GPPD Podcast - Grand Prairie Police (TX)
The Grand Prairie (TEXAS) Police Department podcast will highlight the awesome men and women who make up our department. Grand Prairie is in DFW and has over 200k residents. We are THE premier police department in the country with over 300 cops. Come join us! Laterals we want you! $90k-$111k officer pay.
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GPPD Podcast - Grand Prairie Police (TX)
David the tacticool detective
This week our hosts sit down with Detective David. He came to GP with no prior LE experience and has been a cop now for 9 years. He worked patrol where he was a FTO for many years. He now serves as a property crimes detective in investigations, while still being a member of our SWAT team for many years now.
David talks about his family and the path that he took to get into law enforcement. He also discusses the importance of treating everyone with dignity and respect. He shares some funny stories as well in answering calls and assisting with backgrounds.
Let's dig into it!
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Welcome to GPPD podcast. I'm your host, nate. I'm a lateral transfer officer and I'm currently assigned to the investigations bureau.
Speaker 2:And I'm your co-host KD. I'm also a lateral officer and I'm assigned to the crime prevention unit. We're always looking for great men and women for the police department, but also we need dispatchers, animal control, code enforcement officers and detention officers. So if you know anybody interested, please, please, send them to grandpurepoliceorg. Get that information filled out so that you can apply.
Speaker 1:Don't forget to find us on social media. We have Facebook, instagram, tiktok and YouTube And, most importantly, find us on your favorite podcast platform. Subscribe, activate notifications, leave us a five star review. Today you will hear from police officers, their lives and their stories. The accounts may be mature in nature and mature language may be used. Listener, discretion is advised. Alright guys, welcome back to next episode of the GPPD podcast. Here is always with KD, and today we got officer David, actually detective David One of our new detectives Property crimes, or some people call it minor crimes.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I've never heard that before.
Speaker 1:Yeah, because we have major crimes which are robberies and homicides and sex assaults, and then property crimes, which is important. but the obvious comparison when you have a unit called major crimes is well, if you're not major crimes, you're minor.
Speaker 3:We'll get your Xbox back though.
Speaker 1:We'll try, We'll do our best. Okay, Now for everybody listening. I just want to set the tone of this interview because it's probably going to go a little differently than a lot of them do. David's a very, very special man, Charismatic isn't he Charismatic?
Speaker 2:Yeah, And he in preparation.
Speaker 1:oftentimes we have people fill out bios and they've listened to previous episodes of the podcast to get an idea of. Carlos has already written a note telling you to stop doing stuff. You know they'll listen to podcasts and kind of get an idea of how things are going to go, what to expect, and David's preparation was to take a bite of a protein bar to do push-ups at the same time so he could get prepared and look good, look good for the video.
Speaker 3:I was just trying not to be nervous dude. I was trying to calm down.
Speaker 2:Yeah. Get the blood flowing. Yeah, big pop of pump over here. And then I choked.
Speaker 1:And then you choked. So if he coughed it's because he still has protein bar. It's throat It's not smart? Oh man. Well, David, why don't you, why don't you talk a little bit about what you actually do for the department?
Speaker 3:Oh yeah, like you said, i'm in property crimes now, so I've been up there since December. You know this already. I work with you. Yeah, i've been up there since December. Definitely a change, for sure. I was in patrol for eight years or so. Most of that was nights. Yeah, i think seven. seven of the eight years was was on night shift, switched over to days. that I wasn't a huge fan of days. I mean it was cool being on a regular schedule, but it was not the same type of police work. So how's it different? For me it just wasn't as exciting. you know, like people, people walking around or you're riding a bike at 11am Nowhere near as suspicious as riding around at like three o'clock in the morning.
Speaker 1:Right.
Speaker 3:So you know, inherently, just because of the time, that can change things And that's where a lot of criminal activity happens. You know, in the dark and people are asleep, so in middle of the day somebody just riding a bike, they're just going to QT or whatever getting a drink, and you know doing their thing.
Speaker 1:Yeah, in car, chases suck a lot more.
Speaker 3:Oh, terrible Like terrible.
Speaker 1:More people on the road. You get in a car chase. at night It's pretty open. I mean wouldn't say go so far as to say safe, because car chases inherently are risky.
Speaker 3:But yeah, compared to daytime it's. I didn't even want to get in a chase during daytime. No, i didn't want to get in a chase, but not during daytime.
Speaker 2:Oh, I terminated myself.
Speaker 1:Yeah, And the calls are different too. I remember when I first got to day shift you'd be going to fraud calls and like insurance scams. What is? it, I mean where are the drugs Like who hit who? Yeah? You call the cops.
Speaker 3:More reports during the day.
Speaker 2:Yeah, So you said how many years altogether Eight, nine.
Speaker 3:I'm about to hit nine And June will be my ninth year. Yeah, yeah, it's gone by fast.
Speaker 1:It is.
Speaker 3:Very fast.
Speaker 1:It seems like yesterday I got here and you and I were on.
Speaker 3:Yeah, how many years you got.
Speaker 1:I've been here since 16. Yeah.
Speaker 3:Maybe do the math Seven, almost seven years.
Speaker 2:Yeah, i think So have you crossed over 14 altogether, because I just hit 14 altogether.
Speaker 1:No, I'm at 11.
Speaker 2:Oh, okay, yeah, So okay. Well, i'm not going to call it minor crimes, but now that you're in property, do you want to go somewhere else? Because everybody, that seems, starts at property and then they just venture out.
Speaker 3:I mean, to be honest, not really not right now. Yeah, i love patrol, so like I mean, even watching all the different bodycams and stuff like that for some of these, like car chases and stuff like that, just makes me want to go back to patrol. Yeah, i love the opportunity and I'm blessed to have the opportunity that I got right now. So, and I was kind of burnt out, to be honest, like I was. Just you know, i wasn't feeling the same type of passion like coming into work every day. So I needed to change and eventually I want to promote. So seeing this side of things definitely is going to give me a different perspective and more knowledge, so it's going to help out.
Speaker 1:So you sit down on your computer, you log in, you get a case, say, someone's car has been broken into. What does that look like for you? Patrol is pretty straightforward. You just write down what they tell you happen and you force that you, you send it on to a detective and get that case. So now you have to figure out what happens. What does that actually look like for you on a day to day basis?
Speaker 3:I mean for me, like I'm just looking for any sort of lead, right, so it's like okay, do they have video of the offense? Does anybody? did anybody see the suspect? Do we have a description of them? Do we have a description of the vehicle? Do we have a license plate? And you know, just kind of going down different rabbit holes trying to figure out who, who the person might be.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:I mean. A lot of times you don't.
Speaker 1:I've been surprised at the, the how much the job is basically social media stalking, where you kind of wind up figuring out hey, this person likely is the one who did it or this. this type of stuff is being sold somewhere. And you want to spend a decent part of your your time on Facebook, instagram, snapchat, whatever, just trying to find these people and establish.
Speaker 3:Yeah, i need, like our property crimes, login too, because I'm searching all these people on personal and I mean, if you look at my search history, it's all these, i mean like just random criminals, really. Yeah, so that's cool, right, like I'm just searching up criminals.
Speaker 1:All on my personal stuff, accidentally liking pictures.
Speaker 3:And somebody said that we have a a like a property crimes unit like Facebook, but I don't know it.
Speaker 1:So Now, property is not the only job you do. What else? what else do you do At the PD? what do I do?
Speaker 3:Yeah, i'm on swap.
Speaker 2:Yeah So.
Speaker 3:I figured Yeah, I'm on SWAT team, So that's cool. I've been doing that since let's see my second year here. So almost no, I just passed seven years. Seven years doing so.
Speaker 1:So you and you're required to do tears under this apartment before you can apply. Yeah, so that was something you knew coming in, you wanted to do.
Speaker 3:Yeah, i mean, as soon as I thought about being a cop, you know it just, it just always attracted, it was attractive to me, like doing something cool, like that. So yeah, whenever I pictured being a cop is like the movies, like you see him on SWAT trucks and all that kind of stuff, right, so yeah, i knew as soon as I got here, like in the academy being taught by SWAT guys, that was just like man, that's awesome. So, and you know, it's just like something else, like anything else. You just want to be better at your job And I think all the training that we get on SWAT like it just helps, yeah, so that's really the best part is all the training. And then you know being part of a team. I've always been part of a team. Whatever's growing up, playing sports or whatever.
Speaker 1:Okay, So now talking about the training you, i would imagine there's only so like. So there's only so much training you can do but behind, like make an entry on a house or something like that. Is it all focused just on on like entries or barricaded persons, that sort of stuff, or do you get a pretty wide range of stuff?
