How Does It Feel To Be Shot In The Face

Officer Hurton Shooting Survivor

 

Your at a party, or meet someone. The standard salutation “so what do you do for a living”. You look at them and think maybe I should lie and say I’m a bus driver. But what the  heck I am who I am, Im a Police Officer.

Really they state ” So What is it like to be a cop the typical over broad question incapable of being answered.  The next is did you ever shoot anyone?  All with a communicate giddy voyeuristic intent.  And than the next question is their personal subjective “bad cop ” story where they did something wrong got a ticket or arrested, but it wasn’t really their fault. But even if it was the real bad guy was that  Officer, oh he or she  was so  mean, rude, oppressive, unfair, on an ego trip, or selected them because of their race, religion ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender or some political bumper sticker that the “cop” didn’t like.

The same folks will never start a conversation with a physican with;  ” hey doc did you ever kill anyone”, or a Teacher do you like failing students?  Similarly when a physican doesnt accept your insurance provider they are never accused of medical profiling, or a teacher who fails a student is not rarely if ever accused of not caring about students.   It’s the conduct of the person that matters not their body composition.

So here is the question not asked how does if feel to chase a robber.  A thug with a gun.

Answer, you hope you don’t get shot.

How does it feel to be shot in the face?  Officer Hurton of the Framinham Police Answers . ( http://www.framinghamma.gov/index.aspx?nid=135)

“There wasn’t much pain in the beginning. I think it was adrenalin. It stung — it stung really bad,” Hurton said.

Hurton was hit twice in the face by 40-caliber slugs — one hit his teeth, the other was embedded in his tongue.

“One of them grazed me and hit my ear. The other one went in my dimple, knocked out my back teeth. It shattered my jaw, and stopped in my neck near the artery and trachea. Doctors couldn’t explain why it stopped and didn’t do more damage to my throat,” Hurton said.

The bullet came within a millimeter of the carotid artery.

“It was dark. I was off by myself away from my car. I was concerned if I fell down and couldn’t get up, they might not find me in time. They would find me, but I didn’t know how much time I had. So, I had to make it back to the street, to the car, so somebody could find me,” Hurton said.

With blood pouring out of the facial wounds and injuries to both hands, Hurton held on. Other officers swarmed into arrest a first suspect and a second suspect was picked up later.

Hurton, 32, is recovering faster than doctors expected, and he is eager to get back on the streets ” Copyright 2009 by TheBostonChannel.com.

 

Former President and NYPD Commisioner Teddy Roosevelt

Officer Hurton represents Officer’s all over the nation. Former President , Rough Rider and NYPD Police Commisoner Teddy Roosevelt http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theodore_Roosevelt said it best when discussing courage .

“It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes short again and again, who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause, who at best knows achievement and who at the worst if he fails at least fails while daring greatly so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.”

The mass media rarely focus on the heroic cops or brave men and women  who are now courageously serving in the Middle East as I write. And I’m sure Officer Hurton agrees ” the cops in the arena” don’t care what the media thinks, but to all  of us in the arena ” We salute him” and wish him well in his recovery.

From a speech given in Paris at the Sorbonne in 1910

“GOUT” The Disease of Kings Is Among The Peasants

Toe swelling from gout

Today the New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/13/health/13gout.html reports that the “gout” is on the increase. ( See http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/gout-topic-overview)  I have several friends who have this disease and I always thought it was associated with excessive drinking. One of my friends with whom I played the bagpipes could hardly walk and grimaced from pain associated with this disease. A great guy but he did not exercise, drank excessively, was overweight and had a poor diet.

 The gout is a painful situation resulting from an uncontrollable rise in uric acid.  I think many police officers are susceptible to this because of a poor diet, lack of exercise and excessive drinking. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gout Apparently foods high in purines http://arthritis.about.com/cs/gout/a/foodstoavoid.htm may contribute to this painful aliment.

One reader who is inflicted with the gout stated “it’s like having root canal done on your foot” see http://jscms.jrn.columbia.edu/cns/2007-02-13/brown-goutisback Gout is a form of arthritisand we know how painful that is especially in the joints making everyday movements painful. So, the disease of the kings is on the rise, I guess the positive spin  here is that if  the gout is increasing  the economy surely cant be at depression levels yet. John Hopkins has some great information on the gout http://www.hopkins-arthritis.org/arthritis-info/gout/  and hopefully it may assist a sufferer of this ailment.

