Bad Luck Cadet (12 page)

These are young guys mind you, most in their
twenties, and it didn’t take long before the probes were going
under clothing on unmentionable body parts. We were laughing so
hard we were crying. We called it the electric erection. We were
like a bunch of kids, good friends and family. For that short
amount of time, I felt like a kid again and not old enough to be
these men’s mother.

On another one of these evenings, my friend
Veronica drove down to check out the academy. She brought along
Betty, another of my good friends. They were able to eat dinner in
the cafeteria with me and I showed them around campus. After dinner
they asked if I could go out to a bar. I told them I would have
needed to get written permission several days in advance. We walked
around the campus for a while and I finally said to hell with it.
If Sgt. Spears from my future department could sneak up to the
tower and get drunk, I could sneak off campus.

We made a break for it and ended up at the bar
inside Chili’s Restaurant. Betty was our designated driver so
Veronica and I tied one on. I’m not sure how many pitchers of
margaritas we had but I could barely walk by the time we
left.

I stumbled into my dorm room at 0100 hours. I
was up at 0445 hours or at least that’s when the alarm went off. I
struggled to get out of bed and somehow managed to get myself to
physical training. My head was spinning uncontrollably. I showered
fast, brushed my teeth and shoved gum into my mouth (also against
the rules). My stomach was turning and I was thinking a night of
disobeying orders was not the best of ideas.

After warming up, I ran to the bathroom and
puked my guts up which helped. I then went back out and struggled
through a six-mile run and weight training. Thank god no one
smelled alcohol on my breath. I know it was a lot to risk, but I
needed to cross the line. I had done everything asked of me and
this act of rebellion felt great, although my stomach and head
didn’t. I will always love Veronica for bringing out my wild side
and helping me break the rules. I had earned this small break in
routine.

I waited all day for Sgt. Dickens to mention I
was seen leaving campus but it never happened. The week ended and
there were only two weeks to go. The following week would be the
hardest we had yet to face. Sitting in my classroom on Friday, I
looked around at all these hopeful young men. I couldn’t imagine
one of them failing at this late date. I was thinking the same of
myself.

We had all come so far and everything we had
learned was coming together. This had been the longest sixteen
weeks of my life. Two more to go and I did not plan on letting
anything stop me.

Chapter 21 Failure Is Not An Option

After what seemed like a short weekend, Monday
came around. It was our last weekly test. I had studied hard and
did well. We all passed. The rest of the day was spent in the
classroom reviewing for the final which would take place the
following Monday.

Tuesday was our Defensive Tactics final. We
had to know the names of all the major pressure points and major
nerves on the body. We had to demonstrate proper take down
procedure as well as handcuffing techniques. We all passed this
test as well.

Stop and approach scenarios would begin on
Wednesday. As they did last time, all the volunteers arrived the
evening before. We had been hearing horror stories of what we would
undergo in these final practical tests. We were told the staff and
volunteers had taken it easy on us during the first set of
scenarios. Stop and approach was do or die and would take every bit
of knowledge we possessed to pass.

Sgt. Dickens told the class he already knew
two cadets would not be passing because they didn’t have what it
took to be officers. I knew I was one of those cadets. I just
didn’t know who the other person was. I felt he had made up a
second person because he could not just point me out.

Wednesday finally came and the tests began. My
first test involved a man caught shoplifting at a convenience
store. He was in a “red man” suit which caused my heart to speed up
even more. A red man suit is a padded, head to toe covering, used
in demonstration exercises. It is always red. It has a face guard
as well as foot guards. It can take a lot of punishment but the
person wearing it can give it back as well.

The suspect was sitting in a chair and holding
a medium sized box. The instructor pretended to be the store
manager and said the gentleman was caught walking out of the store
with the contraband. I walked over and asked the man if I could see
his identification. He started yelling and threw the box at me. I
pulled out my baton and told him to turn around and place his hands
behind his back, he was under arrest. He complied and I handcuffed
him. The scenario was ended.

These type scenarios were used to be sure we
did not use excessive force when it was not necessary. The suspect
was in the red man suit to increase our anticipation of violence. I
passed and moved on to my next test.

I was sent to the campus gym. We had to wait
outside and again we were able to partner up. A young cadet went in
with me. It was pitch black inside and we turned on our
flashlights. Mats had been used to section off areas and we faced
blind spots at every turn. We then heard a scream.

We kept our cool and continued slowly towards
the screams. Our first suspect came at us on the last turn. My
partner took him down as I watched our backs and kept an eye on a
female crouched against a wall screaming. After the first guy was
secure, I walked towards the female telling her who I was. A second
man came around the corner and was on me before I could blink. I
hit him in the head with my blue gun, which was in my hand (it had
to have hurt). I then placed him in handcuffs. The scenario was
ended. Again, I passed.

After my lunch break, I went to my third test
of the day. It was a vehicle speeding away after the occupants
inside the vehicle had robbed a bank. I performed a “high risk
vehicle stop.” This is a training we spend days perfecting. It’s
done the same throughout the country and saves officer’s
lives.

The driver of the vehicle jumped out and began
running up a hillside beside where his vehicle was stopped. He was
firing a SIMs weapon at me as he ran. I returned fire but kept an
eye on the others remaining in the vehicle. I radioed back to
dispatch and told them one of the occupants had taken off running
to the north and he was armed with a gun. I then sat in the “V” of
my car door’s front seat. I watched the vehicle occupants as well
as the hills where my other suspect had run to. The scenario ended.
I was told I did a great job.

