Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Spammers
Somehow, making a comment about the asshole spammers prompted even more of them to start commenting on my blog. I'm sorry I had to limit commenting so much for real people, but DAMN THAT SHIT IS ANNOYING. What I want to know is how the spambots are getting past the word verification?
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Grand Jury
So I've been absent a while again. This time I have a great, blog-related excuse though. I was on jury duty for two weeks of that time! I wish I could talk more about it, but it was grand jury. It was genuinely fascinating. I was bitter about being summoned at first, but once it started I appreciated being able to see that part of J's job. For those of you not familiar, grand jury is basically the presentation of felony cases by the prosecution. Typically the arresting officer, investigator, or a case presenter present most of the case to a jury, and the prosecutor asks relevant questions. It's fairly informal, and the jury is allowed to ask relevant questions as well. There are no defense lawyers or defendants. Well, typically, anyway. We actually had one case where the defendant personally called the prosecutor and asked to come testify. That was pretty strange actually.
On an unrelated note, is mine the only blog getting spam comments from Asia? Ugh. I hate having to turn on complete comment moderation but this is getting irritating!
On an unrelated note, is mine the only blog getting spam comments from Asia? Ugh. I hate having to turn on complete comment moderation but this is getting irritating!
Thursday, June 03, 2010
Another candidate for the Darwin awards
http://www.wlwt.com/news/23766921/detail.html
Really folks...just...really?
Really folks...just...really?
Thursday, May 06, 2010
Sometimes you have to do what you have to do
Last week J and I were talking shortly before I went to bed. As we got off the phone, he mentioned that he had to go back up another deputy on a DUI accident.
A few hours later when he got home, I woke up enough for him to tell me that the accident had been caused by friend of J's family. Someone he'd grown up across the street from. Someone whose parents still had dinner with J's parents from time to time. He was fine, no injuries, and his car was the only one involved. But by the time J arrived at the scene, the friend was refusing to do any tests, including the breathalyzer. In Ohio, that's an automatic suspension of your driver's license.
Not only does J have no recourse because he wasn't the responding officer, but he wouldn't have had a choice anyway. There is damaged property, and the friend is refusing to comply with the other deputy. At this point he will be arrested. When J shows up, the friend naturally sees an old familiar face, and feels safer, thinking he won't be in as much trouble now. Even asks for J once he's in the back of the cruiser, cuffed.
Obviously J has an internal conflict about this situation. It's only natural to want to help a friend out, but the damage is done and the consequences need to be paid.
We chat about it for a few minutes in the dark of our bedroom. I reach out my hand to him, to let him know I sympathize. The tone of his voice is heavy with a unique mix of emotions, some sympathy for and disappointment in his friend's actions, his duty and obligation as a LEO. We drift off to sleep.
Two days later we happen to be having dinner with J's parents and sisters. The family of the arrested friend just so happens to come up in conversation, and without even thinking, I start to mention that J has a story about him. J immediately interrupts with, "No I don't."
This isn't the first time he's arrested or been aware of the arrest of someone that his family knew. And in those situations, he's never shared gossip either. I don't know if my brain just forgot that fact, or what. I may have mentioned before, that the neighborhood J and his family grew up in was somewhat Norman Rockwell. The parents of several of the families were all friends, the daughters grew up going to prom together and participating in each other's weddings, the sons raced their bikes up and down the streets and played hide and seek games spread over several back yards. It seems only natural to me that they would be interested in the arrest, even from a sympathetic point of view.
J was quick to shut down the conversation and make it known that he wasn't going to be sharing any sort of information, but obviously there's already some damage done. Later I apologize for the gaff and he forgives me, but it's been weighing on my mind over the last week or so. I betrayed a spousal confidence.
A few hours later when he got home, I woke up enough for him to tell me that the accident had been caused by friend of J's family. Someone he'd grown up across the street from. Someone whose parents still had dinner with J's parents from time to time. He was fine, no injuries, and his car was the only one involved. But by the time J arrived at the scene, the friend was refusing to do any tests, including the breathalyzer. In Ohio, that's an automatic suspension of your driver's license.
Not only does J have no recourse because he wasn't the responding officer, but he wouldn't have had a choice anyway. There is damaged property, and the friend is refusing to comply with the other deputy. At this point he will be arrested. When J shows up, the friend naturally sees an old familiar face, and feels safer, thinking he won't be in as much trouble now. Even asks for J once he's in the back of the cruiser, cuffed.
