Hollywood makes police work look inspiring and noble. News stations heavily edit stories of crime to avoid overly upsetting viewers. Courtrooms are full of spun tales that are little better than lies. Only the beat cop really knows the gritty truth of dealing with the worst humanity has to offer.
Beat Cop presents the stories beat cops tell each other—an oral history of experiences passed down to rookies in police departments across the nation. Each of these tales is true and reveals a harsh world few outside the beat cops’ world understand.
Ben Celano, himself a twenty-two-year veteran of the Chicago streets, presents his fellow officers’ most harrowing and memorable tales. Their recollections are not for the weak of heart: these are tales of drugged-out lunatics, homicides, shootings, rapes, and bitterly violent domestic disputes.
These are the streets, as seen from the point of view of the beat cop. Some may respond to these stories with outrage or shock, but such responses don’t make the officers’ stories any less true. This is the reality in which brave men and women live their lives and serve their communities. They should be respected, and their stories should be told.