Never ask a question that you don’t already know the answer to.

That is the motto of any good trial attorney. The witness stand is no place to ask questions that might reveal things that you are not prepared to deal with. And now that rule is expanding to include Twitter.

In a move that is sure to go down in history as a colossal blunder, the NYPD tossed out the offer to the Twitterverse to tweet pics of themselves with New York’s finest. Folks were invited to post the pics with hashtag #myNYPD.

In the tradition of hijacking hashtag campaigns, similar to how McDonald’s #McDstories and #CheersToSochi were co-opted to their detriment, the floodgates opened on the NYPD public relations campaign.

This #myNYPD shit is hilarious. What idiot thought of this bullshit campaign.

— il distruttore (@suck_me_bitch_) April 23, 2014

Soon, tweets with pictures showing NYPD abuses and police brutality were outnumbering the nicer pics of cops in “protect and serve” mode.

#myNYPD Wow! pic.twitter.com/HWgB99I0b4

— IG: KINGOFBRANDING (@KINGOFBRANDING) April 23, 2014

A speeding #myNYPD cruiser had NO its lights and NO sirens killed a Japanese student, Ryo oyamada in Queens. #NYPD pic.twitter.com/bcdubuNmQd

— Marie (@saraonabrick) April 23, 2014

Some pictures hearken back to the days of the #occupywallstreet clashes.

"@lilyinfidel: #myELAS Police go for 88 yr old leftist MP Manolis Glezos @Souidos @OccupiedTimes: #myNYPD #myELAS pic.twitter.com/iEA2Tyka7j"

— Mariana Faithful  (@MarianaFaithful) April 23, 2014

Some people are trying to remain the voice of reason in the whole fracas.

#myNYPD Remember, a picture tells a thousand words…. but most of them are hidden behind context….

— Andrew The Hater (@AndrewTheHater) April 23, 2014

And others sum up the obvious.

#myNYPD pic.twitter.com/NfTVqUimal

— Chris (@dakeath) April 23, 2014

But, wait. The whole thing is spreading to other cities. There is now a hashtag for #myLAPD:

#myLAPD reaching out to the community with a six on one massage therapy session pic.twitter.com/AEmczL0i6T

— Viva la causa! (@70torinoman) April 23, 2014

#myLAPD pic.twitter.com/76U7JGBzCD

— Rich Lok (@RichLok) April 23, 2014

And then there is this little infographic that sums up a lot of the rage people are trying to express on the topic.

There is a war being waged inside the #mySPD #myNYPD #myLAPD #myAPD and who do you think are there enemy's pic.twitter.com/ZVD1qvd5pM

— Leezer (@LculinerLisa) April 23, 2014

Image via Twitter