It’s Not Just A Job…
Frank Borelli
Editor-in-Chief
Officer.com
It’s not just a job; it’s an adventure.
Be all you can be.
Looking for a few good men.
All of those sayings are as applicable to law enforcement as they are to the branches of military service they are recruiting tools for. What law enforcement further shares in common with those branches of service is that it’s a lifestyle - as much as being a serviceman or woman is.
This crossed my mind a few days ago when I had a conversation with some neighbors about what they do on the weekends. I remember all too well working rotating shifts, weekends, holidays… Even now with my current work schedule (including all activities that are work centered) I rarely have a whole weekend off. I wondered… What would it be like to live every day knowing you had every weekend off?
That is just one piece though. Even soldiers have time when they are off duty. Sure, they’re always on call and can be ordered to duty at any time, but if they’re off duty, wearing civilian clothes and off post, they don’t have any duties to perform. They just have to act within the confines of the law and the UCMJ. If a cop is off duty, in civilian clothes, out with his family… he’s still more than likely got on a gun, carrying a badge, and walking around at a heightened alert level. Why?
Because we’re never really off duty. The mind set doesn’t allow it. We can be off-duty and as relaxed as we want to, but inevitably something happens to remind us that what we do is a part of who we are. It’s not just a job - but it is surely an adventure. To be a successful, aggressive, compassionate cop means being all you can be (and often more than you thought you could be). Law enforcement agencies nationwide - with the exception of where impacted by budget cuts and the economy - are always looking fora few good men and women to pick up the banner; don the uniform; do the job.
To those of you who do it every day I say THANK YOU. STAY SAFE. Remember Police Week is coming up in May and we need to remember all our brothers and sisters who have made the ultimate sacrifice. We need to honor their sacrifice by performing our duties to the absolute best of our abilities.
To those of you who think you might be up to doing the job every day I say: Talk to the local police recruiter. Find out if it’s for you. Think about all it entails. It IS a lifestyle - not just a job. Think you’re up to it?
Im not sure I would call it an adventure.
Corrections is and adventure. We are constantly seeing new things, and being surprised by how ignorant some people can be.
As a Joe citizen, I don’t believe that I would ever consider a career in law enforcement as, in my opinion, the police are no longer the good guys. With stories like the police officer that allegedly beat the Seattle teenager in a holding cell or the 92 year old Atlanta woman that was allegedly shot to death by the police after a supposed botched drug raid, does not instill my confidence in the police. I know the counter-argument will be that these are isolated incidents, but it seems that these are almost monthly stories in the news. Furthermore, I remember once particular evening when I was a young kid that a policeman tried to tell me that I was drinking and driving, when in fact, I was just turning around in a bar parking lot because I missed an exit. The officer persisted until I requested an alcohol test, at which point, he let me go. What happened to the friendly police officer that had a smile and was willing to help the average law abiding guy.
If you want to mention the ATL raid you might as well mention that while it was on the wrong location, she still did shoot at the police. Where i work, a pretty good rule of thumb is, if you dont want to get shot, dont shoot at the police. And while you’re at it Joe Citizen, think for a second what this country would come to if it were not for the police officers that you apparently disdain. In every profession there are bad apples, but, by no stretch of the imagination, can you make the generalized statement that police officers everywhere are not “good guys”.
A. Imagine this country without police? In fact how about we instill a national police stay home day. I bet by noon you’ld be calling begging for the police to come to work. Think about what this country would be like if it were left up to everyone to “police” themselves. Then again ignorance is bliss right?
John and Adam:
I believe that you make a good point; that the world would be a scary place without the police. However, on the flip side, what would happen if the Constitution, habeus corpus, and case law were suspended? Due process-gone, Miranda-gone, warrants-yeah right, search and seizure - as many homes and many assets as possible. The whole idea of the Constitution is to keep the police at bay. The more I read the news, the more I see our country becoming a de facto police state, which is even a scarier thought.
A, news media is entertainment. A cop arrests a bad guy and that ain’t news or entertainment. I help a guy with a flat tire, or a couple in a car wreck, it doesn’t make the news. But a cop shoots grandma, that’s news/entertainment. The media ignores the good/typical (BORING!) and emphasizes the scandalous/unusual/outrageous (BINGO!) It’s like airline safety–extremely safe, but huge stories of crashes make it seem dangerous. But every year there’s a million flights that don’t crash.
You got interrogated by an aggressive cop looking for drunk drivers. Innocent people get stopped and questioned all the time (for a few minutes) until the cop is satisfied. That’s good police work. We don’t read minds and know who is “law abiding”. You know what you did or didn’t do, but the cop doesn’t.
A, I hope you plan to become a hermit and never talk to anyone, because there are bad apples and people who simply make mistakes in every profession. Years ago I arrested an airline pilot on a layover for trying to molest a girl in our mall. That didn’t even make the police blotter in our local paper, let alone national news. Or the pharmacist who we recently arrested for selling prescription drugs. Every profession has people they’re not proud of, but how many do you see on CNN or Foxnews. Don’t let the media who make their living trying to get great headlines to make more people watch, tell you what to think. Maybe go and engage your local officers in conversation when you see one and form your own opinion. Remember there are hundreds of thousands of officers. If you see one or two stories a month about a bad cop you are talking about what, .01%, maybe. I do thank you for at least being interested enough to be on this site. Most citizens I know wouldn’t give a damn about what we face, only that we get blamed for all their problems.
