Medal Of Valor--A Nitrous Racing Backstory

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mlittle
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Medal Of Valor--A Nitrous Racing Backstory

Post by mlittle » Sun Jul 03, 2011 2:12 am

..........unlike the stories I've written so far, this is the first story to not feature yours truly as a character. The basis of this story began to form while I was writing "Angels Flight" and the opening prologue to that story; plus, I thought it'd be interesting to look at other characters and see into their past, their history, so, here it goes.......as always, feel free to comment.

Anyway, as always, sit back, relax and enjoy the ride........




Character Background......................
Note: the contents of the following personnel file(VCPD Personnel Form 78-Short) are the property of the Velo City Police Department. If found, please return to...........
—Office of Administrative Services, Personnel Division
150 N. Los Angeles St.
Velo City, Ca., 90012



--Name: Little, Kelsey Elizabeth
--DOB: 14 February 1973
--City of Birth: Velo City, Ca.
--Current City of Residence: Velo City, Ca.
--Citizenship Status: American
--Education(HS): Academic Diploma w/Honors, Carthay Center High School, Velo County Unified School District, 1990
--Education(College): Bachelor of Arts[American History], University of California-Velo City, 1994

—Graduated from VCPD Academy Class 95-1(date of graduation, Jan. 1995)
—Qualified Expert Marksman during both pistol/rifle training
—Graduate rank within Class 95-1: 3rd of 37 graduates

~~Department & Rank Assignments
----Officer(I), 77th Street Division[2/95-2/96]
----Officer(II), Tactical Unit, 77th Street Division[2/96-2/98]
----Officer(III), Tactical Unit, 77th Street Division[2/98-1/00]
----Detective(I), Homicide Squad, Hollywood Division[1/00-2/02]
----Detective(II), Homicide Squad(Team 2 Ldr.), Hollywood Division[2/02-2/03]
----Detective(II), Homicide Squad Supervisor, Hollywood Division[3/03-8/05]
----Sergeant(I), Patrol Supervisor, Devonshire Division[8/05-8/06]
----Sergeant(I), Major Crimes Detective Supervisor, Devonshire Division[8/06-4/08]
----Sergeant(II), Asst. Detective Commander, Devonshire Division[4/08-3/10]
note......from March 2010 to August 2011, Sgt. McNeal was assigned to the department’s Reserve Force
----Lieutenant(I), Commander, Open/Unsolved Unit, Robbery-Homicide Division[8/11-present]
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Post by mlittle » Sun Jul 03, 2011 2:13 am

Prologue.......................
5th Floor, One Parker Center
(present-day Velo City, early 2012)



Another unsolved murder in the books, she thought to herself as she finished reading the case file on her desk. The case was from the mid-1980's out of Central Division, a street racing feud gone horribly bad when one of the people involved ended it, not on the track, but with the flash of a knife and a body lying on a downtown street corner. It was a different world back then, Kelsey mused, but at least the perp won’t be out on the streets anymore. It was a lucky print hit that solved the case, but a clearance is a clearance, whatever the circumstance. Closing the file, she leaned back in her chair and looked over towards the broad windows that flanked one side of her office. She caught a glimpse of the San Bernardino Mountains in the distance and thought about the vacation her and Matt were going to take up at Big Bear Lake....a week’s vacation away from the hustle and bustle of Velo City, she happily thought to herself. As her gaze continued to track itself around the room, they stopped on an old picture. Getting up out of the chair, she walked over and looked at it; the picture was of a younger Kelsey receiving the department’s Medal of Valor. As she stood there, looking at the picture, she looked back over to where her jacket was hanging on the office door. On one lapel was a green-and-gold pin; it signified that the wearer had been given the department’s highest award for actions performed in the line of duty. As she stood there, looking at the picture, her mind and thoughts raced back to that fateful period in June 1997 when it seemed the city was a powderkeg ready to explode.......


......from the department's website:
~~Medal of Valor
Info: The Medal of Valor is the Velo City Police Department’s highest honor and is awarded to officers who distinguish themselves by conspicuous bravery or heroism above and beyond the normal demands of police service. To be awarded the Medal of Valor, an officer would have performed an act displaying extreme courage while consciously facing imminent peril. The medal is awarded by the Board of Police Commissioners and is presented by the Chief of Police in the name of the Department to officers during the year, with all officers awarded the medal recognized at the annual Medal of Valor awards ceremony. The award consists of a medal, ribbon, and citation. The Medal of Valor was first presented in 1925, and since 1959, the awards ceremonies have been under the sponsorship of the Velo Area Chamber of Commerce.

In 1997, seven officers were awarded the Medal of Valor....................
—Officer(II) Brandi D. Greer, Harbor Division
—Officer(III) Timothy P. Mesina, Harbor Division
—Sergeant(I) James R. Green, Metropolitan Division
—Officer(II) Ryan E. Hamilton, Rampart Division
—Officer(II) Andrew T. Russell, Rampart Division
—Officer(III) Chris S. Wright, West Valley Division
—Officer(II) Kelsey E. McNeal, 77th Street Division

Image
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Post by mlittle » Sun Jul 03, 2011 2:13 am

Chapter 1



(Velo City, Ca., 11 June 1997)
Wonder what the recall’s about, Kelsey thought to herself as she drove hellbent along the 405 freeway towards 77th Station. She’d been enjoying a nice, quiet off-day from work with her parents in Wilshire when her pager went off; it only took a moment for her to see the division’s number on it for her to know the day was over. Saying her good-byes’ and promising to come by for dinner one night soon, she hopped into her car, a dark-silver street-tuned 92' Buick Regal, and took off for the station as fast as she could. As the car flew down the freeway, easily breaking every speed limit in sight, she was glad she’d left her uniform at the station; the rest of her kit, including her service piece, were in the trunk. The pager had a 7 at the end of the page; that means Tactical’s included in the recall......... Within every geographic division of the VCPD were the department’s Tactical Unit. Authorized in the early 1980's by then-Chief Daryl Gates, the tactical units’ were a combination anti-gang/crime suppression force, the modern version of the department's infamous “Gangster Squad” of the 1950's. It was rare for any officer to be assigned to a Tactical Unit inside of a year on the Job, but Kelsey had taken to her new assignment the year before like a fish takes to water. There was a side benefit, also; tactical units got to cover the entire division, unlike their patrol brethren who were assigned specific areas of the division to cover.

Pulling into the main parking area next to the station, she made sure everything was set before shutting the car off. Popping the trunk, she checked her equipment kit, then slung it over her shoulder, closed the trunk and walked towards the officers’ entrance at the side of the building. The evening was thick with tension as she entered and made her way over to the watch commander’s desk. “I got the recall notice, Sergeant; what’s the situation?,” she asked.

“Something about some lawyer getting offed’ in downtown and the Skinnies’ down here gettin’ restless over it,” Sgt. Kochis, the evening deputy watch commander, told her. A 20-year veteran of the force, Kochis looked like the drill instructor from “Full Metal Jacket” and acted the same way too, especially towards the people living in the area. “There’s an all-hands briefing in the roll call room in thirty, so get a move on, will ya’?”