Speaker 3:Yeah, you get a pretty wide range of stuff, like right now I'm on sniper team So I get to learn about, you know, bolt guns, different type of weapons, stuff like that, and then that's a whole different ballgame being from entry, going from entry to a sniper position just because I don't entry. I mean, like, your main focus is is you know the structure, so making an entry to the structure, whatever that might look like, but as part of the sniper team, i mean you're it's a, like I said, a whole different ballgame where you're looking outside the structure, everything around it, and you're looking for you know different locations that are going to be able to conceal yourself And then have a better vantage point on the location. You're more of like an eyes, the eyes for everybody. So, yeah, way different but also very cool. Training.
Speaker 3:You were a ghillie suit. Uh, i haven't yet. In training we do like we have these, we have these, these things that we wear, but I've never been in like a full ghillie. I get poison ivy too, dude. Like every single time that we've done this training, i get poison ivy And I'm telling you I get it bad, like real bad.
Speaker 1:What is it? What is it? Obviously you're shooting, but what is sniper Cause? the reason I ask is a lot of people, when a lot of people hear sniper, they're they're thinking of, you know the movies, movies about Chris Kyle and and and whatnot. Uh, military based stuff where you know you're engaging all the time. Cops obviously aren't going out there and getting a shootings all the time with sniper rifles and certainly not necessarily not long distances. So your role is a little different than a traditional military role.
Speaker 3:Yeah, big time How does that?
Speaker 1:how is it different?
Speaker 3:Well, I think the average engagement with a sniper, you know, on a law enforcement capacity, is like 59 yards or something. That's the average distance of a shot. I mean we could all make that shot with an AR, right Right, But so it's. I mean it's definitely. It's vastly different than military, from what I know about the military side, Uh yeah, it's. It's rare that you're going to engage somebody. Like I said earlier, it's like it's like you're the eyes for, for, um, the team, even because they're they're not directly in front of the structure, They're not seeing everything that you're seeing. So you're basically just watching and, you know, observing, reporting, That's kind of our, our bread and butter.
Speaker 2:But if, like y'all, are out watching, you know you're on a barricaded person and that person comes out and starts firing, you can engage like everybody else.
Speaker 3:Yeah, i mean that's, that's our, that's when we would engage, right. So if somebody steps out, we have a clear shot. They're a deadly threat to anybody, whether it's us or the general public, then that's our job. You know, we just got to. It's pretty clear how we do things. You know, nobody's in front of the structure or in our, in our path. So yeah, we should. We should be able to take that shot. That's on us.
Speaker 1:Yeah, now you mentioned finding concealment and staying outside the view, obviously the person that you're after. Is that something you're usually successful at? Or do you find that Heather, heather, been times you're like, oh, i mean, i'm doing a really good job, i got my poison ivy and my ghillie suit, i'm ready to go, and then they look at you like crap.
Speaker 3:No, i don't know if you've seen any pictures, but there was one that we had and I'm a spotter right now. So I'm like sniper certified but I'm my role currently as a spotter, which means I'm just assisting the primary guy on the on the bull gun. So yeah, it depends. Like we started at night and I was on patrol, so I had my black uniform on and I mean it quickly turned a daylight because it probably was probably like three o'clock in the morning. All of a sudden something's coming up and now I'm just laying in the middle of a field in a black uniform, i'm not concealed at all.
Speaker 3:And then, like, as a spotter, my job is to make sure that the primary guy is concealed, you know like get his netting on him, all that kind of stuff, just to make sure that he's concealed. And then I'm off to the side. You know, i'm on an optic or something. I've got a rifle too, just to also observe. But yeah, i was in my police uniform. And then there's, i seen pictures where somebody was taking pictures of. It was on the PD side, so I don't think it was put anywhere, luckily, because I just didn't look very good. I'm sitting there in an all black uniform, not hidden whatsoever, laying in a field.
Speaker 3:So I mean, I might as well should have been because if this person has you know if this person has any sort of knowledge, like trying to find us. That was, i was gone.
Speaker 1:So now what? why does a sniper need a spotter? Because a sniper is there with a rifle, a high powered optic, i assume. What in the world like? what are you possibly going to see that he's not?
Speaker 3:So technically they don't need one, they can. You know some of the teams. They go out on their own or they deploy on their own. But so think about, like, if you're sitting there staring through an optic, you might have zoom in or just whatever. You're concentrated on the location and any sort of movement windows, whatever you know, you can only see so much. So you might be looking at, you know, you might see front door and a couple of windows next to it, but you're not seeing like the left side of the house or the right side of the house or whatever it is. You're also not seeing what's, what's happening around you. So if you're laying, you know, in between two houses or just whatever place that you found best I mean, who's to say that? homeowners not best friends with this guy across the street and now he's walking out the back door and he sees you laying there. Well, that's, the spotter is there to pay attention to the surroundings.
Speaker 3:So yeah it's kind of there just for almost like a backup capacity, but we're also like watching the house, so you know we have that limited point of view. As the guy in the bull gun, i'm watching the parts that he can't watch Right, just been ocular or something I'm on the radio. like I'm doing that the radio traffic so he can just focus on what he's doing.
Speaker 1:That makes sense Yeah. So is that kind of a promotion going to sniper from spotter, or is it just interchangeable?
Speaker 3:That's just interchangeable. It's not a promotion or anything. It's usually somebody that has been on the team for a little bit though, just because you have a basic, a good basic knowledge of everything. That's kind of going on. Yeah, i mean, some guys have gotten on sniper team pretty quick. I honestly I wasn't. It wasn't even like a huge interest for me at first. At first I just liked the excitement of being a part. You know, because as a sniper it's like You play baseball right, like in field. You're like in the game, you hear everything. You're in the game, you're in the action outfield You're just kind of sitting back and like you can't really hear much, you're just watching. Every once in a while You might get something cool or exciting or whatever that you get to be a part of. But yeah it's a.
Speaker 3:At first I just wanted the action.
Speaker 2:Yeah, shout out to my son of fielders. Hey, i know I played.
Speaker 3:That's what I played outfield And, yeah, now I'm playing field and old man baseball softball, so I feel like I'm part of the game now.
Speaker 2:That's funny. Well then, OK, so let's rewind. How did you get into law enforcement, like you know, growing up.
Speaker 3:You said this is something you've always wanted to do No, no. So my dad, he's a retired officer for a fourth And so I grew up around it right And but he was, he was military, he was in the reserves, and then he was also a cop for fourth And so I grew up around it but I never thought about being a cop, never. I don't know why, but I didn't. I wasn't like the kid in a in a cop costume on Halloween or anything like that, like.
Speaker 1:I just say that's the ordinary Most kids are.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it's like you grew up Be a cop wanting to be a cop, but no, i didn't have no intentions of being. I mean, i didn't think about it. I don't know why, but I just didn't. And then I played a lot, like I said, to play baseball. So I played lots of baseball. I don't know why, but I thought it was just easy. I'm just going to go to the pros, like that's just what I'll do.
Speaker 3:You know, like I had no like real influence for baseball. I would say, like that told me thing, you know like what I need to do and how I'm going to get there, if I even wanted that to make it. But no, i didn't. Like, i just thought I'll just play sports, i'll just, i'll just play baseball.
Speaker 3:And then high school, i realized like, yeah, it's not, it's not going to happen, you know, like, and so I don't reality hit. And then I'm supposed to go to college, you know, because that's the thing you're supposed to do, and I had no idea what I wanted to study, no idea. And so I was like all right, i guess accounting, i don't know. And oh no, i wasn't it was a bad idea because I wasn't smart enough for that. It's a bad idea.
Speaker 2:Oh, no, me and numbers No.
Speaker 3:I don't even know why. I thought I just had to pick something You know, so I'll do it's business.
Speaker 1:It starts in a. It's just like I want to do this.
Speaker 3:The first one I don't like reading, so I just chose the first one. No, i got, i got to school and, like I don't know, i had to make a decision. And then, you know, first thing I thought was business, so general, you know, i just like business. And then I knew some people going through accounting and I was like, ok, i'll do that. I don't even know what accounting was. And I was like all right. And but then I hit me. I was like 19, I think I was 19, and it just kind of hit me. One day I was, i was in the office and I was like, well, i've never thought about this, you know. So it's a typical thing, like you see a car accident and you want to go help, or whatever. You see somebody getting beat up, you want to go help. You just kind of like, have that inside of you, which I think all of us do. But yeah, all of a sudden it hit me. I was like, man, if I like doing all that, plus I'm nosy.
