About Badge415

I'm a police officer in Southern California and my goal is to show the human side of police work. I've been with my department for 20 years and I feel I have something to offer from my point of view.

The Mystery Spot

Posted on July 15, 2016 by Badge415

Have you ever heard of The Mystery Spot? Up until the other day, I hadn’t. Last weekend we were in San Jose watching the U.S. Women’s Olympic Gymnastic Trials when my son Googled “things to do.” That’s when he found a place called The Mystery Spot.

On Monday we left San Jose and drove southbound on Highway 17 toward Santa Cruz on our way to Monterey. The four-lane highway twisted and turned as we drove through a forest area. I exited the highway and drove by redwood trees that stretched up high into the sky. The area was just amazing.

After many turns and curves we finally arrived at The Mystery Spot. They claim the area is a “gravitational anomaly” and “you will be stunned as your perceptions of the laws of physics and gravity are questioned.”

Basically everything is tilted and it messes with your head as you try to stay balanced. Don’t try and figure it out. Just have a good time and enjoy the corny jokes as the tour guide tells the story about the area and why it’s so mysterious.

Admission was only $8 per person, so it won’t break the bank. It was worth the price because my family had a good time.

So, if you ever find yourself in Santa Cruz or San Jose with some time to kill, take a little detour to The Mystery Spot. I guarantee you’ll smile and laugh.

U.S. Olympic Trials

Posted on July 14, 2016 by Badge415

When I was 13 years old, I went to see the 1984 Olympic Track and Field Trials in Los Angeles. I spent two days at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum having a great time with my friend Tom. It was awesome to watch because so much was on the line for some of my favorite track and field athletes. The experience was something I never forgot.

On July 8th and 10th, I was in San Jose, CA to watch the U.S. Women’s Olympic Gymnastics Trials. This trip was organized by my daughter’s gym and I didn’t want her to miss out on seeing this. I wanted her to have the same great memories I still have of the Olympic Trials.

On the first night of competition you could feel the energy in the crowd. There was so much at stake and it was exciting to watch. One of the highlights for my daughter was watching Gabby Douglas, who was the All-Around 2012 Olympic Gold Medalist.

On the second day of competition, we stood in line for an hour so my daughter could take a picture and get an autograph from 1996 Olympic Gold Medalist Kerri Strug. My daughter was so happy afterward. The smile on her face made waiting in line worth it.

When it was all over, I could tell my daughter had an amazing time watching some of the greatest gymnasts in the world competing. I had a good time also. A highlight for me was when they introduced the Olympic Team as the crowd cheered loudly and music filled the arena like they were rock stars.

With the Olympic Trials out of the way, we left on Monday and drove to Monterey, CA on the next leg of our road trip. On the way, we stopped at a place called The Mystery Spot.

He’s freaking weird

Posted on July 5, 2016 by Badge415

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Have your ever had a conversation that left you saying “WTF?”

The other night I was at a crash when the tow truck driver pointed down the street and asked, “Do you remember the crash where the car went through the wall?”

“You mean the fatal?”

“Yeah.”

“I remember it, but I wasn’t working that night.”

With a look of lust the driver tow driver said, “She had a nice ass. What a waste.”

“Who? The dead woman?” I replied.

“Yeah.”

“How did you see her? Was she still in the car?”

“No, she was in the street.”

“Didn’t she get ejected?” I asked.

“Yeah.”

“So, you’re saying the dead woman had a nice ass?” I replied with sarcasm.

“She had a nice ass. What a waste,” he said as he shook his head.

I was speechless. That was the fart in the elevator moment that killed the conversation. There was no where to go after that.

As the tow truck drove away, I knew that tow truck man had just achieved Badge415 blog status. Who says that? What a weird MOFO.

You just never know what people are going to say and you can’t make this stuff up.

She ripped him off

Posted on June 28, 2016 by Badge415

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On Saturday night, I was sitting in my car when I heard dispatch say, “The RP (reporting party) paid for sex and didn’t get any. He wants to report prostitution activity.”

Who calls the police about that?

