As part of a police initiative to reach out to residents and give them a better idea of what the day in the life of an officer is all about, I was invited to a unique opportunity to ‘walk in the shoes of a police officer’ and develop a greater understanding of the work police actually do. 

The program was called the Community Awareness of Policing Program In Local Area Commands, or as any participant in this program would know that police love their acronyms, the CAPP in LACs.

The day’s program provided experience in the various aspects of police work, including emergency management, criminal investigation, forensics, general duties, custody management, domestic violence and highway patrol. Supported with a rap, in the literal criminal sense of the word, ‘Record of Arrest and Prosecution’, crime prevention, investigation and operational policing.

So the question is, what did I learn? Apart from the obvious, that I did enjoy destroying a car with the daunting jaws of life and the chance to pretend I was in CSI, fingerprinting. 

Whilst listening to the men and women speak on domestic violence, murder and even break and enter it became apparent to me that they were affected. Each and every one they told meant something different. I found myself thirsty for more, more stories, more information, more time with the jaws of life. 

It made me think about my reaction to the police force, that I, like so many others have been caught up in the stigma of the egotistical and power hungry. It is interesting to consider these reflexes, perhaps it was my lead-footed mother slamming the brakes every time she passed a police car, swerving all over the road as she looked in the mirrors to see if they were following her. It is an interesting discussion to see where people draw the line, comments such as ‘I don’t do drugs, steal, cheat or lie, the police have nothing better to do than book me for talking on the phone.’

Where is that moral line for each of us, even though we have done the wrong thing it is our immediate reaction to blame someone else, usually that blame falls to disciplinary systems. I must use the analogy of a cashier, taking your money for a product, you don’t argue that she is taking your money because you understand that it is the basic laws in our social economy, keeping our country alive. How is this different to the police enforcing laws?

Whilst I learnt many things, that the most solved crime by police is murder, how important a prisoners legal rights are and the steps that detectives follow in order for a case to stand up in court. The most valuable lesson I took from the experience was that they’re just like you and me.