Speaker 1:So I like to I see.
Speaker 3:I see like all these cops like working on something And I'm like man what? are they doing.
Speaker 1:My sister's a cop.
Speaker 3:She's a cop, so like they would be at my house. I don't think I knew that. You didn't know that, and she's a Yeah.
Speaker 2:How long has she been doing it?
Speaker 3:She's been doing it 15 or so years. Oh she's, she's ranked up, she's, she's doing good Cool. We're kind of different, different types of cops.
Speaker 1:I think Like she likes to read.
Speaker 3:Yeah, she, yeah she likes to read, she likes to study.
Speaker 2:She likes to take tests.
Speaker 3:She likes to get promoted. I just like having fun. Maybe one day I'll get responsible. I don't know.
Speaker 2:Man don't grow up, i'll be surprised Yeah.
Speaker 3:No, yeah, i would be surprised too. I'm still trying to mature up. But no, yeah, all of a sudden hit me And I was like, yeah, it's cool, yeah.
Speaker 2:See, I was the same way. I didn't want to, you know, growing up I didn't wear the costumes, Didn't care about it. And somebody I think, yeah, right after college, hey, you should think about being a police officer. I was like yes, I get to work outside.
Speaker 1:Yes, let's do it Right.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that was me, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3:Working outside? Yeah, cause I had a different job before this where I was stuck inside all the time. I was sitting at a cubicle going across.
Speaker 2:Yeah, what do you do now? I said a cubicle Um.
Speaker 3:I worked for Bank of America for like five years.
Speaker 2:Oh, no way Yeah Me too.
Speaker 3:Yeah, did you really?
Speaker 2:Yeah, hated every minute of What'd you do Uh loans.
Speaker 3:Yeah, i was a personal banker. Yeah, finance And that's like a glorified title. Yeah, man, i reissued debit cards and I changed pin numbers.
Speaker 1:And you like got the front desk.
Speaker 3:No, I no, I had legit my own office, So that was cool. I felt cool at first, but once you realized you're just like a glorified babysitter for these adults. I mean, that's kind of what we do now. Right, It's literally for like pennies, like over-draft fees. It's debit cards, dude, Like you know how many people lose their debit card?
Speaker 1:Yeah, i've lost mine like 11 times.
Speaker 3:Some people every day and they come in and uh You said every day, every day. They're temporary cards. They didn't even got their real card yet and they're just losing their temporary cards.
Speaker 2:That'd be fat-out, yeah, and then they're mad at me.
Speaker 3:What?
Speaker 2:are you talking about? Did you have to wear church shoes every day? Yes, a tie.
Speaker 3:Hey, but I liked it then because, um yeah, i don't know, i thought it was cool, i thought I was like fancy, i guess.
Speaker 1:Well, you're an extraordinarily vain person.
Speaker 3:Hey, that's messed up dude. Dwayne Vain. Yeah, conceded. Yeah, i get it. I'm questioning what you're saying. I get the word.
Speaker 1:I understand the word. Most of the time when you give me that look, it's because you don't know the word I'm using.
Speaker 3:Hey, sometimes that's true, but just because I don't like to read doesn't mean that I'm illiterate and I understand things. Okay.
Speaker 1:I'll make sure I don't call you illiterate again, Hey it was, did you?
Speaker 3:you were a suit and tie and all that stuff too, or no?
Speaker 2:So no, no ties, but it was. what is it called Business casual? So yeah, I did finance, but I tell you what working in mortgages for five years, bro, the information and the knowledge.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, powerful stuff. I will say that that I mean, it educated me, so that was cool, but it was somewhat. What years did you work over there? After 2008 or 2009 or whatever?
Speaker 2:No, no, no, So it was right before then, so it was like around 2002 to 07.
Speaker 3:Oh, you worked at the good time.
Speaker 2:Yeah, right before that. Yeah, the crash, yeah.
Speaker 3:Cause after that is like everybody's bonuses went down. You know, quarterly bonuses went to a semi-annual bonuses and they were like not even a third of what they used to be. So that's what I heard about all that right before I started working there And then so I thought it was cool. I mean, it was one of my buddies that worked there and he was telling me about his bonuses, all that. So we were in the cars and he was always being able to buy all this fancy stuff for his car every single quarter, cause you get in this bonus and you know, being young, i just thought, man, that sounds cool. So, yeah, i jumped in it. And then, were you ever a teller?
Speaker 2:You start off, so I was inside. You would actually have to call me and then I just get an app over the phone and do like a refi on your house. Oh, okay.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, i start off as a teller like six months of the teller?
Speaker 1:No way, yeah. Whenever, whenever you go in and you have to do something, do they judge you based on your your account balance? Cause I feel like they judge you, yeah.
Speaker 2:I mean the secrets out. Let the secrets out.
Speaker 3:I would like to say I don't judge anybody, you know oh, my God Stop it. Hey this is where I worked. I worked in South Lake and I worked in trophy club. So I mean, if you know anything about those two cities, they uh, here's your hundred and 18,000 dollars check man.
Speaker 2:Was there anything else?
Speaker 3:People, it was like that dude Like they would just be like Hey, i need to pull out 85,000 cash. You're like, why For?
Speaker 1:what.
Speaker 3:Dude Like you having a party or something. What's going on? 85,000 dollars cash for you know so and you know people don't think. They think the bank has like millions of dollars just sitting there Like all right, i'll be right back and just go to count it up. But no, i thought.
Speaker 1:I still think that's how it works. No dude Like they have Like.
Speaker 3:if I say limited, it's still probably I mean honestly I can't remember but maybe like 150,000 or something like that.
Speaker 1:No.
Speaker 3:Yeah, for real, like operating cash. It might be at different times, maybe the weekend it's going to be more than that But like on a Monday morning or something like when, when the bank comes and picks up money, that you know it's like deposit. Over the weekend they really don't have that much money. It's not like the movies where they walk in and get like going there and they got stacks of cash everywhere. It's literally you open up a safe and there's like you're like where's all the money? Like, but that's all they got in there And it's just, i don't know, for safety reasons, probably.
Speaker 2:So if somebody is where they have that big old vault door and you have to sit there and spin it.
Speaker 3:Yeah pretty much. I mean not not all of them, some of them are just a dial or whatever. I mean they're still big. They're still big vaults but, yeah, well, yeah.
Speaker 1:I mean there's, there's lots of like coins in there.
Speaker 3:You know, it's just all this random stuff, not that random, it's like money.
Speaker 2:You ever?
Speaker 3:get to go in, go in.
Speaker 2:In the vault.
Speaker 3:It's not. you can't even walk into it. It's not that cool Like the movies. It's not like a big, huge door and then you walk in.
Speaker 1:It's like I just found out Santa Claus isn't real. Man, maybe it's some of these old banks you know, like in New York and all those big, you know, cool places, all the bank, even a little small town banks in GTA you can walk into.
Speaker 3:And GTA Play video games too much. I don't play video games at all anymore. You literally were on a video game this morning on your phone, catching fish You're catching.
Speaker 1:I know it was like well, we started at seven.
Speaker 3:This was like at 630. Oh, i started working six. Apparently he gears up for work playing little video games, catching fish. Dude, he was on a raft.
Speaker 1:No, it's a fun little.
Speaker 3:He was on a raft and going to an island. You want me, are you okay with this?
Speaker 1:Tell everything.
Speaker 3:He goes on a raft and he I'm pretty sure he said fish ease. He didn't even say I'm catching fish. He said I'm catching fish ease.
Speaker 2:That's how you know we have kids. Exactly When I used to work fish I asked him.
Speaker 3:I said did your kid show you this? No, That's true, I did find it. He found it on his own.
Speaker 1:I don't appreciate you judging me, though, because when I usually when fish is a part of my vocabulary I'm talking to my kids Hey, you want to go fishing? He's going to catch some fish. When you're talking about? you're talking about getting catfished, or You're a middle-aged?
Speaker 3:man talking to me.
Speaker 1:Hey, it's messed up dude.
Speaker 3:You're a middle-aged man talking to another middle-aged man about catching fish. Ease, i'm not middle-aged, you're older than me. Barely I crossed that midline.
Speaker 1:Anyway, back on topic.
Speaker 3:I'm more mature. Yes, you are, thank you. So anyway, bank vaults are fake. Bank vaults are fake, yeah.
Speaker 2:So no gold bars either.
Speaker 3:No, i'm never even seen a gold bar, maybe. No, they got. They got those in the safe boxes, though I know people put gold bars in there. Yeah, just like their personal. You know How can.
