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The Police Officer

My friends in the Houston Police Department dropped me a line the other day. They wanted to remind me that the Los Angeles Police Department is not the only law enforcement agency that toils under laborious conditions and yet manages to pump out success after success. I couldn't agree more.

Joseph Wambaugh referred to the Police Officer as the New Centurion. It is an apt description. The Roman Centurions were drawn from the people, the Citizen Soldiers. The Centurions themselves were the Officers on the Roman Legions, tasked with the leadership of a century of the Legion and the defense of Rome itself. Today’s cadre of Centurions is no different. They are the brave men and women drawn from the citizenry, tasked with the protection of the people and the defense of the law. These men and women are all the more brave because their service is not compulsory. Rather, it is a genuine calling that some Officers themselves cannot fully explain. For some it is the duty, for some it is the variety of the workload. For others it is the chance to work with people; to serve the people. For very few it is the action. But every single one of them will tell you two things: It is something borne unto them, and they love it.

When I speak of Officers, I speak not only of the Police Officer, but of the Deputy Sheriff and State Trooper as well. Working across this nation, the men and women of various departments represent the premier law enforcement entity in the world. Freedom of choice also means the freedom for the more dubious of American citizens to choose a life of violence and crime. Sections of urban America have more in common with Beirut than Baltimore, Chechnya than Chicago, and Dresden than Dallas. The bad guys have dangerous weapons, and have little or no problem using them. We as a society recognize the fact that the job Police Officers do carries with it a certain amount of personal risk. In response to this risk, Officers are armed with nightsticks, pepper spray, and handguns. They are also armed with the most important weapon in their arsenal - training. Police Officers spend countless hours in various types of training. As a result, today's Officers are the absolute definition of professionalism. When you consider the fact that the war torn areas mentioned above are or were policed by heavily armed military units, the fact that Police Officers execute 90% of their job without resorting to the use of physical force is that much more remarkable. It is the Police Officers ability to rely on his or her training that enables them to resort to force on only the most necessary of occasions.

And the specters of criminality and violence are not limited to urbanity. Ask an Officer about the meth labs in Southern Missouri, or the home grows in Minnesota. Ask them about the mules in Southwest Texas. Ask them about places like Waco or Ruby Ridge. Crime exists in every corner of the country, and every single Officer plays a vital role in its suppression and elimination. Bottom line - cops get it done all across America.

The role of the Police Officer is not limited to the enforcement of the law and the incarceration of the criminal. Officers across the country are involved in diverse philanthropic endeavors. Time and effort spent gladly with groups such as Make-A-Wish provide Officers with an opportunity to give something of themselves, something more personal and lasting, back to the people whom they serve. It is a chance to show people that officers are not the one-dimensional characters they are too often portrayed as. It is a chance to do something good - a chance to make people smile.

Television, with shows such as Cops, has at times portrayed the Police Officer as a bit of a cowboy. Cops are often seen flying from one scene to another, sometimes chasing on foot and sometimes with gun drawn. What the shows fail to include are the hours Officers spend on paperwork, the mountains of paperwork that can pile up in the course of a single evening. They fail to show the time officers spend in court testifying about cases - including uniformed officers and the hours they spend in DUI court. Guess what, folks - Night Court was a show. Officers who work third shift often have to attend court during the day. Imagine working your regular 9-5 job, then rolling into court at 8pm for three hours and testifying about something that happened three months ago. Then getting home around midnight so you can get six hours of sleep before going back to work at 9am. And just as often court is held on an Officer’s day off. Most of today's Officers work rotating shifts, with 60 days spent 7-3, then another 60 spent on 3-11. Give that a shot. Television fails to show the stresses that the job can put on families, when Moms and Dads spend weekends and holidays at work. And TV also neglects to show the brotherhood. It's a concept mostly lost on today's public, where athletes and employees jump ship for a paycheck. Ask a cop about brotherhood.

Heroes are not on TV. Heroes are pushing a squad car around on Christmas Eve. They are patrolling neighborhoods that many people wouldn't drive through. Heroes are walking a beat in the rain. They are standing on the side of an interstate with a motorist when it's five below. Heroes are making our streets safe for us. They are out there, twenty-four/seven, 365 days a year. Heroes are delivering hope to children in hospitals. They are education our children in our schools on the evils of drug use. Heroes are our Police Officers. They wear badges and stars. Our heroes deserve more than our support; they deserve to be supported. They deserve more than out respect; they deserve to be respected. They deserve more than out thanks, the deserve to be told Thank You.

Thank You, Dad. Thank You, Chris.

Thank You, Tony, Matt, Scott, Pete, Joe, Ed, Dave, Nick, John, Jim.

Thank You, Gary - for doing what you do and for making sure this was written sooner rather than later.

Thank You to the Officers. You are all heroes.

Michael Farmer / TheTanker.Com E-Mail readermail@TheTanker.Com

"HEADSHOT" Featuring John Bertetto