Broad generalizations are a sign of an uneducated mind. I let my emotions of what I have seen on the news get the best of me. Of course, the police do a great service to our nation and communities. The police truly are the good guys and Thank God that there are people that stand between us the sleaze that roams the Earth. God Bless.
I have a question for Joe Citizen: Tonight a man had a gun, actually had two…and 13 in his house. He was quite frankly losing his mind and thought people were attacking him/jumping out of trees in his backyard. He was confusing the innocent neighbors with these phantoms of his imagination…the first officer on scene pulled the neighbors to safety and began verbally directing the man to drop the weapons. I arrived and did the same. The male was waiving the gun in a manner that he was pointing them at the phantoms, however as he did this he turned in the first officers direction. Luckily for everyone involved he dropped the guns. In a split second we had to make a decision to shoot or not shoot. It took an instant, not even an 1/8 of a second for the gun to come in the direction of officers. We had to decide in less than a blink of an eye if the male was threatening or trying to get our attention to help him while he held the ‘phantoms’ at bay.
Joe Citizen would you have the presence of mind to make such a decision? What would you do while staring down the barrel of a gun or knowing one is in feet of you and other innocent people? Are you going to let him shoot the innocent neighbors, your brother/sister cop, or yourself?
The actions tonight by all the officers involved, especially the first officer on scene were of courage, training and presence of mind as the shit hit the fan. And I’m sure this is just one of hundreds of thousands of calls that happen every day where officers were faced with life and death decisions, where not only the officers, but the ‘bad guy’ made to live another day.
I just wonder what you would have done?
Thanks Frank… I call all levels of law enforcement and the military by one descriptive term, Peace Keepers, for just the reasons you enumerate.
Mister Citizen, there happens to be over eight hundred thousand law enforcement officers in this country and we probably have the highest turnover rate of any profession. I have given 46 years and am still working. I never shot nor wounded any individual. I have received only two minor scratches myself. I was one of the most active enforcers in my areas of assignment with high stats and good performance evals… And I am ONLY ONE of the many who do the job well and keep the peace. One bad performance a month in the news is not bad… One bad performance a week in the news is not bad. High standards and high requirements weed out the poor ones quickly but they are the ones who make the news reports. How about the ones who risk it all and don’t get to come home? Oakland, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and many more places in the past month. Pray for the Peace Keepers, thank God for the Peace Keepers and the next time you see one, thank them for the job they do every hour of every day that they work. If you really are dealt with by a bad one there are procedures for handling those problems as well. Please be thankful that you live in the safest country in this world because of them. You and your loved ones can sleep as well as you do because they are there. Thank you for your comments.
Quit trying to backpedal a. It makes you look like a coward
If I was a coward, I would have posted my thoughts on some anti-police blog, but I did not. I initially was with the assumption that the police had a degree of contempt for the public as a whole and after reading some of the comments here, I realized that I was wrong. I have to admit that even in my profession, there are bad apples.
Hello fellow officers. I am a new officer and just started visiting this site. It’s an awesome site at that. Like I said I am a new officer in this adventureous profession. I have been on the job since Dec. of last year and I love every bit of it. As I was reading the comments recently posted I couldn’t help but think about how many people like “Joe Citizen” there must be out there. Thank God we were able to change this Joe Citizens outlook of police officers. Unfortunately we cannot change the minds of every Joe Citizen. Last week my partner and I were dipatched to a domestic that iniated as a 911 hangup call. As we were exiting our patrol vehicle all I could think about was the incident that happend in Pittsburgh. Are we about to take fire? I asked myself. As my partner and I made are way up the stairs to the second floor apartment I queitly told him to be careful. We made it to the apartment door. We both listened intently and quietly to hear any type of argument or scuffle coming fromm inside. It was silent inside the apartment. My partner knocked on the door. No answer. My partner knocked on the door louder. No answer. To my immediate left there was a window into the apartment, to my front there was a window into the apartment. Both windows were covered with blinds. At any second gun shots could errupt through those windows and my partner and I would have been remembered during the upcoming police week. Finally, someone came to the door and we resolved the issue. I shared that incident in hopes that any other Joe Citizen that may read these comments posted by new and seasoned officers might change their opinion of police officers. Our job is very dangerous and for the most part pretty stressful. During those times of extreme danger and stress we have to make sound, split-second decissions that will positively effect the outcome of those situations. We do not know the day-to-day agenda of the average Joe Citizen. This is why we may seem a little pushy and persistant at times. We have a sworn duty to uphold the law and protect the citizens in the communities we live and work in. This, we will accomplish.
When I was in grad school I worked for a local park in Chicago. I had the opportunity to speak with a lot of police officers while there. I always wondered why some considered this career choice a job and why some considered it a part of who they are?
I got my answer through observation, asking questions, and often prying deep into their belief system. It’s the way you perceive yourself, the work you do, and the personal beliefs that you carry. These factors make the difference between just another job and adventure.
Frank, you’re absolutely right! I am currently attempting to get my degree in Criminal Justice. But whenever I see “Officer Down” or a combat soldier has fallen. To me a hero has fallen. I feel like I/we own them something. A individual that risks his life for others around him. Not all people would like that kind of a job. But someone must do it.
joe
The very first time a officer gets you out of trouble be sure to thank him or her for doing his or her job and getting you out of trouble and maybe you will change your mind but i know you will not you willask them what took them so long and i will also try and put that officer out of a job