Safest city?

A neighboring city, Bellevue, was ranked as the safest city in the Pacific Northwest.  I know why.  It’s because Seattle is so soft on criminals that it pays to commit crime in our city! 

I love how politicians form committees to look into better crime fighting methods, or plans for “cleaning up” a certain location.  Hello?  Is this mike on?  LET THE COPS DO THEIR JOBS!  I honestly have some idea of what Vietnam Veterans must have felt.  You have the men, the fire power, and the training.  Now if only you could use it.

Same for Iraq.

So many liberals want us to use kid gloves in deterring crime.  You can’t fight a fight with one hand behind your back.  We know who all the criminals are!  Sometimes we even catch them in the act, but they never receive punishment relative to the crime. 

Bellevue was mentioned as having a 35 percent drop in auto thefts.  You know I actually know where 5 separate car thieves live and we always seem to recover stolen cars within a 3 block radius of their houses.  That’s weird?!  <laugh>  The sad part is that the criminals play off as being victims, play up to the liberals, and then they laugh behind their backs at us (the police), when the liberals come to their aid.

Crime does pay. 

IQ test for drivers license

I’m making this mental list of things I would change if I was King.  You want to drive?  Ok, just take this simple test.  Hmmm…You scored stupid.  Sorry we don’t allow stupid people to drive.  We’ve found that many accidents are directly related to stupid people.  I had to investigate another motorcycle accident on my last at work. 

The suck thing is that I have recently gotten a motorcycle, and now I’m investigating all these motorcycle accidents.  The latest one, involved a motorcyclist, who was driving like a madman in traffic.  Speeding and a lot of lane changes.  The traffic, in front of him was stopping for a red light, but the cyclist decided to move into the turn only lane, and drive straight. 

An on-coming car, which was caught in the intersection, was lawfully clearing the intersection on a yellow light, after the on-coming cars stopped.  The motorcycle hit into the side of the car at about 50mph.  Last I heard the pinhead had a broken femur, pelvis, collar, and wrist bone.   I cited him for negligent driving…$538.00.  Have a nice day!

J

Cop Vs. Cop

There’s so much in-house fighting, in my department, that I’ve started to look at other departments.  I don’t seriously believe I’ll ever leave Seattle PD, but you never know.  

Ok, so here’s my latest gripe.  I was patrolling through the industrial area, when I see two low lifes at a gas station.  They’re just standing around and look at me with that “Uh-oh Five-oh!” look.  I drive away, make a u-turn, and return with my headlights out.  Sure enough they get into a vehicle and drive off.  I enter the license plate into my computer and it shows to be a reported stolen car.

The NCIC hit even notes that it was taken in a Home Invasion Robbery.  Ok, this ups the ante!  So I am calling out direction of travel, and when two more cops cars show up I activate the lights and siren.  ZOOM!  The vehicle pursuit is on.  We hit speeds of 90mph and drive around a big old semi-truck.  The suspect vehicle is swerving and I’m thinking, “Don’t lose control in front of this truck!”

I bend policy a bit, the bean counters don’t fully understand that you have to risk sometimes to cross the finish line, and pull alongside the suspect vehicle.  I’m shining my spot light, a ga-zillion candle power light, into the drivers face the entire time.  I do this for two reasons.  First, I want to be able to ID the driver, and second I want to blind her in hopes she gives up driving. 

It works and she slams the brakes.  Too bad her light vehicle stops 40 feet quicker than my heavily laden police car.  I shoot past a few feet, but am in no mood to back up, because I know there’s a few fast moving cop cars coming in behind me.  I jump out and plan to run back to the other cop cars, but see that the passenger has his hands outside the window.  I also notice that the driver has her window down and is holding one hand out.

That free hand could be holding a weapon, but I’m guessing it’s holding on to the steering wheel, or the stick shift.  She’s waiting for us to run up, so she can drive off.  I bend the policy some, again, and run up to the open window.  ZAP!  I shoot her with my taser darts.  After a 2 second burst I shout, “Out of the car!  Get on the ground!”  She complies and is taken into custody.

Sweet!  Two burglars, and a stolen vehicle recovered.  She even confesses to the crime!  My complaint is that I don’t get a single “Atta-boy!” from my sergeant, and one of his pet cops , who was there, is saying that I should not have tased her.  Huh?  She’s still sitting in a 1,200lbs weapon (the car), after using it in a very reckless manner in an attempt to flee, and we have the method in which it was stolen.  Who knows the specifics.  Was the owner seriously injured?  I consider them to be both very dangerous and took a course of action that resulted in arrest with no injuries, or gun play. 

<shrug>  Some of us our cops, and some of us simply play the part. 

J

Common Sense 101

Ok, would someone please slap the press/media upside their heads and wake them up.  I love how biased they are in what they print and show in the TV.  It would be nice if they’d get a counter statement, after interviewing the bad guys, or the bad guys family/friends. 

I just read an article, where a single mother of two called 911 after a stranger rang her doorbell.  She watched the subject walk around to the back of her house and was concerned for the safety of her and her two kids.  Good call!  The cops find a broken window, and contact the subject inside a parked car out front.