Now, that’s not something you hear on the radio everyday! I was one block away from the call and decided to head over there to see what the story was. Before I drove away, I typed to one of the responding units and said, “I gotta see this.”

When I arrived at the motel, I parked near the front office. It was a two-story building that was at least 30 years old and stood in the shadow of the huge hotels across the street.

My friend Sean arrived about the same time. As he got out of his car he said, “I thought you were kidding when you said you had to see this.”

Another officer went into the office and spoke to the clerk about the room in question. While we waited, I asked, “Where’s the guy who called?”

“It was a refused RP,” Sean said.

“Damn.”

That was disappointing to hear. That was part of the reason why I went. Since I was already there I decided to have a little fun with dispatch. I keyed the microphone and asked, “Did the RP say if they had a receipt?”

There was a pause as the dispatcher asked me, “10-9,” which is radio code for repeat.

“Did the RP say if they had a receipt for the transaction?”

“The RP was refused.”

It was worth the attempt at humor because we laughed on the call. After that we went to motel room. As we walked up the stairs we passed tired looking tourist and I wondered if they had any idea about the prostitute who was ripping people off down the hall from them. I guess that’s the sort of thing that makes a vacation interesting for some people.

Of course, there was no answer at the door. Maybe it was our uniforms or the fact that we didn’t know the secret door knock. Since there was no answer it was time to move on to another call.

As I drove away I thought how funny it would be to put an add on Craigslist about the room. The add could have the motel’s address and the prostitute’s room number with a little warning like, “The cops already know about this place.”

I bet that would put a dent on business. Oh, the things you wish you could do……

The family food chain

Posted on June 22, 2016 by Badge415

If you have a teenager, you know what it’s like to deal with their hormones and mood swings. Add a younger sibling into the mix and there’s plenty of head butting.

Sometimes during these head butting and hormonal episodes, the teen forgets where they fall in the family food chain.

Today, I was driving northbound on the 57 freeway as I headed toward Brea. My son was in the front seat having a hormonal teen moment with his attitude.

After a few minutes, order was restored in the car as I reminded him about the family food chain in my house. He seemed to think he was at the top of it with me. I explained to him that one day he would be up there when he had his own family, job and house.

That’s when we came upon an SUV with a sticker in the window of a T-Rex chasing and eating stick people. It was a perfect moment for me to bring home my point as I said, “Look at that sticker on that car.”

With a pouty face my son looked over at it.

“See the T-Rex? That’s me and you’re the little people that are getting chased.”

That made him smile and eased the tension inside my car. It’s always a good thing to remind the kids who the T-Rex in the family is.

Who did you shoot at?

Posted on June 21, 2016 by Badge415

On Sunday night I was working a patrol shift with my partner Eric when we were sent to a “check the welfare” call. A man called the police wanting us to check on his 7 year old son because his ex was supposedly not home. It was 1:30AM and we suspected there was more to the story.

We drove around the corner and met a male, who was about 40 years old, in a parking lot. He got out of his vehicle and told me a brief story about why he called the police. Since it was 1:30AM, I wanted to know more about him and his relationship with his ex before I knocked on her door at this time of night.

During our conversation he told me his ex had a restraining order against him. I asked him why, but he never really told me. He then said I could look up his criminal record if I wanted. Since he brought it up I asked, “What have you been arrested for?”

“Shooting into a dwelling.”

“Why did you shoot into a house?”

“It wasn’t a house. It was a car.”

“Was someone in the car when you shot at it?”

“Yeah, my sister’s boyfriend?”

“Did he get shot?”

“No.”

“How much time did you get?”

“I got five months.”

“That’s not bad for trying to kill someone, ” I joked.

“I wasn’t trying to kill him.”

Who was this guy trying to kid? It’s not normal to shoot up a car when someone you know is sitting it in.

“Is the guy still with your sister?” I asked.

“Yeah, but she doesn’t come around.”

I couldn’t resist and said, “Well, that’s because she’s afraid you’re going to shoot at him again.”

I have a feeling there was a reason for that restraining order….. You just can’t make this stuff up.

