by Jack
2200 hours, 11 January, it was two hours from shift change when the dispatcher radioed the beat officer that an unidentified male caller was inside a house and was possibly suicidal. He said the front door would be open and the officers should come in. Obviously, the call could be an ambush. Possibly someone inside waiting with a gun, maybe attempting a suicide by cop or worse?
The two beat officers arrived moments later and approached the front door of the small 1950’s style house. They announced their presence, but there was no answer. The door was indeed open and officers surveyed the inside from the porch. Music was on inside, but the house was dark and no movement was detected. So, the next call was to their sergeant because this was going to be a high risk entry.
The sergeant arrived on the scene minutes later. They had a choice to make, take their chances and enter the house or call up the SWAT unit and let them enter with their ballistic shields and better body armor. After some discussion SWAT was called, mainly because they had information about the possible subject in the house that made them believe he was armed. During this time the department was trying to reach the subject inside the home by phone. There was no answer, only the music coming from a distant radio somewhere within the home.
The usual back ground checks were done. First, the home owner was ID’d, then there was a warrant check, then a gun registration check, etc., it was all by the book. That gun check showed the owner was in possession of several weapons and that raised the stakes a little.
The neighbors were unaware of any shot being fired [before] the officers arrived and they confirmed a single male in his 40’s lived there.
22:20 hours: SWAT arrived, they did their assessment and then entered. The male was found inside the home deceased, a loaded firearm was in his right hand. The patrol officers left the scene to resume their normal duties as two detectives finished up, just in case it was a homicide.
Their next call was a family disturbance. A drunk husband and an angry wife and they (the two cops) acted as marriage counselors. It was the 15th time they had been to this house. The next call that was for a drunk-driver sleeping at an intersection with the motor running. An arrest followed this one and then it was shift change for our pair. The two patrol officers logged in 25 calls for service during their shift and fortunately they were all relatively benign calls. However, when it goes sideways, it usually goes really fast and then the calls could easily be life threatening. 
Ask any cop and he will tell you every call has a certain risk potential, it’s just the nature of their job. That’s why no matter what kind of call they respond to officers must maintain a keen situational awareness at all times. The trick is to do it, be on high alert and yet not show it. Their outward demeanor is supposed to be calm and professional, even congenial as it may be appropriate. It’s not easy to switch from a high risk “combat mode” to a relaxed “Hi, how are ya” mode. When the cops appear less than friendly the public often draws the wrong conclusions then a complaint follows. Of course they wouldn’t know the cops previous call may have been very traumatic involving a death or a violent arrest.
Trying to do your best day after day, literally risking your life for people only to get beefed by some petty loser because you were blunt or impatient. Or worse, imagine that a cop a 1000 miles away shoots a minority and you catch the flak for it? On what level of real does that make sense?
In 99% of officer involved shootings the cop is relieved of duty pending an investigation. Almost immediately there is public suspicion and he finds himself trying to prove he did nothing wrong.
If the circumstances were suspicious enough there could be a major public rush to judgment as in Ferguson or in New York. Then the next thing you know your career choice is the object of scorn by angry protestors on TV, calling you (all cops) killers and racist pigs. No doubt, some of the very same people you may have saved during a shift are now out in the crowd yelling the loudest. How is that fair? Well, life for cops is never fair and that’s one of the things they learn early on.
This its why law enforcement has a pretty high turnover, and its the rare person who would put up with that kind of hostile work environment. They’re given a split second to make life and death decision and then others will spend weeks or months second guessing them (Eric Holder). The risks cops take and the guff they get the public who don’t understand their job can really weigh on them. Sometimes cops get the feeling darn near everyone is out to get them! The administration, the public, the bad guys, etc., but there are still some of them who still love their job; because they know at the end of the day they make a difference. And I know we couldn’t live without them. My son is one of those cops. This was his story today, but who knows what tomorrow will bring?
Good story, thanks for sharing. Police officers have been getting a bad rap lately and they don’t deserve it!
Ditto Ellen.
Jack: “When the cops appear less than friendly the public often draws the wrong conclusions then a complaint follows.”
The public often starts with a bad attitude. Disrespect for cops, (Thank you radical sixties lefties) often flows from ignorance and a much too casual or entitled attitude, not to mention learned hatred.
Citizens need to know, and our children need to learn, that respect for the authority given our police force is necessary if our system is to work. They need to learn that it is the duty of citizens to respectfully cooperate with police officers. That doesn’t mean police officers always do the right thing or never make mistakes (They are human). It does mean we as citizens must take the job they do seriously as we would a judge in court. Police officers are not supposed to be friendly, generally speaking, in performing their duties. They are supposed to be serious, discerning and aware, and neutral with respect to how the law will play out (They are not judge and jury). We should expect ourselves to be equally serious and cooperative when confronted, whether we think we are being questioned rightly or not! If Americans were taught this simple, self-defensive attitude, a lot of problems would fall away. As Jack noted, officers often are called upon to act as counselors and social workers in addition to doing their basic job and rushing toward what can often be dangerous situations. They deserve nothing less than our absolute cooperation and respect.