From a PM I received about this thread, I cleaned up the spacing to make it easier to read:
I wish I could say you are wrong. I do know these things for a fact. I was a Trooper for over 30 years and have been retired quite a while, but I always taught and instructed those under my supervision that the person you are confronting today could be on a jury of one of your cases tomorrow and even in a case against you for killing someone in the line of duty.
I always tried to sell a ticket when I gave one and for sure I treated people with respect as long as they would allow me to. I never received a complaint over my abuse of anyone but of course I received a complaint about a ticket or two. I never received a complaint that I would not have been willing to be polygraphed over but I certainly would have requested the person complaining to have been polygraphed also. I even asked to be polygraphed once but was not afforded the request.
I have never had any doubt I worked for the public, but I also always had the feeling I was in some way accountable to those who got killed where I was working. It is tough to sleep at night after you have investigated an accident where someone died and it was even tougher when it was folks you personally knew.
So it runs deeper than most people realize. I personally apologize to you and any other person that has been treated like this and as a Supervisor I didn’t condone it!
My response to the above PM:
Thank you for your honest and heartfelt response. You are the kind of cop that I grew up with as a child. Unfortunately, the honorable, civil, thinking cop has gone the way of the dodobird, and we are stuck with the steroid filled jackboot thug, for the most part.
The more police actions I see going on even in my small city of 300,000 frightens and angers me.
I would love to tell you that it will all be okay, but I fear for where this could and likely will end up.
Robert Peel, they forgot your basic rules!