Authors: Norm Stamper
Be docile.
There's no immediate danger of the meek inheriting the earthâquite to the contrary. Passive or
overly polite
people get steamrolled every time they attempt to effect changes in policy. You don't have to be obnoxious about it, but be assertive, stand your ground. Do not relinquish your rights as an American.
Give up.
Journalist I. F. “Izzy” Stone, that marvelous warrior for social justice, wrote:
           Â
The only kinds of fights worth fighting are those you are going to lose, because somebody has to fight them and lose and lose and lose until someday, somebody who believes as you do wins. In order for somebody to win an important major fight 100 years hence, a lot of other people have got to be willingâfor the sheer fun and joy of itâto go right ahead and fight, knowing you're going to lose. You mustn't feel like a martyr. You've got to enjoy it.
However much one enjoys being a cop or a police chiefâand I loved my three and a half decades in police workâthere are moments of unspeakable horror. And sadness. I've seen raped and murdered children, bloodied spouses, the maggot-infested bodies of society's “throwaways.” I've participated in, witnessed, and later punished brutal, racist, or corrupt police behavior. I've attended far too many cops' funerals, choking on the lump in my throat as the “last call” for a fallen officer is broadcast live over the police radio. Labor of love or not, there are times when being a cop just leaves you sick at heart.
But through it all, there is this: There's no other job with greater potential for making a difference in the lives of one's fellow citizens. Police officers stop people from hurting other people. They render assistance when individuals and communities are most in need of it. They save lives.
As I used to tell my officers, misery is optional. If you're able to keep a sense of humor, to rejoice in the humanity of policing and even police politics, you can have a ball being a cop. I know I did.
*
Murton's book, coauthored with Joe Hyams,
Accomplices to the Crime
(1969), became the basis for the 1980 film
Brubaker
, starring Robert Redford.
With endless gratitude to my exceptional Nation Books editor, Ruth Baldwin who, with Carl Bromley, Jerry Gross, Meg Lemke, Sherri Schultz, and my agent, Elizabeth Wales, offered up sound advice, a keen eye, and uncommon patience at every step.
And to Sarah Buel, Adrienne Casey, Steve Casey, Anita Castle, Dr. David Corey, Don Drozd, Jack Mullen, Anne O'Dell, Ann Rule, and Paula Russell whose wisdom and insights added so much to my understanding of their specialties.
And to esteemed SDPD and SPD colleagues who taught me, and often fought me. In
San Diego
: Rulette Armstead, A.D. Brown, Bob Burgreen, Don Davis, Bill Kolender, Ken O'Brien, and Mike Rice. In
Seattle:
Harry Bailey, Janice Corbin, Robin Clark, Jim Deschane, Harv Ferguson, Ed Joiner, Clark Kimerer, Nick Metz, Debbie Nelson, and Lisa Ross.
And to civic, academic, and community leaders who've inspired me and held my feet to the fire for years. In
San Diego
: Rev. Robert Ard, Irma Castro, Dr. Dennis Doyle, Bonnie Dumanis, Jon Dunchack, Scott Fulkerson, Murray Galinson, Maria Garcia, Dr. Stu Gilbreath, Dr. Tom Gitchoff, Dr. Kenji Ima, Ernie McCray, Jack McGrory, Helen McKenna, Sherry Silver, George Mitrovich, Dr. Joyce Ross, Dr. Rick Ross, Dr. Janet Sherman, Andrea Skorepa and Rev. George Walker Smith. In
Seattle:
Aileen Balahadia, Debbie Barnes, Guadalupe Barnes, Robin Boehler, Connie Bown, David Bown, Bert Caoili, Terrence Carroll, Rev. Ellis Casson, Dr. Robin DiAngelo, Dr. Roy Farrell, Dr. Camilo de Guzman, Rebecca Hale, Sheila Hargesheimer, Alma Kern, Anne Levinson, Jan Levy, Dr. Hubert Locke, Lonnie Lusardo, Dr. Sandra Madrid, Roberto Maestes, Dorothy Mann, John Morefield, Mark Murray, Todd Nelson, Vanna Novak, Judy Osborne, Margaret Pageler, Kate Pflaumer, Norm Rice, Deborah Terry-Hays, Richard Wildermuth, Mark Sidran, Harriett Walden, and Jo Ellen Warner.