As she made her way down the main hallway towards the locker room, she wondered what the recall was about. Maybe it had something to do with that lawyer getting killed a few days ago, she thought. Several days earlier, a well-known civil rights attorney named Vincent Elliott had been found shot to death at the Grand St. entrance to Angels Flight in downtown Velo. While his death hadn’t bothered most anyone, herself included, it had upset greatly the local populace, who saw Elliott as a savior of sorts, protecting them from “the Man”. Changing out of her clothes, she began to dress for work, making sure everything was clean, shined and ready for duty. As she was in the process of that, one of her fellow tactical officers walked over to her. “You know, I so much want to be like you, girl,” she heard from around the corner. She leaned over and looked to see who it was; it was a classmate of hers’ from the academy. “What, you mean, successful and self-driven, Viola?,” Kelsey quipped right back. Her colleague clipped her in the shoulder as she walked by. Getting up from the bench in front of her locker, Kelsey checked to see that everything was in place. Service piece, check. Handcuffs, key and cuff case, check. Baton, check. OC spray, check. Extra mags for the Glock 17, check. What else.......flashlight, handset and shoulder-mounted comm-piece, check. Before she headed to roll call, she made sure her Kevlar vest was in place underneath her uniform blouse.

Taking one last look at herself in the mirror, she closed her locker and walked the short distance over to the station’s roll call room. It was your typical big-city police roll-call room. Up front there was a dais and small table for the watch commander and patrol supervisors to sit at; a small calendar rested next to the dais. The rest of the room contained several long tables for the patrol and tactical officers to sit at; each could comfortably seat eight or nine officers in full gear. Towards the front-right there was a wall-mounted television with full A/V capability, VCR/DVD player and various controls. All along the sides of the room were wall-mounted whiteboards with bits of info written on them. Grabbing a cup of coffee, Kelsey found a seat towards the front alongside some of her fellow tactical officers. “So, what’s the scoop, guys?,” she asked.

“Beats me,” said Ofc. Mike Empringham. Broad-shouldered with sandy-red hair, Empringham was often the tactical unit’s source for information and rumors. If he didn’t know why the reason for the recall, something was up. “All I know is that the brass at Parker Center sent the recall notice to everyone in South Bureau, so be ready to run your a#% ragged the whole day.” He was also a bit of a comedian as well, if your brand of comedy was on the blue side. “Then again, this is South Velo, so at least we’ll be chasing after people and running them ragged.” Before Kelsey could say anything in turn, the doors to the roll call room opened up and everyone stood at attention, eyes locked towards the front of the room.

“At ease!” The voice belonged to the division commander, Captain Charles Beck, who was dressed in the department’s long-sleeve “C” uniform(all black, with long sleeves and tie) and looked at times like a spark plug ‘bout to explode. Beside him were all three watch commanders and Lieutenant(II) Josh Williams, 77th Tactical commander. As everyone sat down, Empringham leaned over and whispered to Kelsey, “Something big’s going on; all the commanders are up there......” Capt. Beck spoke. “We haven’t got much time, so here’s what came down to us from Parker Center.” Looking down at the telex, he continued. “Tomorrow at 9:30am, Chief Parks is going to hold a press conference on the on-going investigation into the murder of Vincent Elliott. To prevent continued violence throughout South Bureau, the chief has ordered all units to go on twelve-and-twelves, effective immediately.” There were a few faint whistles in the air; the VCPD rarely went on 12-and-12's unless there was a risk of riots or other civil unrest. “The watch commanders’ll have the briefing sheets up front; take ‘em with you on patrol today.” Someone raised their hand. “Who’s handling our calls while we’re in here, sir?”

“Metro Division and CHP are handling them for the moment; don’t be surprised if you see Metro units rolling through your sectors today and the next couple of days.” Continuing on, he paused before adding, “I’m going to turn it over to the watch and unit commanders. Stay safe out there, alright?” As Capt. Beck walked out of the roll call, the watch and unit commanders went through their briefings. It was a fast, quick briefing; under the circumstances, there wasn’t much to be said other than the basics. Finally, the roll call briefing ended and everyone began to leave; a few were grumbling about this and that. As Kelsey headed to the door, Lt. Williams hollered for all the tactical officers to stay behind. Now what?, she mused angrily. Going on twelves’ meant she’d be sleeping at the station rather than going home to her modest Mid-City bungalow apartment every shift. But, she sighed, those are the breaks of the Job. After everyone in the tactical unit gathered around, Williams spoke to them in a calm, cool voice.

“Alright, as of now we’re on “A” shift, which means your 12's start now. Keep a sharp eye on trouble spots throughout the division; there’s already been reports of scattered violence in the area so be vigilant and alert. Here’s the assignments.................McNeal and Van Matre, Empringham and Moore, Welch and Brown, Gerock and Buss, Livingstone and McNellis, Fulp and O’Farrell, Hutcheson and Watkins, Griffith and Mumford, Cook and Rhoades, and Bass and Thomas. Sgt. Johnson’ll ride in one lead car, Sgt. Van Kirkland will ride in another and I’ll be out there in a third one. Anything happens, don’t hesitate getting on the radio and calling for backup; that’s why we’re out there. And make sure you’ve got all your riot gear and weapons with you before you roll out. Any questions?”

“One,” said Kelsey’s shift partner, Officer(III) Renee Van Matre, “Any particular areas of interest besides the ones listed?”

“Not at the moment,” Williams replied. “If we get anything, we’ll forward it down the line.” Looking around, he added, “Anything else? No? Alright, roll out, everyone.” With that, the officers began filing out of the roll call room for the shift. As they headed over to the station’s kit room to get their riot gear, Van Matre looked over at her partner. “What’s wrong, Kelsey?”

“I don’t know,” she said. “I got that hairs on the back of my neck feeling, that’s all.”

“Well, don’t sweat it. Chances are, the natives will stay indoors and not **** with us. If they do,” Van Matre replied, smacking a fist into the other hand, “we’ll bring it back to them.” Kelsey nodded but still couldn’t shake the feeling that something bad was on the horizon. What, she didn’t know, but that feeling wasn’t going away anytime soon.
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Post by mlittle » Sun Jul 03, 2011 2:14 am

Chapter 2
South Velo, 11 June 1997, evening



In the distance, the evening sun was casting its’ reddish hues all over the Southland. People went to and fro and on the surface, life seemed normal. But life was never normal in the 77th and the fires of discontent could be seen everywhere. If one only looked hard enough, Kelsey thought as her and Van Matre headed up Vermont Ave. “This would be a pretty wicked place for some street racing, wouldn’t it?,” Kelsey said, the faint sound of their radios in the background.

