I am a police officer.
I am also a wife, a daughter, a friend and a comrade. But my most important role is that of a mother.
My job means the world to me. My children mean more.
Sometimes these two worlds collide, pulling me in two different directions and I am hard pressed to make the best decision.
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March 3, 2005.
Meyerthorpe, Alberta
End of Watch for RCMP Officers Peter Schiemann, Anthony Gordon, Lionide Johnston, and Brock Myrol.
The world watched as our country grieved the loss of these four men.
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Young children are not immune to tragedy. They ‘get it’.
I told my kids what happened in Alberta as I refuse to allow them to grow up in a bubble. The Meyerthorpe Incident was all over the news so they were going to hear about it anyways, and I’d rather they hear the facts from me.
The whole incident seemed to confuse them. They couldn’t understand why someone would want to shoot and kill another person, and they definitely could not understand why someone would kill a police officer. Their comprehension about the incident went deeper, and they made the connection. Mom was a police officer. Someone might shoot and kill mom.
For weeks afterwards, my children were always near, like little moons orbiting a planet. They crawled into our bed in the middle of the night, something they had not done for a while.
One afternoon as I readied myself for work, my daughter came into the room. Her eyes were solemn and she looked about to cry. She clung to me when I hugged her. I kissed the top of her head and told her I would be okay, but she shook her head and the tears finally fell. She would not let go.
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This is what I mean by push and pull. Trying to make this world a safer place for your children pushes you one way. Having your children cling to you, begging you not to go to work because they fear you may not come home pulls hard in the other direction.
I was over at Slamdunk’s blog and he posted about some of the disgusting conditions certain eateries are in when they think no one is looking. Like at 2am in the morning, when the police show up for a report of a break-in.
I too have seen poor cleanliness and is one reason I refuse to eat at some places. After spending time in the restaurant business while going to school during my pre-cop years, I am fully aware of how much work it takes to keep a restaurant clean. I worked as a bartender/bar manager at one of Vancouver’s more popular restaurants, and after the place was closed it took me FOREVER to clean the bar area. The head honcho would spring surprise inspections the following morning, and would literally go around with a white glove, running his finger along ledges and on the undersides of the bar. It had better be clean or there was hell to pay.
Now, as an officer, I have had ample opportunity to see some deplorable conditions when responding to calls in the middle of the night. Two such times were in smaller hole-in-the-wall eateries that were both closed down within a year due to poor sanitation.
The first incident came in as a break-and-enter in progress. Someone called 911 to say a suspect had kicked in the front door to a bakery and gone inside. Units raced to the scene, with PSD Hondo and I not far behind. We approached the broken front door, I called out a warning, and when I got no response I released PSD Hondo into the bakery with his command to search for anyone inside. As Hondo searched I was standing not far from the display case when movement caught my eye.
In the case was the biggest granddaddy of a rat I’ve ever seen, it’s wire tail wrapped snugly around it’s body and it’s sleek brown fur shining in the beam of my flashlight. It appeared nonplussed to have been caught red-pawed as it nibbled a piece of cake. I was horrified.
At the same time, PSD Hondo returned to me after having searched the entire establishment – apparently the bad guy had made good his escape moments before we got there as no one was inside.
I returned my attention to the display case and the rat was still there. I banged on the glass and had a serious case of the heebie-jeebies when the thing waddled off, dragging it’s tail over the baked goods when it exited the case. Totally and completely disgusting.
The second time was in the same neighborhood only a few blocks away at around the same time of night. This time the burglar alarm alerted police to a break-in. We arrived shortly thereafter and went through the same routine of sending PSD Hondo in to search.
PSD Hondo searched the front of the store with no issues but when he got to the doorway leading to the back he exhibited what we call a ‘change of behaviour’. It was not a behaviour I had ever seen in my dog before – Hondo shrunk down so his belly was brushing the floor, his legs were flexed and his ears were back. His hackles were up and it was clear he was not pleased.
Keep in mind the inside of this place was fairly dark. With only the street lights from outside illuminating the way, I went to where Hondo and peeked around the corner. I didn’t see anything except black, but something smelled off and the hairs on the back of own neck started to stiffen. It was only when I shone my flashlight into the space that I startled – hanging by their rear feet from hooks in the ceiling were the carcasses of a dozen disemboweled pigs. BIG pigs. In an establishment reported to be a corner store. They were lined up in four rows of three, their noses just a foot from the floor, taking up the entire back of the store.
It was akin to the scene in a scary movie…you know the one…where the music starts and you want to tell the person in the movie to leave, to turn around, to get the heck outta there? It was really creepy. Hondo thought so too.
