A violent and deadly shootout results in the deaths of 5 people, and injures 1 other.
What began as a quiet and somewhat boring night for police, suddenly turns into a bloodfest around 3:00a.m.when I decide to make a routine (if there is such a thing) motor vehicle stop on a highway. Two white and two black males occupy the suspect vehicle, an older model orange Trans Am. The right taillight that is out is the reason that I initiate the stop.
In my mind what I am planning is a drug interdiction stop, which means that I should call for backup and the second officer and I will question the occupants regarding their comings and goings, their purpose for being out at such an hour, and their intentions. We will then see if their stories match each other’s, or whether 1 of more of the occupants has a somewhat different story, thus beginning to build our probable cause to search the vehicle and their persons.
I suspect drugs because the car is a dented and scraped up piece of junk that obviously isn’t being taken care of properly, it is unfamiliar to me, possibly meaning that they are just passing through, and could have drugs or a large amount of cash in the vehicle. As noted above there are 4 males, they are all in their late 20s or early 30s, and it is around 3:00a.m. It is common knowledge among most drug-trained police officers that this is one of the formulas for drug activity.
I call for backup and am told that my coworker and friend, Officer Ken Green, is en route to my location. My training and experience tells me that there is a likelihood of guns being in the vehicle, so I follow the vehicle for a short distance before activating the emergency lights in order to give Ken a little more time to get to me. As I go along, I am updating my location to dispatch.
Upon activating the lights, the vehicle does not immediately pull over and stop, telling me that the operator is deciding whether to stop or to try and make a run, or that he does not see me. If he does not see me, why can’t he? In the nighttime, the blue lights can cause strobe-like illuminations in the sky all around you. Therefore he should see me without any problem.
After a short distance he pulls over using his turn signal, and stops. By this time I have already run the plate and found out that the vehicle is from a city about an hour and a half away, a city that is known for illegal drug activity.
I get out and start to approach the vehicle when suddenly the hair on the back of my neck rises, I can feel my pulse quicken as every once of police intuition in me tells me that this is going to turn to shit in a hurry. I immediately draw my gun as I retreat to my cruiser to await Ken’s arrival. I call Ken and tell him, and as I speak he arrives, pulling up behind me. As we get out of our cars, so do the front seat passengers of the Trans Am.
They begin shooting at us, and as we take cover and begin returning fire, the occupants of the Trans Am’s rear seat get out and join in the firefight. All the suspects are armed with unknown types of handguns. We are armed with our service issue Glock pistols. There is a shotgun in my cruiser and a .223 caliber rifle in Ken’s, if only we can get to them.
The whole incident lasts about 2-3 minutes, but seems more like 10 minutes. The gunshots sound like cannons in the still of the early morning air. As the shooting continues, Ken kills one of the suspects. Moments later, I take a round in my left shoulder, continue firing and kill the assailant, leaving 2 of them and two of us. I make a run for the passenger side door of my cruiser to get the shotgun. Both suspects then turn their guns on Ken. As he fires back, he is hit multiple times, and falls to the ground.
I begin rapidly firing the semiautomatic shotgun and knock one of the suspects off his feet. With the final 2 shots that are left in the shotgun I hit and kill the last suspect. The wounded assailant dies as I attend to Ken, only to find that he is dead. Some of the bullets had passed through Ken’s threat level III vest. At the time I had not known that the assailants had been using Teflon-coated, armor piercing bullets.
As I stand over Ken’s bloody body, I awaken in a cold sweat. My heart is racing and I look around and realize that I was having a dream, although the events in it had seemed so real.
I have been having this same dream over and over again for several years now, but not during the last several months.
Does having a dream once differ from recurring dreams?
Frlncwrtr posted on Aug 21, 2006
| views: 388
Comments
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secretlife said on Aug 21, 2006....
I'm sure it does.
Is the episode from the dream real? Any part of it real?
Again, I think obviously stress-related. Feeling responsible for the life of your partner; fearing for your own life. I think constant danger/constant threat; it's got to take it's toll somehow.
You've definately got a novel or ten in you somewhere...
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Frlncwrtr said on Aug 21, 2006....
Secretlife:
Thanks for writing!
No, it is not real, just a dream that I keep having.
I’m sure that you are right about it being stress-related, and it definitely takes its toll.
Sometimes I think that it’s not so much that I feel responsible for his life, but feeling like he won’t be safe without me, or something like that. I’m not sure yet what it means.
I see what I can do about that novel, I’ve often thought about that but felt I couldn’t do it. Thanks for the compliment!
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sigroid75 said on Aug 21, 2006....
sometimes, i like to see men in uniform and admire
their work. but if you really come to think of it,
these men have been exposed to a lot of human
drama, dangers, trauma, and i wonder if there
are programs to help police officers deal with their
individual pain and struggles?
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Frlncwrtr said on Aug 22, 2006....
sigroid:
I am glad to hear that you like to see men in uniform!