“Yeah, it would. You and me in this car, Viola and Craig in another one. We start racing at Gage and head down to where, 70th Street or so?” came the reply. It was a running joke in the unit that if she hadn’t joined the department, Renee Van Matre might’ve become a top-caliber street racer. Certainly there wasn’t a shortage of places to do so in Velo City, but the best spots were either down in the Harbor or up in the Valley. As they continued talking about this and that, Kelsey suddenly turned in the passenger seat as if she had seen something. “What?,” Van Matre said.

“I don’t know; couple of youths ran down an alley back there. Might be nothing–“
”Or a couple of would-be rioters out on the prowl,” Van Matre replied. They headed up Vermont ‘til they could make a clear U-turn, then proceeded back down towards the alley. Rolling as quietly as their wheels could go, they stopped just next to the alley. “Get on the radio and call it,” Van Matre said. As they got out of the vehicle, Kelsey spoke into her rover. “12 X-Ray 1 to Dispatch.”

“Go ahead,” came the metallic reply.
“Dispatch, possible 603 in the 5000 block of Vermont, just past West 50th. Request additional units Code 2.” As she released her mic, Kelsey kept walking towards the alleyway. Van Matre was at the alleyway’s entrance, flashlight in hand underneath her gun hand. “Additional units’ll be here in a bit,” Kelsey said, drawing her weapon and light as well. By now it was dark, the only lights in the alley the occasional lamp or window light. Slowly the pair made their way down the alleyway towards a dirt path, looking for any sign of the youths they’d seen. Just as they got about halfway, one of the youths bolted from behind a dumpster; the pair gave chase after him. The chase didn’t last long; as they chased after the kid, he slipped rounding the corner towards West 51st.

When they got to him, Van Matre grabbed him by the shirt collar and threw him against a wall, the kid’s light-brown skin showing an abrasion on his face from where he had fallen. “Where ya’ running to, kid?,” she asked, having to stop to catch her breath. As her and Kelsey stood next to him, they saw another black-and-white at the end of the alley on West 51st with several other youths standing nearby. “Huh? Where were you headed?,” she asked as she began frisking the youth. Meanwhile, Kelsey got on the rover. “Dispatch, 12 X-Ray 1, situation Code 4. One person in custody, several others in custody of additional units.” Clicking off the rover, she turned to where the kid was standing. “C’mon, kid, why were you running? And why are you out on the streets on a school night, anyhow?”

“I don’t know; we was just hangin’ out, talking s#$% and not bothering–“
”And you ducked down an alleyway when you saw us. Why?”
“I don’t know–“
”Should we just hook him and take his scrawny a#% back to the station, Renee?,” Kelsey yelled to her partner as the kid kept staring at her, eyes full of fear and anger.

“Your call, babe,” Renee said as she conferred with the two officers from the other black-and-white. Without hesitating, Kelsey did another quick search. “What’ve we got here, huh?,” she said to the kid, pointing down to his right foot. Just sticking underneath it was a small penknife. Leaning down to pick it up, Kelsey asked, “What’s this? Huh? What is this?”

“I don’t know. Ain’t mine; you planted that **** on me, *****,” the kid said hatingly towards her, getting a belt across the back of the head for his wit.

“Maybe and maybe not. But,” she said, taking one arm and turning him around to cuff him, “you’re getting a free ride to the station anyway, *****,” Kelsey replied, reminding the kid just who was in charge in that alleyway. After making sure the kid was securely cuffed, Kelsey walked him over to Van Matre and the other two. Holding the penknife in the air, she said, “Look what I found? Kid had a weapon after all. What is that, a Part II arrest?”

Van Matre chuckled as the other two officers quickly walked the kid to their car for the trip back to the station. “We’ll be there in a little bit–“
”Don’t sweat it, Tactical. We’ll take care of the paperwork for you.” The others walked away, prisoner in tow. As they watched them walk away, Kelsey started walking around the alleyway; Van Matre looked at her quizzically. “What is it?”

“I don’ know, Renee. Look at this,” she said, shining her flashlight back towards the alleyway. “We saw, what, four, five youths. So why did we catch just one?”

“Who knows? Chances are they ran and left the little kid behind. Doesn’t surprise me in this neck of the city. Correction, nothing surprises me anymore,” Van Matre replied. Nonetheless, they spent the better part of a half-hour walking over the alley from Vermont to the dirt-path, looking for anything out of the ordinary. Nothing. Disappointed, the two walked back to their squad car and headed out to answer more and more calls in a city that was beginning to reach its’ boiling point.

(next morning, 77th Division station)
A gentle nudge awoke Kelsey with a start. When her shift had ended, she had decided to get some rest on one of the station’s cots. She had slept for several hours; when she awoke, her back was a little stiff from still having her equipment belt on. Sitting up, she looked at her friend. “What time is it, Viola?”

“9:15am; time for that press conference from Parker Center just about.” As the two chatted, Sgt. Johnson walked in, a pensive expression on him. “Kelsey, a quick word.” The two walked into the sergeant’s office; inside were two detectives from the division squad. “Officer McNeal, this is Detective Angela Chastain and Detective Steve Brisingano,” Johnson said as the three shook hands. “I’m deteching a couple of Tac units to assist them today; both yours and Empringham’s. Any problem?”

“None that comes to mind, Sergeant,” Kelsey replied as she looked at the two detectives. Det. Chastain was a twelve-year veteran of the VCPD; tall, thin w/California blonde hair, Chastain could’ve passed for any number of people on the U.S. Women’s Soccer Team. Det. Brisingano, on the other hand, looked like he came out of Central Casting.....if one were inclined to cast thugs as detectives.

“Good,” Sgt. Johnson said. “Be dressed in plainclothes and ready to roll in thirty minutes, okay?”
“Understood,” She then asked, “Sarge?”
“Yes, Officer McNeal?”
“Any word on that presser from Parker Center?”

“Yeah, we just got word from downtown; its’ been pushed back a day. Stay vigilant, though. From what they told us, the news isn’t going to be good, one way or the other.” With that, Kelsey walked out of the office and back to the division squad bay. “So what gives?,” Viola asked the two walked over to her locker. Opening it, McNeal began to change out of her uniform. “I’m working plainclothes today–“

”With who, Brandi Chastain?,” Viola quipped, referring to Det. Chastain.
“Yeah, that would be right,” Kelsey said, grabbing a short-sleeve dark blue blouse with the VCPD logo on the front. As she continued to change, Viola asked, “Hear anything about what’s coming down from Parker?”

“Not much. The press conference is going to be tomorrow, the 13th, 9:30 or so in the morning. Other than that, nada. See ya’ out there on the streets, girl,” Kelsey said as she finished changing clothes. Grabbing her sidearm and a few other items, she placed them around her equipment belt, made sure they were in place and closed her locker. Another long day lay ahead of her but it didn’t bother her. You knew what you were getting yourself into, kid, she thought to herself, adding, but I still love this Job......
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Post by mlittle » Sun Jul 03, 2011 2:14 am

Chapter 3



AP NEWS, Velo City, Ca.
According to a just-released story from KNX-TV, Velo City Police Chief Bernard Parks will announce at a 9:30am press conference in front of City Hall in downtown Velo City news concerning the death of famed civil rights attorney Vincent Elliott. Sources close to the chief, who refused to be named on the record, said to the AP that all the evidence is pointing to the department and the city’s worst fears.....that a police officer was responsible for Elliott’s murder...