He belly crawled up to the nearest carcass and sniffed. Then Hondo forcefully bumped his nose against the carcass’s neck as if to say, “Hey, what’s up with you?”
His doing this caused the pig to sway in a domino effect and a wave of movement slowly rippled through all the carcasses. Their gentle swaying and spinning was too much for my dog; he retreated back to the doorway. Can’t say I blamed him – the pigs were the same size as he was, and he was probably thinking he did not want to end the night strung up from the rafters.
Nothing was missing from that store, so it’s a wonder if the bad guy got surprised by the pigs as well….
I’ve been involved in a paint war the last few days and have discovered that I am in the ‘needs improvement’ group for actual colour selection. It took me three days and a couple of different gallons of paint to get it right, but now our laundry room and computer nook are done.
This is also the first time I’ve had the computer out from under plastic sheeting for more than a few minutes- so if you’ve wondered where I’ve been, I’ve been painting and cursing myself for not hiring a colour designer.
While I was painting I had the radio on, and when it was time, the local news channel kept me company. So even though this week’s TWIP is brief, it’s a great story.
Bob Bennet with RCMP and PSD Nick
84 year old Bob Bennett from Benson Lake, northern Vancouver Island, fell into a dry well sometime on Saturday, June 20th. For four days, Bennett tried to climb out of the 2.4 meter/8 ft deep well without success, and was reported missing after he failed to show up to meet a friend.
Police started their search early on Wednesday, June 24th. RCMP Dog Handler Cpl. Terry Higginson and Police Dog Nick helped with the search, and by the afternoon, Police Dog Nick indicated on a the dry well, alerting his handler to Bennett’s location at the bottom of the well.
Bennett, who was reported to be in relatively good spirits, was dehydrated but otherwise not badly injured.
“I really found that as long as I infused myself with water at a fairly regular basis that, I didn’t find it particularly distressful,” Bennett told CBC News (for the full story) .”You know, I was searching my memory for the various tales that I’d read with regard to starvation and the rest of it, and I thought, well, I hope we don’t have to go 10 days, but if we have to, we have to,” he said.
At 84 years old, Bob Bennett could teach the rest of us what it means to be a survivor.
The police radio is my life-line. Whether it’s on my belt or mounted in the work truck, my radio keeps me tied to other officers, and more importantly, to the dispatcher. When a call goes sideways or gets a little haywire I know help is only one broadcast away.
When another police unit calls for cover and I can tell by the sound of the officer’s voice that all is definitely not okay my heart does a whump-whump. When this happens, the dispatcher gives out the officer’s location, a supervisor usually confirms it and tells other units to get there, and a few units might broadcast their response so the officer calling for help knows it’s coming. Everyone else just goes.
Much worse is when an officer calls for help but makes no additional broadcasts. The lack of updates is deafening, and I know the speed of my vehicle gets exponentially faster with every passing second of silence when I’m responding to such a call.
But while I have the benefit of arriving at the call and and physically seeing the officer, the dispatcher does not. After responding units arrive at the scene there are very few radio updates with the exception of someone eventually saying everything is under control and for additional units to slow down. The lack of updates is not intentional; it’s because cover officers have their hands full. Once the situation is under control, officers usually debrief whatever happened at the roadside. Sans radio, so the dispatcher only knows that the officer is okay, but not what happened.
That would drive me batty – hearing a crazy call is worse than being right in the middle of one. If appropriate, I call the dispatcher afterwards and let them know what happened so they can form some type of ground to deal with whatever they just heard.
There have been many people who have slung dirty comments, derogatory words and sexist slurs my way in the years I’ve been a police officer. For the most part, all the taunts have been like water off a duck’s back.
As a child my parents taught me the following:
- If you don’t have anything good or constructive to say, don’t say anything at all
- If you are taunted, do not give in to the taunts, as doing so hands power to the taunter
- Do not say unto others comments you would not like said unto yourself
It’s good advice and the words of my parents are words I have adhered to for most of my adult life. The advice of my parents has served me well as an officer.
But this media/blogging world is one like no other.
Every now and then I get a comment or e-mail laced with hatred and disgust. The comments themselves always appear to be an attempt to piss me off, to get a rise out of me, or to get me to make a heated comment I would eventually regret.
Usually, I go get my husband, show him the comment and we have a laugh. Then I hit the delete button.
Ahhhh….the delete button. Of all things considered, the delete button is a definite perk in the blogging world.
That’s not to say I do not acknowledge a reader with a different perspective.
