The night I heard “Officer Down” on the radio

Posted on June 2, 2015 by Badge415

“Officer down! Officer Down! We need units code 3!”

Those were the words from our helicopter pilot in December, 2004 when he saw one of our officers get hit by a car. The tone in his voice told everyone this was bad and to get there fast.

I was parked behind a building at the time with some friends while taking a break when that radio transmission went out. It didn’t seem real and it took a moment for the words “Officer down” to sink in. I can still picture where I was standing and how I felt when I heard the radio come to life.

I jumped into my car and raced to the location like everyone else. The collision was at least two miles away and I pushed the car as hard as I’ve ever pushed a police car before or since. The radio traffic was frantic and it seemed like it took forever to get there.

At one point, there was a radio transmission about organizing an escort for the ambulance. At ache shot through me as I heard that and feared the worst.

Who was it? I still had no idea. I didn’t want to see one of my co-workers dead. Nobody does.

As I got closer to the crash, the tension rose 1,000% because I didn’t know what I was going to see when I got there. I knew there was nothing I could do to help, but there was still the need to get there fast.

I pulled up just as the ambulance was about to leave. There was a long line of police cars in front of the ambulance ready to clear intersections on the way to the hospital. I was filled with dread as I got out of my car.

I walked up to an officer and asked, “Who was it?”
“Kelly.”
“How bad is it?”
“I don’t know.”

I saw his police car in the middle of the street facing one way and the car that hit him facing the other. Its windshield was shattered and it looked bad. I stood there for a moment and took everything in as I decided where to start. The thought of the impact made me cringe.

There was a warm breeze coming from the east due to a Santa Ana Wind condition that night. The scene was quiet and somber after the ambulance left because no one knew how badly hurt Kelly was. After everything calmed down the only sound was from the idling patrol cars and the police radio. The sea of police lights were a reminder to anyone who drove by that something bad had happened here.

Kelly’s gun and equipment were strewn in the street in a perfect V from the area of impact. I noticed a steno pad lying among the debris which looked like someone put it there. It was in perfect condition. Everything else in the street was in total disarray.

An officer walked up to me and said, “I put the steno pad there because I didn’t want Kelly’s hair to fly away.”

What he said didn’t make sense and it made me go to the steno pad to see what he was talking about. I knelt down and lifted it up.

That’s when I saw Kelly’s hair waving in the wind. It was like seaweed swishing side to side as it reached up to the sunlight from the ocean floor. His hair was actually stuck to the asphalt liked it was glued down.

I then looked at the upper corner of the windshield and saw another peculiar sight that was almost as weird as Kelly’s hair being stuck to the asphalt. There were dark blue fibers in the shattered glass. The fibers were small, but clear as day. They were from his uniform and were frozen in time like a fossil waiting to be discovered.

While I was still at the scene, word came from the hospital that Kelly was talking and doing better than was first thought. With that news the mood at the collision scene changed.

Later that night I sat down with the helicopter pilot and he told me what happened. It was intense hearing him describe Kelly getting hit by the car. I could tell he felt helpless as he flew overhead.

It’s funny because there is a new generation of cops at work that drive by that spot every day, who have no idea what happened there a decade ago. To the newer cops, it’s an east/west street. To me it’s a memory from a crazy night where everything was in chaos and one of my friends was hurt.

By the way, Kelly returned to work a few months later and made a full recovery.

Oh, and remember that hair that was blowing in the wind? Well, Kelly still has a bald spot on the back of his head after all these years……

Stay safe out there.

Last month was out of control

Posted on June 1, 2015 by Badge415

“Does every city have the same problems with crashes that we do or is it just us?”

That was the question I asked one of my traffic partners on Sunday morning after handling six traffic collisions that night, which included two DUI crashes.

“I think it’s just us,” was his reply.

I have kept track of the number of collisions I’ve handled since I started working in the traffic detail in January of 1999. It turned out May of 2015 was a little out of control in the city where I work. That’s why I was glad to see June 1st on the calendar.

It was actually the second highest total in my career for the number of traffic collision reports I took in one month. The grand total for May was 54 crashes. After last month I can’t imagine what the summer months are going to be like.

The national statistics related to traffic collision deaths in the United States has gone down over the last decade, but it seems like the number of collisions we handle has gone up.

Right before the recession started, traffic collisions were out of control every single night. I called it the Wild West because it seemed like every pole in the city was being crashed into nightly. It also seemed like every drunk driver took a detour through the city.

