Read this letter posted on some discussions in the USA and thought it was so lovely that I would repost it here - it sort of makes you realise that if the Police were allowed just to do their job then things would be so much better than the ROBOCOPS we see in the UK on the TV etc.

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LETTER

I had to work today and it ended up being a wonderfully satisfying day.. One of those rare days as a police Officer that comes but once in a rare while..

As kids are want to do, a 13 year old boy was playing with fireworks and set a field on fire. That field happened to be State Property and so off I went to investigate.

There he stood...

Crying, disheveled, dirty, woolly blond curls falling into his face and shaking so badly I thought he was going to fall down.. Which he promptly did when he saw my blue lights and I stepped out of the car in my uniform... There he sat.... Guilty as sin...

A few hundred dollars of damage...

Without much conversation, I wanted him scared for the time being, I loaded him up and carted him off to his house.. Not going to talk to a Juvi without his mother present, too many trap doors in that scenario...

I knocked on the 40 year old 14X65 trailer and out his mother came, A wonderfully caring woman, mad as hell, wearing a dress that had seen much better days and fidgeting with her hair in a vain attempt to make herself more presentable.. I would soon look on her as a picture of loveliness... But that is later..

I start talking to the mother and got permission to talk to the boy right after she whacks him on the head..

Yes Officer I was playing with fireworks
Yes Officer I set that field on fire
But Officer I would have put it out, but I could not get over the fence
Yes Officer I ran to that house and called 911 and then stood by so the firetrucks would know where to go
Then Mr. Officer I waited cause I knew you would want to arrest me......

I turned away as you can imagine... Couldn't let the kid see the big bad Officer cry could I?

Talking with him I discovered that it was just him and his Momma, no idea where the father is, ran off and left them when he was 5 years old and not heard from him since..

Momma works odd jobs doing what she can to make some money and gets food stamps and a welfare check.. She looked like she was about ready to just fall down and die.. She had that eternally tired look, if you know what I mean..

Soooo..

I spent an hour or so telling him how proud I was that he acted like a man and did everything right after the field caught fire.. I told him I used to play with fireworks and took him to a safe place by his property where he can play all he wants too and showed him how to do it safe and still have fun..

I hugged him and patted him on the back a dozen times and when I left, he ran to me and hugged me for what seemed like forever, crying of course in relief after all the tension..

I left before I could not see to drive and stopped by the Firehouse and payed the Fire Department bill and I'll make arrangements tomorrow to pay for the damage to the property..

GOD I LOVE MY JOB SOMETIMES...

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it's too good to be true !!

is it one of those viral emails we get ??

I have met some very nice and dedicated policemen who make up for the horrors.

No it was posted by a friend of the Policeman onto a forum in the states and it does have the ring of truth to it. It is not viral as far as I know. This is possibly the only other place that it has been posted. But I wanted to show that there is an alternative way for Police to treat people - a way that respects their humanity and their situation. I believe this story shows that. I am sure within the UK police there are people like this - at least would be if they were allowed to be human.

But as we see on our TV news today - the UK police prefer to look like CRAZED ARMED hunters....which is not good for our society.