Speaker 2:I get one.
Speaker 3:You just got to go in there next one and tell you gotta pay, like I was gonna say, you don't just ask me to pay, like I don't know, 15 bucks a month or something.
Speaker 2:For a gold bar. No, no, no, no, I want the gold bar. I thought you missed a box.
Speaker 3:I was like just go in there, dude, like a gold boy, just go in there.
Speaker 1:Are you sure you got? you decided to quit banking?
Speaker 2:or they said I don't think this is for you.
Speaker 3:I'm just gonna talk to KD for now. No, yeah, you just walk in, but you have anything that you put in a safe box.
Speaker 2:Yeah, maybe a like a college ring.
Speaker 3:Hmm.
Speaker 2:That's about it, yeah.
Speaker 3:Yeah, but you played sports, So that's cool, that's cool. Ring Yeah, i didn't even get a college ring.
Speaker 2:And you play baseball in college. No, no, i quit after my senior year, so I should have. The coach calls the football office and goes hey, i want KD to come out. and so here's my response, true story Hey, what time do they practice? He's good, they're starting at 7 30. I said 7 30 tonight. He says a football coach says yes, i said I'm going to my dorm room and I never played and I should have, but I never know you never played not College baseball.
Speaker 3:No, oh okay, but you played baseball growing up in high school I saw.
Speaker 2:Oh, i've been a two-world series, I know, for a long time. I had a record in one of them 27 straight.
Speaker 3:Outs. Oh, okay, so you played in the World Series like a little league.
Speaker 2:Mm-hmm, that's it. It was called Dixie Lee.
Speaker 3:Dixie, i thought you're bragging about going to a World Series.
Speaker 2:Oh.
Speaker 3:I like man. That's cool too.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we have, we have fun. I was one of those baseball geeks growing up.
Speaker 3:Yeah, baseball is good sport. Man, i know you like baseball.
Speaker 2:Yeah, okay, so let's jump on that for a second. No one what you know now would you have your kids play baseball or football Baseball hands down, and every football player that I know say the same thing. I said you wouldn't let yourself know.
Speaker 3:No, probably for injury reasons. Right, You go. But I just think I mean both are.
Speaker 3:I think sports in general for kids is awesome, right They learn so they learn so much, especially with good coaches that teach them like life, you know values and stuff. But Man see, the CTE stuff is Gary and I don't have any kids, right, but yeah, i mean, if I had one, that's the last thing I'd want is for my kid to like deal with that. I love football, i love watching it. I'm sure it'd be so much fun watching my little kid run around and Play, but yeah, I'm to the point now.
Speaker 2:It's where, no, if my son is gonna play, i'm gonna train him, right.
Speaker 1:I just don't trust the coaches that filled out in the people and the people who play football, or who played football and have the kids in it. That's their requirement.
Speaker 2:Mm-hmm, they won't do unless they're, unless I'm coaching, because you're not gonna get some guy that filled out a piece of paper. They're a coach. Yeah, no, yeah so Would you?
Speaker 3:Would you enjoy coaching a bunch of little kids, like little kids running around always?
Speaker 2:Right now I go to essence game Seven-year-old flat football. Yeah, i don't know how to coach, that's what.
Speaker 3:I'm saying the patience that they have no sir. See, i watched. You know, like, if I've ever been on my buddies the kids t-ball game or something like that All these little kids are, i mean, i'm sure it's so cute if it's your own kid and You know it would be fun to watch as a dad, but I'm watching this game. I have no. I've obviously no kids playing, so there's no emotional attachment to it. I'm just like dude these kids are. This kid is like he's not even on the field anymore.
Speaker 2:Or they're standing out there in the outfield. They're playing with the grass.
Speaker 3:Yeah, they're hopping on second base.
Speaker 2:Attention running to the wrong base. You know, my kid ran onto the other field and I'm just like I Just you know, and it's all cute.
Speaker 3:He's pretend like he's not yours anymore.
Speaker 1:And they just they go, just hit the ball and immediately take off off up the.
Speaker 3:They're basically like they're basically, and you gotta like grab them and I point them in the right direction, yeah, but yeah. So so is that a big deal for your?
Speaker 1:your. I have no swimming. Your dad didn't push you towards law enforcement.
Speaker 3:No, not at all.
Speaker 1:Was he big at pushing you into sports, or did he know?
Speaker 3:not even that it's. My dad was a great. He's a. He's a great father like my both. My parents man, i'm super, super lucky taught me a lot of good values and instilled ethics into me and stuff, just Even just like watching them, how they, how they acted and how they treated us and other people and stuff, so I learned a whole lot from them. They always supported everything I wanted to do. I had never really gotten trouble. So, you know, i surrounded myself by good, good friends. Luckily, you know, at a young age I've had some friends of them or lifelong friends, but, yeah, no, i my dad played baseball when he was younger.
Speaker 3:He would always throw the ball with me on the side of the house and stuff. But, I mean, if I, i'm sure, if I told him, hey, i'm done, he'd be like, okay, that's what you want to do, then that's what you want to do. I don't know if I'm that good of a parent. Yeah, no, actually I did quit. I quit in fifth grade because I got hit in the head.
Speaker 1:It took you to a fifth grade to get hit in the head.
Speaker 3:It what you get in the head as a young child, and my kids are getting hit numerous times, not just like not just like barely hit me like I was pitching and This dude and drive, this dude cranked it.
Speaker 3:Man, like one of my best friends, he's so good and You know, i don't know how hard he came. We were probably in yeah, we're fifth grade and he hit it and boom, hit me right in the Southerhead, knocked me out and I lay it on the ground. I was like, and then from that point on, i mean I hated meeting it, but I was scared, yeah like I, i didn't, i didn't want to hit anymore.
Speaker 3:I don't stand in the box. Yeah just cuz I just thought, dude, this thing's gonna Hit me in the face again.
Speaker 2:Yeah, i don't blame you. That's called chin music. We used to say if you put it right here, yeah, yeah, but all they're back up off that plate.
Speaker 3:See, i didn't even need chin music. You throw a perfect strike and I'm outside the box already. Too fast, i'd play underhand, yeah, i would.
Speaker 2:But it's funny you say that, like you, you say your dad is supportive or whatever. My dad? to this day He'll call me. So uh, you still like doing that police thing.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, i'm like pops.
Speaker 2:I've been doing it for 14 years. I like it out a few more years, i retire. He was like, okay, and it was the same way football. I Was the smallest person on the field all the time, so he Know some pretty big boys out there, so he's concerned about your safety. I'm like pops I got it, i got yeah.
Speaker 3:Yeah, i'm sure it's hard to let your little one out there and, yeah, get hurt.
Speaker 2:Mm-hmm.
Speaker 3:Now about since my? you know, my mom dealt with my dad being a cop and a military getting deployed and stuff. Oh yeah, it was like I mean, i don't. It's kind of weird, because I couldn't even cross the street with her, i couldn't even leave my house without her telling me be careful when she loves me. Yeah, i've ever seen one of my friends that showed them out there like Well, we're going down the street and your mom's like be careful, davey, i was trying to make her sound sweet.
Speaker 3:She's sweet lady. She used to be a sweet young lady, now she's sweet old lady. So yeah, i mean, but you know she didn't give any any grief about you know, be me being a cop, but I couldn't cross us, you know a four lane street, and tell I probably still couldn't if I asked her nothing wrong with that.
Speaker 2:Yeah, then you know.
Speaker 3:I don't tell her anything. You know the crazy calls.
Speaker 1:That was one of my questions was what was their reaction? I guess your dad and your mom pretty dealt with your sister doing it, mm-hmm, was it kind of like, okay, we got another one doing it, or did they not?
Speaker 3:man pretty much Yeah, I think they were. I mean they're proud. I know my dad is super proud. He wishes that he was still working by the time, like I started working. Cuz he's got some pictures with my, my sister, like they're both in uniform and stuff. So I mean I think that would have been cool too, but Yeah, yeah, they're super proud you and your sister kind of compete back and forth.
Speaker 3:I think, man, she, she listens to this. She might get mad at me, but I Think she might, but I don't, i could care less because you think you're better.
Speaker 2:No, Well, he's in sweat, bro Oh that's true.
Speaker 3:Yeah, that's why just means I got extra training.
Speaker 2:Oh, you're not, so it's not your fault.
Speaker 3:It doesn't make me more cool. You're just no, no, no. I'm not saying that. Now you're making me, now She's gonna get mad at me. I'm not even saying this stuff. No, she, she might can. She's always been competitive like that, like like who's doing what and how can I be better? Which is good for her, because that's gotten her promoted.