To answer your question, if the officers have been involved in a crisis i.e. shooting, the are sent for counseling to ensure that they are fit for duty before they are allowed to go back to work.
However, if a police officer wants to seek out counseling on his own for a problem that he feels is troubling him, he can do so. But, he won’t! The consequences for a police officer admitting that he has a problem is that, first he is placed on unpaid administrative leave. Then, his gun and badge is taken away until if and when the administration decides to return them and allow him back to work.
That is the reason behind many police officer suicides. Sad, but true.
Thanks for your interest!
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FaithfulDisciple said on Aug 22, 2006....
What puzzles me most, is as you say that this particular dream is recurring. Perhaps it is your subconscious mind telling you that this is how could end up if you continued working for the police force.
In that recurring dream, you often managed to stay alive barely. The purpose for this is for you to assess the severe damage caused by the fatal shootout which results into the tragic death of your good friend Ken.
That death is inevitable not only for Ken but also for you had you also been fatally shot.
"Some of the bullets had passed through Ken’s threat level III vest. At the time I had not known that the assailants had been using Teflon-coated, armor piercing bullets."
By this statement, you affirm that had you been hit like Ken you wouldn't stand a chance to survive. The reason why you are alive was to enable you to assess the situation, if this same scenario were to happen in real life, are you willing to accept the damaging consequences.
If the mere sight of your friend's dead body was already too much for you to bear, how much more if you were the one shot with the Teflon coated bullets, lying dead on the ground helpless.
Maybe the purpose of your subconscious mind was to alert you of an impending disaster that awaits you and your friend if you continued with your dangerous police work. This message was being sent to you in the form of recurring dreams.
To relate it with your earlier dream, the subconscious mind was also telling you that despite the real injuries you actually sustained in active duty, you still weren't commensurated accordingly for your efforts.
In the first place, the fatal shootout of your friend Ken wouldn't have happened had he not responded to your call for backup assistance. So basing it on the dream, you were sort of responsible for your friend's work related death.
This recurring dream is indirectly telling you to examine your own conscience carefully; how does it feel to be alive when your friend didn't make it? When you so much don't value your own life so as to haphazardly decide to continue with your police work, what about your friend, don't you value his life more than your own?
The messages of both dreams are very clear, prolonged stay in the police force couldn't be better for you and your friend Ken.
Is Ken still active in the force. If he is, and something unfortunate happened to him, would you blame yourself for not being there?
Which is more difficult to bear? For Ken to die without you or for Ken to die in action while responding to your call for assistance?
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sigroid75 said on Aug 22, 2006....
oh here is my comment! hahahaha i clicked the wrong
entry and tried looking for my comment.,....hahahahahah
hahahahahaha
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Frlncwrtr said on Aug 22, 2006....
FaithfulDisciple:
Wow! What a detailed and informative answer! Thank you!
I’m sorry that I did not get back to you right away on this, but I had to give it some thought before I answered.
Perhaps you are right about; “it is your subconscious mind telling you that this is how could end up if you continued working for the police force.”
A part of your answer that I question is, “That death is inevitable not only for Ken but also for you had you also been fatally shot.”
In the dream, I had not been shot. So, where is the point? (I’m not being wise, just unsure of where you are going with this part)
You asked, “if this same scenario were to happen in real life, are you willing to accept the damaging consequences?” At this point in time I think I’d have to say, no. However, going back in time, my answer would have been yes.
I’ve thought a lot about this dream and I agree with what you said, “Maybe the purpose of your subconscious mind was to alert you of an impending disaster that awaits you and your friend if you continued with your dangerous police work.”
Yes, Ken is still active in the force. If something unfortunate happened to him, I would not blame myself for not being there. Maybe at one point I would have, but not today.
I understand your point completely regarding, “Which is more difficult to bear?”
I’m beginning to see your point, “The messages of both dreams are very clear, prolonged stay in the police force couldn't be better for you and your friend Ken.”
Maybe it will take me more time, but I think that one-day I will finally resolve this thing in my mind, (especially with your help).
Thanks for taking the time to think about this and write about it! I appreciate it!
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FaithfulDisciple said on Aug 22, 2006....
Frlncwtr: A part of your answer that I question is, “That death is inevitable not only for Ken but also for you had you also been fatally shot.”
In the dream, I had not been shot. So, where is the point? (I’m not being wise, just unsure of where you are going with this part)
In that recurring dream, you often managed to stay alive barely. The purpose for this is for you to assess the severe damage caused by the fatal shootout which results into the tragic death of your good friend Ken.
This is the reason why you had to stay alive, to give it careful thought. But the consequences were so realistically frightening that it had to show you that if it brought down Ken, it can also bring you down (the Teflon bullets).