My adrenalin was sky high. It’s true, police
officers are adrenalin junkies. I didn’t understand until I went to
the academy. It was like no other feeling on earth. I was
flying.

Next I headed to the dorms and underwent
domestic violence scenarios. I spoke with fellow cadets while we
waited. Not everyone was doing as well as I.

The Class 96 Sergeant was talking to some
fellow instructors as I walked up. I didn’t know her well and I was
surprised when she asked me to walk a short ways away from everyone
and talk to her. I replied, “Yes mam,” and followed her.

“Cadet Ivy do you understand what is happening
today?”

“I hope so.” I replied.

“Do you understand you are not meant to pass
the stop and approach tests?”

“Yes mam.”

“I want you to fight and when you don’t think
you can fight anymore I want you to pull out everything you have
and continue fighting. Do you understand?”

My eyes had tears when I replied, “Yes mam I
do.”

She walked away. To this day I will always
remember her support. Her words inspired me and gave me strength.
What an incredible Sergeant. She was promoted about a year later to
Lieutenant.

I didn’t do as well on the domestic violence
scenarios, as I had on the first set weeks before, but I passed.
Day one of stop and approach was finished.

Thursday was more of the same. The scenarios
continued throughout the day. The only one of note before “the
disaster” was the SIMs building search. This time I was going in
alone and was geared up in protection equipment. I was handed my
SIMs gun and I entered the building. I went into the first room on
the right. As I was exiting a man came towards me pointing a gun at
his own head. He was screaming and I yelled several times for him
to stop. He continued to advance and I shot him three times in the
chest. The scenario ended. I was asked why I shot and I explained
the man continued to approach, disobeyed my instructions to stop,
and he could have turned the gun on me at any moment. I was then
asked what the man was yelling and I told the instructor I had no
idea.

We had been taught about tunnel vision and
loss of hearing when our adrenalin was high. I had just experience
the hearing loss first hand. I was told to stand to the side of the
first door as the next cadet entered for his test. I watched and
listened. The man holding the gun and pointing it at his own head
was approaching the cadet saying, “I hate fucking cops and I will
kill every one of you.” Wow! What a thing to miss and what a wakeup
call. I passed the scenario but was upset over what I had not
heard. The instructor told me ever cadet fails to hear those words
and it was normal but also a learning lesson.

The day continued and I had one scenario left.
It was another red man test. Cadet Clark came up to me after he
finished and said for me not to worry, I would pass it with flying
colors.

When I started the scenario, I was told there
were some unidentified noises coming from inside a building. I
entered. There was a “red man” hitting a woman with a large club
while she was trying to fight him off. I attacked. I don’t know why
I didn’t shoot him but I didn’t. I flung him to the ground and
tried to gain control of his arms. I was unsuccessful and he got up
and came at me with the club. I took him to the ground again and
continued fighting. He continued to get up. We continued on as I
gave everything I had to get him under control. I was fighting for
my life and I refused to give up.

I don’t know how long this went on but the
instructor finally yelled, “Fucking shoot him! What’s wrong with
you?”

I pulled out my gun and shot.

The scenario ended and I had failed. The
instructor was screaming at me. Sgt. Dickens was in the room
watching. I was holding back tears trying not to cry. The
instructor continued to yell at me until he kicked me out of the
room.

Cadet Clark was waiting outside. He couldn’t
believe I’d failed. I will never forget his words.

“We all knew you would pass this one. You
always shoot.”

I was devastated. Could failing one scenario
keep me from graduating? I didn’t know but I knew if it was
possible Sgt. Dickens would make sure it happened.

Sgt. Dickens yelled at us for an hour.
According to him the entire class should be sent home. I could see
the pitying looks from the volunteers. Several walked out refusing
to listen to our scolding. They did not understand that we were
used to this treatment by our Sergeant. Before it was over Sgt.
Dickens announced there were five cadets he would be speaking to
the following day and only one was for doing a good job. I knew I
would be on the first list.

We missed a total of twenty four guns and were
told we had to run twenty four hill runs the following morning
before POPAT. I looked over at Rocco and knew he was the other
cadet chosen to fail.

What our Sergeant did not know; failure was
not an option for either of us!

Chapter 22 I Would Not Cry

The following morning we lined up at the
bottom of the hill to complete our twenty-four hill runs. Before we
began, class leader Cadet Clark made a speech. I could not have
said it better myself.

“We’ve all been through hell together. We’ve
wanted to make our Sergeant proud. We’ve wanted his approval. Well,
it’s kind of like the alcoholic father who never thought we
measured up. He would never give us praise because the failure was
in him and not in his children. We are those children and the only
praise we will ever get is what we give ourselves. You have all
done an incredible job and I am proud of you. We have all earned
the right to have our badges pinned on our chests. I would be proud
to serve with each and every one of you. Now let’s do these hill
runs and then kick some ass on POPAT!”

We cheered loudly with hoots and hollers. It
was an incredibly inspiring speech. We ran the hills and then
marched to cadence on our way to the POPAT field. We were all
required to participate, though Cadet Chavez was the only one that
would be going home, if he didn’t score at least 384 points. Each
and every one of us was determined to see Cadet Rocco Chavez
pass.

First up was the obstacle course. Several of
us stood ready at the last turn and ran alongside Rocco, pushing
him to run faster. It worked he ended up lowering his time. The
fences were also not a problem. He had worked so incredibly hard
and it was paying off. Those twenty-four hill runs hadn’t slowed
him down. Rocco had his goal in sight and nothing would stop
him.