Obviously J has an internal conflict about this situation. It's only natural to want to help a friend out, but the damage is done and the consequences need to be paid.
We chat about it for a few minutes in the dark of our bedroom. I reach out my hand to him, to let him know I sympathize. The tone of his voice is heavy with a unique mix of emotions, some sympathy for and disappointment in his friend's actions, his duty and obligation as a LEO. We drift off to sleep.
Two days later we happen to be having dinner with J's parents and sisters. The family of the arrested friend just so happens to come up in conversation, and without even thinking, I start to mention that J has a story about him. J immediately interrupts with, "No I don't."
This isn't the first time he's arrested or been aware of the arrest of someone that his family knew. And in those situations, he's never shared gossip either. I don't know if my brain just forgot that fact, or what. I may have mentioned before, that the neighborhood J and his family grew up in was somewhat Norman Rockwell. The parents of several of the families were all friends, the daughters grew up going to prom together and participating in each other's weddings, the sons raced their bikes up and down the streets and played hide and seek games spread over several back yards. It seems only natural to me that they would be interested in the arrest, even from a sympathetic point of view.
J was quick to shut down the conversation and make it known that he wasn't going to be sharing any sort of information, but obviously there's already some damage done. Later I apologize for the gaff and he forgives me, but it's been weighing on my mind over the last week or so. I betrayed a spousal confidence.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
S.W.A.T.
Special Weapons and Tactics. Technically J's team has another acronym they go by, but it's the same thing. They are specifically trained for the types of cases that aren't routine police work. Too often that means they train for any and all situations in preparation for all the unknown factors.
For example, they can't possibly be prepared for the layout of every building floorplan in existence. Or for the great unknown of people in those aforementioned buildings. Where could they be, are they armed, are they dangerous, are they innocent, etc.
My brother is on the SWAT team for his county too, so sometimes it's interesting for the two to compare the differences in their training approach.
A particular situation that comes to mind is when they serve a warrant on a meth lab. The sheer volatility of these labs is such that the team is forced to rethink their approach, and severely reduces or eliminates a number of the tools they typically rely on. No flash-bangs, no tasers, even their gas masks can be rendered obsolete.
Meth labs are scary shit in their own right... it makes me nervous when I hear about those warrants.
For example, they can't possibly be prepared for the layout of every building floorplan in existence. Or for the great unknown of people in those aforementioned buildings. Where could they be, are they armed, are they dangerous, are they innocent, etc.
My brother is on the SWAT team for his county too, so sometimes it's interesting for the two to compare the differences in their training approach.
A particular situation that comes to mind is when they serve a warrant on a meth lab. The sheer volatility of these labs is such that the team is forced to rethink their approach, and severely reduces or eliminates a number of the tools they typically rely on. No flash-bangs, no tasers, even their gas masks can be rendered obsolete.
Meth labs are scary shit in their own right... it makes me nervous when I hear about those warrants.
DUI arrest - Man blows .373
WOW. Here's the news story. .373 is four times the legal limit here in Ohio! The journalist found court records indicating a similar charge in 1990 for this man...I want to know how he went twenty years without getting caught again.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Only with this type of job...
It's funny when you talk to some one who said their engineer husband was too busy to talk while at work. The other day I called J, who picked up the phone and immediately said "I'll call you back," sirens blaring in the background. My response has become a quick "loveyoubye" in those cases.
Wednesday, April 07, 2010
An interesting night
So Monday night, J and some other deputies respond to a call about a bar fight. They arrive to find the instigator of the fight, bloodied and bruised. Apparently he lost. HA! The other fighter is not around, so technically there's no victim. They have the paramedics check this guy out, whereupon they tell him he will need several stitches. Guy refuses to go to the hospital, so they bandage him up and go on their way. At this point the deputies don't want to fully arrest him and take him to jail, so they issue a citation.
Now, a logical person would at this point realize he's just gotten off easy and go home. Not Senor Froggy though. He starts getting belligerent with the deputies, threatening to call his lawyer-cousin, telling J he remembers him from an arrest in Hamilton (a place J has never worked), on and on. The deputies continue trying to get rid of him. Froggy throws his citation on the ground and refuses to go to his rent-a-home (the motel).
