Thanks Officer

Thats really heartbreaking Mike. Thankfully the officers made you feel good about what what course of action was being taken.

My story (not nearly as important) though:
I got bit by a dog at a race, my fingers swelled up and there were deep scratches all over. I went to the paramedics at the race who called the cops (the offenders promptly left the scene). He took the info I had on them-went to the RD and found the racers name, his car, etc. They called with follow ups to finding the guy and getting his dog checked out. He was very professional, except when making fun of my small dog, but he made me laugh.

Anyway, it was refreshing b/c I was dreading the cop when they called for one.

Very nice thread Mike. 

I have so many stories its hard to choose, but here's a recent one.

A friend of mine, who was a cop, was trying to find a guy who had just assaulted his girlfriend and took off down the street.  As my friend was looking for him he stopped to look in a row of heavy brush when a shot rang out.  My friend fell to the ground with a bullet to his brain.  He died a few days later, but left behind all of his harvest-able organs to help several other people who needed them.

A happier tale:  I lead a group of cyclists on a hilly and rural 50 mile route.  One of the cyclists is diabetic and not very strong on the bike.  Somewhere along the line he dropped off, got lost and went into diabetic shock.  A deputy happened to drive by and see him standing along side of the road.  The cyclist told the deputy he didn't need any help (he was in shock).  The deputy recognised the symptoms the cyclist was showing and "strongly urged" him to get in the car and accept a ride to my house.  Once back he drank some juice and came out of the diabetic funk he was in.  The deputy didn't have to stop, let alone pressure him into taking a car ride back.  This most likely could have saved this guys life.  He was in the middle of nowhere when picked up. 

Great idea.  2 cases...

(1) A guy here in the office suffers from seizures if he doesn't take medication.  No one here knew that.  One morning he has a seizure and collapses in his office, banging his head on the way down.  Blood everywhere.  Raging snowstorm outside.  First officer on the scene was there FAST, and by that time our co-worker was awake and belligerent (normal post-seizure behavior apparently).  This guy and the eventual paramedics just took over and allowed us all to freak out off to the side.  As they left I was thinking...they're just going to another freaked out messed up situation like this one...and that's what they do all day long!  AWESOME.

(2) I nearly severed a finger launching a boat one time.  Those guys were awesome too.  I was a mess and they handled me physically and emotionally.

Officers, parameds, firefighters, nurses, ER folk...THANK YOU!!!

I came back home one night from DD'ing a very late party in Boulder. I was exhausted and just couldn't wait to crawl in bed. I got home to my dogs in the backyard barking their fool heads off looked to the front of the house and saw... a freakin' car crashed into the front of my house! I peeked inside to see that no one was in there, but I could just imagine some drunk sitting on my couch waiting to settle it with me so the cops didn't have to get involved or anything. No way was I going into the house! So I went directly to the convenience store nearby, called the cops and they said they'd send someone.

Ten minutes later... here comes Officer Hot. Officer Hot explained that the accident had happened earlier, but they couldn't move the van without the owners permission and the van had to go to get the car out. No serious damage had been done to the house. I told him that I was still a little freaked out because the dogs weren't supposed to be out. He checked the house for me and didn't make me feel one bit paranoid. I asked him to snuggle, but ever the professional, he said no (I made that part up). And he was hot. HOTT. Two t's.

Thank you, Officer Hot. Thank you, Officer Hot's boss, for hiring Officer Hot. He is hot. And a good cop and all around nice guy. But mostly hot.

Dear Iowa Highway Patrol Officers:

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for being willing year after year to volunteer your time to stand out in the hot sun all day and patrol the busy intersections so that I can go on Ragbrai.  If it wasn't for you doing this, this event would cease to exist.  I try to thank every single one of you when I see you out there, taking care of us, but here's a shout to the group:

I LOVE YOU MAN!

Thanks to all the officers who stand out there on hot days and for hours directing traffic so I can enjoy my triathlon and feel safe.

Another story:

About 8 years ago, my brother was in college and went into cardiac arrest.  He was 22.  He would have died except for two things.  (1) He was living with my cousin who knew CPR, and (2) when they called 911 there was an officer on the scene within 5 minutes, who helped my cousin keep my brother alive until the paramedics could arrive.

What's a little funny is that the officer was in the middle of an undercover operation, so he looked like a reject, but otherwise he wouldn't have been able to respond so quickly.

Thank you for my brother's life.

In response for all of the thank yous to all of the officers out there, you're welcome.

 People forget that we are human also. All of the bickering about the bad apples can bring the rest of us down. It's definately nice to see that people still appreciate what we do, and what we risk every day.

PhoenixAzul beat me to it.  This is too funny a story to let slip by.  Maybe a "funny neighbor" thread should be started.

This demands its own thread!

A couple of news photos of how the police blocked the WTO protesters in Hong Kong, a week before Christmas last year.  The Korean protesters are famous for their violence.  Fortunately, they were relatively peaceful that time. 

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/photos/show-album.asp?albumid=1528&photoid=7488

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/photos/show-album.asp?albumid=1528&photoid=7489