The real life of an American police officer: Winning over others with virtue

Chapter 170 Personal Leave
He had already worked all his hours before the new administrative leave was announced. After the shift change tonight, he will get about three days off.

There's a powerful union here. Once you've completed all your work hours for the week, even if you want to continue working afterwards, the police won't let you work. Instead, they'll force you to take a break.

Eric swiped his access card.

With a "beep," the heavy metal door opened, revealing a smell of disinfectant, old coffee, and photocopier toner—a typical police station odor.

Eric walked through the West Canyon Police Department, nodding slightly to his off-duty patrol officers, and thought to himself that being a patrol officer was pretty enjoyable.

After finishing the night shift, the first thing to do is deal with all the equipment I have.

He had already packed all of these into the equipment bag he was carrying.

Having learned from other officers that Will and his men hadn't finished their mission, Eric decided not to wait for them.

Go directly to the equipment management office, give the equipment bag containing all the equipment for today to the officer in charge of equipment management, sign the documents he gives you, and you can leave.

Behind the counter was a police officer, checking the list on a computer.

"Karen, hand over the equipment." Eric placed the heavy equipment bag on the counter.

"Eric, how was your night shift?" Karen asked without looking up, her voice hoarse from staying up all night. He then opened his equipment bag and began to check it.

"good."

As Eric spoke, he watched Karen open the equipment box, take out the list, and begin checking the weapons and equipment inside one by one.

Karen moved slowly but very carefully, picking up each item to check its number and condition.

Eric yawned and waited. It was the rule that equipment handover must be checked in person and both parties must sign to confirm.

Originally, these small tasks were handled by the rookie Annie, but now that she's not here, he has to complete all the steps.

"Glock 17, serial number... normal status, Taser x2... normal status... two pairs of metal handcuffs... normal status..." Karen read aloud.

"Is there no problem?" Eric asked.

“No problem, Eric,” Karen replied casually. After checking, she recorded and signed the information on both the spreadsheet and a paper handover form, then pushed the form to Eric.

Eric glanced at it casually, confirmed it was correct, and signed his name and police number.

"OK! Thanks for your hard work." Eric nodded and turned to leave.

Besides handing over the equipment, he had a lot of other things to do, including at least some paperwork.

Upon entering another office area, one sees duty rosters and wanted posters hanging on the walls, with a few uniformed police officers who have just finished their shifts sitting around several long tables.

Some people were engrossed in writing reports, some were talking in hushed tones, and some were just staring blankly at their computer screens. The air was filled with a low-pressure atmosphere unique to those who had just finished a night shift, a mixture of exhaustion and relief.

His appearance still attracted everyone's attention.

"Good morning, Eric."

"morning."

Hearing the greeting, Eric nodded in acknowledgment, then casually found an empty computer, sat down, and logged into the police station's reporting system.

Like the guy next to him, he also had to keep an electronic patrol log, which meant he had to input the police reports he had filed that night into the system.

You also need to insert the data card from the law enforcement recorder into a special card reader next to the computer.

The system automatically recognized the video and Eric began uploading all the video clips recorded that night.

These videos are important court evidence and the basis for internal review; they must be uploaded in their entirety and linked to the relevant incident reports.

The progress bar on the screen moved slowly.

-

It took nearly forty minutes to write the report and upload the data.

During this time, Eric also downed a large cup of the office's bitter-tasting free coffee, and after completing the electronic signature on the last report, he took the printed report that needed Daves's signature. He suddenly missed the rookie Annie a little.

If she were there, he wouldn't have to do anything at all.

Just as he finished this last step and was about to leave, Will and his group arrived.

Another round of pleasantries.

Anyway, with Lucy and the other students around, Will and his group don't have to do anything.

Will and the others didn't ask him what he had been doing during the time he disappeared, but instead said...

"Guys, any plans for the next few days off?" Will asked, arms crossed.

“I’m planning to take my family on a trip,” Darren said, confirming that he has always been a good father and husband.

Weston simply said, "Go fishing at Castaic Lake, it's the season for bigmouth bass."

As they spoke, they looked at Eric.

Eric shrugged. "I'm going out for a bit."

The group exchanged glances, but didn't ask what they wanted to do.

"Let's go." After exchanging information, Eric nodded.

See you guys in a week.

Upon hearing this, the group looked surprised and asked, "You're asking for leave?"

"Yeah, so don't miss me too much."

Eric left those words and headed towards the locker room. After changing into his own clothes, he went to ask Daves, the duty commander, for two or three days' leave.

After changing his clothes, Eric looked at the police uniform and personal equipment inside, breathed a sigh of relief, and closed the cabinet door.

Only the final step remains.

Holding the printed report, Eric walked toward Daves's office. The door was ajar, indicating that another patrol officer had just been there.

Inside, Daves was rubbing his temples while looking at his computer; clearly, he hadn't rested since returning from the hardware store.

So no one in the Los Angeles Police Department has it easy, except for those who slack off, of course.

-

"."

Eric handed over the report and quickly gave a verbal briefing on the most crucial parts.

Meanwhile, Daves, sitting in his office, quickly glanced at the report and looked up at Eric in front of him: "Well handled, but the follow-up investigation team at the mall might ask you some questions, so remember to keep your communication channels open."

Daves offered a reminder and signed the report.

"Get some rest," he added.

But when Daves suddenly noticed that Eric, who had decisively left, was still standing there, his heart skipped a beat, and he instinctively asked:
"Is there anything else?"

Seeing this expression, Eric knew that Daves had misunderstood, and said helplessly, "There is indeed something else that requires your approval, sir."

Daves straightened up, frowning as he looked at Eric; in that instant, he had mentally prepared himself.

“I need to take three days of personal leave, starting tomorrow,” Eric said helplessly, looking at the relaxed Daves. This superior must have some misunderstanding about him; he wasn’t the kind of person who caused trouble every day.

Daves breathed a sigh of relief, glanced at Eric, then looked at the duty roster on the computer: "Three days off? Plus three days of rest, at this time..."

(End of this chapter)