Camaraderie is a hard word for an old retired police to spell, never used it in police report. But I do remember when we had it. Some could and do say that I am a grumpy old man. Perhaps they are correct, but maybe it is something more. Like having the memory to go along with the experience to remember when the job was about a group of like minded enforcer’s of the law who just by knowing you were a fellow police officer that you were a friend.

I recently spoke with a Deputy Sheriff who worked the streets in the good old days. He asked me where the camaraderie has gone. I didn’t have an answer for where it has gone but I did have lots of stories to share with him who showed that we had it but find it slipping away.

Interview any soldier who has been in harm’s way and they will tell you he didn’t fight for the politicians, the principles of the war or even the reasoning behind war’s justification. A soldier fights for his brothers, the men in the trench who would die for him to live and he who would die for the life of his compatriot. That is camaraderie.

I remember the days when police fought the battle for their fellow officers. A Trooper in an OSP car may not be known to a City Officer. The Deputy Sheriff may not know the name of the Detective rolling up on an arrest in progress that has turned physical. What we did know was that it was a fellow officer in need of assistance.

The signal may be different in every department, 99, 00, 44 or Officer Needs Assistance but the feeling is the same. The gut tightens up, the hands need to grip the steering wheel harder, all caution is thrown to the wind and everyone in the county heads for that officer’s location. Mutual Aid contracts didn’t matter, the supervisor’s permission was not even asked for, the call you were handling will wait. A fellow officer is in need of assistance and has asked for it.

That was in 1975 when I responded to my first Signal 99 in Montgomery County. The call came from an officer at a rock concert at an arena. When I got there, in the northern part of the County I met Dayton PD, Kettering, Wayne Township, Mad River Township and more who all responded to the call. Police Canines were jumping against their leads. Nightsticks were out and being used. Handcuffs were in short supply.

So what happens now? The call goes out and all officers in that jurisdiction immediately respond. The nearest adjacent City is asked for assistance and they will send a few officers but not leave the city empty of police. Officers in the opposite side of the county will be told to go to the city limits and await further information.

The Mutual Aid Pacts state the highest ranking officer in the agency being requested to respond approve his officer’s response. Heaven forbid he is sitting on the john and doesn’t hear the call. Of course Mutual Aid Pacts were written by lawyers, making politicians feel better and Chiefs of Police not sweating as much over what is called vicarious liability.

Of course the officer who should be responding to the call for help thinks twice and maybe even stands down knowing he will be in the sergeant’s office after the crisis is over and answering for how this is going to look to the Chief when the sergeant is called in Monday morning to answer to violations of a policy. And of course the sergeant is concerned on how this black mark will look in his personnel file and possibly ruin his chances of promotion when the next test is given. The make no arrest, take a report and keep your record spotless is the smart choice in a career so fraught with danger. But it is not right.

So the Mutual Aid Pact was not enough to curtail a “Bad arrest”? Let’s put cameras in the cruisers. More police were put under the thumb of political correctness. But the cruiser cam only captures what happens in front of the cruiser. Now we need to put cameras on the front of the officer’s shirt. Now if a curse word is used to arrest a resisting felon then discipline will be coming.

I have seen members of another agency who look good in their uniforms stand around while real police fight on the ground to get a drunk handcuffed. The original member of that department who was chasing the subject took heat over getting physical during the arrest. The sergeant told him within my earshot, “Let them do the dirty work on camera.” The sergeant was correct that a physical arrest of a resisting subject is never pretty and is the dirty work of the job.

Yes the police still attend the funerals of Line of Duty Deaths. The miles long lines of police cruisers with lights flashing is a tear filled sight, I have been there. But the camaraderie of fellow officers doing whatever is necessary to help a fellow officer is being suppressed by legal pacts, cameras and most importantly the bosses who punish those who want to do real police work.

First Group 2x2
First Group 2x2
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