Chapter 5: I Want to Be a Police Officer

Hearing Mark’s words, Ozzie was overjoyed and jumped up in excitement—who would want to be a homeless wanderer, sleeping on the streets every night? Although he had lost his cash, most of his money was in his bank account, so it wasn’t a big problem.

After Ozzie had finished venting his emotions, Mark scratched his head and asked, “Ozzie, what are your plans now? I mean, do you want to go back to your home country or stay in the United States? From reviewing your information, we found that you entered on a tourist visa, but there’s a large amount of US dollars in your bank account. Are you planning to stay here?”

“Of course I want to stay in the United States. I sold all my assets just so I could stay here forever,” Ozzie replied. But what he really thought was, I’ve already activated the system—going back home now would be insane. Of course I’ll stay in America: first, get myself a rifle, then an AK, build up my strength, and create a new legend.

“You know, your tourist visa only allows you to stay a short while. If you want to remain long-term, there’s a US law that fits your situation: foreign nationals who are victims of crime in the United States and suffer physical or mental harm are eligible for certain protections. If you’re willing to help law enforcement with their investigation and subsequent proceedings, the immigration office can grant you a U visa, which gives you legal residency here. You can also apply for an EAD (A19 category) work permit, which allows you to work any job without restriction. After living here for a while, you can even apply for a green card. If you want to stay, I suggest you keep cooperating with law enforcement—it’ll help your future life a great deal.”

There was such a rule? Ozzie had done some research before coming; he knew that a technical work visa required an invitation from a US employer, and the wait for an immigration visa could be more than half a year. He wasn’t about to wait that long, so he’d just come on a tourist visa, not knowing anything about the so-called U visa or work permit. In any case, he’d come and was determined not to leave.

Ozzie nodded immediately. “Of course I’m willing to cooperate with you and bring those criminals to justice!”

“That’s great. Come on, I’ll take you to our substation and help you with the procedures. Once you get your identification, you can submit your U visa application at immigration.”

“How could I trouble you like that? Just give me the address and I’ll take a cab myself,” Ozzie replied with feigned modesty.

Mark glanced at Ozzie’s worn clothes and said, “Come on, man, do you even have money for a cab? I came here just for you—right now, you are my work. Hop in.”

What a good guy! Whoever says there are no good people in America, I, Ozzie, am the first to disagree!

This was the first time in years Ozzie had ever ridden in a police car, and he looked around excitedly.

“You can look, but don’t touch anything, OK?” Mark started the car, admonished Ozzie, and then drove back to the Temple City substation.

Ozzie nodded quickly. There was a rifle on the center console—no way he’d mess with that. Who knew if it was loaded? The American police car was indeed different: bulletproof vests stuffed behind the seats, the center console removed and replaced with a gun rack holding an AR-15 assault rifle and a green shotgun, a police light controller, a laptop, and an onboard radio system at the gear lever.

He glanced at Mark, fully equipped with a pistol, handcuffs, magazines, and a radio. Ozzie suddenly had other thoughts.

Mark quickly drove them back to his substation. Ozzie got out and was disappointed to see that the place was just a single-story building with no fence—no grandeur at all. The parking lot was big but nearly empty.

Mark noticed Ozzie’s confusion. “There were two shootings last night—three people dead. My colleagues are all out investigating.”

A chill ran down Ozzie’s spine, and he laughed awkwardly to brush it off.

He followed Mark inside. At the front desk sat a classic American middle-aged woman—plump, in her forties or fifties.

“Hi, Susan, help our young man Ozzie with his paperwork and give him his documents. Also, he’s willing to help with the investigation; help him fill out the form—he needs to go to immigration for a U visa,” Mark said, then turned to Ozzie. “This is Susan, she’ll help you with everything.”

“I will,” Ozzie nodded. “Hi Susan, I’m Ozzie. Pleased to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too, handsome young man,” Susan replied, rising to fetch Ozzie’s documents from the evidence room.