(morning, 13 June 1997, 77th Division Station)
Another day, another dime, Kelsey thought to herself, rubbing her eyes in an effort to wake up. Just as before, she had slept for a few hours in her uniform in case the city decided to annihilate itself, but that hadn’t happened yet. Instead yesterday’s 12-and-12 was one call right after another; isolated acts of violence in a part of Velo City that had been witness to violence both police-made and citizen-made. In the background she could hear loud music being played in the division’s workout room. Closing her eyes she listened for a few seconds before placing the song. “Voodoo Child”, she guessed; someone has the good sense to play a little Jimi in the morning. Looking at her watch, she decided some exercise was just the ticket to make her forget how tired she was. It can’t hurt, she reasoned as she changed out of her uniform and grabbed her workout gear, I’m already bone-tired from the past two days.......a little exercise will probably wake my a#% up!

Seventy-five minutes later, looking freshly dressed and clean, she joined the rest of the patrol and tactical officers in the roll call room. Immediately she could sense something was wrong; it was just past 9:30am and none of the division’s command staff were present. Grabbing some coffee, she made her way over towards the front of the room. No sooner had she sat down did the division’s command staff burst into the room. “Apologies for the abrupt entrance,” Captain Beck said, looking for once a bit frazzled. “Someone turn the TV on; the press conference is just beginning.” One of the watch commanders walked over and hit the on switch; the television burst to life. On the screen behind a small set of tall microphones on the south stairway inside City Hall were Chief Parks and several other men and women. “Must be serious,” Van Matre whispered to Kelsey, “check out the man on the far left.” Kelsey’s eyes drifted over......and did a double-take; the man Renee mentioned was California’s adjutant general, the state’s highest ranking military advisor and commander of the California National Guard. “What the ......,” was all McNeal could whisper before the press conference began.

(thirty minutes later)
There was a palpable shock in the air as roll call ended and all the officers began leaving the room. Everyone around was thinking to themselves, An officer did this? A member of the “Thin Blue Line”? No one wanted to believe it, from the lowliest patrolman up to the division commander, but that’s what Chief Parks had said. In one brief statement, he had delivered a grievous blow to the department’s morale. Worse, everyone wondered what the public’s reaction was going to be. They didn’t have long to find out.

(mid-afternoon, Vermont Ave.)
What’s going on? The thought kept rattling through Ofc. Moore’s mind as he sat along the curb in an unmarked car, watching Det. Chastain and Ofc. Empringham interview someone concerning a shots fired call late last night. But his thoughts weren’t on his partners; they were on the large crowd that seemed to be massing in his binos’ a couple of blocks south along Vermont. Something’s got the natives restless, he mused, unaware of the press conference earlier that day. Unlike most of the officers in the division, he and his two colleagues had been out on the street, chasing down information on several calls from the overnight watch and so did not know the rising, visceral anger that was building in the city.
Suddenly his attention was diverted by the radio as a dispatch call came in..........”All units in the Vermont Avenue area not on riot duty, multiple 602 structural fires in the 7300 block. Any units in the area, respond Code 3.” Leaning out the window, he whistled to his colleagues and grabbed one of the rovers from the center dash mount. “12 William 35, we’re on it.” Setting it back in the console, he popped the trunk lid and got out of the car, running back to grab his riot gear. As he was doing this, both Chastain and Empringham did likewise as Chastain asked him, “What’s going on?”

“602, Angie, ‘bout 5, 6 blocks down where those large crowds are.” After a few minutes, all three of them had their riot gear on, including lightweight riot helmets with face shields. Their vehicle also possessed several less-lethal riot weapons, including pepper-ball guns which fired handball-sized pepper spray and bean-bag rounds. They also had several CN and CS tear-gas canisters, but they couldn’t deploy those on the street without approval. As soon as they got back in the car, Moore started it up and gunned the engine, leaving a wake of burning rubber and tire smoke behind them.

About a minute later they roared to a stop, sirens blazing, in front of a burning storefront. They hadn’t been there but for a few seconds when a piece of concrete thrown from a nearby building hit the car’s roof, jarring them for a moment. All three scrambled out of the vehicle as more bricks were thrown at them. Looking around, all three had their weapons drawn, searching for whoever was lobbing those missiles at them. Seeing someone rise up, Det. Chastain took aim and fired, dropping the guy behind the rooftop abutment in two shots.

Meanwhile, more bricks and concrete pieces began being thrown at them from street-level. It was then that they noticed the large crowds moving slowly, methodically towards them. The crowd moved as a hunter would in the savanna towards’ its’ prey; focusing on the crowds, Chastain made her decision. “Okay, guys, we stay here, we’re going to get chopped up by the natives down there,” taking in gulps of breath between words, “or we can make a break for Florence and set up a cordon there, stop the crowds from advancing. You with me?” Both Empringham and Moore nodded. “Alright, let’s do this. We’ll withdraw up the street, stopping every few yards to fire at the crowds and then run every few yards. Make sure you got your riot gear on tight and your weapons with you. Alright? Let’s go!” The three slowly began making their way up Vermont Ave., pausing to turn and fire at the crowd which now seemed to be advancing at a faster clip. In the distance, sirens could be heard as more units headed to the area. It appeared that the city’s worst fears were coming true. The city was beginning to come unglued.

(Intersection of Florence and Vermont, South Velo)
As was standard during periods of unrest, VCPD units set up several anti-riot cordons at key intersections in the area, one of which was the intersection of Florence Ave. and Vermont Ave. Three cars were at the cordon, one blocking Vermont while the other two blocked off parts of Florence. Standing behind the car blocking Vermont Ave., Officer McNeal, who was in charge of the cordon at that intersection, kept looking down Vermont towards the advancing crowds. As she continued to look, she thought she saw something. “Hey, Viola, look at this,” Kelsey yelled, waiting for her friend to walk from her spot on the west Florence side of the cordon. Grabbing the binos’ from Kelsey, Viola looked but couldn’t tell what Kelsey had seen. “What am I looking for?”

“Look towards the left sidewalk about two blocks or so down.” Viola took another look down and then saw the three officers heading up the street. “I see them,” she said. “I thought they closed off a large chunk of Vermont,” she asked.

“They did, but not everyone found out,” Kelsey said just as one of the officers in the distance was dropped by a brick right in the head. “Oh, ****!” Viola yelled. “One of our guys just got hit in the head!” As she continued watching, Kelsey got on the rover. “Dispatch, Cordon 1 at Florence and Vermont. Officer down, 7300 block of Vermont! Repeat, officer down, 7300 block of Vermont! Request additional ground and air units Code 3!” Tossing the rover back into the car, Kelsey removed her riot helmet and popped the trunk of the car. Once back there, she took off her flak vest, opting instead to grab one of the riot guns and a large, strapped container full of pellet, pepper and bean-bag rounds.