Speaker 1:That's how it's about assuming from the way you you're talking. Yeah, it ranks you, Oh yeah.
Speaker 3:Yeah, she's almost like a chief where she is. So, but that's her, that's her. You know, that's the type of cop that she is or the type of person she is. She I'm sure she enjoyed patrol and whatnot, but then she quickly wanted. She's done everything like that Graduated college in three years, got married, had kids right away, bought a house, all that stuff, where I was just, you know, kind of just having fun.
Speaker 2:Just enjoying You crossing the street again, you watch your brother, well, yeah no, she's doing awesome.
Speaker 3:I'm proud of her, but yeah, i'm just not that type. I'm not the type that I Mean. I'm sitting at desk right now, but it's just not me to do forever.
Speaker 2:So do you see yourself? Or when you start talking about longevity, does your sister have goals of being a chief or? she want to go to like another city and run it, or nah, she wants to be a chief right where she is.
Speaker 3:Yeah, i think if she, if she can be achieved and she's going to- which. I mean, things are looking that way.
Speaker 2:All right. So she becomes a chief and she goes hey, i want you to come work for absolutely not.
Speaker 1:No, yeah, she becomes a chief and say you know, says he retires and we take from the outside. She takes that top spot. Mm-hmm, what are you doing?
Speaker 3:Next question.
Speaker 2:Resign next.
Speaker 3:Obviously going back tonight to patrol Oh yeah, the state say away, I mean I love her, but that doesn't sound like it. No, dude, i do love her. Yeah, don't get me wrong, you're putting me in a bad spot here.
Speaker 2:I love her, i just uh yes, your sister just don't want to work for like yeah.
Speaker 3:I don't know directing me around, you know you better do it All, right, bro.
Speaker 2:So let me turn the page. Who is DJ? What's your name? What Huh?
Speaker 3:You confuse yourself. Yeah who's DJ?
Speaker 2:DJ stout.
Speaker 3:Oh, i just saw him write something What he's talking about.
Speaker 2:Yeah, go ahead and elaborate. The floor is yours.
Speaker 3:Well, I'm not a real DJ or anything, but We went to California to do recruiting. Go into Ontario.
Speaker 3:Okay so we've been out there twice. I don't know. We're all. We're driving a minivan. It's not even cool. It's not a cool story. We're driving it, what is it? Chrysler, a Chrysler minivan, me and that guy and a couple others and, yeah, somebody had to play music. Right, it's something we had to enjoy our time. And I just I quickly got turned into a DJ and I don't know I just I not kept playing one specific song, you remember? Yeah, i'll just yeah, i'll just leave it at that.
Speaker 3:I just played, i played the same song all the time It was. It was just funny.
Speaker 2:So you work for a recruiting.
Speaker 3:I don't currently like that's not like a job position or job title. I've ever had.
Speaker 3:But I just I got injured a couple years ago So I was over there helping out for I don't know eight You know six, seven, eight months, something like that and so I knew how to do backgrounds. I learned how to do the backgrounds and and then, being an FTO, i was able to do the oral boards in the hiring process. So since I had that experience and I was pretty cool with, like all the guys I'm cool with all the guys over there So they a couple of us that were on still on patrol, but we're FTO's, and we got to go to California So we could help out with all the boards and all the testing.
Speaker 2:So you just mentioned FTO. How long were you training?
Speaker 3:Hmm, are you still training? No, technically I'm not training, but I don't know three, four years. I was an FTO, something like that.
Speaker 1:You mean, crazy stories come out of that. Yeah, I was gonna say that And just for as a reminder for FTO's field training officer so that's where you got a.
Speaker 3:No, i wouldn't say anything too crazy, i just. I just I had to learn patience with that man, just so much. Because you want to do things, you're used to doing things your own own way. We're type A personalities. We like to do our things. You know specific to how we do, yeah, and so having somebody next to you that has no clue what they're doing and there's just stumbling and I'm like man, you're making it like to me, i get embarrassed. Like I'm sitting there, like man, they have no faith in us. You're like making us look bad as a unit, and so I you know It's hard not to jump in and you know, assure this person that we know what we're doing, i Think. But the hardest part yeah, it was and I was. I'm a terrible passenger, like I'm just terrible.
Speaker 1:I think we all.
Speaker 3:I get motion sick. I had to take motion sick medicine every single shift, every shift, yeah. I would quit, i would get, i would get sick, yeah, like. And then once you get dizzy like that and sick, and it's just like I didn't want to be in the car anymore, i didn't want to work.
Speaker 2:See, Where we came from. I had a partner and he would go. I can't type a report while you drive, so he drove every day.
Speaker 1:See, got stuck good every my partner always drove to. I just like being a pastor, being the first one in the car and you could you could type a report like And what else driving? yeah, hmm, no, i would not report and drive. Yeah, i mean.
Speaker 3:I can do that too. And hit three cars now, if I look down at my phone even, or like there a piece of paper, try to read it as a passenger. Now I'm sick. If I turn left or right too fast, i get sick dizzy.
Speaker 3:Yeah right in in the vehicles on that I get sick. I got a. I got a like lean over. You've been in them like you can only see the windshield. If you're like leaned over and looking at so, you'll catch me like leaned over, trying trying to look out the front windshield, just so I can see something.
Speaker 2:He's the only guy in full kit with like a barf bag.
Speaker 3:There's been a few times because we'll go outside the city or whatever on highways and curves and stuff like that. People, it depends on who's driving if they're breaking too hard, hitting the gas too hard, just like all this movement. Yeah yeah, I start getting sick. It sucks. Dude Sounds like a sick flying.
Speaker 1:You know, the thing is like. I thought I was about to ask if, like you, get sick, fine, or oh yeah, or anything, or, yeah, boats Just actually super scared of police work and don't realize it and assume it's police work.
Speaker 3:No, it's legit dude like yeah, fine, if you, if I'm on a boat and we drop an anchor and we just sit there just on a lake, yeah, just like a little bit of movement and I'll be laying in my bed at night just Moving, still like I'm on the water.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's not. You ever have to. You ever Kick your rookies out of the driver's seat and Yeah, at least once or twice.
Speaker 3:Yeah, i really tried not to, though, because you know they're supposed to be learning.
Speaker 1:So, yeah, there was a couple times where Either you know the medicine wasn't working or it was late, and what did you ever do it for cuz like, i've done this several, oh several, quite a few times, but it was because, like guys are having bad days or Like they just they couldn't get out of there. Cuz, a lot of times when you're after you, like you said, you're in a situation where you want them to go do stuff, but also we're still cops, we still have to make sure This person's issue issue doesn't get to just be a training exercise.
Speaker 1:Yeah completely, because you still have to get it right, yeah, and so you get a couple things wrong in a row, and it's sometimes it's like, okay, you know what, let me, yeah, you take a step back for a second. Yeah, watch how. And you almost, yeah.
Speaker 3:So and that was beneficial to me where I thought it would have been. So. This is what I thought about when I was a, when I was A field training officer. I thought about my experience and there was sometimes where I wish I got to see More than just like a day or two of officer observation just to see how they do things. So I would kind of incorporate that sometimes so, but I really didn't try to take, i tried to not take over driving using the radio, but it there was a couple times where I jumped in and I was like, okay, just just watch, just watch for like the next you know six hours of this shift or whatever. So then they get a good What. I would hope that I showed it like a good example of how to do things. Yeah.
Speaker 1:I remember riding passenger go into a stabbing and We got passed By another unit going code three and we're like we're on the freight, we're on the tollway. You're training somebody, yeah, and We're going code three, but going like 70 miles an hour.
Speaker 3:Oh, it's so frustrating I'm like I'm just looking at it. I'm like you're sitting there, You're like dude. What are we?
Speaker 1:doing Yeah and you're here in the call comments on the on the radio. You're just like I'm not gonna hit him, it's like mind boggling because you want to get there.
Speaker 3:You know they're just kind of nervous or whatever, so that's why, and they're thinking about all these other things, and so they're not thinking about how fast they're actually driving, or maybe not even driving in general, they're just thinking about, dude, a stabbing, oh my gosh, i wouldn't want to do when I get there, and then, yeah, the entire time You're just like dude. I mean, i've definitely lost my temper like when they're not driving fast enough, Yeah, and I'm just like yelling and yeah.
Speaker 2:I remember being in a car with the veteran officer Not here, going code three somewhere and he has the lights and sirens on and there's an empty lane And he pulls up behind a car and we're like Just behind the car and he's waiting. He's like get out of the way, and I'm like no, and I mean we had a few like you have an empty lane right there and bro, we ended up at the station.
