Sticking Together
By James Alexander
Edited by Michael Saks
The public often forgets that at the end of the day towmen often go out of their way to serve the public. We provide a necessary service to governments and citizens by getting people out of trouble or moving vehicles for various reasons. Sometimes our job requires us to go above and beyond the normal when others are in trouble. Such is the case with one my most memorable tow experiences.
My name is James Alexander and for years I was a towman with a company located in Chesapeake, VA. Most of my work was very predictable and safe. It involved helping stranded motorists, towing illegally parked cars, and of course aiding the police when they needed something towed.
Thus was the case one sunny afternoon in May of 2008 when I received a call from the Chesapeake Police Department. All they said was that the car to be towed was involved in a drug related traffic stop near a Chesapeake interstate exit ramp. This being the calm suburbs, I grabbed my keys, my logbook, and fired up my rollback. As I got to the scene, nothing seemed out of the ordinary or unusual. It was still day light so I got out of the rollback to began hooking up the car. So far so good.
As I loaded, a Chesapeake police officer approached me and told me to wait a few minutes. The wait was necessary, so a K-9 officer could show up and do a search of the vehicle with one of the dogs, all standard procedure for drug stops. Sure enough, the K-9 patrol showed up and went to work sniffing out the car.
Surprisingly, no drugs were found in the car. The responding officer then noticed the driver acting in a peculiar manner. He walked over and asked him if there was something wrong. The officer noticed there was a white substance in his mouth, As this was happening three other officers arrived on the scene.
A melee broke out as the three officers and the responding officer had to fight with the guy to surrender a gram size bag of crack-cocaine. Eventually they got the suspect to spit out the drugs. I have to be honest with you, I really wasn't expecting this. As I was sitting in the rollback, my jaw looked as if it were about to fall off. I was expecting the usual "hook n book" and a quiet ride to the impound lot which was only a half mile away. The whole scene looked like it could be on Cops with officers struggling and the German shepherd barking like it had gone mad. After a few minutes, everything looked under control, and I was given the wave to hook up the car.
The assisting officers then left the scene and I attached the winch to the front of the vehicle. Most of the officers were gone now as I was loading it onto the bed. The suspect was sitting in the back of a police car and it seemed like normalcy had returned. After I loaded the car I proceeded to my impound lot.
About a few hundred feet from the original scene, I noticed the responding officer's police car stopped with its lights on, not too far from the original location of the tow. You could tell he had pulled over in a big hurry since his police cruiser was impeding traffic.
As I passed by I noticed the prisoner's legs had busted out the back window and were flailing wildly. The officer was struggling to get the man back under control as the jabs of the suspect drove the officer back. It happened multiple times as the officer repeatedly tried to shove the suspect back in the police car. With the way this call was going, this kind of scene was par for course. I had already abandoned any thought of this being a normal day. On top of that, I noticed that none of the drivers passing by were stopping to help the officer.
Why should they? This was the person that they depend on to protect them. The public sees this very difficult circumstance as part of the job of those that guard them. I did not feel this way.
I could identify with the officer and the risks he was taking to help the public. The average person has no concept of what towers, police or other service professionals go through in their daily job. All the public cares about is that we are there to help them when they need it. They love the benefit of what we provide but are not always the most supportive.
This being the case, I pulled the rollback over and got out of the truck. I honestly had no idea how I could help a police officer struggling with what appeared to be a dangerous felon. Regardless, I would try.
Standing near the officer, I yelled to him asking what I could do. He looked like he was wrestling an alligator as the suspects legs continued to flail. The officer informed me that he needed me to use my radio to call for help because his radio had been busted off in the struggle with the suspect. He yelled
"Call the Chesapeake Police Emergency line and tell them that an officer needs assistance and give them the location."
I shot back and did what he said. From the rear view window of the cab I could still see the officer struggling. I didn't have a weapon and didn't really have any experience arresting people, especially violent people. Still I wanted to try and help the officer. I grabbed my belt off my waist and ran out to help the officer. With the officer holding the legs, I wrapped the belt around the perpetrator's calves and tightened it. As I was doing this, a horde of police cars showed up to help. I was relieved, and grateful that neither of us were hurt. The officer thanked me and I got back in my truck heading toward the impound lot. My shirt was untucked. My hair was ruffled. I knew I was going to get asked some questions when I got back, but it was worth it.
Unless you are in a job where danger is an everyday possibility, it is hard to understand why you would feel compelled to get out of your vehicle and help a police officer in a dangerous situation. As a towman you often feel on your own and feel very unappreciated. I can identify with others who serve society and probably feel the same way I do. I received a call from the responding officer around 12:30 am thanking me again and telling me he was going to recommend me for a citizens recognition award. I told him it wasn't necessary and I knew he would do the same for me.
-James Alexander
Resident Towman
East Coast Truck and Trailer
