The next day an autopsy was done, which I witnessed to gather any evidence, and at which time it was decided the youth had died of Alcohol Shock Syndrome. An estimated three gulps of liquor was found in his trachea, having never reached his stomach. I also discovered this was not a strange or weird death, as the doctor explained to me that the liquor caused a fatal heart attack. "If people only understood the sheer minute differences between passing out from alcohol and dying, it is like the depth of a piece of typing paper." He said to me. Three gulps and he died, just like that and he was only 16 years old. His death would stick with me for a long time as I picked up other kids for Minor Consuming of an Alcoholic Beverage. I can't tell you how many older drunks I dealt with over the years, some of them into their early 90's. But this boy was my youngest death. I'd end up arresting younger ones, even a 11 year old who was out partying with his teenage brother and his buddies after some parent's liquor supplies were emptied out. but, if it wasn't booze, far too many youngsters began experimenting with drugs at an early age. In my book, "Rookie" , soon to be released, I wrote about one youth who began his rain of terror at the age of 12 and had 12 felonies to his record by the time I finally got him sent away to the state youth facility at 16, when he tried to kill his father with the family rifle. He shot Dad's car up while his dad set in the car hoisting a few bottles of beer. My first arrest of the youth was when he got drunk and stole a small boat off the beach and ended up colliding with a pier, sinking the boat. All those felony arrests and the state wouldn't confine him, where he might have got help, until he tried to kill his dad. Back then the state's juvenile program had a lot of problems it needed to rectify. There were not enough juvenile probation officers, our was based in Anchorage and he rarely came to Dillingham as his caseload was so large. The State of Alaska only had one youth confinement facility and that still remains the case, so a lot of kids and teens fall through the system.
One of my first big busts in Seward happened one early morning when I was running radar out on the Seward Highway. I was set up in a 35 mph zone, which had me parked 1 mile into the speed zone, giving people plenty of time to slow down from the highway's 55 mph before entering Seward City Limits. This very large Lincoln came toward me and I still remember locking in its speed at 72 mph. I locked the radar gun in so I could display it to the driver, something I used to do while operating radar in the military. When I finally got the vehicle to pull over after a short pursuit, I realized I had 5 males in the car. Radioing in the traffic stop I was approaching the vehicle when my dispatcher notified me that the car was recently stolen from Anchorage. I ordered the occupants to place their hands on either the steering wheel, the dash or the back of the front seat. but, then the young man, they were all in their early 20's, decided to make a grab for something inside his windbreaker. He came so close to be shot that morning because of his stupidity. He was attempting to remove a screwdriver from his inside coat pocket, that he dropped to the floor of the car upon my orders. My back-up officer was my Lieutenant, who was up eating breakfast when the dispatcher called him and he arrived within minutes. By the time we were done we had arrested the 5 men for car theft- the driver and the passengers for ridding in a stolen car- a lesser misdemeanor, drug possession for cocaine and marijuana and multiple burglaries. They had broken into Anchorage Laundromats and used their tools to jimmy open the coin banks on the washers and dryers. We found bags of quarters at their feet in the back seat. Multiple felony and misdemeanor charges. They had come to Seward on a whim, to party down with their stolen coins which came to several hundred dollars. anchorage Police were real happy to learn of our bust, as it closed out their burglary cases for the Laundromats, and the car owner was happy to get his car back without it sustaining any damage. Running radar often led to arrests for drunk driving and warrant arrests. But I had my own code for whether or not I pulled someone over and issued them a ticket. I gave them 15 miles over the limit, going 50 mph or better in the 35 mph zone. 5 miles over for them, 5 miles over for me and 5 miles just to round it out and make it a worthwhile citation if I decided to write one. I then gaged the driver's attitude. If they didn't try to BS me or swear at me, or even come off with the normal "Why aren't you out busting real criminals..." , I often just gave them a warning. I knew a citation could raise their insurance, costing them more money than just the fine.
