Here’s why Utah Police Cars Have Backwards Flags

Police have a tough job.

They're constantly having to deal with people in hard situations like giving them a ticket. Or there's a drunk hobo taking a nap in the McDonald's Playplace, or somebody's in a fight at the truck stop after the Chiefs didn't cover the Super Bowl.

I bet if most of us did a ride along for one day we'd be begging off of it by lunch.

I watch a lot of cop movies so I know basically everything there is to know about police work. Like if Denzel tells you to do something, go the other way and report it to the chief immediately. And if Harry Callahan is your partner, just put yourself in the trunk. And if Mel Gibson is your partner watch out for slurs.

But there's one thing I'm embarrassed to say I didn't know and that's the reason why police cars have a reversed flag. It's the same reason flags are reversed on military uniforms.

According to emflag.com: (LINK TO FULL ARTICLE)

"The flag is typically worn on the right shoulder of a military uniform, with the stars facing toward the front of the person wearing the uniform. One reason for this is that, when the flag is displayed this way, it appears to be "flying" as the troops march forward. To help visualize this, think of an American flag flying in the wind on a flagpole. The canton is always facing towards the front, with the stripes “flowing” behind."

Does this help?

Here's some more clarity:

"So when the U.S. flag is displayed on any object that is moving, including a person in uniform, the field of blue must be displayed towards the front of the object to indicate the flag is always flying."

I'm glad I know this now.