Today?
Today, a major accident will happen on the freeway. We’ll respond. We’ll secure the scene. We’ll ignore the carnage long enough to tend to you while we wait for the medics.
Today, a desperate, predatory masked man will enter a business. He’ll demand the money, and display a gun that strikes fear into the heart of the innocent. We’ll respond. We’ll pray that we get there before he does harm. And if he gets away, we’ll do everything we can to track him down.
Today, a drug dealer will drive toward your loved one to sell him or her their first taste of drugs, or enough of a fix to keep their habit going. We’ll see him make a traffic violation. We’ll stop him. And we’ll seize the narcotics before it gets to your loved one.
Tonight?
Tonight, you’ll call us because you hear a noise outside. Something going bump in the night. We’ll respond. We’ll catch the burglar that was stalking your house. We’ll arrest him and keep him away from your things.
Tonight, a simple argument will get out of control. And he’ll hit you…again. We’ll respond. We’ll arrest him. And we’ll do everything humanly possible to get you out of that situation.
Tonight, someone will pull out a knife and threaten you. We’ll respond. He’ll run away and we’ll chase him, not knowing what he plans to do to us with that knife if we catch him.
Tonight, someone will over indulge. They’re going to try to drive home. We’ll see them speeding & swerving. We’ll stop them before they strike the car you’re driving that contains your wife and children.
Tomorrow?
Tomorrow we will live with the regrets of the ones that got away. The ones we didn’t save. The cars we didn’t stop in time. The message we didn’t convey strongly enough.
Tomorrow we’ll see your life circumstances replayed in our heads over and over.. In our daydreams and in our nightmares.
But just know this. Today, tonight, tomorrow, and every day after that- we will be here. We are ready. We will do whatever it takes to protect you, friends, and strangers that we have never met. We will stand in that gap for you. We will be that Thin Blue Line. We will be the Police.
-JA
Today?
Today, I will falsify official police reports to get someone behind bars.
Today, I will stop and arrest someone to fill a quota.
Today, I will stand idly by when an officer beats up someone, even if that someone is handcuffed.
Tonight?
Tonight, I will put a rat on the hood of an officer who dared to blow the whistle on police crimes.
Tonight, I will not respond to calls for backup from those officers who snitch to interal affairs.
Tonight, I will break into a house during a no-knock-raid and shoot to kill any and all perceived or imaginary threats.
Tomorrow?
Tomorrow, I will break the Law Enforcement Oath of Honor …again.
Tomorrow, I will be cleared of any and all charges by my department.
Tomorrow, I will protect the thin blue line at all costs.