Thursday, December 24, 2009

Another 'Misdemeanor Shooting'

With Christmas almost here you would think that people would act right. Not quite. Up until the last couple of hours of my shift I was bored. I was just patrolling (more like wasting gas) and nothing going on. I was even sending random, pointless text messages to friends. I think I had just hit the 'send' button on a text when the radio blares to life. The first broadcast is a man waving a gun. I make the u-turn and head that direction. I'm not anywhere close but nothing else is going on. It won't hurt to drive that way. Then another broadcast about shots fired at the same location. After a few more 'shots fired' calls then the broadcast is someone's been shot. Yeah, there is something to this! Of course by the time I arrive another gunshot victim had been located and both had been carted off by the ambulance. I drive amongst the news vans that are just now showing up and find the sergeant on the scene. The scene is an apartment complex in a bad part of town infested with criminals. So naturally the family is screaming and carrying on (both victims were shot in the leg) however nobody wants to talk to us and tell us who did it. Of course everyone knows who the shooter is. Yet the street culture mentality says people can't help the police. So they don't. In return the police tend to label these kinds of shootings 'misdemeanor shootings.' Not to sound insensitive however it's hard to feel sympathy for people who treat you as the bad guy and refuse to let you help them. What will probably happen is this guy will wind up shot within the next couple days and will be met with the same compassion.

1 comment:

Beat And Release said...

We refer to them as 'pesti-cides' or 'two-fers.' hehehe