Then the recession hit and things really calmed down around 2009 and 2010. It was a like a ghost town some nights with no one crashing, which was good. It was nothing like the rest of the 2000s.

Since then I’ve seen a gradual increase in accidents and the volume of work that we do. It’s like the Wild West again and business is booming, which is not good for the average driver in my city.

I guess this means the recession is truly over because there are tons of people out there crashing like never before. It also means I might break my record if things continue the way they are.

One thing is for sure, I won’t break my record in June. It’s not because everyone is going to be careful. It’s because I’ll be on a cruise ship for a week and I’ll have a margarita in my hand instead of a flashlight and a clipboard.

Remember to keep your eyes open out there because we don’t want to meet by accident.

The “body” in the trash bag

Posted on May 30, 2015 by Badge415

“There are four males in the restroom with a child in a trash bag.”

That’s what I heard on the radio while driving to another call tonight. The dispatcher was sending patrol cars to an unknown trouble call at a local park. She also broadcasted that the child looked to be about 7 years old.

Say what?

I had no choice after hearing that. The people in the traffic collision could wait because I was going to this call first.

I arrived at the park about a minute after the call went out. There was a group of males standing in front of the restroom. They looked calm and were talking. They didn’t even seem to notice my patrol car driving on the grass. I got out of my car and asked, “Is there a kid in a trash bag?”

A male in the group said, “No.”

“We got a call about a kid inside a trash bag in the bathroom.”

That’s when the male seemed to know what I was talking about as he said, “Oh, we’re making a movie.” The male, who was holding a camera, told me there was a doll in the bathroom.

It was dusk, so the restroom was dark. I walked in and saw a head and body wrapped in a trash bag like a mummy on the floor. The “body” was propped up against the wall like it was leaning against it.

Then I saw something that looked freaky. There was an eye staring at me from the doll head that was partially covered by the trash bag. There was also dark curly hair sticking out. The “body” looked like it was the size of a 5 year old child. With the darkness fast approaching, it looked real.

The male walked in and started stomping on the “body” to show me it was fake. The entire scene was bizarre. I must’ve have been in the Twilight Zone for a brief moment.

At first glance, it really did look like a body. Even though it was stomped on I still pulled open the bag so I could make sure it wasn’t a real face. That of course, made the “filmmakers” laugh when they saw me do that.

They explained to me about making a movie for a college course. I told them they were lucky the officers hadn’t walked in on them standing over the “body.” You could tell they hadn’t thought about that. Hopefully the three police cars, police motorcycle and helicopter overhead showed them how serious it was taken when we got the 911 call.

I got back in my car and spoke into the microphone as I said, “I’m 10-8 from the fake kid in the trash bag call.” I drove out of the park knowing I’d have a story to tell my kids when I woke up on Saturday.

When I put my uniform on Friday afternoon I never thought I’d be standing in a restroom watching someone stomp on a fake child’s body that was wrapped in a black trash bag with a big eyeball staring at me.

Once again, you can’t make this stuff up.

Just Call Her Poopy Pants

Posted on May 18, 2015 by Badge415

There’s one thing for sure about this job. We see people at their worst. At their lowest of lows. At rock bottom. We see them at their Poopy Pants worst.

Some of this is self-inflicted. Some of it is just bad luck. The self-inflicted stuff is where the comedy of this profession comes out. It’s where some of the best stories come from. It’s where you stand there and say, “I can’t believe I just saw that.” Last Friday night will go down in history as one of the most unusual stories from a collision scene I have ever witnessed.

An injury traffic collision went out at about 2:15AM involving a vehicle that struck a pole. This is a pretty typical call for that time of the night so I didn’t think anything of it.

I drove down the street and saw a pole imbedded into the front of a car. An ambulance just arrived and there was another patrol car there. I got out of my car and walked up to an officer. He pointed to the crashed car and said, “She’s taking a dump on the sidewalk.”

Now, that’s not something you hear every day.

I looked over to the car and saw the passenger door open with a woman squatting down on the edge of the vehicle next to the seat. She was partially blocked by ambulance personnel.

I walked up and saw her pajama pants pulled down to her knees and there was a pile of you know what right underneath her. There was a strong odor of a person who had been drinking and who had just left a “number two” on the sidewalk. I have seen many people pee and vomit themselves while drunk, but this took it to an entirely new level.

Did I mention she was six months pregnant and unlicensed?

You just can’t make this stuff up.

When the tow truck driver arrived I pointed out the mess because I didn’t want him to step in it. The tow driver looked at it and said he didn’t want poop on the bed of his truck. I found it funny he was worried about that. Never mind all of the cars that have leaked hazardous fluids onto his flatbed tow truck in the past? Now he was worried about a little number two.

