zzzzip
Well-known member
With freezing rain, ice and snow moving into northeast Missouri and most of Iowa Friday night, I awoke yesterday morning, looked at the glazing out the bedroom window, and thought how good it is to be retired from the State Highway Patrol and not have to drive in it and work traffic crashes. Not only that, but the Troop was having its Christmas party that night at a country club in a town 10 minutes away, rather than at HQ 1 hour away--- plus, being retired, I could be my usual "unique" self and not have to worry about sucking up to, or pissing off, my "superiors". :yahoo:
The weather warmed, the ice melted, and about 6:30 the wife and I set off for a good evening with friends and good food. Little did I know about that time, 100 miles north of us in Iowa, a guy was escaping from a deputy while being treated at a hospital. He managed to steal a dual wheel pickup with a snow blade on the front (a very important piece of equipment, as we shall see later in this narrative), and head south on the newly finished 4 lane "Avenue of the Saints: St. Paul, MN to St. Louis, MO" :angry:
Making good time, in spite of driving the preferred vehicle of Iowa shoppers, but doing a poor enough job of driving that even the average dip **** with a phone stuck in their ear felt compelled to disconnect from whatever "important" call they were making, and call 911 and *****, information was relayed to the little town I live in, and the only officer on duty (a female, and by all reports a good officer) set up to intercept at the city limits. :exhappysmiley:
Tallyho!!!....at which time, the bad guy takes her car out with the blade. :angry:
On down the road a couple of miles, a county deputy is enroute to intercept. The deputy is northbound and the bad guy is southbound on the 4 lane. The bad guy decides to get up close and personal by crossing the median and ramming the deputy head on. The dully with the blade wins round 2, and continues southbound leaving the deputy disabled in the median.
On down the road, a local trooper has decided to get his dog in this fight, (at this point nobody knows the *******, correction-- suspect-- is an escapee) and other troopers from other zones are moving in to help. Now cell phones on the "brass" at the Christmas party start to ring. When the "suspect" meets the northbound trooper, he does the same thing-- crosses the median, and slams into the driver's door with the blade. A tractor-trailer then *** ends and totals the patrol car. Bad guy wins round 3. "Brass" start heading for their cars. Can you say "lethal force", boys and girls? Time for somebody to pop a cap up his ***, in my opinion. :angry:
Now the guy drives down a blacktop looking for a new ride. Whatdoyouknow-- a big farmer puts on a Christmas light show that draws people from miles around. They can drive through an avenue of lights and Christmas displays of almost commercial proportions. Hundreds of families drive through with their kids to look every year. The *******-- correction, suspect-- pulls in and car jacks a vehicle only to find a baby in the vehicle. So he leaves it and tries to jack another. I don't know if he is successful or not, but he goes on down the road, breaks into a house near mine and steals their car. Keep in mind, this is a rural peaceful area where people feel safe and don't usually feel the necessity of going armed, unlike some retired people who I won't mention.
Now the guy starts taking back roads and heads to the town having the Christmas party. A trooper and a deputy have jumped him, and are trying to get him stopped before he hits town, and some major intersections. (Damn, maybe we should hold dinner and give him a real surprise!) The city officers throw down stop sticks. I personally, being old school, would have preferred a simple wall of lead. :aaskull: The bad guy crashes and bails out of his vehicle on the run. A buddy of mine, who I have known for years and can say is very professional, bails along with a deputy. It is dark, rural, with no light except from the vehicles. The foot chase starts, and the guy turns and points something shinny at the trooper and deputy. They do what they have to do.
Turns out the object was a pair of pliers. Bottom line: the trooper and deputy go off duty as many times as they have come on duty, the trooper and city officer involved in the crashes go to the hospital, and are released a few hours later, and the bad guy has a date with the coroner. :mellow:
I don't know the deputy, but I do know my buddy and sometimes ex-partner is a man of God who will take this hard. Fortunately, he has strong ties with his family and church, and the respect of some of us old retired guys. I suspect he will do OK in the end. Per procedure, he is on administrative leave and will do the check out with the shrink before returning to duty.