Finally the deputies decide to go ahead and haul him off to jail. They not only will have to book him into the jail but because of the paramedic visit, they will need to take him to the hospital too. Once Froggy realizes he's about to be handcuffed, he bolts. Except in his fully drunken state he isn't getting very far. When J tackles him, his wounds re-open. Suddenly Froggy wants to be very cooperative, tells them he will go straight to his room, won't give them any trouble, etc.
As soon as he is in the back of a cruiser, J realizes his tie is covered in blood. He throws it away. Later, while writing up his report, he discovers his shirt is bloody too. (Ohio deputies wear black shirts so you can imagine that at night you wouldn't see it)
This shirt now goes in the trash, too. On the plus side, I don't need to figure out how to sanitize a black shirt without bleach!
Back to the story...the deputies head up to the jail, only to be told there's no room at the inn. Supervisor calls in, is told the same thing. No space in the jail. After all this trouble, they're going to be forced to set Froggy on his way with the citation. Except suddenly someone realizes this man doesn't even have a green card...
Now, a logical person would at this point realize he's just gotten off easy and go home. Not Senor Froggy though. He starts getting belligerent with the deputies, threatening to call his lawyer-cousin, telling J he remembers him from an arrest in Hamilton (a place J has never worked), on and on. The deputies continue trying to get rid of him. Froggy throws his citation on the ground and refuses to go to his rent-a-home (the motel).
Finally the deputies decide to go ahead and haul him off to jail. They not only will have to book him into the jail but because of the paramedic visit, they will need to take him to the hospital too. Once Froggy realizes he's about to be handcuffed, he bolts. Except in his fully drunken state he isn't getting very far. When J tackles him, his wounds re-open. Suddenly Froggy wants to be very cooperative, tells them he will go straight to his room, won't give them any trouble, etc.
As soon as he is in the back of a cruiser, J realizes his tie is covered in blood. He throws it away. Later, while writing up his report, he discovers his shirt is bloody too. (Ohio deputies wear black shirts so you can imagine that at night you wouldn't see it)
This shirt now goes in the trash, too. On the plus side, I don't need to figure out how to sanitize a black shirt without bleach!
Back to the story...the deputies head up to the jail, only to be told there's no room at the inn. Supervisor calls in, is told the same thing. No space in the jail. After all this trouble, they're going to be forced to set Froggy on his way with the citation. Except suddenly someone realizes this man doesn't even have a green card...
Monday, April 05, 2010
Morton's Salt joins the thin blue line
This weekend was fabulous. J and I and the boy all had 72 hours together, CONSECUTIVELY. He had a vacation day on his "Friday" due to a health insurance incentive (let us find out exactly how much of a burden you are on the insurance system and we'll give you a day off!), and I was off Friday thanks to the union at my work selecting Catholic holidays for a lot of our paid vacation days.
Unfortunately (depending on your outlook), due to it being a holiday weekend, we were busy the entire time.
Wednesday night, though, J had gotten a DUI arrest. Last night he discovered it would possibly go to pre-trial tomorrow. Tonight he has a regular shift, then an extra detail. It just seems to always work out this way. The detail he's working after shift tonight is a nice extra paycheck, but it always causes a backlog in our daily routine. Add court time to that and it just goes completely haywire.
It is what it is, we're not really complaining. Just seems like all the 'extras' pile up together.
Unfortunately (depending on your outlook), due to it being a holiday weekend, we were busy the entire time.
Wednesday night, though, J had gotten a DUI arrest. Last night he discovered it would possibly go to pre-trial tomorrow. Tonight he has a regular shift, then an extra detail. It just seems to always work out this way. The detail he's working after shift tonight is a nice extra paycheck, but it always causes a backlog in our daily routine. Add court time to that and it just goes completely haywire.
It is what it is, we're not really complaining. Just seems like all the 'extras' pile up together.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Hey, other cop wives - A question
Do you guys ever listen to your hubbies' stories from shift and just get horribly depressed about human nature?
It's that, combined with what I read in the local news that just has me in a funk. A murder trial just wrapped up this week in Cincinnati, ending in the jury recommending the death penalty. I'll spare you details (as I have spared myself most of them too) but the jury foreman said the man on trial was worse than a monster.