Running back to where her friend was, Kelsey motioned for the other officers in the cordon to gather around. “Okay, one of our officers is down along Vermont; I can’t tell who but we’re going to go get them and bring them back here. Unless other units are tied down elsewhere, we should get backup very soon. Brown; you, Thomas and Bass, stay here and man the cordon. Welch, you come with me; we might have to carry someone back here and you’re the strongest man in the division. Welch and I will proceed down in overwatch; I’ll cover him for a bit then he covers me for a bit. We’ll have to do it fast to avoid getting entangled with the crowd, okay?,” looking over at Officer Welch. “You got your riot gun, Craig?,” she asked. He nodded; like McNeal, he was carry a riot gun and container with several dozen rounds. Before she could say anything else, a Metro car screeched to a halt along the cordon. Kelsey yelled over to them, “Move that car into the cordon, alright?” As they were doing so, she looked at her fellow officers one last time. “You ready? Welch, you ready? Welch? You ready?” As soon as he nodded, she looked down the street and yelled, “Let’s go! Let’s do this!” As she and Welch began to run along the sidewalk down to where the injured officer was, she quietly began to say a Hail Mary as her and Welch began heading down Vermont. As they approached the trio of officers, all of whom appeared injured, she looked at the swollen, bloated, angry mass of humanity stalking its’ way down Vermont and added, . . . Pray for us sinners, now, and at the hour of our death. Amen.........
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Post by mlittle » Sun Jul 03, 2011 2:15 am

Chapter 4


AP News, Velo City, Ca.
---Video images taken by news helicopters from KNX and KTLA; voice-over by KTLA reporter Vance Reed...............”Looking down below along several of the major traffic corridors along the 405 I can see numerous structural fires and several large mobs, particularly along both the Vermont Avenue and Florence Avenue areas of South Velo. Today’s announcement by Velo City officials concerning the murder of Vincent Elliott has seemed to have touched off a chasm of anger and lawlessness not seen since the first hours of the 1992 Rodney King riots, when groups of rioters literally took over sections of South Velo. So far, police units are keeping several riot cordons in place at key intersections in an effort to prevent large mobs from moving towards the downtown area or west towards Wilshire and West Velo. Reports are that the VCPD is on a citywide tactical alert and that Mayor Riordan has asked for assistance from the National Guard. Right now, however, any semblance of order will depend on the brave men and women within those scattered cordons, especially the one at the intersection of Vermont and Florence......

-----GENERAL BULLETIN, 1000 hrs, 13 June 1997
FR: Office of the Chief of Police, Parker Center
TO: All Divisions Within Central and South Bureaus
----Until further notice, the following intersections are to be manned by VCPD units as anti-riot cordons...............
*Vermont-Florence, 77th Street Division
*Hoover-Slauson, 77th Street Division
*Slauson-Van Ness, 77th Street Division
*Wall-104th Street, Southeast Division
*Central-103rd Street, Southeast Division
*Normandie-MLK Blvd., Southwest Division
*Vermont-Van Ness, Southwest Division
*Central-Vernon, Newton Division
*Avalon-Slauson, Newton Division

In addition, mobile cordons will be utilized as needed by elements of Metropolitan Division.
Parks, Bernard C.
Chief of Police



(mid-afternoon, along Vermont Avenue, 13 June 1997)
In most circumstances, it shouldn’t take more than a few minutes to traverse the almost two blocks to where her fellow officers were, but these weren’t normal circumstances for both McNeal and Welch. The pair slowly made their way down the avenue, using the cars parked along the curbside for cover from the rocks and bricks being tossed at them from the rooftops. That part of Vermont Avenue featured dozens of small buildings and storefronts, many of them with damage to windows and the occasional bullet ricochet. That last part worried them; if the mobs were armed, they could very well break through or around the cordons. If that happened.......Kelsey dismissed the thought as they continued up the road. As they continued down Vermont, Kelsey got out the rover and keyed the mike. “12 William 35, the is McNeal, Cordon 1. Welch and I are headed down to your location, how copy?” A brief silence, then a weak voice came over the rover. “Cordon 1, this is Empringham. Where are you guys?”

“Welch and I are about a block above your location, Mike. How’s it going?”

“Not good, Kelsey. Chastain’s unconscious; she got hit by several large bricks. Two of them damaged her riot helmet; she may have head injuries. Moore’s got a broken clavicle and I got a sprained ankle. Other than that—“
”Okay,” Kelsey replied. “Can you and Moore walk?”

“Yeah, but we’re dinged up, though.” As his voice went off the mic. Kelsey hit the citywide button. “Dispatch, this is Cordon 1. I got three officers down, 7300 block of Vermont. Need assistance, both air and ground, Code 3!” Before dispatch could reply, McNeal and Welch continued towards their fellow officers; in the distance, the angry mobs moved closer, seeming to surge forward with every breath as if there were no individuals in the mob, just one cohesive, angry, furious mass of humanity. As they approached, Welch looked over at McNeal. “Should we light them up with tear gas, try to push them back before we get there?”

“Yeah, but put your mask on before you shoot that stuff off,” she replied, reaching behind for her own gas mask. Welch put his on as she loaded a riot gun with a canister of CN tear gas. Running a mic cord from the mask to her rover, she indicated for Welch to do the same thing; when he was ready, she keyed the mic. “Craig, on the count of three, fire your canister at them! We’ll run to our friends and use the CS canister on the mob when we get down there, okay?” Nodding affirmative, Welch and McNeal aimed their riot guns at the mob.

“On three...........one...........two............three . Fire!” Both guns let off a small plopp as the CN canisters flew towards the mob. As the canisters flew, both of them took off in a dead sprint, reaching their comrades seconds after the CN canisters discharged their contents. Almost immediately, parts of the mob fell to the ground, coughing and hacking as the CN gas, a nasal/throat irritant, began to work on them. But others soon picked up where the others had fallen and moved through the gas as the same methodical, evil rate. As Welch kept an eye on the advancing mob, McNeal knelt down and looked at Det. Chastain. She quickly checked for injuries as Empringham spoke. “We were going in to respond to a 602 just down the road when the mob started pelting us with bricks and rocks. Angie shot a couple of them, both on the ground and on a nearby rooftop. Suddenly, a bunch of them opened up on us from that,” pointing over to a church, “building’s roof. She got hit about five, six times, Kelsey. Thrice around the head and neck.” As he continued, Kelsey slowly raised Chastain’s upper body and noticed that Chastain’s back was bloody. “Did they shoot at you guys, Mike?”