I encourage debate, a different way of thinking, and a new angle at looking at issues. No one person has all the answers and it is through our diversity that we have the greatest opportunity. I love it when we are challenged, tested, and forced to support our way of thinking. It’s when we chance upon a fresh way of looking at things that we make better decisions. It’s when someone offers constructive criticism that we grow as an individual, a group, or a community.
Challenge is good.
Hatred and nonsense is not.
In a week filled with inquests, pleas for information on missing persons and updates on homicide investigations, the one thing I’m not going to do is comment on the Braidwood Inquiry and the new turn it took today. I’ll leave this one to the ones who can comment on it.
Keeping with the search for truth, the following families are asking for anyone with information on the fate of their loved ones to come forward, even if all that is done is a call placed to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477(TIPS). Courtesy of the VPD Public Affairs Media Section:
- On the second anniversary of the disappearance of Ronald Carlow, his sister Loretta made another heartfelt plea for any information in the case. Ronald William Carlow left his residence in the 1200 block of Homer Street on June 20th, 2007, and was wearing a white t-shirt, brown and green camouflage shorts and brown flip-flops. He was 38 years old, 5’11”, about 230 lbs. with a muscular build, light brown hair and green eyes. He had a tattoo of a ring of hockey sticks around his left bicep. Investigators discovered that Ron met with people involved in the drug trade shortly after he left his Yaletown apartment on June 20th, 2007 at 5:51 p.m. He has not been seen since and both the family and investigators believe that Ronald has been the victim of a probable murder.
- Evan Garber, a 59 year old Vancouver resident, was dining at a restaurant at 3163 Main Street at 1:30 in the morning on April 28, 2006. A man walked into the restaurant with a handgun and confronted a staff member, then began to take cash from the register. When the robber tried to leave, Mr. Garber intervened and they began to struggle. Another restaurant patron also got involved and shots were fired. Evan Garber was shot and died at the scene. The second patron was seriously injured and taken to hospital. A car was seen leaving the area at the time and may be related to the incident. Investigators are looking for an older, 1989-1992 dark blue, four-door sedan, possibly a Chevrolet or Oldsmobile. Witnesses say the robber was white, mid to late 20s, 6’ tall, 170 to 180 lbs. and he was wearing a light-coloured baseball cap, a loose shirt, possibly a track jacket, a t-shirt and long pants. “This was not the first time Evan Garber had intervened in a crime in progress,” says Homicide Detective Ron Symes. “When a man with a bag over his head tried to rob a store in which he was a customer, Mr. Garber pulled the bag off, exposing the robber’s face to the store’s surveillance camera. Officers were able to identify the suspect and he was subsequently charged with two counts of robbery.”
- On September 11th, 2008, Willene Wah Ying Chong lay sleeping in her bed at 2781 E.55th Avenue when an arsonist set fire to her home. The 77 year old woman became Vancouver’s 15th homicide victim of 2008, dying in the house she had lived in for over 36 years. A $10,000 reward has been offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person(s) responsible for this crime. “My mother was a strong, loving, self-assured and loyal woman,” says Jerry Chong. “We were shaped by her will and determination to better ourselves. The pain never leaves us and we are haunted by the nightmares of that day,” says Chong. “This is especially true for my youngest brother who was present. He not only suffered physical injuries, but memories he cannot erase. He has not returned to work since that time. Our family needs closure and for that to happen we need to bring her killer to justice.”
If you really read the above pleas, you cannot help but feel the pain of those left behind. To not know what has happened to your loved one must be horrible, and these families are in my thoughts.
Stay safe out there everyone,
Sandra
Some speeders have the worst luck. Either they blow through a radar set-up, or they blow past an unmarked police car.
Based on experience, I would hazard a guess that a speeder would have a more lenient ticket bestowed upon them from the driver of said unmarked police car (me). I, for one, do not give out many tickets. I prefer to give out warnings – it’s just my style.
But every now and then, I issue a ticket. So when a court notification comes, telling me whoever I issued the ticket to is fighting it, I know I had better pay attention as the tickets I give are usually for outrageous traffic offences.
Case in point:
Last year, while sitting at a red light in the middle of the night, a car crossed my bow at roughly the speed of sound. It was going so fast it appeared to float down the road. I tried to catch up to it but it was not safe to do so, and the dang thing raced around a corner and accelerated away. The car was travelling at about 100 kms/hr and had turned to a speck on the horizon.
Just when I thought the car was going to slow down for a red light (in my head I sounded like a skipping record – ‘he’s going to brake, he’s gotta brake, oh-crap-he’s-not-braking!), it zoomed through a solid red light at a major intersection at over double the speed limit. Without hitting anyone. Some one up there was looking down on us that night…
I radioed in, and finally caught up when the driver stopped at the next red light.