Thinking outside the box

Posted on June 20, 2016 by Badge415

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The other day I went to a robbery call at 8:45AM at a small apartment complex on the south side of the city. When I arrived, there were two officers already speaking to the victim.

It was hot already, so we moved under a tree for some shade. That’s when the officer asked, “What was taken?”

The woman, who was in her mid-40s, said, “My coboodle box.”

Her caboodle what?

There was a moment of silence as all three of us looked at each other. Obviously we didn’t know what she was talking about.

“What is that?” Asked the officer.

“It’s a caboodle box,” she said. When we didn’t answer she looked at us in disbelief. “You guys don’t know what that is?”

All three of us shook out heads.

“It’s my stripper box,” she said.

That’s when I took my phone out and said, “I’m going to Google it.”

I did my search and found what I was looking for. I clicked on “images” and turned my phone toward the woman and asked if that was what she was taking about.

“That’s it, except mine is decorated,” she proudly said. “I’ve had my caboodle box for 23 years.”

Wow, I bet her box has a lot of stories to tell.

Picasso and his ice cream

Posted on June 15, 2016 by Badge415

The other night, I responded to a crash and found a car in them middle of the intersection with front end damage and fluid splashed everywhere. There was a man, a woman and a dog from the crashed car waiting at the corner.

The woman, who was in her 20s, was injured and was sitting on the curb with her dog Picasso. He was small and had fur as white as snow. Even though his fur was white, I noticed his head had a Pepto Bismol pink tint to it.

Was this a new doggie hair style? I had to ask his owner.

It turned out Picasso and his owners went out for a snack that night. He got his own cup of vanilla ice cream, which he enjoyed in the backseat of the car. His owner was in the front passenger seat with a large bowl of strawberry ice cream.

That’s when a truck made a left turn in front of them and they broadsided it. The strawberry ice flew into the air and got everywhere, including on Picasso.

Poor Picasso got a double whammy that night. He was in a car accident and got a strawberry ice shower at the same time. In all my years of working traffic, this was my first case of a dog with a pink hairdo from flying ice cream.

Thanks for the pictures Picasso.

My first parking ticket

Posted on June 14, 2016 by Badge415

The first ticket is like your first kiss or your first car. It’s just one of those things that you never forget. Okay, maybe not exactly like that, but you never forget it.

On Monday, I was on my way to Starbucks when I took a side street and went by my old high school. I only took the street to avoid traffic on Central Ave, which was the main road to the west.

As I passed by Chino High School, I glanced over at the street sign that said, No parking from 9AM to 2PM Monday thru Friday.

The old buildings from the school brought back memories, but that street sign brought back another.

That was because a long time ago I parked in front of the sign at 1:30PM….. Yes, Chino PD got me that day for my very first parking ticket.

Here’s another reason why I remember that ticket. I paid for it with the first check I ever wrote.

Nothing like a day of firsts….

784 En Route

Posted on June 12, 2016 by Badge415

If you’ve read the blog for a while, you know that my old call sign was 784. Depending on who is on the radio, I’ll still say 784 every once in a while just for the heck of it.

One day shift dispatcher will always reply back to me as 784 even if I made the last radio transmission as 729. Another dispatcher on the graveyard shift will do the same. It always makes me laugh and adds a little fun to the job to hear them do that.

The other night a veteran dispatcher sent me a message on the computer asking if I wanted to take a late call. I replied back, “I haven’t said 784 in a while….I’m going to bust it out.”

She typed back, “DO IT!!!!”

With a smile, I keyed the microphone as I said, “784.”

“784,” replied the dispatcher.

“784, I’ll be en route to the crash.”

“784, 10-4.”

I left the station and headed to a call that involved a security vehicle. When I got there, I saw the security car in the parking lot. I looked at the back of the car and saw something that was like the crack of thunder and bolt of lightning as Beethoven’s 9th Symphony played in the background.

Right there on the back of the car was 784.

Okay, maybe there wasn’t music, lightning and thunder…..but it was still kind of weird. That just goes to show you that you never know when 784 is going to appear at a car accident scene.

For now, 784 roams the streets at night in a black and white disguised as 729.

“784 log off.”