I got beat up by the police and this is what I learned
When you get into a fight with a cop, it usually doesn’t end well.
And when you are throwing the first punch and there are a LOT of police officers around, chances are good you’re going to be in a little bit of trouble.
Allow me to set the scene.
The cop standing across from me was probably 30 pounds or so lighter than me. I’m not going to blame it on alcohol… I was completely sober. Sober and stupid to think it was a good idea to swing at a State Trooper.
He caught me – quickly. Dropped me – hard. Landed on top of me like a ton of bricks.
But I was bigger than him and knew I could throw him.
Knew? Eh.
Perhaps “thought” is a better word.
I spent the next ten minutes taking blows… and throwing them. Flipping him… and being flipped. Pummeling each other until finally I was cuffed.
The next day, I had black and blue marks on parts of my body that I didn’t think could bruise.
Trust me. Everything can bruise.
Lucky for me… I didn’t face any charges.
That’s because I’m boys with lots of the cops who witnessed it.
Now I’m sure you’re getting all excited thinking about how you have a shining example of police bias, right?
Wrong.
This wasn’t a street fight or a case of police brutality.
This was a specialized course about police survival.
It was hosted at Manchester Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in Manchester, Connecticut. The owner, Rob Magao, is a veteran police officer. He put on this one day Officer Survival course to teach basic techniques for the street.
There were more than 50 police officers taking part… local, state and feds. And they all have one thing in common: they want to stay alive and go home to their families.
I took the course with these men and women, learning about what to do when a suspect attacks.
Now keep this in mind – I’m not a police officer. And perhaps I’m a little extreme, but I’m personally of the mentality that when someone attacks a cop… adios. The officer should be allowed to do whatever he has to do to put down the threat. And I mean put DOWN the threat.
But that’s not what this course was about. It was about how to survive… and how to subdue the attacker… WITHOUT hurting them.
There was a tremendous focus on how to protect citizens, including those citizens who seek to hurt the men and women who hold the thin blue line.
We spent about 20 minutes watching videos of unexpected attacks on police officers which were caught on body and dash cams.
We listened as men and women in blue were caught off guard and beat viciously… desperately crying out for help that sometimes came too late.
These were husbands. Wives. Mothers. Fathers. People who will never go home to their children… because they were killed in the line of duty.
It’s a dark world out there, and I for one am incredibly grateful that we have these protectors looking out for us.
I took home much more than a bunch of bruises that day. I took home the sounds of despair… the anguish of loss… and the hope that other leaders across the country will step up and offer courses like this that help save lives AND help protect every day citizens.
God bless those who hold the thin blue line. They’re exponentially tougher than I’ll ever be.
Kyle S. Reyes is the Chief Executive Officer of The Silent Partner Marketing, co-host of The Whiskey Patriots and the National Spokesman for Law Enforcement Today. Reyes is also an acclaimed keynote speaker on patriotism and leadership, entrepreneurship and marketing by storytelling. You can follow him on Facebook.