I know that by the very nature of his job, J is going to run into the seedy side of society. That's no surprise. And if you're only seeing the trash dump out your window, you're likely to think the landscape is crap everywhere. I know this, inherently. But sometimes even the mere existence of the scum and the heinous things they can do just... really hit me hard.
I've got such a bleeding heart ;)
It's that, combined with what I read in the local news that just has me in a funk. A murder trial just wrapped up this week in Cincinnati, ending in the jury recommending the death penalty. I'll spare you details (as I have spared myself most of them too) but the jury foreman said the man on trial was worse than a monster.
I know that by the very nature of his job, J is going to run into the seedy side of society. That's no surprise. And if you're only seeing the trash dump out your window, you're likely to think the landscape is crap everywhere. I know this, inherently. But sometimes even the mere existence of the scum and the heinous things they can do just... really hit me hard.
I've got such a bleeding heart ;)
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Zipped lips
Argh! Multiple cases going on that I want to talk about, and I CAN'T! One that I'd love more opinions on, but alas, is still in investigation.
And the other is going on right.this.very moment as I blog. The most frustrating thing is not being able to find anything on the news. Not that I have a scanner anyway, but even if I did I'm not sure we live close enough for me to pick up on the bands.
So instead I will tell you this much. Today I spent more than a few minutes drooling over some of the recent recipes on the Pioneer Woman's website. Monkey bread muffins and funnel cakes, to name a few specifics. In fact I am pretty sure I tried to take a bite out of my monitor while reading the Monkey Bread recipe.
And the other is going on right.this.very moment as I blog. The most frustrating thing is not being able to find anything on the news. Not that I have a scanner anyway, but even if I did I'm not sure we live close enough for me to pick up on the bands.
So instead I will tell you this much. Today I spent more than a few minutes drooling over some of the recent recipes on the Pioneer Woman's website. Monkey bread muffins and funnel cakes, to name a few specifics. In fact I am pretty sure I tried to take a bite out of my monitor while reading the Monkey Bread recipe.
Wednesday, March 03, 2010
Ohio cop saves teen's life
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/35685484#35685484
It's a video clip that will give you chills. Traffic stops are dangerous enough in good, sunny weather. This cop stopped to assist a stranded motorist, and while helping him, another car slides out of control, straight into them. The video is caught on his dash-cam. I'll warn you that they replay the clip at least four or five times to show you how close the car comes.
The story also says the officer is still in the hospital and faces up to a year of rehabilitation from his injuries.
I still have goosebumps as I'm typing this. I believe they said this is in Ohio, but this is the first I've heard of it.
It's a video clip that will give you chills. Traffic stops are dangerous enough in good, sunny weather. This cop stopped to assist a stranded motorist, and while helping him, another car slides out of control, straight into them. The video is caught on his dash-cam. I'll warn you that they replay the clip at least four or five times to show you how close the car comes.
The story also says the officer is still in the hospital and faces up to a year of rehabilitation from his injuries.
I still have goosebumps as I'm typing this. I believe they said this is in Ohio, but this is the first I've heard of it.
Study on snacking gets it wrong
I am non-police blogging today. It's a subject I'm passionate about, though.
Read about a new study via Reuters today. I'm so angry about the obesity epidemic and the misplaced blame. Did you know we're headed toward 75% of the nation being overweight or obese? The article and study blames daily snacking as explaining the rise in childhood obesity.
WRONG.
It's not the extra snacking that's doing it. It's the items kids are given to snack on that is doing it. It's the increase in indoor activities, and decrease in outdoor activities doing it. Here's a tip: eating every 3 hours increases metabolism. A higher metabolism means you are burning more calories. You're actually keeping your body digesting more often, and even the act of digestion burns calories.
But when the snacking options are crap, crap and more crap, naturally the caloric intake outweighs the increase in metabolism. Here's another tip: eating crap foods is like putting regular gasoline in a lawnmower that requires an oil-fuel mix. It makes the process break down. Salt, fat, sugar, sure all these are OK and even helpful to your body IN MODERATION. When that is all that a snack consists of, the body starts reacting poorly. I don't have the time or patience today to really break it all down, but it's true, if you care to do the research on your own. Eat a sugary snack, for example, and your body ramps up insulin production. Once the speed rush of this little process slows down, your blood sugar plummets, energy goes down, and you feel hungry. You're not really hungry so much as needing energy, but it doesn't matter. You eat another sugary snack to counter the effects. Meanwhile your body starts flipping out from the excess and other healthier processes slow down.
