Police Ride-Along Part 4

The rest of my ride along experience was not quite as gripping as the events layed out in Police Ride-Along Part 3. Despite this, the night was far from over, and there is still some excitement to come.

Following my most recent adventure, we got a call reporting a car theft at Mckineley Middle School. We had to head over there quickly and upon our arrival the victim was waiting outside. He was there for a basketball practice for his daughter and had gone out to his car to get the teams' new jerseys to show them. He had left his car running with it unlocked while he brought the jerseys inside for five minutes and when he came back out, his car was gone. Luckily for us, there were cameras all around the building and the athletic directer from Taft MS just happened to be there too so we went to the main office and started looking through the tapes. It is nice that they have the cameras and all, but they don't know how to work them very well. After about 15 minutes of squirreling around on with the cameras trying to get the right angle, we decided to give up and wait until morning when someone who actually knows how to use the cameras was there. So unfortunately for the victim there was a whole lot we could do immediately besides file a report and send out a notice for people to look out for the specific car.

The final event of the night included what the police refer to ass a "hot run". This is where you put on your lights and sirens and disregard all traffic signals/signs. Immediately after leaving McKinley, we got a call to Mercy Hospital because there was a guy there threatening to beat people up. After an exhilarating ride, we arrived just as about five other police cars. I was instructed to stay in the car while they all ran into the hospital. In the end it wasn't that exciting, it was simply a drunk guy yelling at the hospital staff. All that happened was that the man was apprehended and sent to jail.

Everyone talks about how the police are unfair, and how they are "out to get'cha". I don't think that any of these people can fully appreciate what the Cedar Rapids Police Department does for this city. They make it safe to live here, they make it an attractive place for business, they make it so we can go outside and have peace of mind.

This ends my four-part series about my Police Ride-Along. I have to say, it was one of the most fun things I have ever done in the city of Cedar Rapids. I would recommend to every sophomore to apply for the Five Seasons Leadership Program so that they can experience some of the same, awesome experiences as I.

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