I’m
a cop.
A
few weeks ago, two of my beat partners and I were called to an apartment in a
fairly nice complex to help a mother and father with their 16-year-old son.
The
son had no criminal history, and by all accounts was a decent kid. But he was
having some problems at home — breaking things and making threats with a knife
— and the parents needed our help.
When
we finally located the son, who is of mixed ethnicity (dad is white, mom is
Hispanic), he instantly began cussing and yelling at us. He took a
fighting stance and said he was not going to do anything we told him.
Luckily,
we were able to calm him and get him into handcuffs without any blows being
thrown.
We
asked why he was so hostile towards us. His response? Ferguson. The cops could
not be trusted because of what happened in Ferguson, Missouri. He told us
that he wanted to kill all white cops because of what “they” had done to
Michael Brown.
His
parents were mortified by his statements and they apologized profusely, telling
us that is not how they raised their son.
I
live and work more than 1900 miles west of Ferguson, but the effects of that
case are still being felt here. Not a week goes by without someone I
encounter mentioning it.
“Ferguson”
has become the latest defense for committing crime, often invoked by people we
arrest and their loved ones. Sadly, this feeling has not only infected the
normal criminal element that I expect that behavior from, but even seems to be
effecting middle class families as well.
While
the effects can be felt far away, the localized effects are far more serious.
On
Wednesday, a white officer in St. Louis, Missouri returned fire — in other
words, he was shot at first — killing a black male suspect.
Normally,
this event would barely garner back page news, because sadly, it is no longer
newsworthy when a cop gets shot at. But, in the shadow of Ferguson, such an
event is national news, and serves as fuel for more demonstrations, protests
and vandalism.
According
to accounts from Wednesday night’s “demonstrations,” the crowd was calling for
Darren Wilson to be killed.
The
same people who we used to count on for support, the good, law abiding general
public, are now reluctant to trust us.
We,
the local cops they have seen and contacted in the past, have not
changed. We have done nothing different.
What
has changed is the public’s perception of us, created by the reckless reporting
by nearly every news outlet very early after the shooting of Michael Brown. The
rush to be first with the story over the desire to be correct is having dire
consequences nationwide, and quite honestly, has made my job more difficult and
more dangerous.
Since
the shooting of Mike Brown, and the month-plus long circus that followed, the
number of law enforcement officers being shot in the line of duty has
skyrocketed, but the average citizen has no idea this is happening.
The
national media jumps all over a story where an 18-year-old criminal punk, who
shot at a cop, is shot and killed. That criminal is made out to be some sort of
victim by many outlets. That story is front page news all over the country.
Did
you know that in just three days this week (October 7-9), six cops were shot in
the line of duty, one of whom was killed?
- October
7: Chicago, IL – One officer, a captain, is shot twice — once in the face, once
in the chest. Other officers at the scene take fire and are pinned down
by the suspect.
- October
8: North Las Vegas, NV – An officer is shot during a gunfight with a suspect.
- October
8: Phoenix, AZ – An officer is shot in the face while on a traffic stop.
The suspects flee and the officer calls for help. Two other
officers arrive and start rendering aid, only to come under fire from the
suspects who circle back and attack the responding officers.
- October
8: Oklahoma City, OK – Two officers are shot by a suspect during the same
event.
- October
9: Midland County, TX – Sgt. Mike Naylor is shot and killed while
responding to a report of a sexual assault.
Where
are those stories in the national news? What does it say about the media
who make a victim out of a criminal, and ignore the good guys being injured and
killed trying to keep society safe?
People
ask me if things are different for cops since Ferguson.
Yes,
yes they are.
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