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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Speeding Violation Turns Into Dramatic, Dangerous Experience

Cheryl Powell Ferris

…The real excitement started around 1:30 a.m. Trooper (Mike) Shaw stopped at an on-ramp and turned off his lights. We sat and waited. Not more than a minute or two passed when a gray Volkswagen went flying by. We passed him doing about 90 mph when Trooper Shaw flipped on the lights and sirens.

The driver took the Argonne exit, doing about 60 mph, running the light and almost rolling his car. He eventually ran into a curb and jumped out of his car and started to yell things.

Trooper Shaw told him numerous times to get on his knees; instead he started to back up as if he was going to run. Trooper Shaw grabbed him and tried to put him to the ground to cuff him, but the man started to fight. It seemed to go on forever and I was feeling helpless.

The situation had gone from bad to worse. I got on the radio and called for help as I was instructed to do if a situation ever got out of hand. I wanted to get out of the car so badly, but the rules are you don’t get out.

An off-duty police officer saw the scuffle and stopped to help Shaw handcuff the driver. After more scuffling and more help from other officers, the heart-pounding experience was finally over.

This whole experience showed really showed me a lot of things. I learned how truly dangerous the job can be. So many people have no idea what cops go through every day. Their jobs can be so negative. Every day is different, there is always a new challenge.

I have always wanted to be a cop and seeing what they do firsthand has sparked my interests even more.

Society is pretty rough on our cops. Yes, some of them are too rough, but cut them a break. They are doing such a hard and dangerous job.

So for all of those who think all cops are bad or jerks, you’re wrong. It’s hard to put into words what this experience meant to me. I definitely learned a valuable lesson about life and that it’s not to be taken for granted because you can lose it all in a flash.

Thanks for the ride, Mike. I learned a lot from you.

Editor’s note: Cheryl Powell is the daughter of State Patrol Sgt. Chris Powell.