The tow truck driver then did his best to maneuver the front of the vehicle around the pile of poop with the skill of an artist painting a masterpiece. Instead of paint and brushes, he tugged and pulled with the cable and used a shim under one of the tires as the vehicle turned. Once the right front tire cleared the pile he completed the job and I left.

As I drove away I couldn’t help laughing and thinking how this woman was SOL (shit out of luck). I also remembered what a shitty job this was. And most of all, you also can’t make this shit up (I couldn’t resist).

Don’t forget the names of those killed while wearing the badge

Posted on May 11, 2015 by Badge415

I think of my family every time I hear about a police officer being killed in the line of duty. I also think how I hope it never happens to me. I never want my family to be the ones sitting in the front row at the grave site being presented with the American flag by my chief. I never want them to hear the bagpipes being played for me.

Whenever I hear an officer was killed in the line of duty I reflect on some of the close calls I’ve had. I think of a few times when I or someone I knew, could’ve been the next name on the wall in our police department hallway.

Whenever I hear of an officer’s death, I think of how grateful I am for what I have and how I’m still able to do the job I love.

And finally, I also think about two officers who were killed over twenty years ago.

I started the academy on August 29, 1994 and graduated February 22, 1995. During that time there were two officers from the area who were killed in the line of duty. I never forgot their names because I attended their funerals with my academy classmates.

Those two funerals helped shape how I saw things from the time I was a young recruit to now, as a veteran officer with new gray hairs that seem to appear every day.

It was one of the best things the academy staff ever did because it made everything real. This wasn’t classroom stuff. It was up close and personal. It showed just how serious this job really was.

Officer Charles Heim was killed on October 21, 1994. Officer Michael Osorio was killed on October 31, 1994.

Officer Heim was an officer with the Los Angeles Police Department. Officer Osorio was with the La Habra Police Department. They were killed less than two weeks apart and I can still remember seeing their pictures on TV.

Officer Heim was shot by a suspect and Officer Osorio was killed by a drunk driver on Halloween night. Officer Osorio’s department was not far away from mine so it really hit close to home.

I remember standing in the cemetery at Officer Heim’s funeral and being amazed at the sight of all the officers who were there. It showed me I was part of something much bigger than I thought.

When the bagpipes started playing I could sense the emotion around me as people fought back tears. Then the helicopters could be heard in the background. I looked up to the sky as they flew overhead. The rotors were loud and added something to the moment that is hard to describe. Then one helicopter broke off from the group and started flying in a different direction in the “Missing Man” formation. I remember saying to myself, “I never want my family to go through this.”

It was such a powerful moment and it stayed with me for the rest of my life.

Two weeks later I was at another officer’s funeral. I can still remember the heartfelt eulogy that Officer Osorio’s chief gave as I looked across the sea of uniforms that were there to pay their respects. That too, was another moment that stayed with me.

These funerals showed me that nothing can be taken for granted while doing this job. It showed the unspoken bond that officers have because they all potentially share the same fate while wearing the badge.

There’s nothing that compares to a police officer’s funeral. It’s different from any other funeral you’ve ever attended. It’s amazing to see how many officers are there for someone they might not have known.

A regular person sees it as a sad moment. A police officer sees it as a sad moment too, but there’s one big difference.

A police officer knows it could’ve been them. They also know it could’ve been their family sitting up front and being presented with the flag.

The officers in attendance also know this won’t be the last one who dies while wearing the badge. That’s what makes the funeral personal.

That’s also why we can’t forget the names of those who died while in the line of duty.

Be safe.

More About The Body Worn Camera

Posted on May 9, 2015 by Badge415

The other night I responded to a neighboring city to contact the suspect in a hit and run collision. An officer from the neighboring department was also there. When I was done with the interview, I walked up to the suspect vehicle so the damage would show up in the video from my body worn camera. It was easy. I didn’t even have to get a regular camera out.

I looked over at the officer from the other department and said, “I love this thing.” With a raised eyebrow he looked at me like I was kidding. That’s when I said, “No, really. This thing is great.” He still looked like he didn’t believe me as he said, “Really?”

I then told him the advantages I have seen in a short time. Another officer from our department also told him the same thing.

He still didn’t look convinced and told me his department was testing them out. He said it would be hard to get used to. I told him it was easier to use than the audio recorder and it showed so much more. He still didn’t seem convinced.