I'm getting away from myself. If kids want to snack and they're eating healthy, natural foods, they're not going to get fat. If your kid wants a snack between lunch and dinner and you give him an apple with peanut butter, that is AWESOME. If you give him a bag of Doritos, well, of course he's going to end up fat.
I'd be willing to bet that the kids who eat the awful snacks between meals are also being fed awful meals, thus lending to the epidemic.
One last note: children's bodies are designed to grow. As a result, they also create fat cells much faster than adults. When a child starts out on the wrong path, being fed crap and being overweight so early, they are being set up for a lifetime of failure. It is that much harder to lose fat when you start creating the fat cells so early.
I could ramble on and on about this. I'm going to try not to. It's just an issue that really gets under my skin.
Read about a new study via Reuters today. I'm so angry about the obesity epidemic and the misplaced blame. Did you know we're headed toward 75% of the nation being overweight or obese? The article and study blames daily snacking as explaining the rise in childhood obesity.
WRONG.
It's not the extra snacking that's doing it. It's the items kids are given to snack on that is doing it. It's the increase in indoor activities, and decrease in outdoor activities doing it. Here's a tip: eating every 3 hours increases metabolism. A higher metabolism means you are burning more calories. You're actually keeping your body digesting more often, and even the act of digestion burns calories.
But when the snacking options are crap, crap and more crap, naturally the caloric intake outweighs the increase in metabolism. Here's another tip: eating crap foods is like putting regular gasoline in a lawnmower that requires an oil-fuel mix. It makes the process break down. Salt, fat, sugar, sure all these are OK and even helpful to your body IN MODERATION. When that is all that a snack consists of, the body starts reacting poorly. I don't have the time or patience today to really break it all down, but it's true, if you care to do the research on your own. Eat a sugary snack, for example, and your body ramps up insulin production. Once the speed rush of this little process slows down, your blood sugar plummets, energy goes down, and you feel hungry. You're not really hungry so much as needing energy, but it doesn't matter. You eat another sugary snack to counter the effects. Meanwhile your body starts flipping out from the excess and other healthier processes slow down.
I'm getting away from myself. If kids want to snack and they're eating healthy, natural foods, they're not going to get fat. If your kid wants a snack between lunch and dinner and you give him an apple with peanut butter, that is AWESOME. If you give him a bag of Doritos, well, of course he's going to end up fat.
I'd be willing to bet that the kids who eat the awful snacks between meals are also being fed awful meals, thus lending to the epidemic.
One last note: children's bodies are designed to grow. As a result, they also create fat cells much faster than adults. When a child starts out on the wrong path, being fed crap and being overweight so early, they are being set up for a lifetime of failure. It is that much harder to lose fat when you start creating the fat cells so early.
I could ramble on and on about this. I'm going to try not to. It's just an issue that really gets under my skin.
Monday, March 01, 2010
LEO wife blogs
I've finally had a chance to start surfing around the link-lists of the other LEO wife blogs I've started visiting. A few of them are readers who must've found me a while ago, while I was in hiatus. I am surprised and pleased, though, to see how many blogs there are now!! When I first started this blog, there really weren't a lot of other cop-wife blogs out there.
If Blogger will start cooperating with me this afternoon, I will hopefully get some more links added to my sidebar!
If Blogger will start cooperating with me this afternoon, I will hopefully get some more links added to my sidebar!
Thursday, February 25, 2010
More cops being shot at.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35587861/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/
Really not thrilled about this breaking story. So far the news is that the three officers who have been hit are in the hospital, two in critical.
For those of you not in the LEO circles, this kind of thing sends ripples through the community. It is heartbreaking to hear of. Yet there is a side to it that is heartwarming, and that is precisely the ripples that stretch across this nation, in the LEO community. Officers across the nation will be talking about this tonight, with their coworkers, their families, their friends. Many of them will be extra vigilant tonight, extra cautious of approaching houses, hyper aware of every movement of the people they come in contact with. They grit their teeth when they hear the news of these events, flex their arms, and start itching to take vengeance on the people who would dare do such a thing.
