El Dragón: Commendation

It was a cold and snowy day in December of 2008. My brother was already running late for roll call when he slipped on some ice as he rushed to his car.

He slowly rose from the ground and thought, “Fuck. Today is not my day.”

To make matters worse, his back was aching by the time he got to the police station.

“I hope this weather makes for a slow night,” he told his partner as they hit the dangerous streets of the Englewood neighborhood in the 7th District.

Sure enough, the first two hours of the third-watch were quiet. My brother and his partner parked their squad car and enjoyed the radio silence.

Around six o’clock, a call announcing an armed robbery in the 8th District came over the airwaves. My brother and his partner didn’t bat an eye.

It’s tough out there….

About thirty minutes later, a second armed robbery in the 8th District was reported.

“Ballsy motherfuckers,” exclaimed his partner.

“They must be hitting Christmas shoppers getting home from the stores,” my brother reasoned.

Soon thereafter, a third and fourth armed robbery took place in quick succession in the 8th District. This time, however, one of the perpetrators sexually assaulted a woman.

“What the fuck?” my brother thought.

Just then, the radio dispatcher gave out a description of the car used in the armed robberies and a partial license plate. The red car with its four occupants was last seen going southbound.

“They’re coming to us,” my brother said in an epiphany.

“How can you be sure?” asked his partner.

“My gut tells me that this crew rips in the 8th District, but lives in Englewood,” replied my brother with certainty. “The million-dollar question, however, is what street will they take eastbound towards us?”

My brother and his partner deliberated for a few minutes and finally settled on cruising up and down one particular street in an all-or-nothing wager.

Time was quickly burning away and just when they thought that they had crapped out, my brother and his partner spotted a red car with the matching partial license plate coming out of a gas station.

“Bingo!” thought my brother and quickly maneuvered his squad car to meet the bandits head-to-head at a traffic light.

“I hope they don’t make us,” my brother said to his partner as he looked straight across the intersection at the red car while waiting for the light to turn green.

My brother called for back-up and followed the red car slowly for about a block, but decided to make the stop right there and then as he feared that the four suspects would ditch their car and scatter into the neighborhood.

Outnumbered and outgunned, my brother and his partner pulled in front of the red car and snatched the four armed robbers so quickly that none of them had a chance to go for his gun.

It turned out that this crew of 17-year-olds had been committing armed robberies for months. They started that previous summer cautiously, robbing once every couple of weeks. Soon, they got cocky and expanded their heists. Their downfall was trying to pull off four armed robberies in one evening. They got greedy and had the misfortune of running into my brother and his partner on a night my brother needed something to go his way.

Last week, my brother and his partner got a Superintendent’s Commendation.

Congratulations, bro. Stay safe.

By El Dragón

Editor’s Note:  El Dragón’s last piece was Men of Letters.

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