TOSSED ASIDE LIKE YESTERDAY'S NEWSPAPER

by John Smith

Where is the help for cops?

The first 5 years as a cop you're an idealist.

After 10 years you become a cynic.

In 20 years you're a burned out bigot.

The Field Training Program in most departments put you on the fast track to doom when you are placed with a seasoned veteran because they already suffer from the above symptoms.

My entire career contained an 8 hour training block for Stress in Police Work. PTSD is just as real for cops but it has never really been addressed. Try going to Social Security and applying for PTSD benefits from a career in law enforcement.

However, the higher you go in rank the less stressful retirement is for some. Patrol officers that never promote are hit the hardest. This is a combination of a smaller pension and who you don't know.

The Golden Years

Retirement should come with training and follow ups from the department. If you don't have a strong family support system, you're toast. A lot of cops have divorced multiple times and are alcoholics. Their pensions have already been split between ex-wives and child support. They work as security guards until they get too old. They mostly wind up in an RV Park, sitting in a lawn chair on fake grass drinking. Thankfully they don't live that long.

Departments have recognized the pitfalls of the job for 50 years but it will never be addressed because it would cost money. They are not going to waste money from a lean budget on a bunch of retired old farts.

You get a plaque, retired ID and you get to carry your gun as long as you qualify once a year. Even when you try renew your ID or schedule a qualification, you are treated as a pain in the ass. Nobody has time for a retired cop that needs something. The department moves on without you.

Cops are used up and tossed aside like yesterday's newspaper.

I repeat. Where is the help for cops?

John Smith is the pseudonym of a veteran police investigator in the Houston-Galveston area.