He then said something lame. He said it would be easier for the younger officers to use because they were more technologically savvy. I could tell he was resistant to change.

Lately I’ve been asking random officers at my department what they thought about the BWC. Every person has instantly said they like it. Every one of them has also told me a story where the BWC was better than audio because it showed so much more.

A lot of officers also brought up stories where they wished they had the BWC when someone complained.

One motor officer told me a unique way how he uses his BWC on car stops. While on the stop he’ll hold the license up to the BWC so it will be part of the video in case something happened to him. I never thought of that.

The other night someone showed me a picture they took on their phone of a hit and run license plate. I held the phone up to my BWC so there was proof the witness actually took the pic. This way there was no doubt we had the correct license plate number.

I’m here to say this thing has been great. It’s not perfect, but I’m glad my department spent the money for the BWC sooner, rather than later. It will make our jobs easier in this crazy environment.

There’s nothing like having the video show how some of these people act on calls. It’s unfortunate that it has come to that, but that’s the world we live in.

It cracks me up on calls where people pull out their phones to record us. That’s fine. I’m recording you too.

More importantly, I have more gigabyte space to do it.

Do you know how many people died today in traffic collisions?

Posted on May 7, 2015 by Badge415

How important is traffic safety to you?

How many people were killed in the time it took you to watch your favorite TV show? Do you know how many people were killed in the time it took you to drive to work, pick up your kids and go to soccer practice?

How important is this subject to you?

Now, try asking how important this subject is to the person who lost their husband, wife, son, daughter, grandmother, grandpa or child in a traffic collision. Try asking someone who has permanent back pain after being involved in a collision.

How important is this subject to them? It’s more important than you know.

32,719 people were killed in traffic collisions in the United States in 2013. That’s an average of 89 people a day. Every day.

That’s almost an average of 4 people an hour.

Ask any officer or firefighter who has been to a fatal collision. They’ll tell you how it didn’t have to happen. They’ll also tell you how many times they’ve seen carelessness take a life away.

The most painful sound to hear is a family screaming and crying after being told that their loved one was killed in a car accident. It’s the type of sound that stays with you. It’s the type of sound that hurts to listen to it.

You can feel if vibrating through your bones as each cry seems to pass through you like a cold wind on a winter day. It bites and cuts through you. It makes you shiver.

The sound eventually leaves, but it lingers like fingers grabbing at your heart to tug at it. You try to ignore it, but you can’t.

If every person heard that sound, it would scare them into being a safer driver. If every person could walk with me as I stepped over body parts at a collision scene, they would understand what it means to be a safer driver.

If every person knew what it was like to look at the bottom of their boots to make sure there was no flesh or brains in the groves, they would be a safer driver.

If every driver knew what a burning car with people inside smelled like, they would want to be a safer driver.

And finally, if every person could see what a child looks like after their head was run over by a car, they too would want to be a safer driver.

It’s these sights, smells and sounds that have made me be a safer driver. Now, let’s talk about that question I asked in the beginning.

How important is this subject to you?

Pass this along to someone and let’s try and get people to be safer drivers.

This job is really about the people

Posted on May 5, 2015 by Badge415

We all have fast paced lives and that take us in different directions. Work schedules change and we slowly drift away from friends who seem to live on the opposite side of the world, but they are only on the opposite side of the work week. Before you know it, years have passed and you wonder where all the time went.

I don’t normally work Monday night, but I switched work days because I gave a presentation last night.

Last night I ran into an old friend on a call that I hadn’t seen in a very long time. It was like a reunion as we gave each other a hug. We stood there happy to see each other with smiles on our faces.

For a brief moment there was no work pressure. There was no rush to fly off to the next call. It was just two friends standing in the street at a traffic collision scene. We talked briefly and then it was off to other calls. The moment was brief, but lasting.

About five hours later another old friend called to ask a question about an arrest she had just made. I never see her either because of work schedules.

There was the quick hello of two friends who hadn’t spoken to each other in a long time. It was a few work related questions and then we were off the phone because we were busy.

Those particular people reminded me about the other great friends I’ve made over the years while working this job. People that I have shared the same crazy calls with. Friends who have seen the same gruesome sights with me. Friends who have been frustrated by the events in the world around us. Friends who have felt like no one appreciated us when we were giving it our all.

We have all shared in the same nonsense, tragedy, scary moments and frustration. We have all shared and seen the worst that man is capable of. We have all shared and seen the worst that can happen to people and their families.

All of this has created bonds that few people can understand unless you’ve been in the same boots.

