History Main / NoPoliceOption

* ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'': In the classic story ''[[ComicBook/TheAmazingSpiderMan1963 Nothing Can Stop the Juggernaut!]]'', Spider-Man is the first to engage Comicbook/{{Juggernaut|MarvelComics}} because he happens to be in the area when the villain makes landfall (thanks to his psychic ally Madame Web warning him of an incoming threat). There simply wasn't time for Spidey to contact the police ([[HeroWithBadPublicity not that they'd listen to him anyway]]). The police later muster their forces to try to stop Juggernaut after Spidey fails and retreats [[SummonBiggerFish to find help]]. Despite the presence of their special anti-superhuman unit Code Blue, Juggernaut is unsurprisingly so far out of their league that he's barely slowed down. In the second part of the story, the police opt to only observe the Juggernaut as he makes his way to the Hudson River to leave since they recognize there's not really much they can do to stop him and are also focusing on rescue operations (including Madame Web, whose life support system was damaged by Juggernaut). A vengeful Spider-Man has other ideas and keeps going after Juggernaut to stop him from harming anyone else, [[SerialEscalation resorting]] [[GodzillaThreshold to tactics he'd never use]] against his own RoguesGallery because they'd be fatal. When Spidey finally manages to bring Juggernaut down by burying him alive in a construction site, the police are shown monitoring the site to make sure he's down for good.

'''Sheldon:''' You know, one who was drummed off the force because he refused to play by the rules and now hires himself out to impose his own brand of rough justice?\\

** It comes up for a final time in "The Last Death of Henry Morgan," when Adam's ''pugio'' dagger and possible ImmortalityBreaker resurfaces and Adam begins murdering his way towards reclaiming it. When Jo confiscates the ''pugio'' Henry fears so much for her safety that he connives to steal it from evidence and [[spoiler: return it to Adam rather than trying to kill him with it, much to Adam's disappointment]], putting both his and Lucas's jobs at risk and driving a large wedge between Henry and Detective Martinez.

* ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'': In the classic story ''[[ComicBook/TheAmazingSpiderMan1963 Nothing Can Stop the Juggernaut!]], Spider-Man is the first to engage Comicbook/{{Juggernaut|MarvelComics}} because he happens to be in the area when the villain makes landfall (thanks to his psychic ally Madame Web warning him of an incoming threat). There simply wasn't time for Spidey to contact the police ([[HeroWithBadPublicity not that they'd listen to him anyway]]). The police later muster their forces to try to stop Juggernaut after Spidey fails and retreats [[SummonBiggerFish to find help]]. Despite the presence of their special anti-superhuman unit Code Blue, Juggernaut is unsurprisingly so far out of their league that he's barely slowed down. In the second part of the story, the police opt to only observe the Juggernaut as he makes his way to the Hudson River to leave since they recognize there's not really much they can do to stop him and are also focusing on rescue operations (including Madame Web, whose life support system was damaged by Juggernaut). A vengeful Spider-Man has other ideas and keeps going after Juggernaut to stop him from harming anyone else, [[SerialEscalation resorting]] [[GodzillaThreshold to tactics he'd never use]] against his own RoguesGallery because they'd be fatal. When Spidey finally manages to bring Juggernaut down by burying him alive in a construction site, the police are shown monitoring the site to make sure he's down for good.

* ''Franchise/SpiderMan'': In the classic story "No One Stops the Comicbook/{{Juggernaut|MarvelComics}}!", Spider-Man is the first to engage Juggernaut because he happens to be in the area when the villain makes landfall (thanks to his psychic ally Madame Web warning him of an incoming threat). There simply wasn't time for Spidey to contact the police ([[HeroWithBadPublicity not that they'd listen to him anyway]]). The police later muster their forces to try to stop Juggernaut after Spidey fails and retreats [[SummonBiggerFish to find help]]. Despite the presence of their special anti-superhuman unit Code Blue, Juggernaut is unsurprisingly so far out of their league he's barely slowed down. In the second part of the story, the police opt to only observe the Juggernaut as he makes his way to the Hudson River to leave since they recognize there's not really much they can do to stop him and are also focusing on rescue operations (including Madame Web, whose life support system was damaged by Juggernaut). A vengeful Spider-Man has other ideas and keeps going after Juggernaut to stop him from harming anyone else, [[SerialEscalation resorting]] [[GodzillaThreshold to tactics he'd never use]] against his own RoguesGallery because they'd be fatal. When Spidey finally manages to bring Juggernaut down by burying him alive in a construction site, the police are shown monitoring the site to make sure he's down for good.

* ''LightNovel/{{Durarara}}'': Part of the reason Shizuo's never been arrested for his constant, massive property damage and brawls is that his typical victims are people with criminal dealings who can't go to the police without being arrested themselves.

