After working a couple years does anyone ?

Comments

• waynbo0001

  1 Feb 2013

  I am retired after 31.5 years on the job. At my retirement I used these words as part of my goodbye speech. These were words that I was taught by the best cop I knew, my Dad. I tried to live by them thru my whole career. Even now when I meet with people they always have a good word for me, even people who I had negative dealings with over my career.
  
  "I learned first and foremost that being a police officer makes me no more special than anyone else. Although this is a great career and profession; I am still just a person like everyone else. Secondly, sometimes people simply make mistakes in life; it doesn’t hurt to treat them that way. And lastly treat people the way you would want your family to be treated."
  
  First and formost the most important thing you need to remember is you come first, your family comes second, your friends next, and then and only then THE JOB. Live by these thoughts and the job should not consume you. God Speed and stay safe.
  
  Good Luck
  Waynbo (Sgt. Retired)
• Joshmn31

  1 Feb 2013 edited 1 Feb 2013

  Although there is allot that may happen on patrol, I would not trade it for anything, 2007 I turned down a Lt promotion just to stay on the road. I could have not received a better answer to this discussion.
  
  I wish you the best on your retirement, Good luck and God Speed to you Sir.
• Deputy_Pepper

  1 Feb 2013

  I have a decade on the job in one of the larger metropolitan areas. I've done patrol, specialized units, and investigations so I've seen street crime and white collar crime. Everyone is suspect to me. I make sure to have a lot of friends outside LEOs to remind me there are good people. Keep the balance my friend and be safe.
  
• Joshmn31

  1 Feb 2013

  I wanted to see if I was not the only one thinking that.
  It would of been 13 years for me, if cancer did not come around twice.
  Thank you for your input jpad74 Stay safe out there my friend.
• Oldschoolpolice

  4 Feb 2013

  I remember being asked a couple of hundred times over the years, "Do I look like a criminal"? John, the answer is always yes, because they do. It doesn't mean they are and I would be very careful while on duty as to who I might say that to. But when it comes right down to it, we all look like criminals. There is no special "look" for any profession or walk of life. I agree with what WaynBo said, Treat everyone the same. When you figure out who you are dealing with, adjust your approach as much as you need to to better fit the personality you are dealing with. It's ok to be suspicious right up to the moment you don't have to be anymore. ( 13 years as a Patrol Lieutenant and 17 years in different positions along the way) Good luck, Sir.
• Gunsmoke

  4 Feb 2013

  Always lived by and taught to the cadets at the academy, there are only two type of people in this world, good people and a**holes. Treat everyone as if they were good people until they show you they are an a**hole, then treat them like an a**hole. The good and bad will sort them selves out pretty quickly. And remember, caution keeps us alive. Be safe.
• COfromVA

  5 Feb 2013

  Having to walk around inmates for 12 hours at a time, you realize very quickly that if they didn't want you to go home at the end of your shift, you wouldn't. Your IP skills are essential when dealing with inmates, and the public too. Yes, I think we all may get alittle cynical at times, but it's like I tell the inmates, "Your crime does not have to define who you are as a person. "Do your time, dust yourself off, stay away from people who want to bring you down, and move forward...never looking back". As Gunsmoke said... I will show you respect and treat you good until you give me a reason not to.
• MountainCop

  21 Feb 2013

  I keep myself centered with the belief that quite a few of the people I have to deal with professionally are basically OK people who made a bad mistake. That doesn't mean I let my guard down, though...