Cop For A Day

A retired businessman gets the inside story on what it's like to be in law enforcement.

Elizabeth Applebaum

Special to the Jewish News

B

y 8 a.m., the dogs were poised
for the search. They were well-
rested, well-fed and ready.
The air was fresh in the open field, where
wind tumbled down the small hills and the
grass grew untamed. Beside the dogs stood
a handful of policemen from the Oakland
County Sheriff's office in Pontiac. This
would be a difficult job.
In the middle of it all was a retired
businessman — Douglas Bloom of
Birmingham, who was about to learn what
it was like to be law enforcement for a day.
Earlier this year, Bloom won a bid on a
chance to see firsthand the hard work of
the Oakland County Sheriff's office. The
event was part of a fundraiser for the Jewish
Community Center of Metropolitan Detroit.
"It sounded like fun:' Bloom said.
It was certainly memorable.
It began early in the morning when
Bloom headed off to the Oxford Theatre,
where he joined nine officers, detectives
and a team of police dogs working on a
troubling case: a murdered child.
In the fields, Bloom watched as the men
and dogs searched for a gun believed to
have been used in the case. It was tedious
work with no resolution.
"No one could find the gun:' Bloom said.
"They assume it must have been thrown
into a lake
Bloom then met up with Officer Craig
Rathbun, who works in and around White
Lake, Pine Knob and Waterford. The two
rode in a police car then had lunch.
Bloom's key observation from both his
morning experiences: "Everybody is totally

Douglas Bloom gets ready to board the police helicopter.

dedicated to doing a good job."
"I really admire and respect what they
do:' he added. "They constantly have to
respond to who-knows-what. They simply
can't know what they'll run into in any day."
A ride in a police helicopter followed.
Bloom had the chance to see how quickly,
and accurately, police can locate and track
a suspect — or just the home of an ordi-
nary citizen. Bloom gave his own address
to the police GPS and soon found himself
looking down at his own roof. It was, he

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says, "a fantastic view."
In the afternoon, Bloom visited the
Oakland County law enforcement forensic
labs for two hours. The average person
might find this a bit creepy, but Bloom was
fascinated.
The chief forensic artist was doing a bit of
work on some very, very old bodies: mum-
mies, in fact, which she was helping prepare
for an exhibit at the Detroit Science Center.
Her expertise — she even writes manu-
als for the FBI — is recreating faces with

only a skull for a guide.
"It was all very CSI [Crime Scene
Investigation]," Bloom said, "but still very
real."
Searching for guns, mummies, criminals:
It might sound like enough for one lifetime.
Bloom hopes not. He's planning to bid on
the same opportunity again next year if it
comes up for bid. fl

Elizabeth Applebaum is a marketing specialist

at the JCC.

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December 10 • 2009

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