I used this same code when handling my DWI cases and probably released 2 offenders for every arrest I made, if they had a sober driver with them or they were willing to take a taxi. A DWI arrest and conviction could really have an effect on someone's life and I understood this. But, sometimes they needed the arrest and several of the people I arrested turned their lives around and quit drinking. I knew a person could see his insurance rate leap up, they might lose a job and it had an adverse effect some some marriages. Believe it or not, cops...most cops think about such things. Oh, if you laid a hand on me in anger with intent to do me harm, you went to jail, that was also part of my established code and it took me some time before I had established my code for dealing with the public. It helped. My own personal guidelines for dealing with the public and being a public servant. Keeping a record of my stats, I knew that when I retired I had written close to 4,000 police reports and made over 750 arrests for everything from Minor Consuming to Murder. I learned a lot working in small towns, for here I was also the investigator for anything that happened on my shift or I was also assigned by my Chief. Later, after I was injured on the job, I became the investigator for Seward Police and that was rewarding when I took down some not so nice guys.
It'll all be in my books, as I wrote a story for each department I worked in, but using fictional characters and my actual cases. Might be interesting or it could be boring. depending on if the reader like's cop stories. But I also try to spend time on raving about Alaska, it's wildness and beauty.
Sorry, if I am a bit long winded this morning but it is one of my 4 a.m. mornings. I'll get a nap later in the day. Strange how turning 65 causes the lack of sleep in a person.
Here are some headlines for you: "More Americans Says Jews Face Discrimination in the United States"...."Blaze Devastates Notre- Dame, in Paris as Firefighters Fear the Loss of One Tower"...."Lack of Fire Suppression Equipment in Cathedral Allows the Fire to Spread" "Over $700 Million in Funds Already Raised to Rebuild Notre-Dame"...."Measles Outbreak Surges Again with 90 New Cases in One Week"...."Sudan Ousts Their Dictator, But Generals Still in Charge"....."Big American Firms Learn Cyber Attacks May Not Be Covered By Insurance"...."Man Charged With 100 Counts of 1st Degree Rape From Allegations Dating Back 40 Years"...."Taliban Launch Spring Offensive Dispite Delicate Peace Negotiations With U.S."....."California Man Challenges Federal Law Refusing 'Immoral' Trademark For Clothing Brand".... "27 Possible Graves Found Near Boy's Reform School in Florida".....New Hampshire Set to Repeal Death Penalty, Becoming 21 State to Do So"....."American F-35 Fighters Being Deployed to the Middle East"....."Congress Wants Investigation Into Taxpayer Funded Anti-Israel Events Held At UNC and Duke Universities. $235,000 in Grants Involved".... "Peru's Former President Commits Suicide Before Being Arrested For Corruption"....."Dixie School District to Change It's Name Over Racism Debate"...."Notre- Dame May Take Decades to Rebuild".... "NFL Football To Hold Games in Both London and Mexico City This Fall"....."Libya Shelling Kills Civilians as Rival Militias Battle for Tripoli"...."Columbine Related Incident by Woman with Gun Closes down Hundreds of Schools in Denver- She is Later Found Dead"...."Venezuela Government Allows First Aid Shipments Across Their Border"...."American Missionary Pastor David Lin Still Imprisoned in China".... "Teenage Hunter Fined Almost $20,000 For Illegal Moose Kill"....."Frozen Tuna Sold in New York Recalled Amid Salmonella Outbreak"....."Study Shows Opioid Crisis Cost the US $26 Billion in Lost Taxes"...."Amazon Reportedly Paid $0 in Federal Taxes Last Year"....."Dog Found Swimming 130 Miles From Coastline"....."6.1 Earthquake Strikes Near Taiwan" ...."Pakistan Militants Execute 14 Bus Passengers"....""At Least 28 People Killed in Portugal Tourist Bus Crash"...." Congresswoman Cashida Tlaib of Michigan Calls For Hunger Strikes to Shutdown ICE"...."Facebook Bans British Neo-Nazi Groups".
I had the idea that if the NFL took all the money being spent to take the NFL to Mexico City and donated it to Mexico's poor, they could probably feed 50,000 or more people. A lot of money is being spent for a 30-hour game in a foreign city, who much prefer soccar to American style football.
Well, that's all for now, Folks. I wish you all to have a great weekend, that your prayers be answered and that we all enjoy the freedom this country offers us. God Bless, BILL