Curmudgeon's Corner
cur-mud-geon: anyone who hates hypocrisy and pretense and has the temerity to say so; anyone with the habit of pointing out unpleasant facts in an engaging and humorous manner
They Never Know...
They never know just what to expect when a call comes in; in the case of the Mequon police officer responding to a domestic disturbance call yesterday, the uncertainty became a known very quickly.
The call took the officer to an address in the vicinity of 76th (Wauwatosa Road) and Mequon Road...not far from our placid village.
Shots were fired; squad car windows were shattered; the officer eventually was confronted with a 24 year-old male who had a gun and aimed it at the officer.
The officer fired a single shot, according to news reports, and the 24 year-old man fell to the ground. He was transported and pronounced dead.
Domestic calls are not a favorite of most officers because they understand that tempers will likely be at a peak and they understand that history indicates these calls are among the most dangerous. Most of the domestic calls do not have this result...thankfully...but the officer never knows.
It is difficult for most to imagine how this must affect the officers who are sworn to uphold the peace, this 'never knowing' what the next call may bring. They train and train some more simply to maintain that edge that may save a life, whether that be their life or the life of another.
We usually see officers riding around in their squads; sometimes we see them with a vehicle stopped alongside the roadway. Sometimes we think about this interaction but most often it is gone from our mind before we've traveled fifty feet down the road.
These men and women are very special people. They have been trained to be able to handle most any situation, and they're equipped to handle most any situation. They have the benefit of being able to call for back-up and, in certain situations, will be told to hold the position while the Emergency Response Team is brought to bear.
But, they just never know.
This morning there is a Mequon police officer replaying yesterday in his or her mind's eye trying to be certain that there was no other option than the taking of a life. Our officers today are professionals in every sense of the word. If they are not, chances are very good that they won't have even had the opportunity to join the department. And, if they became members of a department, they are identified early on as being less than fit for this kind of position.
This morning there are police officers all over the area feeling for that fellow 'cop' and being thankful that it wasn't them that walked into that situation...but recognizing that today could be the day.
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