“Don’t know. Why?” Kelsey motioned for him to look. “There’s too much blood here to be from impact wounds with blunt objects. Someone shot her and I can’t tell........” Kelsey began to feel around Chastain’s back, searching for an entry or an exit wound. Her search was interrupted by the sound of several glass bottles hitting the ground nearby. Sensing time was short, Kelsey looked at her fellow officers. “Alright, we gotta buy some time so I try to find this wound. Richard, you ambulatory?” When he nodded, she continued. “Okay, you and Mike run towards the cordon as fast as possible. Once there, tell them to run back here with a MedKit, alright? Now go!!” The pair began making their way back up Vermont Avenue as the air hung heavy with a noxious mix of tire smoke, burnt buildings and tear gas. Welch looked over at McNeal as they watched Empringham and Moore make their way towards the cordon. “What do you need, Kelsey?”

Looking over at a nearby car, Kelsey added, “Hotwire that car and move it into position in front of us as a cordon, okay? As cover.” As he ran over to a nearby Corolla, Kelsey keyed her mic again. “Dispatch, where’s that ground support?”

“Cordon 1, be advised nearest Metro units are at least fifteen minutes out.” Then another voice came over the band; it was Lt. Williams. “Kelsey, you still there?”
She excitedly keyed her mic; maybe there was good news for once. “Lieutenant, what’s the story on the support, over?”

“They’ll be there, Kelsey. Just hang on,” said Lt. Williams from inside a SWAT Bearcat rescue vehicle making its’ way along Manchester Avenue, where a mobile cordon was beating back another group of rioters. “and sit tight, okay? Everybody’s busy as hell today; South Velo’s gone up like an out-of-control brush fire and we’re fighting one group after another. We will get that support to you, okay?”
“Roger that, Lt!,” Kelsey replied as Welch low-crawled back over to her. “Okay, boss, now what?”

“Alright, Craig. On three, I want you to start firing everything you’ve got at that mob. Be careful and shoot to injure; I’d rather these people be angry and alive than bleeding and dead on the six o’colck news. When you have to reload, let me know and I’ll switch places. Whatever happens, though,” pointing to her sidearm, “don’t use your sidearm unless we’re fully out of the less-lethal items, okay?,” pointing over to the containers of pellet rounds, bean-bag rounds and rubber bullets they each had.
“Roger that,” Welch replied.

“Alright, fire at will,” McNeal said, her calm voice not betraying any fear. As Welch began firing, Kelsey quickly examined Chastain’s upper body, looking for a telltale entry or exit wound. Her hands soon grew slick with blood; she wiped them down the sides of her pants and kept looking. Found it, she thought, grabbing Chastain’s penlight and shining it towards the bullet wound. As Welch continued firing at the mob, Kelsey yanked off her uniform blouse, ripping one sleeve off as a makeshift bandage. She still had a thin t-shirt on, but it was quickly becoming soaked in sweat from the near-100 degree weather. Placing the bandage over the wound, she wrapped the rest of the uniform blouse around, tying it as tight as she could without hurting Det. Chastain anymore than she already was.

Suddenly, she felt a stinging sensation brush the side of her neck, as if someone had walked by and scratched her from the front to the back. Brushing it off, she crawled over to Welch and took over firing the riot gun as Welch got over to where Chastain was lying. “What next, boss?”

Without thinking, Kelsey spoke, her focus still on the now quickening mob. She spoke, not betraying any fear or emotion. “She’s got two bullet wounds in the upper back; we gotta’ get her out of here,” referring to Chastain. Ducking down as several large rocks pelted the Corolla, she continued. “Alright, pick her up gently and carry her–“
”She was hit in the head, Kelsey–“

”I know, but we don’t get her to a hospital and fast, it ain’t gonna matter what happened, Craig. Now listen. Pick her up gently and carry her, fireman’s style, as far as you can. I’ll follow with the riot gun. Go as far as you can, stop and go again.” Looking back towards the cordon, Kelsey added, “We’re about, two city blocks down or so. Figure what, several hundred yards. One intersection at 72nd and Vermont to worry about; we make it past that, we’ll be alright.” As Welch began to pick the unconscious Chastain up, Kelsey keyed her mic. “Cordon 1, this is McNeal. Anyone hear me?”

“We hear you, babe. What’s going on?,” Viola replied.

“Viola, I need you to get an ambulance to the cordon there ASAP. Det. Chastain’s got major injuries and she is life-critical at the moment. We’re heading back to your location but you’re going to have to watch us as we come back to you. Watch that mob, also; let us know where they’re at, okay?”

“You got it, Kelsey.” As the mic went silent, Kelsey looked at her fellow officer once more. “You ready, Welch?”

“Ready,” he replied. Taking one last look at the mob, Kelsey nodded and he quickly picked up the injured detective and placed her over his shoulders, walking slowly back up Vermont. Kelsey soon followed, riot guns in hand and several dozen less-lethal rounds at the ready. Now began the biggest street race of their young lives. Make it to the cordon and Det. Chastain might survive. Let the mob catch them and all three would surely perish.
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Post by mlittle » Sun Jul 03, 2011 2:15 am

Chapter 5



(mid-afternoon, South Velo along Vermont Avenue)
As Welch struggled in the afternoon heat to carry Det. Chastain, Kelsey kept looking towards the mob as she walked at a slow pace behind him, firing rubber shot after rubber shot at the crowd. Every so often she would pause to wipe the sweat from her eyes; it stung and clouded her vision but she kept at it. Gotta’ keep going, she whispered, gotta’ keep going. She knew help was on the way; besides the two fixed anti-riot cordons 77th Street had in operation, there was another mobile cordon nearby, working its’ way to them. Up above, she could hear the familiar roar of a VCPD Bell 212 helicopter, flying overhead. She wiped her brow again, pausing to fire once again when she screamed in agony. Looking down, she saw a small bullet wound in her right forearm; she felt around but couldn’t find an exit wound. Twenty-two, she thought; only a bullet that small doesn’t make an exit wound. Hearing her scream, Welch turned back around. “What happened, McNeal?”

“Ahh, I got shot, Craig. It’s nothing, though,” she yelled, leaning against a building for a moment. Grabbing a small tourniquet from her med-kit, she quickly applied it to her forearm, wincing a couple of times in pain. Stay focused, stay focused!, she kept thinking. It ain’t nothing, kid, it ain’t nothing. She moved her hand around and wiggled all her fingers to check for mobility; nothing too badly hurt she mused. Getting up again, she saw that the mob was still coming forward, pulsing its’ way along the street. Taking out two more canisters of CN tear gas, Kelsey pulled the pin on each one and tossed them as far as her left arm could hurl them. Each landed in front of the rioters with another series of plops, each disgorging its’ contents into the air. Still the mob kept coming, kept approaching. She keyed her mic once again. “Hey, Viola, how much further are we?”

