“Badges, Bullets and Bars” is brutally honest, raw, and gritty autobiographical book. It depicts the good, the bad and the awful experiences and encompasses the continuous struggle between good and evil, righteousness and injustices, suffered throughout the author's career as a former Baltimore City Police Officer.
This courageous and compelling book charts the course of the author, who descends into a deep abyss from his beginning positions as a recruit, rookie, and generally innocent police cadet and later as a journeyman officer. His early life's yearning was to become a law enforcement officer and motor patrolman which he achieved. However, his shining pride, loyalty and respect for the badge began to erode over time. He was driven to alcoholism.
The author ultimately disgraced the badge and became a racist, callused, hardened, jaded officer, and at times, totally uncaring, dysfunctional, troubled and possibly, mentally unstable police officer and human being all fostered by the criminal element that he had to endure during his 14-year tenure on the police force in the highest crime ridden district in Baltimore City - the Eastern District.
This District was notorious for its violence, murders, rapes, drugs, filth and disregard for human life. How the good and especially the bad, horrible and jaw dropping unfathomable experiences a police officer encounters in a city overrun with violence and death, is graphically depicted in the former TV series "Homicide: Life on the Street" and "The Wire."
The book also follows the author through his two criminal indictments and subsequent incarcerations, both in Federal and local correctional institutions. It allows the reader to enter a world of prison uncertainty and at times, fear and anxiety for his own life, as a former policeman.
The contents of this book display how being a police officer in such an area can and will, completely change an officer's demeanor, racist thoughts, actions, and life's questions. And, at times, bring forth tears as one reflects at the inner core of all the good, we learned, were raised to expect and to respect, and that which we encounter thru life's journey.
This book must read for anyone, who might want to examine and understand the trials, tribulations, pressures and stress put upon a police officer working in one of the highest crime areas of our country.