Speaker 3:I mean like we fell out That's, that's them just not even capable of thinking, yeah, right, like in that moment.
Speaker 1:so to amp and that is a good example of the balance you have to strike as an FTO, because, like the stabbing thing and it was a it was a very serious call, like there was a lot, a lot of moving parts going on with it And, on the one hand, that's my top priority is I want, we need to get there, we need to handle up.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah protect these people, but at the same time you also have that dual duty to the department and your rookie and and the Public, to make sure you have an idea if this person belongs in this uniform, in this car, and at a certain point you have to be able to say, hey, we need to get there. But I also need to be able to observe this person, how they respond to these stressors, and if there's someone who's Because one of the worst things as a cop is someone who is Scared to make that decision or to get there first and they're gonna let other people arrive first, and that's a trait you want to identify fast.
Speaker 3:Yeah, because it could be a different situation and where you're fighting somebody and they still don't want to get there Right and so they're not coming to help you very quick.
Speaker 1:You need to get rid of that person. So you got to be able to take a minute and And see if they're gonna do that. And then The frustrating part is after you see them do it once you got to address it and then the next time there's a stressful situation, you have to try to find an opportunity to see if they're gonna do it again Or they're gonna say oh no, i need to make sure I'm paying attention quickly, mm-hmm.
Speaker 2:Yeah, just taking to DT.
Speaker 3:That has worked for a few people I mean not me, i didn't do it, but somebody else did And then they were put with me and I was told to watch out for certain things and they went hands-on. And so for some people it does help, it snaps something, and then for some people it doesn't.
Speaker 1:So I'm just going to run that back so it doesn't sound like we're just abusing rookies.
Speaker 3:Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:So the DT room is a defensive tactics room And what they're referring to is like and I don't know what word these are going to air in but like we talked to a couple of officers who are real proficient in jiu-jitsu and what there tend to be, the calmer, more squared away ones when it comes to going hands-on because they've been exposed to it.
Speaker 1:Yeah they're comfortable with it. So a lot of times you have a rookie who is maybe they've never been in a fight. Because now we're kind of seeing with the college requirements we're seeing kind of a pipeline almost of high school college If you mean all requirements, you could very potentially your first real, real job could be being a cop, and some of these kids haven't been in fights. So you go to the defensive tactics room, you get somebody up in a red man suit which is like just a bunch of pads and you simulate a situation where you might have to go hands-on.
Speaker 1:You put the rookie in a bad spot, You know. you basically teach them that they're not breakable and that they can get into a physical education without just shattering.
Speaker 3:Yeah. For some people, the very first time is super scary.
Speaker 1:Right, but that's a good example of how cops sometimes oversimplify our job, because we took all that and turned it into Oh yeah, well, it's like we get.
Speaker 3:I knew exactly what you mean. But yeah, for somebody who's not a cop might not understand that.
Speaker 1:But I guess it's really It's coming now Yeah it's really just like a teaching a teaching.
Speaker 3:Thing.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:So, and it does work.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so keyboard warriors, don't send us any hate mail. Oh, it's 100%.
Speaker 1:Yeah. Anyway, i don't care, i'm only going to get like 27 views, so it doesn't matter, 26 or all officers You mentioned to the getting rid of the guys who don't need it or girls who don't need to be here and them having families. That's a big. That's a big burden because, on the one hand, like I went into it, the way he and I were trained was like you have to survive your FTO.
Speaker 1:Once I got here I was shown there's a different way to do things and, i think, a better way to do things. So I very much I had less of a drill instructor sort of approach to things that I had as a rookie. I had more of like a trying to be a mentor and even at times even a confidant, and I got pretty positive results, i think. But there is one situation where I had to get rid of somebody and it was like it wasn't an option, it was just it wasn't even like they can't find a way, or it was an integrity issue And I was like oh you're not going to wear the same badge I wear.
Speaker 1:Yeah, got to go and they were from out of town and they had moved in for the job and had a family and it's That's one of those things you have to do, what you have to do, i mean your, your duties to the public and to your department and to your own integrity as well.
Speaker 3:But at the end of the day, something like that. That's on them.
Speaker 1:You know integrity, So you always kind of you always kind of feel bad for the people who you know the wife, the husband, the kids or whatever could be involved.
Speaker 2:Yeah, for a while more across street.
Speaker 3:Yeah, you take your integrity issues there. I guess you go.
Speaker 1:Now, you were talking earlier about the, the banking and whatnot, what we never addressed. How do you make that transition Like, how are you?
Speaker 3:Well, so I worked at going. When I was in college, i worked at a Mexican restaurant as a waiter. So I was doing, yeah, i've had, i've had lots of jobs, but I was a waiter for five years or so.
Speaker 1:I was just, i was just, i agree, but that's a job I think everyone should do, oh for sure. Like we should like like the National Military Service is mainly in certain countries should be waiting to go be a waiter.
Speaker 3:So then you got respect for him because you don't get paid anything as a waiter. You know, get two $2 and 13 cents is what I got an hour. But you still got to take taxes. You still have to claim portion of your cash tip. So whenever you claim that that takes out taxes, that wipes out your paycheck. You're 40 something dollar paycheck. It wipes that out. So you really don't make anything from the restaurant itself. You're just working off tips only.
Speaker 1:So I mean it teaches the value of just treating people with yeah, treating with people respect.
Speaker 3:I mean hard work. You get busy, you got to learn how to manage things, and so it was. I mean it was a great job. I love who I was working with, but five years was five years.
Speaker 1:I was I was done with that.
Speaker 3:I was done with school. I mean super like flexible schedule, all that stuff. It was cool for when I was in college And then from that point I started applying for police officers as soon as I graduated. I just didn't get in right away. Everybody's taken out all to study in college, it's just like the norm.
Speaker 2:And I and it's like college and not at yours. No, what the hell is Adderall?
Speaker 3:You don't know. Yeah, i mean it's. He doesn't know what Android is either, so thank Katie, you living in the Stone Age or something? Okay, adderall helps you concentrate for people who's got 80 D or whatever. So, yeah, i know everybody's taken to study. I didn't take anything, i don't take stuff and well, no, that does.
Speaker 1:It's a good, good thing to bring up, though, because a huge mistake that a lot of people make trying to get into this profession Is they assume because they've done something they're not supposed to like. Yeah, or even you know smoking weed at a time or two. You, oh, i'm screwed, i can't be a cop Now I have to go into a lie. Or they feel intimidated talking to a bunch of cops And so like they just lie about something that wouldn't necessarily just qualify him.
Speaker 1:If they would just be honest and do it and not.
Speaker 3:That wasn't. I was told that by so many people are just too honest. But I'm honest to a fault. I will tell you anything and everything, like, if you like, i just I just have a huge conscience. So whenever I'm answering this question plus I thought I'm trying to be a cop. You know I'm gonna be honest, honest, and so I just put everything, every single thing.
Speaker 2:I wish you'd have been in my polygraph. So the guy he's sitting there, he's like all right. so have you tried marijuana? I was like no, and he slid his glasses down Why.
Speaker 3:He looked at me like that.
Speaker 1:He goes um.
Speaker 2:So let me ask you again Have you? and I look, i played. I was like look, i know you've never had a black male never tried marijuana. And he was just like hey. And I was like come on, bro, i said I haven't, i just I never did. It was funny.
Speaker 3:Oh I had when I was doing the backgrounds, like when I said when I was I was hurt and I was doing backgrounds. This one guy is they talk about like the marijuana usage. This dude was like he wrote that most of the time it's like eight times, like, oh, i tried eight times, i haven't done it in five years or whatever. I think our limit is two years, okay, and you know there's no cap on like the number, i don't think. But this dude, like sold to his family members. He wrote all this. So I appreciate the guys honestly, but he's sold to his like family members and friends and he wrote a. He said approximately 5400 times or something like that approximately, you know and then he's like the last time he was like last month, whenever I graduated one, you didn't read any of the requirements to.
Speaker 3:I mean, i know it's just we, but you're drug dealing. Like you're dealing in a legal substance, right, however you view weed. But I'm like you're. You're literally a dealer. Yeah, i guess I'll be a cop today. I promise I'll stop.
Speaker 2:He got zipped like bags and he was confused.
Speaker 3:I called him and I was like hey, man, i hate to break the news, but yeah, you can't like deal drugs and use them like yesterday and then come test. And so he's like really, man, yeah, i know it's mind boggling, but yeah, you just can't do that. He's like what was the next? Approximately 5400 times.
