Dave Case's Blog - Posts Tagged "chicago-police"

"There Is No Getting Used to This"

Reflections from a Cop on Funerals, Community, and Memorial Day

Where I live in Chicago, we’re surrounded by cemeteries. Cemeteries, cemeteries, cemeteries and more cemeteries. Which makes the neighborhood ripe for funeral processions. We have the infrequent gangbanger funeral pass through, where the occasional mourner doesn’t let conventional funeral procession protocol dictate how they drive, or whether they can’t resist the urge to let the random bullet fly up in the air as they make their way to the gravesite.

But we also have police funerals, and less frequently, firefighter funerals. Now, I have been stuck in cop and fire funerals, and they can be admittedly long, hundreds and hundreds of squad cars, trucks and various engines and apparatus. It can be frustrating and overwhelming.

I have to think that some of the drivers that find themselves stuck in traffic get a little heated, and I can understand that. I have to imagine that there are those in our communities that roll their eyes when they hear another first responder has been killed, thinking only of the inconvenience caused by the traffic tie-ups and the heavy news presence of the sacrifice the police and fire make. Yada yada yada.

And, yes, I understand that, even sympathize to an extent.

Having ridden in too many of those processions though, I can tell you firsthand how inspiring and comforting it is to see the people line up on the side of the streets, roads and highways with signs and banners of support and condolences. Thank you to each and every one of you. I wish I could wrap you in a hug and give back some of that love.

A classmate of mine, Ronald Michael Ryan, of the St Paul Police Department was killed in August 1994. I went to his funeral, my Chicago Police checkered hatband stood out, particularly with my height.

Waiting to mount up in the procession, a local cop approached and thanked me for making the trip, not realizing I was a friend of Ronnie’s.

That cop said to me, “I suppose you’re used to this, where you’re from.”

I shook my head, but I don’t remember responding above a whisper, saying something to the effect, “There is no getting used to this.”

And I was grateful to the people of Minnesota who came out and lined the streets and roads and highways with banners, signs, handwaves, and tears that day. But that was 1994.

Things changed in 2020, especially in Minnesota. It’s 2025 now, and there has been some coming around to a less hostile environment.

I’m a cop. I’m proud to say that I’m a cop. My kids are proud that I’m a cop and that their mother is in law enforcement as well. It is a calling for me. Like writing, though I don’t have to practice applying a tourniquet to any of my extremities from being an author. Yet still I wouldn’t change it for the world. And neither would ninety-nine percent of the men and women who put on that badge daily. We’re lucky to have them. God bless.

Happy Memorial Day.
Dave Case

"Man, you white boys is crazy."

Zito shook the CD at the arrestee.
“‘Ame a sog. ‘Ame a sog, assole.”

Macbeth pushed the prisoner back toward the store, as sirens blared in the distance. He shook his head, spun the prisoner to face him and
stopped.

“What my partner’s so eloquently trying to say is that if you can sing one song off that CD, you can go free.”

The guy stared at them, his breathing still hard and labored. He looked away, toward the store and car.

“Man, you white boys is crazy.”

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Remembering a life lost in the line of duty.

As the Chicago Police Department gets ready to lay Officer Krystal Rivera to rest, I have no words to adequately express my grief for her, her family, her friends, and her co-workers over this tragedy. With this being an incident of friendly fire, it in no way lessens the tragic loss. Certainly, the family and friends standing over her casket, or the officers waiting in long lines, I know I’ve waited hours before, to pay their respects would agree with that statement.

And let’s not forget that she and her partner(s) were actively pursuing a wanted criminal, which clearly makes her death in the line of duty, not that I’ve heard that being called into doubt. But, in today’s society, I think it is worth saying in the event there was someone, and I use the term loosely, out there wondering.

I’m not looking to make a comment about what happened to Officer Rivera other than to say it was tragic and I share the sorrow and heartache being felt by department members and city residents alike.

Any loss is one too many, and the CPD has had nearly 600.

Reading the accounts of the incident and talking to former partners and colleagues have reminded me that there, but for the grace of God, go I.

Rest In Peace Officer Krystal Rivera.

#AlwaysRemembered #NeverForget

The countdown begins . . . Chicago Justice drops June 28th!

In just three days, return to Macbeth's world in a thrilling sequel that proves that sometimes, danger really is around every corner.

That means there is still time to read the first in the series, Out of Cabrini

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Justice is coming . . .
Out of Cabrini's sequel Chicago Justice debuts in two days - June 28, 2025!

Stacey Macbeth lives for fast-paced chases and even a brawl or two. But when an old foe re-emerges on the scene, he remembers just how perilous things can become.

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Justice will be served . . .

In less than 24 hours, the long-awaited Macbeth thriller “Chicago Justice” launches. Dave Case continues the “Out of Cabrini” saga bringing to the page the heart-pounding realism one can only get from patrolling the streets of Chicago and dealing with the gangs of Cabrini Green and their spreading influence.

How quickly do you read? Read the saga from the beginning: Out of Cabrini

Free "Out of Cabrini" Chapter download: www.DaveCaseBooks.com