I heard the call come over the radio............

[suncat05]

and I was afraid it was going to happen here.
The call came out from our dispatcher as a student has a gun and has threatened to shoot someone.
I was sitting at my desk in the Courthouse. The school is the next block over from the Courthouse. I responded, along with several other patrol units. Upon arrival (about 30 seconds later) I discovered that it was not a current student at all, but a former student that is working on the new school construction site. Apparently he and his construction foreman had a difference of opinion and passed some angry words. No witnesses on site said anything about threatening to shoot anyone, and there was no gun that I could discern. Our former student in question let me pat him down, no gun found on his person, which is a good thing because he is a convicted felon, and if he would have had one that's a free ride to jail, on the house. No gun, however, which is a good thing. Just an argument between an employee and the job site foreman.
But as is the case with any dispatched call for service, this was received by dispatch and dispatched as one thing and it ended being something a little different than what it was dispatched as. Never fails.
I thought today might be that day that I never want to happen here. Or anywhere else either. Thank God it wasn't.

[Darrell KSR]

Scary thing, Suncat. This is why, again, I think our police authorities should be given every benefit we can give them. There's so much you do to serve the public while, in some cases, having to put yourself and your family out of your mind while you engage to protect and to serve.

I am glad it was no more than you described. But it could be next time, as you well know. Stay safe, and keep coming home at night, please sir.

[suncat05]

Well, it has been an interesting morning.
We were having felony violation of probation hearings this morning. This one young man comes before the Judge and finds out that state probation had just issued a VOP warrant for him and the Judge had just signed it. He thought they wouldn't know about him getting arrested in Miami a couple of weeks ago on another felony charge of alleged grand theft. He wasn't happy when I escorted him to the holding cell from the Courtroom, and while I was conducting my frisk search of him he jerked away from me and tried to take up a fighting stance. The jail deputies that were present for the mornings proceedings assisted me in taking physical control of him and allowed me to place him in hand restraints. As I then finished my frisk search I had the chance to look him in the eyes, and it appeared to me that he may be high on something. This guy's behavior and speech is erratic and not normal. We placed him in the holding cell pending the end of morning court and transport to the county jail.
It has been quite the morning out here in the Glades to this point. And I'm gettin' too old for this stuff!

[suncat05]

Thanks Darrell! I appreciate your good thoughts!

[CitizenBBN]

Glad it wasn't anything serious at the school. I have to wonder how it got to the description you got, but regardless I have amazing respect for LEOs for having to walk into most situations not knowing what you'll really find and trying to figure it out on the fly.

You've certainly had a more interesting day than me. I had soup for lunch, that's been the high point.

[suncat05]

You never know what you're going to encounter next. You get dispatched to a barking dog call that turns out to be a domestic violence disturbance where six people are fighting each other with ball bats and tire tools. Or a break-in in progress that ends up being a drunk husband coming in from a night on the town who has lost his keys in the grass of the front yard.
I would guess that at least 6 out of 10 calls for service are not what you were originally dispatched to.