Speaker 1:How do you even get that man? I feel like that guy has probably just bet that he wouldn't apply to be a cop.
Speaker 3:Dude. he was high when he was filling out the application. I guarantee it, Guaranteed paper smells like. I'm going to roll this. It's got residue on that paper They've been shaking it off.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I'm like a bunch of green stuff on his application.
Speaker 3:I think the shake off of this Oh yeah, it was kind of crazy.
Speaker 1:Oh, have any other background investigation stories?
Speaker 3:Yeah, but some of them work here so I can't say anything. You find out some interesting stuff about people. Some don't work here anymore, but I'm still not going to say anything, because they might hear.
Speaker 2:I'll tell you what was crazy is like when the background goes oh, you know, i'm going to talk to your ex-girlfriend or your ex-wife and I'm like, okay, wait, wait, wait. Let me just tell you, if she say X, y, z, then that's a lie. But you know, you can say this about me. Oh, i bet you hear it all.
Speaker 3:Man. Luckily I never ran into an issue where I thought somebody's just straight up lying Like just making up a bunch of stuff, sometimes doing oral boards. You can kind of get the feel that somebody's trying to BSU or whatever Oral boards are interesting, yeah, sometimes.
Speaker 1:Because, basically, you have an officer who wants to be. They passed what They passed the background portion.
Speaker 3:Yeah, they do like a general, like their history statement. So it's like that 50 page application and all that stuff. So as long as there's nothing in there that's against T-Cole, it gets them automatically kicked out, they generally. But then they got to pass the written exam, they got to pass the physical exam.
Speaker 3:Right. So once they do that and there's nothing no automatic disqualifiers out of their packet, then they generally are going to get an oral board Gotcha, which is the three of us two and then a supervisor sitting at one table, and then across from them is they're sitting there. Everything We all did them to get hired.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:So but yeah.
Speaker 1:How are those four-matted? How do those normally go?
Speaker 3:I mean usually the supervisor's, the one that does most of the communicating, asking questions. They give them like 10 minutes to tell us about themselves, which usually takes like 34 seconds. Yeah, it does, Yeah, it's like they're like I'm 24, I want to be a cop, and now I'm here.
Speaker 1:And you're like okay, cool man, i know everything about you now.
Speaker 3:And then every single time we got a supervisor, they put their timer on their phone and they're like okay, start now. and they click it And they're like and okay, end 34 seconds. I might man.
Speaker 1:When they always ask them like are you sure you have nine minutes to 17 seconds left or you don't want to use?
Speaker 3:it, dude. well, they act like they've been talking forever And I think that's it. Okay, dude, cool man. Yeah, so sometimes they're pretty interesting And yeah, it's cool being on this side. now, you know doing the interview.
Speaker 1:It is now at the time because I've always like the one I did in my last department dude, you got yelled at, cussed at, screamed. They had the books. They would smash on the table in front of you like just trying to. I don't know.
Speaker 3:Yeah, we don't really do that anymore And hindsight.
Speaker 1:I don't know why, but ironically enough I did way better in that interview or in that on that board, like I because it wasn't so uptight. Killed that one. It felt very uptight like extremely, Oh, okay.
Speaker 2:Wouldn't you do this?
Speaker 3:Yeah, And I was sitting there like I didn't think I was going to get hired in mind, Like whenever I really wasn't I didn't think I was doing that great And I did awful. And I was already a cop for GP.
Speaker 1:Yes, Like if there's a ranking of top five were they just messing with.
Speaker 3:I mean, were they messing with you or you just were hard on yourself?
Speaker 1:I did, i did very bad. Hey, well, you're here in my last department, when if you change an answer, pretty much an automatic disqualifier. So you have never really liked that. Me either. And here, when I first showed up, they told, told me Hey, this is not like that, we're not gaming the system, we're not now to get you. This is genuinely a conversation, but then, you think, are they tricking me?
Speaker 1:But my previous department like a lot of what I was told was a lie. So I was like, oh, you're not going to get me, i'm going to stick to all my answers. And then I gave an answer that was so blatantly and obviously wrong and immediately apparent that it was wrong. But I was like, okay, as long as I stick to my wrong answer.
Speaker 3:I'm fine. Oh man, it's like telling a lie that you can't get out of.
Speaker 1:Yeah, or just you don't try to get out of it.
Speaker 3:Yeah, like you're just choosing to stick to your guns and they're like no you're wrong And this is why I'm like. I'm not wrong.
Speaker 1:No.
Speaker 3:Next question No, I'm changing.
Speaker 1:And yeah, it was. I went, they sent me out and I stood in the hallway for a long time And then eventually, two of the guys I knew you're supposed to go back in the interview and all the guys are going to be still in the interview room. And two of the guys that were on the interview board were walked out of the room and then the sergeant called me back in. I was like Oh God, and I remember sitting down with the sergeant his sergeant Robinson at the time.
Speaker 3:That's you mess with me, dude.
Speaker 1:And he's like buddy, what are you doing? I had to explain to him like I. literally the words I said was I promise I'm not going to be a f**k up, you will just give me this job. He was the coolest dude.
Speaker 3:I hope you listen to this, because he was the coolest. Yeah, he was. I mean, he was just a good supervisor. I came in, i applied for a different agency too and or at the time, and then so I came back in and he was like how do you think you did? And I was like and I probably could answer a little bit better on this one He goes Hood of and I was like oh and he was like you're in the process with the Irving right, and I was like, yes, sir, and he goes have you done your old board yet?
Speaker 3:No, sir, let's hope you do a hell of a lot better on that one. And then just silence and I'm sitting there. I'm like, yes, sir, there goes that and he goes, i'm just playing with you, man, you did, you did pretty good.
Speaker 2:Okay, where's the bathroom? Where's the bathroom?
Speaker 3:Well, here's a cool dude Yeah.
Speaker 1:Well, i know we've gone well over our Time, so we're gonna go ahead and wrap it up. If recruiting is a good thing to talk about, kind of a unexpected direction for the conversation. So yeah, I stay away from all the topics you told me to stay away from.
Speaker 3:So you're welcome. Yeah, dude, we got to stay appropriate And I'm a good person. So yes, you are the person.
Speaker 2:I think that's true.
Speaker 1:Well, you have any parting words of wisdom you want to share before we?
Speaker 3:Oh Man, i don't know, i'm not, I'm not full wisdom.
Speaker 2:Okay, what would you tell somebody that wants to be a detective? right?
Speaker 3:Well, okay, let's just go from the beginning, like going back to being a field training officer. My very first thing It was, like, obviously a officer, safety, that's that's the first thing for everybody. It should be the most important thing. Number two was always like the general Work ethic that you have and how you treat other people. So I honestly, like I know I didn't write the best reports, like I care, i cared about my reports, but working nights, you know, like you're working all night long, you're tired, you don't always write the best reports.
Speaker 1:Not being able to read is a huge mark against you do. What not being able to read is? it makes it. Yeah, dude, honestly, that's made my job to me.
Speaker 3:I Wish, i wish I could read, but, um, yeah, just so, like your general work ethic that you have and how you treat other people. So That's really what I think helped me as much as it did even getting this spot, because you still got it's not a promotion, but you still got to interview and you know it's all about your reputation. So I think, just like having a good, good work ethic and treat people right, you know, if you treat you know your, your co-workers one way but you treat the general public a different way. People see that and With the other unit that I'm on, people that try to get on to that unit But they have a reputation of treating people bad. Yeah, well, that's that's not gonna help you out.
Speaker 1:So yeah, you know, when I was in the academy or our department, they told us Your application for every single job you're ever gonna want as a police officer Starts today. Every single thing you do, every single word you type in a report, every interaction you have with officers or the public, every single thing you do builds a reputation that you're.
Speaker 1:You're stuck with Your reputation as a police officer everything is gonna follow you and everything you do from this point forward Is is as far as like an application goes Yeah starts today. Mm-hmm, now, i was one of the best pieces of advice, i guess that's what I.
Speaker 3:Yeah. That's the second thing I tell them.
Speaker 2:Yeah interview every day, yep, so I just watch you.
Speaker 3:That's a baby story, you.
Speaker 1:You said you don't have any. The baby story.
Speaker 3:That answer not the embarrassing story, the baby story. What's the baby craziest car ever been to? Oh, crap. I'm not that interesting of a person and that's the most interesting.
Speaker 1:Well, yeah, they're gonna cut 20 minutes of this anyway.
Speaker 3:So okay, you want me to tell it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, what's the baby story?
Speaker 3:Okay, but I got laid out So this might be 15 minutes itself.
Speaker 1:Don't care.