[[PoliceAreUseless Sometimes the police can't help you]]. They are too caught up in paperwork, legal procedure, jurisdiction, and other things that it may be weeks or months before something gets rolling. It's not always their fault, as those same rules are theoretically what protects you from being unjustly harassed by the police.

So sometimes you just don't have the police option when things go bad. Maybe you have [[YouHave48Hours a strict time limit]], maybe the bad guys [[ComeAlone demand to leave the police out]], they may even be monitoring the police channels and will know something is up, maybe the [[VillainWithGoodPublicity bad guy is so squeaky clean]] the regular procedure can't touch him anyway. When that happens your only option is to find someone or a special group of people who operate on the grey side of the law.

If not a basic part of the premise where the heroes are the ones hired out, these guys tend to be fairly shady individuals who you don't want to become friends with.

The difference between this trope and PoliceAreUseless is that with that trope, the police can't help you either out of incompetence, disinterest or [[DirtyCop corruption]]. In this case, the police would leap into action immediately, but due process slows them down. JurisdictionFriction can sometimes be involved, since there are times that the reason police can't help is because of a division of duties (e.g. Homicide specifically handles the investigation of murders and the like, Vice deals with drug-related crimes, Missing Persons is ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin).

* ''Manga/HighschoolOfTheDead'''s anime adaptation has Saya specifically imply this when Kohta suggests they call the police. The fact that Takashi and Rei have already tried and failed twice to reach the police via Takashi's cell phone only makes Saya's comments on the matter more realistic than pessimistic in light of the zombie outbreak.

* ''Anime/MyHime'', In episode 2, Mai confronts Natsuki, who was partly responsible for sinking the cruise ship in episode 1. Mai threatens to go to the cops. Natsuki scoffs, telling her that there's nothing the police can do about the powers lurking in the shadows of their school. Mai quickly learns that she's right, though by that time they become FireForgedFriends.

* PlayedWith in ''Fanfic/TheKarmaOfLies''. While Adrien ''does'' go to the police to report Lila stealing from him, he proceeds to [[NotHelpingYourCase sabotage his own case]] in several critical ways. 1) He completely dismisses the concept of "due process", expecting them to give him ''top'' priority [[EntitledBastard because he's Adrien Agreste]], and to believe everything he says without conducting their own investigation. 2) His MoralMyopia means that he completely fails to see that there's anything strange or potentially suspicious about the fact that he knew Lila was a ConArtist, but [[AccompliceByInaction let her string along his classmates]] for ''months'' without saying a word, only acting now that she's stolen from ''HIM''. 3) He also fails to consider that since his father was recently unmasked as Hawkmoth, they might suspect ''him'' of working with the terrorist. 4) Adrien also [[NeverMyFault rejects the notion that he handled the situation poorly]], proclaiming that the PoliceAreUseless instead.

* In ''Film/HomeAlone1'' the phones are out due to a tree falling on the lines. Pre-cellphones obviously.

* ''Series/BetterCallSaul'': Attempted to be exploited by Nacho, who robs people that he knows are criminals and thus they won't go to the police because if they do they will have their own misdeeds exposed in the ensuing investigation. The fact that it's "attempted" is because he then steals from Daniel Warmolt, a crook who is [[StupidCrooks so stupid]] that he does [[SpannerInTheWorks exactly what Nacho didn't want]] and does call the police, placing the two of them (and many other crooks) in trouble.

* ''Series/BurnNotice'' is all about how Michael has the skills needed for extra-legal help and because of being Burned that is about the only job he can get. A lot of the time a client is in a situation where they will face legal problems for taking a bribe or something similar if they go to the police, so often this involves getting the bad guy to do something [[EngineeredPublicConfession illegal in front of the police]] so the client stays clean.

* In ''Film/TheLionTheWitchAndTheWardrobe'', when the Pevensie children find Mr. Tmnus' home ransacked and a note explaining that he's been arrested for [[FantasticRacism fraternizing with humans]], Lucy's first thought is to go to the police. Pter shoots this down by pointing out that a)as the note shows, the people who took Tumnus ''were'' the police, and b) if ''fraternizing'' with humans is enough to get you arrested, then actually ''being'' human is bound to result in worse.

* In ''Film/HomeAlone'' the phones are out due to a tree falling on the lines. Pre-cellphones obviously.

* ''ComicBook/BruteForce'': After Uproar is stolen from Dr. Pierce's lab, Pierce goes to Mr. Frost to report it. He suggests going to the police (or to the army), which Mr. Frost shuts down.

* In the episode of ''WesternAnimation/ScoobyDooWhereAreYou'' with the Wax Phantom, the gang initially suggest calling the cops, but the station manager explains that the station is already in trouble due to an earlier publicity stunt, so invovling the cops now might get them shut down.