Really not thrilled about this breaking story. So far the news is that the three officers who have been hit are in the hospital, two in critical.
For those of you not in the LEO circles, this kind of thing sends ripples through the community. It is heartbreaking to hear of. Yet there is a side to it that is heartwarming, and that is precisely the ripples that stretch across this nation, in the LEO community. Officers across the nation will be talking about this tonight, with their coworkers, their families, their friends. Many of them will be extra vigilant tonight, extra cautious of approaching houses, hyper aware of every movement of the people they come in contact with. They grit their teeth when they hear the news of these events, flex their arms, and start itching to take vengeance on the people who would dare do such a thing.
Police-Wives.org
Went ahead and joined the site today. Will probably lurk a lot til I get familiar enough to make a decision about really diving into the community.
Any recommendations for/against the forums?
Any recommendations for/against the forums?
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
The idiots are on a ROLL lately!
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35559056/ns/us_news/
Two Florida teens were overheard on an open 911 call, discussing what they should take from a car they were CURRENTLY breaking into. The kicker? The 911 call was made by a cell phone belonging to one of the teens. Setting aside the tiny possibility that just MAYBE the phone belonged to the younger teen who was trying to back out...that's just karma.
Two Florida teens were overheard on an open 911 call, discussing what they should take from a car they were CURRENTLY breaking into. The kicker? The 911 call was made by a cell phone belonging to one of the teens. Setting aside the tiny possibility that just MAYBE the phone belonged to the younger teen who was trying to back out...that's just karma.
Reminder: don't report when your ILLEGAL items are stolen
http://www.wlwt.com/news/22645390/detail.html
Man tells Police his bag of pot was stolen.
You just cannot make that up, folks. It's not even an isolated incident. J has taken these sort of reports himself. Someone wanted to report check fraud, then conveniently 'forgot' what the bad check was given to her for. After the tiniest bit of prodding, she admitted it was for drugs. But she insisted she didn't DO drugs anymore. She quit doing them and selling them, right after she received that bad check! Honest!
Man tells Police his bag of pot was stolen.
You just cannot make that up, folks. It's not even an isolated incident. J has taken these sort of reports himself. Someone wanted to report check fraud, then conveniently 'forgot' what the bad check was given to her for. After the tiniest bit of prodding, she admitted it was for drugs. But she insisted she didn't DO drugs anymore. She quit doing them and selling them, right after she received that bad check! Honest!
Saturday, February 13, 2010
We can't be right all the time
Last week J goes to search for a 17 year old male who told his mother he was going to kill himself. When she wouldn't leave him alone, he took off into the woods near their house. After talking to the mother, he says "ma'am, I literally do not think he's going to walk out of the woods right here." He was interviewing her at the spot that the son ran into the woods. The mother responds, "Oh there he is."
The boy is walking right back out of the woods at the exact same spot he entered them.
I meant to ask him if the egg does anything for your pores.
The boy is walking right back out of the woods at the exact same spot he entered them.
I meant to ask him if the egg does anything for your pores.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Big, fat, WAH.
Man begs judge to change sentence.
Gee...guess he should have thought of that before driving drunk multiple times, and buying the coke!
I don't know about you guys, but I was raised that consequences were consequences. You broke the rules, you paid the price. Maybe I'm just a hard-ass.
Gee...guess he should have thought of that before driving drunk multiple times, and buying the coke!
I don't know about you guys, but I was raised that consequences were consequences. You broke the rules, you paid the price. Maybe I'm just a hard-ass.
Tuesday, February 02, 2010
Today will be Technology Tuesday
I don't know if I want that to be every week, mind you. But for today, it fits.
"Gang Members moving to Twitter, Facebook"
My first reaction to reading that headline is, "oh great. Now the idiot thugs are moving into the 'intelligent' world. There goes the neighborhood."
Then I read the article. And I can't help but spew a hearty BWAHAHAHAHAHA!
Dumbasses. Thoughts?
"Gang Members moving to Twitter, Facebook"
My first reaction to reading that headline is, "oh great. Now the idiot thugs are moving into the 'intelligent' world. There goes the neighborhood."
Then I read the article. And I can't help but spew a hearty BWAHAHAHAHAHA!
Dumbasses. Thoughts?
