Battle in the Streets

Chapter 3

Sirens wailed and red and blue lights flashed behind and in front of him. Officer Jeff Daniels had initiated the pursuit after leaving the warehouse. Luckily, the suspect had sped away towards the highways rather than to pass through the biggest, busiest section of town.

Only five minutes into the high-speed chase, a couple boys from state patrol had appeared, ready to end the pursuit. At this point their options included performing a PIT maneuver, deploying spike strips, boxing the vehicle in and slowing it down or ending the pursuit if it became too dangerous for any surrounding, innocent citizens on the road. Each of the officers communicated on a shared frequency used to contact each other for situations like this one.

One of the two troopers had stopped ahead of them and thrown a spike strip in front of the suspect's truck before it zipped past. As Officer Daniels' patrol car passed the trooper who had deployed the strips, he saw his face.

The serious look on his face told him that the officer had been focused. How could you not be, knowing the serious risks involved? An unconscious, brief thought passed through his mind. I'm glad that's not me.

The driver swerved to the left, attempting to avoid the spike strip. Jeff noticed at least one, maybe more of the truck's right wheels hit it. It kept its pace up for a couple minutes, then the red truck finally slowed to a stop.

Each of the police units pulled around the car, boxing it in, even though it had already stopped. Jeff, along with the other officers, exited their patrol vehicles and walked towards the car with their firearms drawn. Each knew it was possible the runaway subject could have a weapon.  Although Jeff didn't belong to the same department as the troopers, they all had the same mission: To make sure everyone got home safely at the end of the day.

"Hands out the window!" Officer Daniels ordered.

No response was given from the driver. No movement, at least from where they could see.

Didn't the driver hear? Did he think he didn't have to follow orders from officers? Was he just trying to buy time? Was he trying to find a weapon? Was he waiting for them to approach the vehicle so he could attack them?

These questions floated through Jeff's mind trying to think ahead to expect anything the driver might have in mind. The only problem was his own mind was tired after working twelve hours. This morning, like many others he had had to work overtime. Officer Jeffery Daniels had been tired, but he still tried to keep his mind focused on the task at hand.

"Both hands out the window!" He repeated, this time a little louder.

Several seconds passed. He was about to repeat himself once more when two hands finally peeked out through the truck window. "Open the door with your left hand from the outside. Slowly get out! Keep your hands up!"

The suspect opened the door a crack but pulled his hand back in the truck.

"I said, 'Keep your hands up!' Get your hand out of the truck!" Jeff's heart raced as he pictured the suspect grab a gun. He backed up behind the angled patrol car.

To each of the officers' relief, the suspect slowly pulled his hand out, which was empty. Jeff slowly let out a breath and slightly smiled.

Though most of the tension was gone, it wasn't over yet. Jeff narrowed his eyes to focus on the young man. "Keep one hand in the air, while you lift up the back of your shirt by the collar."

The suspect did so but didn't reveal any weapon. Officer Daniels gave him further instructions. "Okay. Now slowly turn all the way around and stop with your back facing us." Still nothing shown. The suspect seemed to be complying, so far anyway.

With every move, Officer Daniels eyed the suspect's hands, as if anticipating any sudden movement.

"Humans are the most unpredictable creatures. Don't judge a situation on how smoothly it seems to be happening. Anything could turn south before you know it." That was the voice of his field training officer. It was something he never forgot, which often came to his mind during situations similar to this one.

"Alright. Now, slowly walk backward to us," Officer Daniels continued to instruct the suspect. When he reached the back of the truck, Daniels said, "Stop. Now, drop to your knees... And now stomach with your arms on the ground."

Daniels didn't have to say the rest, and the suspect automatically completed what was next. He crossed his ankles and brought his feet up to his bottom. The suspect might have gone through this more than once.

The two surrounding troopers kept their handguns trained on the man as Jeff reholstered his firearm. Daniels was most likely going to find any weapons if he did a thorough enough search. Jeff patted down his legs and reached in any pockets, where he might have hidden something.

After nothing was found, Officer Daniels removed his handcuffs from its enclosed case, grabbed one arm and brought it around to the suspect's back. He secured one handcuff to his hand and did the same to the other.

The officer gave the arrestee his rights. "You have the right to remain silent..." The suspect nodded as if he'd been told this a million times. Jeff walked him to the car and opened the back door. As he slid in the car, Officer Daniels pushed his head down, so he wouldn't bump it.

Closing the door, Daniels turned to the two troopers behind him. He glanced at their perfectly creased uniforms, which had always been something he'd admired. Jeff said, "Thanks for the assist."

"No problem," one replied, nodding.

"Yep, we're always happy to help you out," the other added. A voice came from his radio and he slightly tilted his head to listen for a second. "Car accident. Gotta run."

"Alright, see you later." Jeff waved. Each trooper lifted a hand as they trotted to their cruisers, en route to the next call.