This past Friday was my last day as a police officer. Last night, I watched a documentary movie titled No Greater Love. I don't know if any of you have seen it, but I recommend it as its message is about brotherhood. Many, including me, have likened law enforcement work to military service. As a matter of concept, police departments are paramilitary organizations. Whether they are operated as such, well, that's a different issue.
The movie shares the story of a group of soldiers of the "No Slack" Battalion from the 101st Airborne Division while they are on deployment in Afghanistan. I have never deployed overseas or into a combat zone and I am always indebted to those who have served and been there. But to the few who I know, have talked to and are reservists or national guardsmen who are also police officers, they agree that being a police officer is consistently more arduous due to the day in and day out of dealing with other people's crises, stress, anxiety, and trauma. The members of No Slack are brothers. That is obvious. They commit to risking their lives over and over while in combat. But they are also clearly committed to each other when they are at home and struggling with their own individual challenges. Combat, I can imagine using my cognitive reasoning skills, creates unique bonds. You are surrounded by life and death and you rely on the man next to you. You have to. So, when those men return home, they again rely on their brothers to help them. They care for each other. They have to.
Law enforcement, for all intents and purposes, is akin to those issues faced by those servicemembers. There can and, almost assuredly, will be countless times that you, as a police officer, will rely on the man (or woman) next to you. You have to. It only takes one moment for someone's life to change, forever, and that includes dying in the line of duty. A police officer, however mundane the call for service is or the area that they patrol, exposes himself to potential danger. As I'm sure you have all heard at one time or another during your tenure, there's at least one gun on every call for service, every traffic stop, every contact. And those moments add up. Some stay with you. A few haunt. It's during those "some" and those "few" when your brother or sister-in-arms needs your help. They might need a simple pick me up or a more committed commitment. But at some point, someone will need you. And for the ones that do need your extended hand, do not expect them to call out and let it be blatantly known. You will have to "see" them. And to see them, you'll have to know them. Individuals in a depressed state, whether acute or chronic, are sometimes too consumed by their helplessness to pick up the phone and say "hey man, can we get together?" That's your job. He's your brother, right? Certainly, there were times, however slight or subtle, when you needed him and he was there for you...to back you up on a violent domestic or a high-risk traffic stop. Those sounds of distant sirens getting rapidly closer never sounded so sweeter. So, what's stopping you from doing the same for him when it's a little less dramatic of a situation? The answer is nothing.
I spent over 25 years in law enforcement working with other officers from all walks of life with varying degrees of skill level and professional commitment. I am proud of the things that I have accomplished and the dedication I conveyed during my career. But there was always one thing that I struggled with while I was there...the absence of a dependable brotherhood. Yes, there were some moments and instances where people stepped up. But all too often, it was fleeting. To be certain, there is accountability on my part. I am sure I failed along the way at times. And for that and for those for whom I did, I am remorseful.
So, I will leave you all with one last piece of humble advice. Take it for what it's worth. You must care for each other. You have to. And that means, more than not, that the caring happens beyond the call for service, the traffic stop, the contact. It happens when someone is out due to an injury, illness at home, struggles with a spouse, or even the unexpected legal and administrative challenges at work...when that individual, who was your "brother" up until that moment, is fighting to "breath" and keep their head above water emotionally, mentally, and probably financially. When the fear of loss is enveloping them, they could use that extended hand of yours. And they might have to use it (that hand of yours) over and over and over. Because the sense of abandonment is a shitting thing to someone who thought those unique bonds of brotherhood extended beyond that call for service, that traffic stop, that contact...and that it also went to when they're home alone looking for a purpose.
"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends" John 15:13
Always, be well and be safe.