When I conducted the traffic stop, the car pulled to the side of the road like any other normal driver. But the driver was not ‘normal’ – she was absolutely gooned. As in falling-down, three-sheets-to-the-wind, going-to-be-talking-to-the-porcelain-king drunk.
After giving her a ticket for speeding and for the red light, she was also written up for impaired driving. Other than being a horrific driver, the lady had had no other dealings with police. She was an otherwise contributing member of our society who had just put everyone else out on the road in extreme danger.
It still amazes me when people who put themselves in this type of situation manage to escape injury….all too often they leave death and carnage in their wake.
911 received numerous calls this morning of a “mischief in progress” in a residential area just off of Kingsway Ave. The suspect had wrecked the plants in a neighbors garden and had fled southbound on foot.
When units arrived in the area, this is what they found:
I’m not quite sure what people thought we were going to do about Bambi feasting on the hostas, so we called Conservation. We were instructed to leave the deer to his own devices (and yes, it was a ‘he’ – if you look close you can see the beginning of antlers) and he would wander back to where he had come from.
Vancouver has a lot of wildlife, but I’ve only seen racoons, skunks and coyotes. We get the occasional bear sighting, and last summer there were two mountain lion sightings (I would have said cougar sightings, but I feared the comments would get too comical….they still might). I’ve never seen a deer in the city limits, so this was a first.
We have three dogs. PSD Hondo plus two family dogs.
In all the years we have had dogs, only Hondo has been skunked. Twice. While at work. Both times the skunking happened in the middle of the night when the nocturnal little buggers were out and about.
But today on the beach an adventurous black and white critter was far from its natural habitat. One of our family dogs got blasted when she went to say hello. Hondo took one whiff and high-tailed it outta there.
And they say experience is over rated…
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Here’s what I’ve used to shampoo our dogs after a run-in with a skunk. I’ve paired the following recipe with a commercial ’skunk odour eliminator’ with great success:
- 1x 300 ml bottle hydrogen peroxide
- 1/2 small box baking soda
- a generous squirt of Sunlight dish soap (I’ve tried other brands, but nothing does a better job than Sunlight…)
Mix and apply to your dog like a shampoo, rubbing it into the coat. If need be, use a rag to apply the mix to the dog’s head while being careful to avoid the dog’s eyes and ears. Let it sit for 10 minutes and then rinse. Can be repeated if needed. The recipe should be doubled for large breed or long haired dogs.
Also, this mixture must be made immediately before use or it will not work (the chemical reaction is what neutralizes the skunk odour) and may explode any sealed container.
The last full moon was Sunday, June 7th. The days leading up to and away from a full moon are usually busy. People do weird things and crimes get a little more violent. This week was no exception.
- Jun 9th – 18 year old Yeon Chul Peter Lee was arrested and charged with theft over $5000, aggravated assault and unlawful confinement after he allegedly attacked a man. The male victim is recovering from several slash wounds after he arranged to meet and show Lee his car-for-sale. At some point during the meeting, Lee allegedly struck the victim with a blunt object, choked him and then slashed his face, neck and chest. In a bizarre twist, Lee then drove the victim (in the victim’s car no less) to the hospital, after which Lee made off with the car. Lee was arrested when he returned home a few hours later.
- June 10th – 30 year old Daniel Kesselring was the 39th person to be flown back to his home province courtesy of our Con Air program. He was arrested in Vancouver after fleeing numerous weapons charges from Waterloo, Ontario.
- June 11th – Vancouver recorded its 14th homicide of 2009 after 28 year old Jefferey Qi Feng Bian was fatally stabbed in a Yaletown apartment. Anyone with information is asked to call investigators at (604)717-2500, or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
- June 11th – two men, age 19 and 22, are in custody after a violent robbery at the 7-11 convenience store located at 6904 Victoria Dr. During the robbery the suspects brandished pepper spray and knife (the clerk was not hurt), but were taken into custody a short time later.
As for the full-moon theory? Some say it’s complete hogwash, that the theory has not stood up to the test of numerous studies saying there is no correlation between the lunar phase and the rates of homicide/traffic accidents/violent altercations/increased emergency room admissions etc, etc.
I beg to differ. Things are always a little wacko when the moon is full.
When the only ones out on the streets are cops and robbers (and those pesky newspaper delivery people…), you cannot help but notice the subtle tension underneath it all when the moon turns her round face towards the earth and shines down on us all.
