Beal tas g noe . mee NEWS photo Brad Ledwidge
SHEILA, A Capricorn, enjoys the sounds of various blues and‘

_Cops take reputation rap

as part of a days’ work —

FOUR PARTIES that had
gotten out of hand, three
youths with open liquor, one
car that appeared to have
gone off'a cliff, two |
teenagers who had rocks
thrown at them, countless

.traffic violations, three large

bonfires and 30 youths
blocking an intersection, one.
with a gun.

Just another quiet Friday night
for a North Vancouver police offi-
cer,

With the police getting a bad
rap lately (Rodney King, O.J.
Simpson), | decided to see what the
North Vancouver RCMP have to
face daily by arranging a ride-along

_with the police after classmate,

’ Shawna Hall who wrote the article
entitled “To serve and protect?” in
the March 24 edition of the North
Shore News, declined the offer.

Many teenagers have a stereo-
typical view of the police. They see.

~ them as bullies who break the law -,

people who stop them for “no rea-
son” and violate their rights.

Well, f now see the police as
something different. In my opinion,
the police have one of the hardest
jobs in the world. Not only do
these men and women hive to deal
with criminals all day fong, but
they have to risk their lives in the
process. And as if that's not hard
enough, people criticize and pass
judgment on everything they do.

Many people tend to forget that
the nolice are there to help. | mean,
nobody joins the police force for
the money or so that they can has-
sle teenagers or so that they can’
break the law. They join the force
so they can serve and protect.

Most people have no idea what
it is like to be a police officer. On
Friday, May 5,1 was able to get a
taste of what itis like to be a law

~ epforcer. An average shift Sora

North Vancouver RCMP officer is
12 hours long. They work four -

_days 6n and four days off: nota

bad deal (Or so t thought). Je
wasn't until [ went on the ride-
along with the police that [ realized

-what a difficult job they have. And

why they need four days off.

The first call that the Constable
and | received was a gun call; what
a great way to Start the night!

When the Constable hit the gas
pedal and turned on the lights, my —
heart jumped into my throat and T ':
broke out in a cold sweat, The call :
turned out to be false, but it was
still the most exciting thing | have
ever experienced,

Throughout the night, we
responded to various calls and went
to many different sites, In each
case the Constable handled the
matter in a fair manner. He dealt.
with peaple the way that he haped .
to be dealt with. He understood that
people make mistakes and in most
cases he gave warnings, not tickets. _

The police,.1 believe, fee! that
they’ get a bad rap by many citt-
zens. ; ;

They are forced to handle every
Situation to the best of their ability
without losing. their cool — some-
thing that most people couldn't do.

Sara Irvine is a North Shore high
school student enrolled in the Video
Production Career’ *Preparation
Program at_ the. Leo “Marshall
Curricuhan Centre, nes

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