Arguing with my friend Chris in Primary School, he told me his dad (who was a Policeman at the time) would come into school and arrest me.

My dad was a farmer. I - for some bizarre reason - retorted with the idea that my dad would run Chris over with a steamroller.

jez

I used to believe that TV show ratings were actually law. Once I accidentally started watching an 'adults only' movie but turned it off after about five minutes, I spent the rest of the day worrying that the police were after me since I wasn't an adult.

Steve

when i was a kid, i believed the news far too literally. when the news reporter said "a man is helping police with their enquiries" i thought a nice bloke had gone to the police station on his day off, with notepad and pen, and said offered to carryout interviews.

Richie, Newcastle, Uk

I grew up in a very small town in Illinois. When my parents took me to Peoria (population about 150,000), I saw my first motorcycle police officer. His motorcycle was beautiful -- low-slung and white, with shining white saddlebags across the back. I just KNEW they contained ice cream.

Kate M.

I used to think that the river police were there to stop naughty people from pulling the plug out.

Linda

I used to think it was a coincidence that judges all had the first name "Justice".

Katz

Once when I was about seven, I took a peppermint from the Brach's pick and mix display at the supermarket. I hid it in my closet because I was terrified that the police would come and arrest me for it. I found the peppermint a couple of years ago when I was cleaning out my closet at my parents' house...it was still there!

Anon

I grew up in Texas and when I heard someone was "sentenced to death" I thought that they'd been forced to write the same sentence over and over again until they died, since one of my teachers at school made us write sentences on the blackboard when we were bad.

anonymous

I used to hear my parents talk about the Highway Patrol and I misunderstood them. I thought they said "troll" as in troll under the bridge in the billy goats gruff story. Every time I would hear a siren, I would run away in a panic thinking the troll was going to eat me.

DahDoll

When I was young and I got ringing in my ears, I thought that it was my call from the police and that they needed me to arrest somebody! I believed was really a police woman but that nobody knew it! Men in white coats coming to take me away!

Anna