Another Cop Story!

This is a little embarrassing for me ,but in the spirit of this page, I want to share with you a story. Last night I went out to watch a game at an uncle's house. I may have had “one too many” but made the horrible decision of getting behind the wheel anyway. I thought "well, I'm 5 minutes away. No biggie" halfway into my drive I got distracted and my car swerved ,which happened to get the attention of the Police Officers behind me. I was pulled over.  

Soon, there were 3 other squad cars behind me and the officers, who were all White men, asked me to exit the car and administered a field sobriety test. I spoke with the officers and asked their names to which they answered, along with their badge numbers with a very “matter of fact” tone. "No worries officer, you guys are doing a good job, I just like knowing people's names. " I assured him. The man who took my license comes back and tells me "look, I know you've been drinking but I'm going to give you a chance to call someone to come pick you up, instead of taking you to jail." I made the call and was picked up a couple minutes later. I received a couple of mild driving citations but all in all, It could have been worse. Why am I sharing this story? We are reaching a point in our society where we as citizens have become very distrustful of all those with authority. Understandable, however, sometimes unjustified. I'm sharing this story because I want people to understand that the demonization of the entire police force is unwarranted and unnecessary. I am a large, very Hispanic, and somewhat intimidating man , who was obviously breaking the law. It was late, cold, and I was surrounded by 4 White Police Officers, but at no time did I fear for my life and even though they were in a very good position to make an example out of me, they showed leniency and compassion. These were good men, trying to do their jobs and keep their community safe. I am aware that the actions of these officers does not excuse the behavior of other officers that abuse their powers, but the actions of those who abuse their powers also are not a reflection of the whole. I am embarrassed by the poor decision I made last night and am aware of the dangers my neglect caused and am taking steps to make sure I am not put in that situation again. Thank you to those officers for taking it easy on me. Karma will take care of you.