Monday, February 01, 2010
Mental Monday, 1st of February
J gets a call several weeks ago, about telephone harassment. Goes to complainant's house. Describes her as dressed nicely, well spoken, clean and organized house. She begins to describe the telephone calls she's been receiving. The phone will ring, she answers it, and nobody is there. She says this happens quite often. J tells her what their protocol is, which is to place a trap on her line, more or less, and each time she calls in to report that she's just received a harassing phone call, they make a note of the number. After a few weeks, a report is given to the officer.
While they are discussing this, she says there might be a problem, due to another issue that she can't talk about here (in her home). She mentions this concern that she can't elaborate on several times. J gets a hypothesis forming in his mind, as to what she might be referring to. Eventually she ends up telling him that the CIA is monitoring her, everywhere she moves she gets these harassing calls, and they pay off all her neighbors to help spy on her.
I have a great emoticon I'd love to insert here but I just can't, since it's buried within an IM program. I'll leave you to your imagination.
Since the initial call, J has dutifully followed up on the harassment report. The complainant then tells him that the CIA probably heard her ask for the wire trap, and therefore the phone calls will stop. She does notify of two calls during the monitoring period, which J determines to be from a credit card company. He receives multiple update calls from her, though, during the course of the monitoring period. More calls than she received and noted as harassing.
By the by, because it was only two calls, albeit both from the same company, it's not considered harassment. To indicate a pattern of harassment, a minimum of 3 instances are required.
I think what's interesting to me is how normal he described her (By normal I mean having the appearance of mental health). Each time she called him to check on the progress of the investigation, he patiently but painstakingly explained to her that there is a very limited amount that he can do, that the phone calls aren't considered harassment, that the car driving by at the same time every day is the newspaper delivery guy, etc.
In a way it's funny, to discover that conspiracy theorists really do exist. My little right-shoulder angel, of course, pipes up to remind me that this woman is elderly and sadly is probably suffering from some form of dementia. J and I mused about the potential of him calling a family member. Is that beyond the call of duty? Or appropriate? Or necessary?
While they are discussing this, she says there might be a problem, due to another issue that she can't talk about here (in her home). She mentions this concern that she can't elaborate on several times. J gets a hypothesis forming in his mind, as to what she might be referring to. Eventually she ends up telling him that the CIA is monitoring her, everywhere she moves she gets these harassing calls, and they pay off all her neighbors to help spy on her.
I have a great emoticon I'd love to insert here but I just can't, since it's buried within an IM program. I'll leave you to your imagination.
Since the initial call, J has dutifully followed up on the harassment report. The complainant then tells him that the CIA probably heard her ask for the wire trap, and therefore the phone calls will stop. She does notify of two calls during the monitoring period, which J determines to be from a credit card company. He receives multiple update calls from her, though, during the course of the monitoring period. More calls than she received and noted as harassing.
By the by, because it was only two calls, albeit both from the same company, it's not considered harassment. To indicate a pattern of harassment, a minimum of 3 instances are required.
I think what's interesting to me is how normal he described her (By normal I mean having the appearance of mental health). Each time she called him to check on the progress of the investigation, he patiently but painstakingly explained to her that there is a very limited amount that he can do, that the phone calls aren't considered harassment, that the car driving by at the same time every day is the newspaper delivery guy, etc.
In a way it's funny, to discover that conspiracy theorists really do exist. My little right-shoulder angel, of course, pipes up to remind me that this woman is elderly and sadly is probably suffering from some form of dementia. J and I mused about the potential of him calling a family member. Is that beyond the call of duty? Or appropriate? Or necessary?
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Theme posts?
So I've been trying to brainstorm over the last week about this blog...maybe come up with a daily 'theme' to keep me motivated on writing it. Hell I can't even remember if I mentioned the theme idea in my last post. In the past I'd just waited for stories to come to me to share here.
But "Mental" Monday is one idea that I keep coming back to. No, not to make fun of people with mental issues. But sadly it is the police who deal with people with mental issues far more often than they should. In a suburban bubble world, one would think that people with mental health problems are dealt with at home, and then with therapists and counselors and qualified professional medical help.
Unfortunately that's just not the case.