The experiences at work have created friendships that will last forever. One day when we are wrinkled and have more gray hair, we will be able to look back at all the times we laughed when normal people wouldn’t have.

We will be able to smile at all the inside jokes that only we could understand from working the street.We will still be able to tell the same gross stories over dinner and not even think about it.

These are things only work friends can understand.

When I finally put my badge on for the last time, I will know this job was really about the people.

Why is the street shut down for so long?

Posted on May 3, 2015 by Badge415

Have you ever driven by a big collision scene and wondered why it was taking the cops so long to open up the street?

Have you ever wondered why it looked like the cops were standing around doing nothing when you were getting detoured?

No one wants be inconvenienced by a road closure when the police shut the street down because of a car accident or a crime scene. Believe me, I don’t want to be there any longer than I have to. I just want to finish my call and move on to the next one.

When the street does get shut down, it’s for good reasons. We don’t want to impact the public any more than we have to. Here are a few reasons why the street gets shut down at a collision scene.

1. Sometimes it’s just safer for everyone involved to have it shut down. The firefighters and ambulance personnel need room to work and they don’t want to worry about cars zooming by. Firefighters hate dodging cars just like we do.

2. Sometimes it makes cleanup easier for the street to be shut down. This is usually temporary.

3. Sometimes we shut the street down because we’re waiting for word from the hospital on the condition of the victim. No emergency room doctor is going to tell you anything in five minutes, so we have to wait. If the injuries aren’t as bad as we first thought then we open it up and get out of there.

4. Sometimes the street is closed down because it was a fatal collision. Closing the street down is just a necessary evil. If it’s after business hours, a traffic investigator or detective might have to be called out from home. This alone could mean an extra half 30-60 minutes to the street closure.

This might be why you see a bunch of cops standing around doing nothing. They might be in standby mode waiting for the detective.

5. Sometimes we stand on the side and look like we’re doing nothing because the forensic person wants us out of the scene so they can take their pictures.

6. Sometimes the fire trucks are in the way. I can’t set up for measurements until they leave the scene. If I setup too soon, there’s a chance the fire trucks will run something over when they leave.

When it comes to investigating a major injury traffic collision there are certain things we have to do. That means we have to measure the location of all the skid marks, gouge marks, fluid trails, areas of impact and points of rest.

There’s no getting around this part. After the investigation is done in the street, the traffic accident scene can be recreated in a scale drawing for the report.

The street could be closed down anywhere from 1 to 3 hours depending on how involved the scene was. It could also be longer.

Remember, we understand everyone wants to know how to get around the closure, but it’s impossible for us to answer every question when we’re standing in the middle of the street.

You’re just holding up traffic if you stop. You might have to keep going and figure it out.

It’s 2015 people. Invest in a map. Or just pull over and look at Google Maps on your phone. It’s not that hard.

Police work is a team effort

Posted on April 27, 2015 by Badge415

There are a lot of things written about the police profession by officers. The subjects include, news related items, tactical articles, peer support, mental wellness, physical conditioning, and stress management to name a few.

But no one ever writes about the teamwork that is involved. The teamwork part of police work is what makes this job fun and manageable.

Police work is like a football team in a game. Everyone on the field is working toward one goal. It’s a team effort from the kick off to the final whistle when the clock runs out.

Every call in police work is a team effort, but from time to time sometime big happens and you truly get to see it in action. It could be a shooting scene with tons of witnesses or a major injury collision with multiple vehicles that is complete and utter chaos.

Those type of calls never happen at a convenient time, but everyone comes together to get the job done. When these calls happen, it’s actually fun to be part of because of the teamwork that’s involved.

No one person can handle everything that needs to be done and the other cops know that. When there’s a big scene they go to the person handling the call and ask, “What do you want me to do?” or “What do you need?”

This past week I got to be part of some great teamwork at some very big collision scenes.

It was impressive to see so many police cars and fire trucks in one place and everyone taking a piece of the pie. It’s nice to be part of something that is supposed to run smoothly and actually does.

It’s also nice to know you can depend on so many people when things are crazy and out of control.

At the end of the day it’s my name at the bottom of those reports, but it doesn’t reflect the many others who helped. It doesn’t show the many unseen faces that are in the trenches doing the work that some people couldn’t stomach doing.

It also doesn’t reflect the dispatchers on the radio and the non-sworn personnel who helped.

When it’s all said and done, no one ever talks about the guys and girls who jumped in with both feet, rolled their sleeves up and got to work with no complaining.

I’m here to say thanks guys for being part of the madness.