Editor’s Note: In PoliceOne “First Person” essays, our Members and Columnists candidly share their own unique view of the world. This is a platform from which individual officers can share their own personal insights on issues confronting cops today, as well as opinions, observations, and advice on living life behind the thin blue line. This week’s feature is from PoliceOne Member Louis Martinez, a Chicago Police Officer who says that a cop will keep his or her sanity by the few successes that they control. Do you want to share your own perspective with other P1 Members? Send us an e-mail with your story.
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By Louis Martinez,
Chicago Police Officer
17th District
A police officer views the world in the morality of rights and wrongs. This polarization will forever affect a police officer’s view. The cop begins this journey, experiencing the frailties of humankind. A cop views the battered woman, the injured child, the addictive man, and the murdered victim. The forlorn that slowly creeps into the psyche of the cop will forever alter his or her view of humanity.
The criminal justice system that caters to the affluent and ignores the poor will force a cop to deal with his fellow citizens in one dimension. The cop will never accept the gray area that is common in the world and police officers will forever doubt that they can make a difference.
The battles are within the police officer, a battle that is unbeatable, and the officer will eventually acknowledge this. The cop will keep his or her level of sanity by the few successes that they control: the reuniting of a child with their family, providing a safe haven for those in need, preventing harm to citizens, or providing a closure for a distressed family.
The sojourn will never end, even when police officers leave this world, because their legacy will continue to live on among the cops that are currently on this pilgrimage, traveling this complex world, trying to define morality.
