Drunk Guys and Guns
I can't have a 'normal' night at work anymore...
Yesterday gave me a new and unique situation that I hadn't had to deal with previously. Let me start at the beginning....
I worked the condo complex where I mainly do parking control, all was going smoothly. The road construction getting there wasn't even all that bad. I tagged one car, had the owners of two more move their vehicles, and then I headed back east to the little mall I work. I was already tired, haven't slept real well the past couple days. But at least things were going smoothly.
The officer I releived at the mall said that 'all was quiet' and it was 'really dead'. It seems like every time Dan tells me that, things go to hell in a handbasket. Last night would be no different. I made my first round inside, all was good. I headed outside, watched the liquor store close, then started lot patrol. I came across a very drunk, older gentleman sleeping in his car. I woke him up, he insisted he was fine, and so I left him with the intentions of keeping an eye on him for the remainder of the night. With that done, I then got treated to observing a younger male party under the influence of something unhealthy, doing strange things in the parking lot. I followed him for an entire lap around the building, then he doubled back when I parked again. This sort of gave me the creeps, but the party finally left and that was the end of that. So I thought.
Another inside round revealed nothing unusual. Good, life was leveling out, so I had hoped. I had a sinking feeling in the pit of my gut, so I decided to go check on Mr. Intoxicated who was still soundly slumbering in his truck. It had been about half an hour since I had checked on him last, and he was still out. At this point I made the decision to call DPD and have them come babysit him or call detox. For some reason I decided to walk partway around the building to a different set of doors than the ones I walked out of, and that's when I came acros a rather unusual object laying in my parking lot.
A 9mm pistol. Just my freakin' luck.
I followed my first gut reaction, which was to summon the powers of the Denver Police Department. I told the dispatcher everything I could, careful to not to touch the offending object. She said they would get an officer out as soon as possible, but they were rather busy. Normally not a lot's going on Thursday nights, but it was a full moon. With that taken care of, I took up playing guard duty for the damned thing. I felt like an akwad idiot, standing in the parking lot obviously watching or hiding something. At least I had full view of Mr. Intoxicated, and could use him as an excuse for my strange behavior.
Time wore on, and I started to get nervous standing over the pistol. I started wondering what would happen if the owner came back for it. Discretion is the better part of valor, so I called my bosses to see if anyone was in the area. Nope, I was SOL as far as higher-ranking individuals, so I used what little rank I hold to call another civillian off a different property so I wouldn't have to stand out there by myself like an idiot. While waiting on Brian to show I had a couple pull up in their car and ask me how to get to the DMV office (at 030 in the morning! Honestly!), had several bar regulars stop and want to chat, and three very drunk men stand out in the lot and howl at the moon. I was really starting to fear for my sanity by this point.
Brian showed about 1AM. I had been lording over the damned gun for 50 minutes now, and it was nice to have some company. He pulled his truck in front of it so it would be harder to see. Then we commenced waiting. I had called DPD twice by this point, the second time to tell them I was standing out there by my lonesome and I wasn't wholly comfortable with that. It did nothing to sway them to move any faster. By 2:30 the bars closed, and Brian and I were still there. At a little after 4, a single DPD officer arrived. He cleared the weapon (it was unloaded) said he thought it was connected to a 'menacing' that they had been handling, removed the object of our attentions and left.
It was really rather anti-climactic.
I finally got my happy ass out of the mall at 4:45, when I'm supposed to leave at 3, usually I leave at 2-2:30. I made a quick run-through of my last property and went home to crash. I was still pretty awake, so I didn't fall asleep until well after 6. Didn't sleep all that well, and now I need to finish this out and head off for my 10-hour shift. Joy.
We'll see what happens tonight. I'm on call, so who knows...
Down and gone,
~Laken
Yesterday gave me a new and unique situation that I hadn't had to deal with previously. Let me start at the beginning....
I worked the condo complex where I mainly do parking control, all was going smoothly. The road construction getting there wasn't even all that bad. I tagged one car, had the owners of two more move their vehicles, and then I headed back east to the little mall I work. I was already tired, haven't slept real well the past couple days. But at least things were going smoothly.
The officer I releived at the mall said that 'all was quiet' and it was 'really dead'. It seems like every time Dan tells me that, things go to hell in a handbasket. Last night would be no different. I made my first round inside, all was good. I headed outside, watched the liquor store close, then started lot patrol. I came across a very drunk, older gentleman sleeping in his car. I woke him up, he insisted he was fine, and so I left him with the intentions of keeping an eye on him for the remainder of the night. With that done, I then got treated to observing a younger male party under the influence of something unhealthy, doing strange things in the parking lot. I followed him for an entire lap around the building, then he doubled back when I parked again. This sort of gave me the creeps, but the party finally left and that was the end of that. So I thought.
Another inside round revealed nothing unusual. Good, life was leveling out, so I had hoped. I had a sinking feeling in the pit of my gut, so I decided to go check on Mr. Intoxicated who was still soundly slumbering in his truck. It had been about half an hour since I had checked on him last, and he was still out. At this point I made the decision to call DPD and have them come babysit him or call detox. For some reason I decided to walk partway around the building to a different set of doors than the ones I walked out of, and that's when I came acros a rather unusual object laying in my parking lot.
A 9mm pistol. Just my freakin' luck.
I followed my first gut reaction, which was to summon the powers of the Denver Police Department. I told the dispatcher everything I could, careful to not to touch the offending object. She said they would get an officer out as soon as possible, but they were rather busy. Normally not a lot's going on Thursday nights, but it was a full moon. With that taken care of, I took up playing guard duty for the damned thing. I felt like an akwad idiot, standing in the parking lot obviously watching or hiding something. At least I had full view of Mr. Intoxicated, and could use him as an excuse for my strange behavior.
Time wore on, and I started to get nervous standing over the pistol. I started wondering what would happen if the owner came back for it. Discretion is the better part of valor, so I called my bosses to see if anyone was in the area. Nope, I was SOL as far as higher-ranking individuals, so I used what little rank I hold to call another civillian off a different property so I wouldn't have to stand out there by myself like an idiot. While waiting on Brian to show I had a couple pull up in their car and ask me how to get to the DMV office (at 030 in the morning! Honestly!), had several bar regulars stop and want to chat, and three very drunk men stand out in the lot and howl at the moon. I was really starting to fear for my sanity by this point.
Brian showed about 1AM. I had been lording over the damned gun for 50 minutes now, and it was nice to have some company. He pulled his truck in front of it so it would be harder to see. Then we commenced waiting. I had called DPD twice by this point, the second time to tell them I was standing out there by my lonesome and I wasn't wholly comfortable with that. It did nothing to sway them to move any faster. By 2:30 the bars closed, and Brian and I were still there. At a little after 4, a single DPD officer arrived. He cleared the weapon (it was unloaded) said he thought it was connected to a 'menacing' that they had been handling, removed the object of our attentions and left.
It was really rather anti-climactic.
I finally got my happy ass out of the mall at 4:45, when I'm supposed to leave at 3, usually I leave at 2-2:30. I made a quick run-through of my last property and went home to crash. I was still pretty awake, so I didn't fall asleep until well after 6. Didn't sleep all that well, and now I need to finish this out and head off for my 10-hour shift. Joy.
We'll see what happens tonight. I'm on call, so who knows...
Down and gone,
~Laken