History Main / EmptyCopThreat

* Happens in practically every episode of ''Series/{{Castle}}'', which seems to contain a world full of suspects who will confess anything and everything to a firm but attractive female cop and a constantly-quipping civilian writer after enough pointed dialogue. Subverted when Beckett threatens a suspect after questioning him with "don't leave town" accompanied with a threat regarding what might happen if he did leave town. ''Series/{{Castle}}'' inquires after the fact if she can even do that, to which she responds with something to the effect of "no, but he doesn't know that."

* In the course of his investigation of the JFK assassination and the trial of Clay Shaw, New Orleans DA Jim Garrison threatened many witnesses with obstruction and perjury charges when their testimony failed to support his conspiracy theories. After Shaw was acquitted of conspiracy charges, Garrison almost immediately filed perjury charges because Shaw had denied under oath that he ever met Lee Harvey Oswald, while many of Garrison's witnesses testified to seeing the two men together.

* In the course of his investigation of the JFK assassination and the trial of Clay Shaw, New Orleans DA Jim Garrison threatened many witnesses with obstruction and perjury charges when their testimony failed to support his conspiracy theories.

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-->'''Henry the Hamster''': Arrest me? But I'm a copper, same as you!
-->'''Vimes''': Wrong again.

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* Played mostly straight in Literature/WhateleyUniverse story, Crime and Chaos. There's some evidence that the cop is purposely doing it just to get the person out of the way, and has no plans for it to actually stick. The person was, in fact, stonewalling, and the cop called a lawyer of dubious morality to handle it. This work was also an homage to ''Franchise/{{Law and Order}}''.

In RealLife, obstruction of justice is only applied in the most blatant cases, when the witness is found later to actually have something to do with the crime (and has failed to take the Fifth Amendment or local equivalent), or when the prosecutor who gets the case is really, really frustrated. Charges may be laid when it is discovered that a person questioned in an investigation, who is not a suspect, has ''lied'' to the investigating officers. You can be called as a witness and be forced to testify or be held in contempt of court.

But only in major cases would the court bother and it would be up to the prosecuting attorney to decide this, not the police. No prosecutor is going to waste their time on someone solely because the cops complain they are uncooperative and might have witnessed something. Both the police and prosecutors know many witnesses will just lie and say they saw nothing unless the authorities have real evidence.

* ''VideoGame/LANoire'': Cole Phelps and his partners make use of this trope quite some times. And it usually works out too, seeing how most people they encounter do have ''something'' to hide. Doesn't even have to be something concerning the particular investigation though; Hollywoodland was simply a {{Gangsterland}} back then.

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** A variation of the Empty Cop Threat comes from the prosecutors' frequent offers to "take the death penalty off the table" in exchange for information. New York State hasn't executed a prisoner since the 1960s, and the death penalty was declared unconstitutional by the state's highest court in 2004.[[note]]however there were in-universe executions in New York State in the franchise continuity, so it could be a case of AlternateUniverse[[/note]]

** A variation of the Empty Cop Threat comes from the prosecutors' frequent offers to "take the death penalty off the table" in exchange for information. New York State hasn't executed a prisoner since the 1960s, and the death penalty was declared unconstitutional by the state's highest court in 2004.

* Subverted in the Creator/EdBrubaker series ''ComicBook/{{Criminal}}'', where an investigating officer[[note]]actually an MP searching for an AWOL soldier[[/note]] shows a photo of his target to [[TheBartender the proprietor]] of the local BadGuyBar and threatens "obstruction of justice" if he doesn't identify him. The bartender just smiles and tells him he's more than welcome to try and press charges on a 60 year old man for not recognising a particular face in a dark and crowded building.

** This series is probably the worst offender. Any individual is threatened with Obstruction of Justice, and any business is threatened with a mob of NYPD officers searching everything and going through all their records (as if the NYPD has nothing better to do). People fold incredibly fast under these threats, because the show doesn't have the time to allow each witness to stonewall or play dumb. If one actually does hold out, it is the script equivalent of the {{Unmotivated Close Up}}: That specific witness has a critical piece of information. It's played with, however, in that its pretty clear that the cops involved know that there's no way they'd ever be able to carry out that threat and are only using it as an intimidation tactic, and sometimes the people they question ''also'' know it.

