I worked last night and it was, well...it was New Year's Eve...
Around 0430, I make a car stop. It's a drunk driver. A female. And her boyfriend is in the car, his car. I arrest her for the DUI and place her in the backseat of my cage car. As you can imagine, the dude is not happy...his woman is handcuffed and in the back of a police cruiser. His virility has been challenged. So, he becomes a little bit lippy...whatever. I could care less.
But he moves towards my car in an effort to try and talk to his girlfriend when my back up officer tells him to move back. This pisses him off and says he only wants to make sure she's safe. I tell him she's fine...she's in our care and custody. He replies, "Fuck you guys. I don't trust you. It may not have been you (pointing to me) or you (pointing to my back up) that shot them, but you guys kill people. The police have killed a lot of people. And for no reason."
So, I ask him if he's being robbed, who is he going to call? (Two things...Please don't immediately say or think "Ghostbusters" and please know that robbery is the taking of something by force or fear of force. Robbery is usually violent.) He says, "I'm not calling you guys. You guys are fucking assholes."
Yeah, I'm the fucking asshole that earlier in my shift was dispatched to a domestic violence in progress, but diverts to a "mayday" call at our county's crisis center because some crazy chick, whose real name is Princess, but believes she's God, is attacking a crisis counselor and security guard with a knife.
Yeah, I'm the fucking asshole who then gets dispatched code 3 to another domestic violence in progress, where the 12 year old caller is scared shitless because his mom and dad are fighting...again.
Yeah, I'm the fucking asshole who responds lights and siren to a suspicious situation for an open 9-1-1 line with sounds of screaming and yelling in the background to find out a boyfriend and girlfriend were fighting while her 4 year old was present.
Yeah, I'm the fucking asshole who stopped and arrested the drunk driver who was racing down a residential street, possibly preventing him from hurting or killing himself...or much worse, someone else...a family, maybe.
So, yeah, I'm the fucking asshole that stopped and arrested your girlfriend, who was almost twice the legal alcohol limit, while she was driving you home. Maybe she would've made it unscathed. Or maybe she would've wrapped herself...and you...around that tree or light pole. Our maybe she would've crossed that double yellow line and struck that family minivan as it was returning from a gathering of friends and family, hurting or killing all or some on board. Or maybe she would've struck and dragged that pedestrian who was simply taking her regular early morning walk.
We'll never know because that didn't happen. No. I stopped her. This fucking asshole. You were able to go home with your buddies who came to get you. After she was processed, she was able to sleep in her own bed. That family made it home to spend more time together. And that walker was able to complete her ritual to start her day.
I'm not looking for thanks...no way. Not by any stretch. I just want the respect for what I do. I don't think that's much...you'd want it to.
So, on behalf of me and the other almost 800,000 fucking assholes I call my brothers and sisters in blue...Happy New Years. I'm glad you made it home safe.
