Growing up in the Michigan State Park system you can’t help but run into situations which run the gamut from ordinary to outrageous.
From the guy driving a half million dollar house on wheels while pulling an exotic sports car on the back complaining about having to spend twenty dollars for a vehicle pass for each vehicle to crazy chases in the dead of night.
This particular tale involves the latter. As old man age begins swiping my memories I can’t recall the detail as to why this chase started. I recall it involved at least one Michigan Conservation Officer and a couple of Michigan State Police Officers along with a few of the parks night duty rangers.
It was quite a sight: this lanky beanpole of a guy running from this mixed group of law enforcement professionals. The officers ranged from a guy who was average height and build to a guy who likely barely met the minimum height requirement for the police force to a mountain of a man who I would think would hit his head on the roof of the patrol car every time he sat in it.
The suspect was easily outpacing the officers and rangers who were doing their best to keep up with him. The sand worked against them. His lighter frame allowed him to skim across the beach while the larger officers sank deeper with every step. It was only the conditioning required by their jobs that gave them any chance of keeping up.
Even so, he just kept going and going. As a kid, I remember thinking he was like the Energizer Bunny. Looking back, I can only imagine the officers were wondering the same thing.
Every now and then they would lose him as he ran through the trees separating the beach from the campground. Anyone with a scanner or radio on the right frequency would hear officers and rangers coordinating as they searched the park for him.
Finally, on the campground road nearest the sites furthest from the beach, the group managed to get in behind him again. Everyone was struggling from the prolonged running and it wasn’t looking good for the officers as if he made it to the woods at the far end of the campground he could disappear and end up at the main road or any one of a couple side roads. The woods were thick with trees and at night it would be difficult to navigate.
One of the “rookie” rangers got a little caught up in his very first pursuit of a criminal suspect. He suddenly yelled out at the top of his lungs HALT! STOP! I HAVE A FLASHLIGHT!
Suddenly the scene changes from a desperate chase to complete chaos as every officer and ranger, besides the rookie, started laughing. The laughter grew to a point that all the officers had to stop because they were so winded. The upside for them is the suspect couldn’t help but laugh too. Everyone was in various poses on the ground laughing and gasping for air including the suspect. After a few moments a couple of the officers regained composure long enough to walk up to the suspect and cuff him. The laughter continued all the way back to the police cars where the suspect was finally deposited.
After the arrest, the officers told me they had found the suspect’s steroid stash. Suddenly his seemingly endless supply of energy made a lot more sense.
Looking back I don’t remember the rookie coming back to work again. Ever. I can’t say I blame him. If it had been me I would have made like an ostrich and buried my head in the sand.
I can’t help but wonder if he did return to work would they require him to register his flashlight as a lethal weapon?
One thing about this story I’ll always carry with me is the realization that laughter has power. For a few moments it stopped a police chase, disarmed a suspect, and brought everyone involved to the ground.
It seems to me that in darkness, laughter can be brighter than any flashlight.