Dodging behind cover

Bullets flying

Partner screaming

When will the backup be here?

He lunges out, returns fire

He dives for cover a few feet forward

Looks around the cover and sees his chance

Raises his pistol

Steadies his shaky hands

Pulls the trigger

Thud

silence

He goes back inside the house and checks on the lady that had just been assaulted

He hears the blare of the cop cars coming

Backup finally arrives

He explains what happened

“I saw him run outside, he fired in my direction.”

“I then took cover.”

I saw him again, shot and killed him.”

The backup goes outside to look at the scene

And it almost hits them like a punch to the gut when they see it

They come back

Heads down

Almost in a whisper

In a stuttery and shaky voice, an officer states

“There was no weapon outside.”

The officer stares stunned.

He slowly takes off his weapon and badge.

News vans arrive

They suck away all dignity from this cop

Funding stripped completely from their department

The court date is set

The cop…charged with life in prison for manslaughter

He arrives at the prison

two days in they find him

facedown

unconscious

blood slowly seeping out of his chest

the guards carefully pulling the knife out in disgust

Do we have the right notion of justice?

Is it really the criminal justice system?

Why are we hurting the ones that protect us the most?

How does taking power and money from those already limited help society?