“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”
— Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
I have watched the media, the world of public opinion and politicians attack and decimate my profession and my department.
I am very proud of the Denver Police Department and of being a police officer. I am honored to serve with my fellow officers. I know some will say I am part of the “brutal police culture” and that my words ring untrue. I am not looking for sympathy, just simple understanding.
It is very easy to sit back and not truly understand the world we operate in. We make split-second decisions, operating off of our perceptions. We deal with people who are in emotionally charged states. Some are sociopaths and psychopaths or are under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Frequently, we are asked to quickly bring order to chaos. We see a world of violence, with total disregard for the value of life.
On the flip side, we have thousands upon thousands of positive interactions with people we serve.
We know what we have signed up for. We answered your call to stand up and provide order and protect society. We are human, and have emotions. With all of our good qualities come some of the bad as well. You ask us to be perfect, and we expect no less from ourselves. But as humans, we are all flawed.
We are asked to be assertive, which in turn requires us to utilize force, ranging from handcuffing to deadly force. Unfortunately, we do make mistakes, due to the volatility of society. We can succumb to our tempers during highly stressful and emotional times. We are not automatons who operate in a vacuum. The expectation that we should always be professional and never allow ourselves to show our human side is understandable, yet not easily attainable.
As police officers, we understand the need for discipline, which is designed to correct behavior. If our behaviors violate the values of the department, our code of ethics, the policies, procedures and regulations of the department, or the laws and constitutions we swore to uphold, we are willing to take discipline that is given out without the influence of media bias and political pressure.
We concur with the ideals that discipline should be swift, while thoroughly investigated, and dispensed in a fair and equitable manner.
The examination of how we operate should be conducted through the window of the totality of the circumstances as we knew them at the time. This includes all of the information that can be gathered via any means available to us. Sometimes we can take our time, but occasionally we have to rely on our immediate perceptions.
The chance for errors and mistakes increases with the less time and information we have.
Tactics and approaches are taught, but do not always fit each situation and are not guaranteed. When they don’t work, we improvise, adapt and overcome. When these cases are reviewed, they are looked at through 2 0/20 hindsight, and it is easy to pick them apart for mistakes and errors.
We know that we may see things and react differently, but it does not always make our way right or wrong.
As of May 11, 69 law enforcement officers were killed this year in the U.S. That means that there are husbands and wives not coming home, moms and dads not seeing their children grow, sons and daughters not there to celebrate the holidays. We are out there trying to do the right thing for you, society, and ourselves.
We want to see our families for years to come. We may falter, make mistakes, but we are good people doing our job without praise and fanfare. We do this job because we love it and want to make our society a better place to live for everyone.
Joseph D. Unser is a 16-year veteran of the Denver Police Department. He is a sergeant assigned to District 2 in northeast Denver.