Speaker 3:Okay, so the craziest story I've ever been or the craziest car I've ever been to, Oh I haven't heard this.
Speaker 3:I know exactly. I know this is what we were talking about. Okay, so Nine years or eight, eight years of patrol, this is the craziest one I mean to me. I don't know if anybody else thinks it's crazy, but you just get used to all the calls you go to and this one's just different. So it was just a check welfare to normal check, where for we go to a million of them, right? So I go to it. I think I'm pretty sure the call notes were a Sister, like the sister of this chick, was calling.
Speaker 3:She was calling about her sister and basically not answering the phone. All day long not answering the phone. It's not normal for her. At first You're just thinking, okay, she's an adult, she doesn't have to answer the phone, whatever. So you go to the call. She's. She's outside of her sister's apartment. The sister's car is there and the lights on in the apartment. It's not quite dark yet, but you can tell that a light is on inside and Door's locked. Her phone is ringing, but it's not. She's not picking it up, right? Okay, well, how often y'all talk? Oh, we talk every day. We talk in the morning, we text throughout the day. We're best friends. We always talk All right, all right, so just you work today. No, she didn't work today. Today's a day off, all right, you know, you're just going through these questions.
Speaker 3:Right like is she sick? does she have any sort of sickness at all? She's like no, no, she's healthy. She had cancer like 10 years ago and but she's been cancer-free ever since. I'm like, okay, so probably not that. Then I'm thinking like, okay, just seeing a relationship like what could have happened to this girl, and as she's suicidal, no, she's not suicidal. Does she and she in a relationship? Yes, she's got a boyfriend.
Speaker 3:Okay, i get all his information and then so we can check previous calls at the location. So I'm checking previous calls at her apartment and nothing, nothing at all. So then I get the boyfriend's information and I get his address and everything and I'm checking all the calls that are at that Address just to see if there's any disturbances between them. I'm trying to get a good feel of what their relationships like, right and. And then nothing at that address. So then I get his phone number, i call them and I'm like, hey, man, what's going on? You know whatever, i'm officers. And Then I'm like, hey, have you talked to whatever her name was? He's like, no, i haven't talked to her all day long. Actually last night since like 9 pm, i haven't talked to her. How often they'll talk? we talk all the time, just like this. So we talk all the time. We talk every morning, we tell each other good night, whatever. Haven't talked to her all day long. It's probably like 7 pm This day and he hasn't talked to her since 9 pm The night before. Okay, do you guys get along? do you guys ever getting you know, like, if he is a suspect? I'm trying not to give it away that I'm like investigating him, but I'm just trying to figure out some stuff. You know we have a great relationship. We would never fight. We've been together for a year, year and a half, something like that. Okay, cool.
Speaker 3:So now I'm thinking, what am I gonna do? I mean, she might be inside. I don't really know what's going on. She might need our help, and so I've pretty much done. I've exhausted all of my options. I got a ping on her phone and I'm for. The pings aren't very accurate, so it's like 2000 meters or something. So I'm just like, okay, well, i mean she's at least in the facet vicinity, but I don't know exactly where. But So I mean this is like an hour and a half of like digging deep into all these locations and trying to figure out what the possibilities are. And So Call a supervisor at this point because I'm like, well, nothing's really like exigent, because that's the only way we can force entry into this apartment to see if she's in there, if something's absolutely exigent. So Yeah, call Sergeant, and he came up with a good idea. He was like, hey, well, let's get maintenance, because we found out there's two locks, like a, two dead bolts, one from the outside, one on the inside. He's like, well, let's get a, let's get a key so we can at least unlock the outside one. And then, if it's still locked, we know somebody's probably in there because they've, they've locked that that inner interlock, right, all right. So yeah, the family on my halo, all y'all stay down here, just in case something you know we walk into something that's bad upstairs. So we get the key.
Speaker 3:This is probably like two hours at this point. It's dark, the the lights clearly on. I've knocked and banged on the door, no answer at all. And so we get the key, we unlock it and it's locked. So I'm okay, somebody's probably in here. Don't know what the situation is yet. So kick the door open and We just kind of let it breathe for a second, see if we hear anything on the inside.
Speaker 3:I do some callouts and got nothing. So no noise, everything from the view, like the front door looked fine, didn't look like anything was out of place, and then so, sergeant and I start to clear it and I get to a part where I can see blood in the bathroom. Just blood all over the floor, kind of like smeared. I'm like, oh, dude, this isn't good, like right, she could be dead in there. So then I kind of like push back. There's a bedroom right there and then there's a, the bathroom, where I see the blood. So I quickly and they're like right next to each other, so I can't stand at the bathroom without being exposed to this, this bedroom. So I just kind of like quickly glanced into the bedroom real quick. I don't see any, you know, a person or anything that seems like it's a threat.
Speaker 3:So now my focus is a bathroom and I see the blood and I like I I clear the corner and this, this, this woman is laying there and she's like It would look like a broken leg, like it's like she's laying on her back and it's like bent, like the opposite direction, like it doesn't look good. There's blood all over her stomach and then, like Not to be too graphic, but her, like her clothes were down to like her knees and there was blood like everywhere. And I'm like in my head I'm thinking like what in the world? and her eyes are wide open, just staring at the, at the ceiling and I'm like Hey, are you okay? You know, obviously she's not okay. And, um, she just like moaned. She just makes like a moaning sound, like not even words, oh, and so I'm like dude Or what happened?
Speaker 3:No, just trying to just trying to figure out what I need to do, to like try to are you hurt? Like where are you hurt? so I can try to help. We had medics already staged just in case we ran into something like this where she needed medical attention, and then so She's not really making sense, you can tell that she's out of it and they'll. She's lost her mind. So she's out of it and they'll. She's lost a lot of blood. So I'm thinking, okay, we need to get help quick. And then, as I'm talking to her Sarge, he runs down to go get the medics and we're trying to be quiet so the family doesn't freak out. You know, as soon as they find out, she's all bloody and hurt and they're going to go nuts.
Speaker 3:And then so, as I'm standing there, i'm asking her Hey, how long have you been laying here? She was able to get out, like last night, or something like that. So now I'm thinking, man, she's been laying here for like 24 hours. Her boyfriend, he hasn't heard from her since 8 pm. It's almost 8 pm Now. So she could have been laying here for 24 hours. She's lost blood, um, and then I look back to her bedroom. And then I look back at her and I'm like what?
Speaker 3:the heck was that and I look back to the bedroom and there's like blood all over the bed, like a huge puddle of blood, and I'm like What in?
Speaker 3:the world. Dude, like I'm lost. I'm like what in the world happened here? because I'm not seeing any wounds or anything. I just see like smears of blood everywhere. And I'm like, dude, what? and so? and I look back into the bedroom And then I noticed something on the floor and I was like, what is that? and it it was a baby, like a baby, just laying there. And then all of a sudden I'm like, oh my gosh, this, this chick, this, she gave birth in her bed. And so then I'm I'm like, oh man, i'm about to see a dead baby, like I'm just thinking this baby's, there's no way, it's a lot Yeah no way.
Speaker 3:So all of a sudden it's like I came like crashing down. I'm like dang man. And then I'm like, oh, i gotta check on the baby now, like. And so now I walk into the bedroom and I look down And the baby's like wide-eyed And just like, started making some noise and stuff. Perfectly fine umbilical cord like Three foot long and I've never even seen that before and the baby's just laying there, happy as can be.
Speaker 3:I mean newborn baby smiling, started like making some noises and and I could tell its chest was moving and I was like, dude, what? And like? and then I could. I was like I didn't know what to do because I can't yell out like, because the family didn't even know she was pregnant and they're like sister's best friend because I asked her that too. I forgot that part. I asked her if she's pregnant or anything, because she said something about her feet swelling And she said no, not pregnant, nothing. And then so this baby was, was fine, and uh, we call the, get the medics to come up and they just run in, pick up the baby and run out within the family season. They start going crazy like they're they're losing it, because they're like, yeah, i mean, i'm pretty sure she was, she was all right, like everything, and the baby was fine.
Speaker 3:But to this day, it's still the craziest call, just because like so unexpected.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that was. I thought it was gonna be Like she got stabbed or something or something bad domestic. Yeah, I turned and like Why are you telling this story?
Speaker 3:Yeah, no, I turned out it wasn't sad dude, it was just like the craziest, like secrets of events, um, and still like the craziest call I've been on.
Speaker 1:That's awesome.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it's cool.
Speaker 1:All right, well, we're gonna wrap And on that note. All right, guys, appreciate you all. Listening till next time.
