The Death of Law and Order
When I graduated from the police academy in 1987, the most important thing on my mind was my safety. Instructors spent a lot of time on the subject of officer safety in the academy, and when we rookies hit the streets, failing in that category was sure to get you fired.
Vigilance is important. Police officers deal with people at their worst, when emotions, often negative ones, are high. Over the course of my career I experienced pursuits, riots, fights, disputes, and drug-crazed people who were obviously not in their right minds. One extremely dangerous situation comes to mind, a situation that started out completely routine.
It was late when I came across a vehicle driving erratically. I suspected a drunk driver. Simple, right? Well, this night, not so much.
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I activated my light bar, and the vehicle made an immediate right turn, then a quick left into an alley, then another right onto a different street. This happened so fast a lot went through my mind. Was he splitting? Dumping drugs? Do I need backup? Then he pulled to the curb and stopped.
I approached cautiously, and when I contacted the driver, I could see immediately that my suspicions were confirmed; he was drunk. He was also agitated, and I decided that he'd hoped his zigzag driving would lose me. I got him out of the car in order to conduct a field sobriety test, and all kinds of warning bells went off in my head.
We were on a dark, deserted sidewalk, and he was a big man, taller than my 5'5", and he easily outweighed me by at least a hundred pounds. And his body language told me that he was an angry drunk. For about a minute, I tried to get him to comply with the sobriety test instructions. He did some, but mostly he glared at me, clenching and unclenching his fists. I considered asking for backup but determined that I didn't have time to wait. I concluded the test, believing I had enough objective observations to place him under arrest, which I did as quickly as possible, holding my breath until both handcuffs were securely fastened.
I believe the only thing that saved me that night from a beating, or worse, was that even in his drunken state, there was still a tiny bit of respect for, or fear of, the law.
Today, many years later, it seems as if every day I'm reading about a cop being shot or beaten or run over. Yes, that happened when I was in uniform, but today it feels as if it is a default position: the bad guy is more likely to confront, punch, or shoot a cop because they have no respect for the law or law enforcement.
There are a lot of reasons for the erosion in respect for law enforcement. The media is one big reason because of the way they cover the news—the way they cover a crime colors public perception for good or bad.
A lot of times when I read a story about a shooting or some other police-related incident, it seems as if the bad guy gets the benefit of the doubt and the police officer does not. The appearance is that the media wants to inflame negative passions. For every police contact that goes wrong because the cop did something unlawful, there are thousands and thousands of contacts where everything goes right.
How do we win back respect for the law and law enforcement? I wish I had an answer that would change things overnight, but I don't. All we can do is concern ourselves with our corner of the world.
When people ask me what they can do to support law enforcement, there are two things I always suggest: First, when they hear of something controversial concerning the police, reserve judgment until all the facts are in. And second, I say pray. Police officers need prayer. Pray for safety, pray for wisdom, and pray for a culture that seems to have lost respect for law and order.