So yesterday was a good day to be retired. I now question my decision to be coaxed out of retirement to run the department the female officer works for... after all, they are now short one car. :glare:
I kind of miss working with good caliber people, but I don't miss working in the ice. Tomorrow may be a good day to be retired too.
B)
The weather warmed, the ice melted, and about 6:30 the wife and I set off for a good evening with friends and good food. Little did I know about that time, 100 miles north of us in Iowa, a guy was escaping from a deputy while being treated at a hospital. He managed to steal a dual wheel pickup with a snow blade on the front (a very important piece of equipment, as we shall see later in this narrative), and head south on the newly finished 4 lane "Avenue of the Saints: St. Paul, MN to St. Louis, MO" :angry:
Making good time, in spite of driving the preferred vehicle of Iowa shoppers, but doing a poor enough job of driving that even the average dip **** with a phone stuck in their ear felt compelled to disconnect from whatever "important" call they were making, and call 911 and *****, information was relayed to the little town I live in, and the only officer on duty (a female, and by all reports a good officer) set up to intercept at the city limits. :exhappysmiley:
Tallyho!!!....at which time, the bad guy takes her car out with the blade. :angry:
On down the road a couple of miles, a county deputy is enroute to intercept. The deputy is northbound and the bad guy is southbound on the 4 lane. The bad guy decides to get up close and personal by crossing the median and ramming the deputy head on. The dully with the blade wins round 2, and continues southbound leaving the deputy disabled in the median.
On down the road, a local trooper has decided to get his dog in this fight, (at this point nobody knows the *******, correction-- suspect-- is an escapee) and other troopers from other zones are moving in to help. Now cell phones on the "brass" at the Christmas party start to ring. When the "suspect" meets the northbound trooper, he does the same thing-- crosses the median, and slams into the driver's door with the blade. A tractor-trailer then *** ends and totals the patrol car. Bad guy wins round 3. "Brass" start heading for their cars. Can you say "lethal force", boys and girls? Time for somebody to pop a cap up his ***, in my opinion. :angry:
Now the guy drives down a blacktop looking for a new ride. Whatdoyouknow-- a big farmer puts on a Christmas light show that draws people from miles around. They can drive through an avenue of lights and Christmas displays of almost commercial proportions. Hundreds of families drive through with their kids to look every year. The *******-- correction, suspect-- pulls in and car jacks a vehicle only to find a baby in the vehicle. So he leaves it and tries to jack another. I don't know if he is successful or not, but he goes on down the road, breaks into a house near mine and steals their car. Keep in mind, this is a rural peaceful area where people feel safe and don't usually feel the necessity of going armed, unlike some retired people who I won't mention.
Now the guy starts taking back roads and heads to the town having the Christmas party. A trooper and a deputy have jumped him, and are trying to get him stopped before he hits town, and some major intersections. (Damn, maybe we should hold dinner and give him a real surprise!) The city officers throw down stop sticks. I personally, being old school, would have preferred a simple wall of lead. :aaskull: The bad guy crashes and bails out of his vehicle on the run. A buddy of mine, who I have known for years and can say is very professional, bails along with a deputy. It is dark, rural, with no light except from the vehicles. The foot chase starts, and the guy turns and points something shinny at the trooper and deputy. They do what they have to do.
Turns out the object was a pair of pliers. Bottom line: the trooper and deputy go off duty as many times as they have come on duty, the trooper and city officer involved in the crashes go to the hospital, and are released a few hours later, and the bad guy has a date with the coroner. :mellow:
I don't know the deputy, but I do know my buddy and sometimes ex-partner is a man of God who will take this hard. Fortunately, he has strong ties with his family and church, and the respect of some of us old retired guys. I suspect he will do OK in the end. Per procedure, he is on administrative leave and will do the check out with the shrink before returning to duty.
So yesterday was a good day to be retired. I now question my decision to be coaxed out of retirement to run the department the female officer works for... after all, they are now short one car. :glare:
I kind of miss working with good caliber people, but I don't miss working in the ice. Tomorrow may be a good day to be retired too.
B)
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