True Blue Stories

POLICE STORIES WANTED:

Attention current, former and retired Law Enforcement Officers. Lt. Randy Sutton (Ret) is seeking stories for the next edition of the TRUE BLUE POLICE STORIES series! This is an amazing opportunity for writers and story tellers, as you can submit your story either in writing or verbally. By working directly with bestselling author Randy Sutton, your story can come to life and be considered for being published in the next edition of the popular series with partial proceeds going to assist THE WOUNDED BLUE FOUNDATION for injured and disabled Law Enforcement Officers.

Every Law Enforcement Officer has a story and TRUE BLUE is the place to share it. You can check out the various category of stories below but don’t concern yourself with labels, we will figure out where it belongs. Don’t be intimidated about writing your story either, we have professional editors that will help the story come to life. If you would prefer to record your story, we will transcribe it and then work with you to edit it to a readable written piece.

PERSONAL NOTE FROM RANDY SUTTON:
Having been a Police Officer for more than three decades, I understand the how policing can change a person and the often painful emotional traumas we witness are often bottled up, never to be released. Sharing these stories can be extremely cathartic and offer a release of pent up feelings. These stories can also help other officers to understand that they are not alone as well as offer a glimpse into the hearts of officers for citizens so that they may understand the challenges of this demanding profession. TRUE BLUE STORIES touches lives. Be a part of it.

Skip to Submit Story   or Read More Below about submitting.

If you would like to record your story and have it transcribed please email us at randy@truebluestories.com

Type of Stories to Submit

DEADLY FORCE

"Dropping the Perp," "Smoking the Punk," "Dropping the Hammer," "Lighting him Up." When the gun smoke clears, the phrases are legion. These are all euphemisms for the ultimate action a cop is called to perform, the taking of a human life. Most cops know that they are expected to be prepared to kill, yet judged when they do. Judged by the public, the press, their department, the courts, even their family and, most importantly…themselves. The act takes but a moment. The moment, however, lives forever frozen in time. Officers will question their courage, or perhaps be convinced of it. They will fear the uniqueness of their feelings or be comforted by them or, perhaps, suppress them. The world will be different forever.

The reality of killing another human being is never what we expect, despite the hours on the firearm range and the intensity of our training. The changes may be subtle, dramatic, destructive or inspiring, but change is inevitable. The majority of law enforcement officers know that the taking of a life is the most foreign yet compelling experience of their career. Despite Hollywood’s portrayal of America’s cops as trigger happy, troubled men and women, the reality is that less then one in two hundred will ever fire their weapons in combat during their entire careers. Many of the bullets fired will never find their mark, never leave a legacy of blood, but even the act of pulling the trigger will change the course of an officer’s life. The decision may mean their own life, their partner’s life, or the lives of the people they are sworn to protect. It is called many things, but a cop calls it "Deadly Force."

WAR STORIES

Every cop has them. You will hear them in the locker rooms of police stations in the largest cities, in the station parking lots in the smallest towns. You will hear them in neighborhood bars and hangouts where off-duty cops let off steam after the end of their watch. They’re called "war stories." These are the tales that will work their way into private conversations with other cops, and with those lucky enough to be taken into their confidence. Some are poignant, some absurd, others might offend delicate sensibilities. Some will make you laugh out loud, some will make you shake your head in amazement. These stories are a cop’s way of sharing the moment, a snapshot from his album of memorable moments in a long and riotously varied career.

THE FALLEN

The lone bugler will stand tall among the silent headstones. He will be ramrod straight, uniform crisply pressed, badge polished and gleaming. A salute will be passed and the mournful melody of "taps" will tear into the souls of all present. The flag of our nation will be folded by those who have chosen this solemn duty and handed off, as the ultimate symbol of sacrifice, to widow or parent, child or spouse.

Uniformed arms will raise in final salute as the piper plays "Amazing Grace" and seven rifles will fire as one, each of the three volleys causing the survivors to visibly flinch.

This sad scene will take place today in one part of our country and tomorrow in yet another. The ceremony is always the same, yet as different as the individual officer being honored. It is the one time in law enforcement when all personal differences and politics are forgotten and empathy unites those who share the profession.

It is the time we honor those who have given their lives in the line of duty, we call them "the fallen."

THE BEAT

Some walk a beat in the inner city, others patrol rural highways or small towns. Some wear blue uniforms, others wear khaki. Their patches are as different as their badges, but what they have in common is that every time one of them puts on his uniform, straps on his gun, and pins on his badge, he knows that he will be facing the unknown. The hours of his shift may crawl along with nothing more than checking out a broken burglar alarm to break the monotony. Or time may sail by with lights and sirens from one emergency to the next. You just never know, and that’s why it takes a certain kind of person to do the job. There are some certainties officers will be witness to, heartache, cruelty and death are constant companions to every law enforcement officer. So are humor, irony and courage. At the end of the day there are stories to tell. Stories from "The Beat".

LINE OF DUTY

Much of a police officer’s work is routine; it is simply interacting with people who have problems, or issues, or even illnesses. The truth is, the majority of the calls won’t even be remembered at the end of the week. But there is always that one call, the one that changes your life. The revelation experienced may come from inside when suddenly the cop sees something in someone or in himself that he never saw before. The stories are epiphanies – they are the stories from a cop’s life that will never be forgotten by those who have lived them. What these stories have in common is that they define the "line of duty": the line that separates cop from civilian, the line that no cop can retreat from, where every cop makes his stand no matter what it costs him.

When submitting your story, please make sure that it is a minimum of 1500 words. If you would like to record your story and have it transcribed please email us at randy@truebluestories.com