You will have to make a decision to reconcile your thoughts regarding your misgivings about your sudden unexpected and abrupt departure from a work you so very much love to do. The risks it puts you and your friend is IMHA isn't worth it. Not on Ken's life and certainly not on your life.
When you're able to resolve this conflict within you, the better since you can move on with a new chapter in your life which is the creative aspect of being a suspense based writer.
You are definitely good at it, whether fiction or non-ficition. The talent of wirting must be used, honed and nurtured. There is a saying either you use it or lose it. Write on bro!
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JadeLondon said on Aug 23, 2006....
I think our minds use our dreams to work through problems and file them away. I think what anxieties we have are manifested within our sleep.
I have been working on and off on my bachelor's degree for more than ten years. I consistantly have a dream where I sign up for a full course load of classes. I attend class sporadically, bomb my finals and receive F's on my transcripts. Inevitably, I wake to find myself incredibly angry.
I always have to stop and perform a silent inventory of my college credits. I have never behaved as such--yet I wake up believing I did. Quite often, as a matter of fact.
I guess it REALLY bothers me that I haven't completed my education.
Mild compared to your story, but I think I understand why you have your dreams.
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hotaka said on Aug 23, 2006....
It's not like the movies at all, is it? I often read in the paper about police officers who have had to kill someone in the line of duty or have seen their comrads killed. They go through a lot of couseling. Even for the men and women of law and order it is not an easy thing to go through. The movies make it seem like shouting a bit and going maverick is all it takes. Then six months later every thing is sorted except for the bad dreams. And no one in the movies seems bothered by killing the bad guys. Thanks for shedding some light on the case of a policeman at work, even if it is a re-ocurring dream.
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Frlncwrtr said on Aug 24, 2006....
FD: Thanks for writing back. I’m sorry that I didn’t respond sooner, I had a busy day yesterday and then computer problems. I only read and responded to a few comments on my newest post.
Also, thanks for explaining my question. I understand clearly now and I’ll continue to give it careful thought.
I realize that a decision needs to be made and I know what it is. I guess the problem has been my refusal to allow myself to submit to that decision. I am getting closer now!
I never really gave the thought of being a suspense-based writer much of a chance. It was often more of a fleeting thought because I really felt that I didn’t have the ability. But, when I think about it now, isn’t that what all writers think about their material?
Thanks for the compliments and the encouragement to take on a new chapter in my life. It is true about that saying ‘use it or lose it,’ so I’ll plug away and use it.
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Frlncwrtr said on Aug 24, 2006....
Jade:
Yes, I have been finding out from others who have commented on the same idea of dreams being a way of releasing our anxieties. With so many having the same idea, I must agree with it.
Good luck on the bachelor’s degree! I suggest that you go for it! It seems like you have been waiting a long time to get it.
I think I get the idea, what you are telling me is that you have fears about your ability to get the bachelor’s degree, so in your dreams the fears come out with the F’s?
Isn’t it quite amazing how real the dreams seem at the time you wake up?
I don’t call your dreams mild, I just think that everyone has different things that haunt him or her. Thanks for writing and for the info.
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Frlncwrtr said on Aug 24, 2006....
hotaka:
You are welcome! I’ll try to enlighten everyone a little more on the realities as the ideas come to me.
No, It is not like the movies at all! When real people’s lives and emotions are involved it is very different than what the movies depict. There is a lot of counseling and red tape before an officer goes back to work.
Six months later, six years later, and maybe a lifetime for some, the dreams rage on. The truth to the matter is that a police officer will do in a split second what his training and experience has taught him, but after the fact he or she takes it very hard in most cases.
Thanks for writing! I’m sorry that I didn’t respond sooner, I had a busy day yesterday and then computer problems. I only read and responded to a few comments on my newest post.
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hotaka said on Aug 25, 2006....
Thanks for the personal reply. I am subscribed to you now so I look forward to when I have the chance to read more of your work.
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FaithfulDisciple said on Aug 25, 2006....
Your growing legions of fans are beginning to see the worth of your literary work. I'm beginning to think that you're joining us here at Soulcast is part of your predestination which is to become a professional writer.
It will amaze you to realize that what may seem effortless to you (the way you build up suspense in your stories) is a natural talent for you not shared by many.
I have read this comment from Heartwalker: "What you are is God's gift to you, what you will become is your gift to God." I couldn't agree with him more in your case. Write on bro!
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Frlncwrtr said on Aug 25, 2006....
hotaka:
You're welcome! Thanks for subsrcibing!
I have not been on the site too much over the last three days (except for answering some comments last night). When I do get back in sync (probably tomorrow), I'll be sure to read, comment on your work, and "click!"
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Frlncwrtr said on Aug 25, 2006....
FD:
Thank you sooo much for all the flattery!
You are right, I would be amazed to realize that what may seem effortless to me, others have to work at.
Thanks again for all your compliments and encouragement. I think you'll be pleased to know the encouragement is helping my self-confidence!
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