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Dentist Drilled and Port Authority Cops Walk Attorney Claims

Attorney alleges Port Authority Cops Part of Insurance Fraud After His Client a Dentist is Found Guilty of  Fraud.

 It has reported that a Nassau County N.Y. Dentist Barry Cohan  has been indicted for Insurance Fraud.  The attorey for the dentist is up-set  and claims that 30 Port Authority Officers http://www.panynj.gov/AboutthePortAuthority/PortAuthorityPolice/ who availed themselves of the Dentist , may have actually had knowledge of the scam. See http://www.newsday.com/news/local/nassau/ny-lident1112864468jun10,0,1994890.story

The attorney  Ron Russo for the fraudulent dentist has made allegations of disparate treatment in the insurance fraud arrest. He is upset that the 30 Police Officers were not arrested nor charged in this event.  The Port Authority Inspector General  http://www.panynj.gov/DoingBusinessWith/inspector/html/index.htmlhas stated they are investigating.  The Daily News first reported this in 2007 see http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_crime/2007/11/28/2007-11-28_several_port_authority_cops_suspected_of-2.html

Generally, when you see Police misconduct it involves one or a small group. Here 30 Officer’s suggest an infestation, with the motive of ez money.  Medical Insurance Fraud is on the rise ( see http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/east/2008/01/16/86470.htm) and is a serious issue, if Cops were involved the Port Authority should expedite the investigation and fire the officers and demand restitution for any monies fraudulently received.  The union for the PA Cops may be found at http://www.papba.org/

Will Justice Ginsburg Save Contract Law From Obamanomics?

It is funny to see how Obama and  his  team justify the ” ends” and will use all “means” to suit their polititical philosophy. Bush did the same thing both are wrong. 

Democrats and progressives view Gitmo as a gross deviation from civil rights and due process of law,  and the seminal case they cite is Korematsu v U.S. http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/historics/USSC_CR_0323_0214_ZO.html, in which the court “wrongfully” permitted the incarceration in camps of Japanese men, women and children for fear they were enemy combatants. This case is repulsive to many as we altered our core fundamental “constitutional due process rights” for expediency. ( fear of Japanese families , they were all anti American and traitors) To many including the President we can never ever, lower our principles even in time of war.  For when we do we alter who we are and what we stand for, as such Gitmo is offensive, immoral and unconstitutional for deprivation of due process. 

However, when dealing with economic law, and contract law, adherence to contract law, is subordinate to our unique and precarious economic crisis. As such team Obama states that the “economic cricis” requires us to alter our contractual principles

Plain and simple ” A contract is a promise that the law will enforce”. I saw a television show documentary, in which a retiree who invested in GM bonds took a subordinate role to Union members even though his ” contract” had stated he had priority over others including the union. See http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601009&sid=af4lR7a4FXsM

Contracts are promies , lawful and this is to maximize ” certainty”. Obama’s reformation has challenged contract law.

Although Obama was a critic of President Bush , and rightfully so on many issues he was especially critical of ” massive executive branch power”.  See http://www.boston.com/news/politics/politicalintelligence/2009/03/will_obama_be_l.html and http://www.usnews.com/articles/news/obama/2009/03/16/obama-like-bush-uses-crisis-to-expand-presidential-power.html

Yet Obama has exceeded every living president in making gargantuan economic decisionsand demanding concessions from bond holders who, by contract law should have been a priority creditor over union workers. While Chrysler was owned by a hedge fund, GM bond holders were ” retirees” who socked away money and deferred their present compensation. Bloomberg reports two ” main street” retirees who are losing money they saved while union workers get priority treatment contrary to express contract terms. See http://seekingalpha.com/article/140261-gm-bankruptcy-watch-woe-to-main-street-bondholders Some reporters are suggesting strong arm tactics from the White House , if they proceed forward with litigation against team Obama. See http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/politics/White-House-puts-UAW-ahead-of-property-rights-44415057.html

In Contract Law Youngstown vs Ohio is cited  as Unconstitutional Executive Power.