Hindsight is a beautiful thing, but look at the facts.  Good contact?  Hell yes!  The cops are justified in contacting the subject.  At some point the cops shoot and kill the subject.  The article doesn’t give any facts to the shooting itself, but that’s because of the process.  We (law enforcement) conduct an investigation before giving out the details.  Citizens, and bad guys, have the luxury of giving their opinions (speculation), which often fail to follow fact.

What irked me in the article was that a neighbor believes the subject was looking for someone he knew.  Ummm…My first question would be, “Did you know him?” and if the neighbor doesn’t want to fess up to knowing him, why is that?  Second, the mother-in-law tells the media that he was a good burglar, but he wouldn’t have knocked on the door, or rung a doorbell, before breaking in.  Huh?  You eat a bowl of stupid this morning?

THEY RING THE BELL TO SEE IF SOMEONE IS HOME, SO THEY DON’T BREAK INTO AN OCCUPIED HOUSE!

If someone answers, then they just say, “Oops.  Wrong house.  Sorry, I was looking for Joe Drug Dealer.”  Or they are scam artist and are going to say, “My car broke down.  Can I use your phone?”  That’s when they rape, or steal.  I hope that some of the other neighbors thanked those cops.  Here’s a section of the article;

After the shooting the woman said deputies told her they had discovered that a basement window had been broken and someone had rummaged inside. Urquhart declined to comment because the case is still under investigation.

He also wouldn't say what may have caused the two officers to shoot Culp. Urquhart also wouldn't say whether Culp was armed.

The two deputies who shot Culp were identified Monday as Sgt. Kevin Fagerstrom, 53, and Deputy Mark Souza, 45. Both men are on administrative leave while the shooting is under investigation, which is routine after an officer-involved shooting.

Urquhart said an inquest will be called by County Executive Ron Sims to determine whether the deputies were justified to open fire.

A woman close to Culp says she's certain that the Everett man showed up at the house to see someone, not to break in.

Culp had served prison time for burglary and could sneak in and out of places quickly, said Marilyn Wells, his former mother-in-law. She said Culp wouldn't have rung the doorbell if he intended to break into the house.

Culp's sister declined to comment and referred all calls to Wells.

Culp served prison time for burglary and attempting to escape from 1985 until 1989, said a state Department of Corrections spokeswoman.

J

Got cuffs?

So a couple of weeks ago I ran a license plate and the registered owner showed to be suspended driving license in the 2^nd degree.  This is a misdemeanor crime, which usually results in a few days jail and the impounding of the vehicle.  The car is held until restitution is made, which can run into the thousands of dollars.  Basically, it’s how the city generates money.  I can honestly say that I see suspended drivers do more time in jail, than the drug dealers.  Hard to squeeze money out of the druggies.

I tried to catch up with the car, but he was a ways in front of me and traffic prevented me from catching up.  True, I could’ve gone lights and siren, but it’s not worth it.  When ever you run lights and siren you run the risk of a traffic accident.  I don’t want to be the officer that has to explain chasing a suspended driver.

I’m patient. 

I saw the car again yesterday, as it was preparing to make a left turn from a southbound avenue.  I was northbound, so I made a right turn and pulled to the curb.  I figured I’d wait for him to make the turn and then conduct a traffic stop.  He had other ideas!  ZOOM!  He quickly merged back into southbound traffic and took off.

Ok, I’m now hauling you know what through a parking lot, merge into the southbound traffic, and can spot the guy a few blocks down.  There’s no cars between us, so now I get to drive fast.  I’m catching up when he quickly makes a turn, followed by another turn.  Too bad he’s in a 1979 VW and I’m in a police issue Ford with a good V8 engine!  <laughing>

I end up removing him from the car, determine he also has warrants, and put him into the position.  Facing away from me, feet spread apart, and hands grasped together behind his back.  I reach back for my cuffs and realize “I ain’t got no cuffs!”  <laughing>  Great!  I pat the guy down and tell him to sit on the ground.  I then call the officer, who has my cuffs from yesterday when we arrested a bad guy, and she tells me she is on her lunch break.  She was willing to drive them to me, but I just called another officer.

It just goes to show you that cops are people too!

J 

Bad day at the office.

Ok, so a few weeks back a crazed woman entered into a business office and chose a random victim.  The suspect slashed and stabbed the woman for no reason.  Thankfully, the victim survived, but she will have scars for the rest of her life.  Mental and physical.  The (victims) co-workers will also have to deal with the fallout.  Could you imagine hearing the screams and seeing all the blood on the walls.

About a month after that incident I was dispatched to a death call, where the subject jumped off the 5^th floor of his apartment building.  We know it’s a “jumper” because the witness saw the whole thing from her work office.  Yes, the same office where the stabbing incident occurred.  Tough place to work.

Everyone I contacted, manager, apartment residents, and citizens on the street, where very shooken up over the suicide.  I don’t know if there’s something the matter with me, but I could really care less.  He was a shady character to begin with, possible drugs and a younger (half his age) male prostitute living with him, so why the feeling of sadness? 

It’s like all the people that come up to me concerned over minor issues.  Traffic infractions, and crimes that are no direct threat to anyone.  Someone smoking crack cocaine.  Why should I care?  Someone stole a car just now.  So?  I can tell you that nothing is ever done to prosecute these crimes.  I drive by and see crackheads smoking crack everyday.  I catch auto thieves, but watch them walk on the charges.

<SIGH>  I wasn’t intendin to go this direction, with my blog, but once again I am venting…

J