“You’re just about at the 72nd intersection,” Brown replied; in the background, several more officers could be heard arriving as two more cars joined in the cordon. “Keep coming, keep coming,” she repeated over the mic as Kelsey kept working her way back towards safety, towards the cordon. Over and over, she kept firing the riot gun at the oncoming mob, but they kept coming and coming. All of a sudden, she heard a click from the riot gun; it had run out of less-lethal ammo. Welch has the other box, she horrifying thought, and he’s about eighty or so yards further up Vermont! In all the hecticness earlier, Welch had kept one container of less-lethal rounds(pellets, bean bag rounds, rubber bullets and wax bullets) with him and now neither riot gun worked. To hell with this, Kelsey thought as she pulled her sidearm from its holster. Making sure she had several mags with her, she charged the pistol, stood up, took aim and opened fire, aiming for center mass. She fired down the street at a methodical pace, firing at the crowd while heading up Vermont towards the cordon. As she continued to fire at the crowds, she noticed them finally beginning to slacken their pace. She continued on, pausing to reload every so often. As she moved along the street, she occasionally turned to see where the cordon was located in regards to her. Down the road, she could hear the anguished cries of some in the crowd, but thought to herself, they didn’t have to be out here, they didn’t have to attack fellow officers, they didn’t have to do what they were doing. And over what? Yeah, she felt no love whatsoever for Vincent Elliott, who seemed to have reveled in suing police over every little violation of the law. To many of the people in South Velo, he was like a god to the masses; to her and her fellow officers, he was a nuiscene, a pest. Didn’t these people realize ‘the thin blue line’ was there for a reason?

Slowly, with continued focus, she fought her way back towards the cordon, pausing only to reload her sidearm. Suddenly, she stumbled and fell as she slipped on a piece of brick, falling backwards. To everyone in the cordon, it looked for all the world as if she had been shot and for several agonizing moments, they all held their breath, watching her as she fell.

Meanwhile, sensing a change, the mob began pulsing forward again, like a shark circling its’ prey. After a few seconds lying on the hot concrete, Kelsey slowly got up, her sidearm knocked to the middle of the road. Without hesitating, she ran out, picked it up and going on sheer muscle memory, let off the last rounds she had. As the Glock’s chamber clicked after the last bullet was fired, she removed the magazine and tossed it as far as she could. As it landed near the crowds, she made sure the Glock was empty before hurling it at the mob. Once that was done, she turned and took off at a dead sprint towards the cordon. C’mon, girl, she thought to herself; you got this far, you can make it! And so she ran........Kelsey ran towards the cordon, running until her muscles felt like they were on fire and her veins were full of battery acid. Another 200 yards or so would get her to safety, get her behind the cordon. As she kept running, she could see everyone inside the cordon yelling at her to run. 175 yards.........by now, she was running on nothing but pure adrenlin, her muscles going on sheer memory. 150 yards.......still not close enough. Then, as she ran her bloodied arm across her face, she saw two of her fellow officers break from the cordon in a sprint towards her.

Feeling utterly, completely spent, Kelsey could go no further and began to stagger as Viola and two other officers ran over to her. Just as she fell to the ground, Officer Brown caught her and started to drag her to the cordon as Officers Bass and Thomas began firing wax rounds at the mob. After a mad minute, the foursome made it to the safety of the cordon..........just as three Bearcats’ came screaming down Florence Avenue in a show of force. Sirens blaring, the three came to a halt in front of the cordon. As they fired their high-pressure water cannons at the now-scattering mob, two dozen Metro officers jumped out of the vehicles and began moving purposefully down Vermont Avenue in a brute show of force. Meanwhile, several officers sat Kelsey up against one of the cars; she was dazed, her energy spent but otherwise okay. As a team of paramedics began checking the wound on her forearm and the brazing wound on her neck, she weakly said, “Glad to see the cavalry made it.”

“We said we’d be here and we got here,” a voice said to her right. Looking over, she saw her commander, Lieutenant Williams, dressed in full riot gear kneeling down next to her. “You gonna’ be alright?”

“She will be,” one of the EMT’s said. “She took a .22 round to the right forearm; she’ll need surgery to remove the bullet but there shouldn’t be any long-term damage. She was lucky, though,” pointing to the grazing on her neck. “Someone fired at her from long-range and got a ricochet hit on her neck. Can’t tell what hit her but it definitely left a mark.” As they began calling for a stretcher, Kelsey started to get up. “Forget the stretcher; I’ll walk to the ambo.” As she walked to a nearby ambulance, Kelsey looked back down Vermont. The rioters appeared to be retreating; everywhere around hung the thick, acrid smoke of a city ablaze. As she got into the ambulance for the ride to the hospital, she silently thought about what had happened, her mind filled with numerous, conflicting thoughts. I hope everyone made it, she whispered to herself as the vehicle made it way around to South Memorial Hospital. She leaned back on the side of the ambulance, content in her thoughts. You did what you had to do, she thought to herself. Just let the chips fall where they will.
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Post by mlittle » Sun Jul 03, 2011 2:15 am

Epilogue, Part 1.................
Timeline of Events, South Velo Riots




Day 1(13 June 1997)...........
----9:30am, Chief Parks and other city/state officers release information concerning the murder of civil rights attorney Vincent Elliott; outrage over the announcement spreads throughout the city, particularly in the predominately-black areas of South Velo
----10am, VCPD orders all geographic divisions to go on tactical alert; in addition, several anti-riot “cordons” are set up through South Velo
----Noon, VCPD units withdraw to these cordons, allowing large crowds to congregate throughout the area
----1pm, several scattered groups of officers, including Ofcs. Richard Empringham, Richard Moore and Det. Angela Chastain, are caught unaware of the growing violence in South Velo and are attacked by various mobs
----1:30-2pm, Officers assigned to the 77th Street cordon at Florence and Vermont respond to calls from Ofc. Moore; several from that cordon, including Ofc. McNeal, rescue the trio(Det. Chastain would later succumb to her injuries 12 hours later at a South Velo-area hospital)
----mid to late afternoon, police attempt to break up several large mobs within the South Velo area; CHP units close all exits along the 405 freeway from Slauson Ave. down to the West Carson area just north of the Harbor
----evening, rioters continue rampaging through the area; violence briefly spreads into Wilshire and Southeast Velo

Day 2(14 June 1997)............
----community leaders throughout South Velo attempt to restore order by urging citizens to remain indoors; these messages are repeated by both Mayor Riordan, Chief Parks and Ca. Gov. Pete Wilson
----first elements of the California National Guard arrive to assist beleaguered police within 77th Street and Southwest Divisions
----from 10am-2pm, several community meetings are held in South Velo as leaders attempt to restore order in the community; none of the meetings succeed, however, in quelling the continued violence
----5pm, rioting continue along several main roads w/in South Velo; however, police and Guard units keep the rioters from breaking out of the area

Day 3(15 June 1997).............
-----by 10am there are over 2,000 Guardsmen from the 79th Infantry Brigade in Velo City, patrolling the streets alongside VCPD and CHP personnel
-----2pm, city officers announce that, while there are “scattered pockets of rioters” in the South Velo area, most of the rioters have either been arrested or gone back to their homes
-----4pm, Chief Parks releases the first figures from the rioting up to that point. By that point, “there were over 3700 arrests, along with over 150 structural fires within the South Velo and Southwest areas of the city. In addition, damages to that point were estimated at over $400 million dollars.”
-----7pm, rioting picks up briefly due to scattered power outages in the area