In the case stayed by Justice Ginsburg , the Indiana funds explicitly compar ed the Chrysler case with Youngstown Sheet and Tube v. Sawyer, the 1952 decision http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/historics/USSC_CR_0343_0579_ZO.htmlin which the Supreme Court rejected President Harry S. Truman’s assertion that he had the constitutional authority to seize steel mills during the Korean War.

So will Justice Ginsburg the so called ” liberal” protect bond holders and uphold contract law. I think she will and it will challenge both Republicans who are critical of her and Democrats who think she is “progressive”.  I think she is an independent thinker, and will side with Bond Holders because the principle is consistency not convenient dove tailed political law.

RIP Omar J. Edwards

Detective Omarer Edwards RIP

 

God Rest Detective Omar J. Edwards, peace to his soul and my condolences to his family. ( http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/e/omar_j_edwards/index.html?inline=nyt-per )

A sad day today as  the June rain subsided and a human sea of blue took it’s place.  See ( http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/03/nyregion/03shoot.html ). There is an unmistakenly  damp funky dirty air taste that hits the pallet after a New York rain storm , and as i breathed deeply it stirred memories of my city.

Sea Of Blue for Omar

As I took my place in the sea of blue I did not stand with the “bosses” although I am proud and worked hard to be one. I stood with my brother and sister officers from the Bronx.   We were all here l to honor the memory of a young man taken from our beloved city. A father, a husband a son, whose DNA was African Panamanian American. His dad served as the President of the 73 Precinct community council, he dreamed of becoming a cop and his dream came true but the dream ended when a bullet from a brother officer killed him.

Good memories of Brooklyn as a young officer.

 As I took my place walking down Fulton Street, Bedford StuyvesantBrooklyn , N.Y.  Im struck by the strong pungent smell of  rotti that fills  the air, shay soap for sale on the sidewalks and muslim insence burning inside of many stores. I recall eating my first and last “rotti” with an old partner “Chucky”.

 Chucky was  a prince of Bed Sty, tall young handsome African American a ” lady killa”.  While TV had Cagney and Lacey, Starsky and Hutch we were ” called  salt and peppa”  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salt-n-Pepa by the drug dealers and thugs who loved ” dissin us” ( as salt n peppa were girl rappers, testing our man hood)   but  they knew not to mess with us. But they also knew we were fair. Most of them are dead, and I’m still standin and Chucky, im sure the women still love him. When I was alone all the girls came up to me, not for my phone number but to ask “where is your partner” give him my number, i know U tight with him like that.” I would laugh.

Bad Memories and Nice Folks Murdered.

 I walked this beat for many years in the late 80’s.  The McDonald’s is still at Kingston and Throop Avenues, but the community and business area has changed for the better. When I patrolled here abandoned stores and crack dens once stood, now small business have taken their place, ” good news”.  I recall the faces exiting the subway after a hards days work and mostly folk with brown faces who said ” nice to see you officer”.

 For the good working folks know that we had our hands full during the crack hey day when I patrolled “BED STY”.  I thought about the nice token booth lady burned alive at the Kingston Avenue “A” stop. , She  made brownies for us all the time. I wondered to myself if anyone else remember her, I wonder how her family has done some 15-20 years later, how are her children I would like to tell them there mother was a sweetheart. Death ends so quickly for some, and those who are left behind frequently dont’ know some traits of their loved ones that made them special. 

Those who prejudge a shooting have personal motives and agendas they are not the guardians of justice.

While, The pundits, politicians, media hounds,  reporters, cop bashes, DA’s office, hate mongers will try and manipulate the facts surrounding Omar’s death I cannot and will not.

I will not judge or comment on this shooting until I hear, see and observe all the physical and eye witnesses to this event. Those who pre-judge are neither students of the law or jurisprudence. I have been in three police shooting incidents know enough not to comment.

I will say this :

Every officer knows it’s more dangerous to be a officer of color as opposed to a caucasian officer., especially when a brown skinned man has a gun in his hand.   The Governor and others state ” never again” but friendly fire will occur again. Race may have played a role in this  tragic event, but the “gun” is the catalyst.  I feel horrible for Officer Edwards and his family, I feel empathy for Officer Dunton as he did not go out ” head hunting” or with a vandetta against African Americans, but his split second judgment was incorrect and caused another mans death. That is a terrible thing to live with, and he has been  wounded and his body and soul will pay the price.