly explain and then just leave with my hookah safe and sound.

I have taken option 1 which almost lead to an ugly situation. I will use my hookah stem as a weapon to defend myself .

hehehehe. But I really hate it when idiots try to become cops while they have no brain in head.