** This series is probably the worst offender. Any individual is threatened with Obstruction of Justice, and any business is threatened with a mob of NYPD officers searching everything and going through all their records (as if the NYPD has nothing better to do). People fold incredibly fast under these threats, because the show doesn't have the time to allow each witness to stonewall or play dumb. If one actually does hold out, it is the script equivalent of the {{Unmotivated Close Up}}: That specific witness has a critical piece of information. Its played with, however, in that its pretty clear that the cops involved know that there's no way they'd ever be able to carry out that threat and are only using it as an intimidation tactic, and sometimes the people they question ''also'' know it.

* In the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' City Watch novels, Vimes usually only charges people with obstruction as part of a raft of charges to make it clear that he's prepared to throw the entire book at them. There's an awesome moment in ''Discworld/NightWatch'' where he threatens to charge one of [[SecretPolice the Cable Street Particulars]] with obstruction for refusing to sign and present identification when picking up prisoners.

* The ''Series/StarTrekEnterprise'' episode "Judgment" could be described as what happens when the threat isn't so empty.

* [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] on ''Series/TheWire''. Witnesses often flatly refuse to co-operate, because as the show [[CrapsackWorld frequently demonstrates]], the threat of [[TheMobBossISScarier being killed by an angry drug dealer is much more credible]]. In one episode, the cops even acknowledge that the Obstruction of Justice charge is bogus, but if you lie under oath in a Grand Jury... It is done once to a perp's defence lawyer who knows where the suspect is hiding; [=McNulty=] threatens to send SWAT teams to his mother's house "until there isn't a house left to raid" and to do a tax audit of the lawyer's accounts. The latter threat hits home.

* In ''Series/{{NCIS}}'', it's common for the team to threaten perps with being sent to [[TheAlcatraz Guantanamo Bay]]. In one case they get called on this, because the episode takes place during the Obama administration and sending new prisoners to Gitmo had been halted years ago. Gibbs responds by [[RefugeInAudacity drugging the perp, putting him on a plane, and sending him some other random prison claiming it's Gitmo]], as part of an elaborate hoax to make him think his terrorist employer was going to kill him.

Note that there may be some TruthInTelevision in this. Just watch any police reality show. It's a matter of settled law in the United States that police ''are'' allowed to lie to those they question, including making empty threats.

Note that there may be some TruthInTelevision in this. Just watch any police reality show.

Sometimes a prelude to the JackBauerInterrogationTechnique. Automatically assumed in the event of a DramaticGunCock or HighAltitudeInterrogation. Also, a witness refusing to talk may be doing so because TheMobBossIsScarier. Compare BavarianFireDrill. Contrast the more effective AuditThreat.

Sometimes a prelude to the JackBauerInterrogationTechnique. Automatically assumed in the event of a DramaticGunCock or HighAltitudeInterrogation. Also, a witness refusing to talk may be doing so because TheMobBossIsScarier. Compare BavarianFireDrill.

* Played mostly straight in WhateleyUniverse story, Crime and Chaos. There's some evidence that the cop is purposely doing it just to get the person out of the way, and has no plans for it to actually stick. The person was, in fact, stonewalling, and the cop called a lawyer of dubious morality to handle it. This work was also an homage to ''Franchise/{{Law and Order}}''.

* Subverted in ''Series/{{Justified}}'' where the more GenreSavvy characters will call out US Marshal Raylan on his empty threats but ultimately give him the information he wants because they cannot be 100% sure that they are empty threats. After all, Raylan once told a gun thug to leave town in 24 hours and at the end of the deadline he actually gunned down the man in broad daylight. It also helps that most of the petty criminals he questions knows that he could bust them on some of the stuff they had done but since it is not really his jurisdiction he will let it slide if they cooperate.