And to cherished pals who've stuck by me through good times and bad, whose professional expertise, personal mastery, and dedication to social justice is evident in all they do: Lisa Belsky, Joe Brann, Bill Geller, and Nancy McPherson.
INDEX
Allen, Dennis,
189â90
Anderson, Edward,
224â25
,
235â38
Armstrong, John Eric,
40
Baldwin, Lola,
113
Belsky, Lisa,
375
Benes, Michael,
122
Blankenship, Betty,
110
Borchers, Connie,
114
Brame, David,
1â16
,
18
,
122
,
251
Bratton, William J.,
285â97
Brown, A. D. “Brownie,”
138
Brown, Rob,
223â24
Brown, Willie,
306â8
Buel, Sarah,
17â18
Burgreen, Bob,
41â45
,
162â65
,
191â92
,
197
,
228
,
314
Burns, James MacGregor,
385â86
Cameron, Don,
322
Carberry, Joseph Alan “Joey,”
262â66
,
271
Carberry, Joseph Anthony,
262â66
Carmona, Richard,
152â53
Chessman, Caryl,
56â57
Chouinard, Gene,
365
Churchill, Winston,
110
Clinton, Bill,
23â24
,
60
,
71
,
75
,
332â33
Cochran, Johnnie,
96â97
Coffal, Elizabeth,
110
Colburn, James,
54â55
Coleman, Tom,
26â27
Conlon, Edward,
198
Cora, Joey,
21
Corey, David,
176
Curtis, Edwin U.,
247
Davidson, Alaska P.,
113
Davis, A. B.,
xii
Davis, Jack,
26
Diallo, Amadou,
91â92
Doran, Tommy,
373â76
Douglass, Frederick,
395
Duckstein, Jessie B.,
113
Dukakis, Michael,
60â61
Ebeltoft, Ron,
189
Edwards, Bill,
224â25
,
235â38
Edwards, Melanie and Carl,
17
,
18
Esobedo, Danny,
65
Esteban, Joan,
71
Falk, Winfield,
218
Fernandez, Melissa,
72
Frantz, Pat,
251
Gates, Daryl,
36â37
,
192
,
379â80
Geller, Bill,
375
Gentile, Donne,
46â47
,
48â49
Gideon, Clarence Earl,
65
Giuliani, Rudolph,
276
,
285â94
,
302â4
Gleason, Tag,
375
Goldstein, Lee,
55
Goldwater, Barry,
vii
Gonzales, Alberto R.,
60
Graham, Gary,
60
Graham, John,
313
Grote, Richard C.,
227â28
Hartless, Jerry,
237
Hawkins, Robbie,
368â70
Heatherington, Harry Paul,
121
,
124
Hoobler, Ray,
105
,
109â11
,
115
,
138
,
210
,
356â58
,
363
,
371
Hoover, J. Edgar,
113
Houston, Lenore,
113
Jacobs, Donovan,
188â89
Jauregui, Bob,
267
Johnson, Kirk,
189
Jones, Brian Maurice,
49
Kalish, David,
123
Kelly, Dave,
262
Kennedy, John,
144
Kerik, Bernard,
303
Kerlikowske, Gil,
302
Khamisa, Tariq and Azim,
56
Kime, Kristopher,
302
Kolender, Bill,
42â43
,
47â48
,
49
,
100
,
103â8
,
180
,
191
,
197â98
,
314
,
372
Krosch, Cal,
234â35
Lamond, Larry,
312
Larsson, Stig,
40
Le, Phuong,
376â77
Liptak, Adam,
26
Lloyd, Eddie Joe,
54
Lowe, Wilburt,
67
Maloney, Dennis,
379
Maple, Jack,
296
Mapp, Dollree,
64â65
Marcuse, Herbert,
203â4
Markove, Dawna,
388â89
McKinney, Samuel B.,
236â38
Meese, Ed,
164
Mehan, Mike,
375
Merino, Chuck,
313
Michaels, Brian,
42â44
Miranda, Ernesto,
65â66
Murphy, Jon,
169â70
Murton, Tom,
392â93
Nadelmann, Ethan,
32â33
Niemöller, Martin,
314
Noland, Jane,
301
O'Brien, Ken,
202â6
,
210â12
,
261â67
,
269
Ochoa, Craig,
122
Osborne, Judy,
317â18
Owens, Mary,
112
Pearson, Jack,
94â95
Peel, Sir Robert,
359â60
Penn, Sagon,
188
Pernicano, Frank,
77â81
Pickton, Robert William,
40