MAY 2023 - Blues Vol 39 No. 5

take lead on the head

take lead on the head trauma and brain injury. REVELATION Through all of this, I’ve been told I was conscious and mostly alert. But to this day, I have no memory for about three days of that time. One of my first post-crash memories is the thing that caused the most pain: a dark colored bruise running diagonally from my left hip to my right shoulder. I thought maybe I’d been slammed up against the dashboard during the crash. I asked one of the nurses what the bruise was from and she said, “Honey, that’s from the seatbelt that saved your life.” I was confused. It didn’t make sense. I never wore a seatbelt. But this was incontrovertible evidence I’d been wearing one during the crash. When I saw the pictures of the crash, there’s no denying I’d have been a goner had I not been belted in. I probably would’ve gone through the windshield like a piece of sirloin through a meat grinder. Normally never wearing a seatbelt, for some reason, Bradley had it on prior to impact. He still doesn’t remember putting it on, or why he would have. It saved his life. But alas … he still spilled his Slurpee! I hadn’t been expected to live, let alone ever work as a cop again. But I got well and returned to full duty a couple of months later. Ironically, I went to a medical aid call and the on-scene paramedics were the same ones who’d been to my crash. They looked like they’d seen a ghost when they saw me. I didn’t remember them but they sure remembered me. They told me their story from that night and I thanked them for saving my life. I gained a firsthand understanding seatbelts save the lives of police officers more often than any other piece of equipment we have. I’m not downplaying the threats we face from bad people with bad intentions, but statistics from the FBI and the National Law Enforcement Officer’s Memorial Fund don’t lie — crashes kill more cops than bad guys do. My hopeful wish is anyone who reads this story — especially you cops too — makes a conscious and logical decision to wear their seatbelt if they don’t already. In Vegas, professional gamblers play the odds and stay away from hunches or unproven methods. You should do the same. Play the odds and be a survivor. Be a professional. Don’t let something you have control over end up being what takes your life. ALL FIRST RESPONDERS & VETERANS 10% OFF A NEW INTERIOR FOR YOUR CAR,TRUCK OR SUV 12722 Hwy. 3 Webster, Texas • 281-486-9739 100 The BLUES The BLUES 101 CLICK HERE FOR WEBSITE