This is the story about an Orange County Surfer's entry into the law enforcement field and how he ultimately found himself policing America's worst gang infested murder capital.
Brought up in an all-white suburbia neighborhood, surfing and hanging out at the beach was his existence. Never exposed to Black people or crime, he lived the idyllic life. That is until after graduating from college and his dream job failed, he was convinced by his brother to enter law enforcement. Believing police officers were well respected and honored, he entered law enforcement with an unrealistic view of policing.
First becoming a deputy sheriff and working an overcrowded jail where the stench of human waste buckled your knees, he was exposed to another part of life. Suicides, gang fights, jail riots, and assaults by inmates, soon turned his innocent life upside down. Being investigated by the FBI after a jail riot convinced him to leave Orange County to police in Los Angeles. He accepted a position at Compton police department without knowing anything about the city or its reputation for gangs and violence. He was naive.
A sergeant took him under his wings and taught him how to survive in the jungle. Training officers developed him into a competent ghetto officer who could handle anything.
His Compton police stories and struggles to comprehend the endless and vicious murders in a city that did not like white police officers will captivate you. The same city where well renowned Rap artists such as Eazy-E (Godfather of Gangsta Rap), Dr. Dre, Kendrick Lamar, DJ Quik, Ice Cube, and MC Ren got their beginnings.
From gun battles in the projects, to car chases that spanned three counties, you will experience the drama of what it is really like to be a police officer in Compton. The horrifying vicious sexual assaults that gang members commit. How being in running gun battles and investigating horrific murders changed him. His stories will make you laugh one minute and shock you the next. This world has another side called the dark side that is violent and inhumane. He saw it and worked in it. Welcome to Compton.
About the Author :
He was the quintessential Southern California surfer. Surfing along the sun kissed beaches. He then entered Law Enforcement, and his view of the world was shattered. The horrors and violence of working as a Compton Police officer destroyed his innocence. He was unprepared for the gun battles and grisly murders in Compton. He had to change to survive. This is his story of survival in the ghetto.
Review :
The readers will laugh uncontrollably with his honest stories, and at times, there will be tears. You will be shocked by how violent our country can be. - Henry "Bud" Johnson, Police Memoir Reviewer
