Mar/Apr 2026 - Rely on Character, Faith on the Job

I have spent many years participating in and observing the criminal justice system, and I have seen many reformed offenders repeat the same bad behavior. I have seen offenders attend life skills classes or receive a certification for completing behavioral classes and then get back into normal society, only to fail miserably.

I had a person on my caseload in house arrest who begged and pleaded for a chance at house arrest. They had family members and ministers plead with me for a chance. I refused because this person had been on house arrest twice before and failed. My supervisor ordered me to give this person another chance, and I did as I was told. Within 24 hours of being released to her home, the device was cut, and the family blamed LVMPD for not helping her. My partner and I caught the offender seven days later, and when caught, they were under the influence of alcohol and cocaine.

So, my question is – do the so-called rehabilitation programs work? Studies have shown that roughly 80% of the people in these programs will fail and re-offend. In my opinion, this program is nothing more than an avenue for the people in charge to make money through this fake idea of reforming criminals to allow them an opportunity to become an integral part of society. Are there some success stories? Yes! But let's be serious. We are allowing people who have committed sometimes heinous crimes to say, "I'm sorry." I have heard these same apologies in court over a thousand times.

Can you imagine being a loyal employee, trying to serve your community, only to have a situation arise where you are accused of being a thief and betraying the values you hold dear? No one officer or employee is perfect, and sometimes we are put in positions where circumstances are not good. But the benefit of the doubt always seems to rest with those who have committed crimes. If an officer is accused of a crime or an infraction, then it seems we are guilty until proven innocent.

Our profession over the past few years has seen a rise in frivolous complaints and a rush to judgment on anyone wearing a badge. It is disheartening when you go to work every day, and then you have to defend yourself against the lies stated by people who have violated the law. Our only recourse is to rely on our character and faith that good things will come to those who do good. Our officers do a lot of good work, but unfortunately, the bad always outweighs the good. A supervisor once told me that you can do 99 things perfectly, but if you make one mistake, it will outweigh the 99 good things you did. A wise man once said to me, "Be wary of people who don't acknowledge your success but focus on your failures."