Today J and other deputies had to escort a combative person down four flights of hotel stairs. Screaming and ranting the entire way, in anger at them and at her family. As it turns out, she had already done this on a flight earlier today. Her anger this time: at losing a compact disc that was of high value to her. Naturally, a healthy person writes off the loss of a CD and buys a new one. With any luck it's available for free Super Saver Shipping on Amazon, and it's on your doorstep a week later. Or you go down to Best Buy and pick it up. Maybe you pout about the loss of the CD; maybe you can't get that cover art anymore or your copy was autographed.
This person resorted to screaming obscenities at her family. For hours at a time. J and the other deputy he was with at the time knew already that this woman was suffering from some mental health disorder, and because they are decent human beings, tried diligently to speak to her in civil, calming tones. Finally they put her in handcuffs and took her straight to the clinic that she is in Ohio to get help at.
This was actually a fairly tame example of typical, similar calls. Often they are called to help find missing persons. Technically their job is Law Enforcement, and being schizophrenic or bipolar isn't illegal. But so often the police are called because they are more easily available and more readily equipped to deal with combative, angry, irrational people.
It does end up that all too often, the people who commit crimes are mentally ill. A disturbing portion of people sitting on death row are mentally retarded, or borderline.
It occurred to me while listening to J recount today's story that in general, the police are trained to deal with fighters. They're trained to deal with drunks, druggies, belligerent assholes, angry people, psychopaths, etc. But there really aren't a lot of in-services or external courses offered to teach them to deal with a SIGNIFICANT portion of the people they deal with on a daily basis. Sad.
But "Mental" Monday is one idea that I keep coming back to. No, not to make fun of people with mental issues. But sadly it is the police who deal with people with mental issues far more often than they should. In a suburban bubble world, one would think that people with mental health problems are dealt with at home, and then with therapists and counselors and qualified professional medical help.
Unfortunately that's just not the case.
Today J and other deputies had to escort a combative person down four flights of hotel stairs. Screaming and ranting the entire way, in anger at them and at her family. As it turns out, she had already done this on a flight earlier today. Her anger this time: at losing a compact disc that was of high value to her. Naturally, a healthy person writes off the loss of a CD and buys a new one. With any luck it's available for free Super Saver Shipping on Amazon, and it's on your doorstep a week later. Or you go down to Best Buy and pick it up. Maybe you pout about the loss of the CD; maybe you can't get that cover art anymore or your copy was autographed.
This person resorted to screaming obscenities at her family. For hours at a time. J and the other deputy he was with at the time knew already that this woman was suffering from some mental health disorder, and because they are decent human beings, tried diligently to speak to her in civil, calming tones. Finally they put her in handcuffs and took her straight to the clinic that she is in Ohio to get help at.
This was actually a fairly tame example of typical, similar calls. Often they are called to help find missing persons. Technically their job is Law Enforcement, and being schizophrenic or bipolar isn't illegal. But so often the police are called because they are more easily available and more readily equipped to deal with combative, angry, irrational people.
It does end up that all too often, the people who commit crimes are mentally ill. A disturbing portion of people sitting on death row are mentally retarded, or borderline.
It occurred to me while listening to J recount today's story that in general, the police are trained to deal with fighters. They're trained to deal with drunks, druggies, belligerent assholes, angry people, psychopaths, etc. But there really aren't a lot of in-services or external courses offered to teach them to deal with a SIGNIFICANT portion of the people they deal with on a daily basis. Sad.
Friday, January 22, 2010
I'm back!
Maybe. Tentatively. Probably.
I'm mulling over a rebirth of this blog. I still periodically think of things from J's job that I want to post, but other things as well. For a while I wanted this blog to just be about his job...but I can't come up with a daily post about his job. Sometimes there are things I want to share that I just can't. And it is the Badge Family now; why should that stop me from posting other tidbits about our life? So hopefully you'll bear with me through the makeover. Hell, if you're stopping by after such a long inactivity, what's a little 'dust'?
I'm mulling over a rebirth of this blog. I still periodically think of things from J's job that I want to post, but other things as well. For a while I wanted this blog to just be about his job...but I can't come up with a daily post about his job. Sometimes there are things I want to share that I just can't. And it is the Badge Family now; why should that stop me from posting other tidbits about our life? So hopefully you'll bear with me through the makeover. Hell, if you're stopping by after such a long inactivity, what's a little 'dust'?
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