Day 4(16 June 1997)............
-----throughout the day, scattered rioting continues to flare up; however, most areas of South Velo begin to quiet as police and Guardsmen increase their presence
-----7pm, in a national address, President Clinton spoke the nation, denouncing the “random terror and lawlessness” of the rioters, summarizing his discussions with city and state officials and commending members of the VCPD and Ca. National Guard for their actions.” However, he also announces “that he has asked Atty. Gen Reno to begin an investigation into the actions of certain members of the VCPD........”*
*—it is unclear whether he is referring to the events which led up to the South Velo Riots or to what would eventually become known as the Rampart Scandal
-----6pm, city officials announce an 8pm curfew in an effort to quell any remaining violence, allowing authorities to arrest anyone seen outside during the night

Day 5(17 June 1997).................
-----South Velo quiets down, enjoying its’ first day of peace since the riots began
-----only one major incident occurs when a Guardsman from 1-160 Inf Bn(79th IBCT) assigned to riot-control operations shoots and kills a motorist who attempted to break through a National Guard checkpoint
-----by 21 June the curfew is lifted and Chief Parks begins to rollback the department from tactical alert


~~~~In the four-plus days of rioting, over $1 billion dollars of damage is done within the city
~~~~17 people, including Det. Chastain, are killed during the riots
~~~~over 1000 others, including almost 60 VCPD and 15 Guardsmen, are injured during the riots
~~~~due to the intense media coverage of the riots, several other cities(Philadelphia, Detroit, Miami, St. Louis) reported scattered rioting and other acts of violence
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Post by mlittle » Sun Jul 03, 2011 2:16 am

Epilogue, Part 2
4 Sept. 1997, West Terrace, Velo City Hall



From a distance, City Hall shone as brightly as if hundreds of spotlights had been cast on the limestone granite building. But it wasn’t the brightness of the building’s limestone granite that had drawn people to it this day but the ceremony being held on City Hall’s Western Terrace. Facing onto Spring Street, it was a fancy way of describing the broad expanse of stairs which led into the building. As she sat there behind the dais in her uniform, everything crisp, clean and shined to a tee, Kelsey thought about what had happened and the aftermath of it all. Looking at the bandage that stuck out just beneath her right sleeve, she felt sad for the loss of Det. Chastain and the others who had died in the riots. She thought about the numerous debriefings she’d been through and how weary she was of them. She needn’t have worried, though; both Internal Affairs and the Officer-Involved Shooting Board had cleared her actions as justified. The only glint of anger she’d expressed in that time was when an OISB officer informed her as to how many people she’d shot while withdrawing up Vermont Avenue that mid-June day. She had told the pompous lieutenant, I don’t need to know how many were killed or wounded by my hand; I’ll remember that the rest of my life! She had occasionally entertained thoughts of leaving the department but decided to stay, knowing she had, in one sense, found her calling in life. For all the bad things that could occur, she believed, what other job offers you the chance to save people’s lives in turn?

Before she could say anything else, the ceremony began as several high-ranking officers, including Chief Bernard Parks, strode to their seats behind the dais. After a short invocation, Chief Parks walked up to the dais and began to speak. “Thank you, Reverand Bedard for those words of inspiration. Ladies and gentlemen, today we are here to honor one of our own with the Velo City Police Department’s highest award for valor and bravery. The events of June 13-June 17 will forever be etched into, not just the department’s memory but Velo City’s memory. It was a period of strife and violence not seen in years and yet, many of our brave men and women who wear the city’s uniform exhibited acts of bravery, courage and valor that will be remembered for years to come. Many of you are aware of the actions of the officers assigned to the anti-riot cordon at Vermont and Florence in South Velo; for several hours a handful of officers braved and pushed back hundreds of rioters intent of committing numerous acts of looting and violence in that area. However, it was the actions of one officer in particular who we honor today.”

As he paused, two of the senior officers on-stage rose and walked to the dais. One was holding a ribbon with the deparment’s Medal of Valor hanging from it; the other carried a copy of the citation which went with the medal, which he handed to Chief Parks. “Before I present the Medal of Valor to Officer McNeal for her actions that day, I would like to read the citation to go with the medal.” He cleared his throat, then began to read the citation in front of him. “During anti-riot duty in 77th Division, Officer McNeal and members of the division’s Tactical Unit responded to a “Officer Needs Help” call at the corner of Florence Ave. and Vermont Ave. Upon arrival, McNeal and her fellow officers witnessed several dozen rioters assaulting 77th Division Detective Angela Chastain and Officers Mike Empringham and Richard Moore. Disregarding her own safety, McNeal rushed to the three officers, rendering assistance and keeping the rioters at bay with carefully aimed fire from both her service weapon, those of Officers’ Empringham and Moore and a riot gun armed with bean-bag and pellet rounds. During the course of the rescue, McNeal’s fellow officers were able to take Empringham and Moore to safety despite multiple injuries to those involved, including McNeal. As additional officers arrived on-scene, McNeal directed them to set up an anti-riot cordon at the intersection of Florence and Vermont, using the officers’ patrol vehicles to anchor the cordon line, preventing the rioters from proceeding northward on Vermont Avenue. Although Detective Chastain later succumbed to her wounds, McNeal’s leadership was instrumental in getting all three of her fellow officers out of the area for medical treatment. Officer Kelsey McNeal’s courage, leadership, discipline and presence of mind embody the finest traditions of the Velo City Police Department. Officer McNeal is hereby awarded the Medal of Valor for her actions.”

Everyone in the audience stood and applauded as Officer McNeal stood and solemnly walked to the dais. Handing her the citation, Chief Parks said, “Congratulations, Officer McNeal!” as she leaned forward to allow them to place the ribbon and medal around her neck. Photographers snapped pictures of her and everyone on the dais as she shook hand after hand, thinking to herself, I was just doing my duty.......................

(Present-day, early 2012)
.................I was just doing my duty, she said to herself, continuing to look at the picture of herself from that day. She turned away for a moment, looking towards another photo, that of her and some of her pals’ in the 77th Tactical unit taken just after the South Velo Riots. How things change, she mused as she looked at the photo. Standing in the fore were both her and then-Officer Brown while several others stood behind them, including both Officers Empringham and Moore. I wonder what happened to them, she said to herself as she walked over and grabbed her jacket. Slipping it on, she looked at herself in the small office mirror, making sure the Medal of Valor pin that was on the jacket was still there. Whistling for a second as she walked to the door, she walked out of the office and headed for the elevators, a week’s vacation ahead of her in Big Bear country. As she stepped into the elevator, she put away the thoughts of that time back in ‘97 and thinking, I might not miss South Velo, but God.....I still love this Job......
The Sci-Fi Station Come by and visit when you get the chance. :)
The Wayward Tarheel I'm even in the blogosphere.... :shock:

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