Please help me welcome author Melanie Atkins. Here is her bog about working with her local police department.
“Put your hands up! Put your hands up!” three Jackson Police Officers
shouted as theybolted from their patrol cars. Brandishing 9mm Glocks,
they quickly surrounded a darkgreen Acura Legend hidden deep in the
shadows on avacant lot at the corner of Hooker andWillow Streets in
Precinct 2.
The car was occupied by four known prostitutes. All but one
immediately put up their hands. The woman on the front passenger
side stuffed something beneath her seat.
“Get your hands up now,” one of the officers ordered, aiming his
weapon in her direction. This time, the woman obeyed.
One of the officers called dispatch with the car’s tag number.
“Carjacked!” he reported triumphantly. “This one was taken at
gunpoint Saturday in west Jackson.”
He and the other officers ordered the women out of the car,
secured their wrists with plastic tie-wrap cuffs, and separated
them. One was put into the back seat of the cruiser in which I
sat, totally awed by the real-life scenario playing out in front
of me.
The girl started to cry and bang her head on the side window.
“I’m only nineteen. Tell that man to come back over here. I’ll
tell him everything. Everything!”
I’m sure my mouth was wide open, but I didn’t say a word. I
simply sat back and watched the officers search the Acura. One
dug under the front passenger seat and pulled out a brown paper
sack, from which he extracted two small zipper bags. He brought
the packages over to me and illuminated their contents with his
Maglite.
“Crack cocaine,” he said. “And a dime bag of pot—meaning it
cost ten bucks.”
My eyes widened. Having been raised in a vacuum, I’d never seen
real drugs before. The crack rock was smaller than my thumbnail.
The girl in the backseat of the car said, “That ain’t my dope.
No, sir. It ain’t mine. I didn’t have nuthin’ to do with no
drugs.”
A female officer was called to the scene to pat down all four
women, and the male officers searched their purses. No more dope
was found.
After waiting for a tow truck to impound the car, we took the
women downtown to meet detectives with the Violent Crimes Task
Force.
This was business as usual for the Precinct 2 officers, but I
was amazed at having seen a real bust first hand. I was there
thanks to the Jackson Police Department’s Citizen’s Police
Academy, which I completed a few summers ago.
In addition to riding along in Precinct 2, I also rode in
Precinct 1—but that evening wasn’t nearly as exciting. My
favorite part was chasing a speeder down Woody Drive--the
irony of which wasn’t lost on me, the queen of the lead foot
parade.
The CPA lasted ten evenings, during which we learned about
crime prevention and domestic violence, heard from detectives
in Robbery/Homicide, House Burglary, Auto Theft, Juvenile
Detention, and Narcotics, and visited the Public Safety
Communications Center, where we listened in on police
dispatchers and operators taking 911 calls. We also had a
session on forensics with the Crime Scene Investigation Unit.
My favorite session, other than the Precinct 2 ride along, was
the Saturday morning visit to the pistol range. We had
demonstrations from the Bomb Squad and the Special Weapons and
Tactical Unit (SWAT), and were taught how to handle a Glock 9mm,
JPD’s duty issue weapon. Then we were taken to the range and
were allowed to shoot!
We fired not only the Glock, but also two assault weapons, the
M-4 and a Hechler & Koch MP-5. That was cool. One of the SWAT
guys was really cute, and he helped me fire the M-4. I was a
real pistol-packin’ mama—until the weapon’s Nylon strap caught
on my boob, which was extremely embarrassing. Yet, even with
the hunk's arm around me—I hit the target!
This past fall I participated in another CPA, this one
sponsored by my local sheriff's department. It was similar to
the first, but gave me insight into a different department. And
during that ride-along, the deputy hit 120 mph on I-55
while responding to a call about a 4-wheeler accident. OMG! I've
never gone that fast before.
I now have a greater sense of admiration and respect for the men
and women who face the worst of humanity every day for very
little reward. I recommend that everyone take classes like these,
no matter what you write. It’s a wonderful way to learn more about
law enforcement. My SO is offering another class this summer—it’s
free and open to the public--and I’m considering adding my name to
their sign-up list so I can take it again. This pistol packin’
mama can’t wait to get back to the pistol range.
http://www.melanieatkins.com
http://melanieatkins.wordpress.com
