Minor Infraction

One day when I was the Chief of Police in Newell, IA, I was doing my usual Sunday ritual, mowing the yard then washing and fueling up my new Chevy Suburban. As I was parked at the gas pumps of the local convenience store, fueling my truck, a white Tahoe with three young men pulled up in front of the store. One of the young men entered the store and tried to buy beer, but the clerk asked for his ID and he split. He hopped back into his truck for a few minutes then walked over to me and tried to hand me a twenty dollar bill and asked me to buy him a twelve-pack of beer.

I told him to let me finish gassing up my truck and I would walk to his vehicle in a minute. After putting the gas cap on my truck I walked over to the Tahoe and approached the eagerly awaiting teens. I opened my wallet to display my gold badge and said, "Boys, you sure picked the wrong guy to ask to buy beer. I'm the Chief of Police … by the way, pour out the beer you have open in the truck and throw the rest in that trash can over there." Their jaws hit the ground and they quickly threw their beer away. The driver of the Tahoe reached over and poked the guy who had approached me in the ribs and said, "You idiot, you asked the Police Chief to buy us beer?!"

Michael Belmarez, Ph.D.
Lieutenant
Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Dept.
Thibodaux, LA