Ozzie checked the contents—passport, visa, bank card, and more, all intact and barely damaged. Apparently, the driver had just taken the money and tossed the bag at home. Ozzie truly had incredible luck.

Then Susan took Ozzie to a computer, registered his information, had him fill out endless forms, collected his fingerprints, printed everything, and got the necessary stamps—procedure complete.

Mark then accompanied Ozzie to the city hall’s immigration office to apply for a U visa and an EAD work permit, so Ozzie could support himself with a job.

By the time everything was done, the afternoon had passed. Mark took him back to the station since he was getting off work.

“Come on, get in. I’ll drive you to your place.” Mark had changed into casual clothes and pulled out his own car—his patrol car was official property, but he wouldn’t drive it home, preferring his personal vehicle.

Ozzie didn’t rush to get in. He glanced back at the station’s entrance, thought for a moment, and asked, “Mark, you said there are no restrictions on what jobs I can take with this work permit. Does that mean I can become a police officer?”

Mark was surprised. “Why would you want to be a police officer? I mean, very few Chinese choose this path—they tend to prefer business.”

“You know, I was robbed, and you, my friend, have gone out of your way to help me. It made me realize I should do something, too, to help those in need. There’s nothing better than being a police officer,” Ozzie replied earnestly.

Not that anyone would believe that! The real reason was that Ozzie was impressed by the American police’s gear. Along the way, Mark had told him the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department had 18,000 deputies—not counting civilian staff—and the Los Angeles Police Department had 9,000. Other cities had their own departments, too.

In other words, the greater Los Angeles area probably had forty or fifty thousand police officers—driving around, armed with long and short guns, ready to empty a magazine at a moment’s notice.

For ordinary citizens, that might bring a sense of security.

But for Ozzie, it was a disaster. He intended to be a scourge of crime, which would inevitably mean gunfights. At first, Ozzie might go unnoticed, but if he did too much, he was bound to attract attention. The thought of tens of thousands of officers hunting him down was daunting.

If you can’t beat them, join them.

If I become a police officer, I’ll have access to inside information. How will they catch me then?

And as a cop, he could take out criminal targets openly—who could object if a police officer shot a bad guy?

The only worry now was how one joined the LASD. If it was like back home, requiring a police academy degree, that could be a problem.

“Ozzie, I should say we’d be very happy to have more Chinese officers, but due to LASD’s requirements, to become a deputy, you need to be a US citizen, pass a background check, complete police academy training, and pass the assessments,” Mark explained.

So it wasn’t possible—Ozzie was disappointed, and the thought of tens of thousands of LA cops left him even more dejected.

“But, that’s not the only way,” Mark continued.

Why is this American being so cryptic?

“The department welcomes community members passionate about public service to help keep our society safe and maintain order. That’s why we have a Reserve Deputy Sheriff program.

According to LASD’s recruitment policies, as long as you’re legally authorized to work in the US under federal law, you can apply. Since you have an EAD, you qualify. (I checked the LASD website—it really says so; citizenship is not required.)

If you apply, we’ll do a background check, then provide certain training—law, first aid, patrol drills, and so on. After you complete the training, you’ll be issued a uniform, badge, and police equipment. You’ll be authorized to carry firearms and make arrests. LASD has over six hundred reserve deputies, many of whom are full-time.

After training, you can freely choose your assignment or station. Reserve deputies serve in a variety of roles: patrol, rescue teams, aviation, off-road motorcycle patrol, air rescue, K9 units, and more—fully utilizing their talents.

Most importantly, if we’re short-staffed and don’t have enough academy graduates, we select suitable candidates from the reserve deputies to become full deputies. Of course, by then it’s best if you’ve already applied for citizenship. You can serve while your application is pending, unless it’s denied.

Our compensation is solid, too—a reserve deputy makes over $7,000 a month. After three years, you get a bonus equal to two months’ salary, and promotions come with at least a five percent raise. Having a bachelor’s degree gives you an extra salary bump.

There are also benefits—health insurance, sick leave, annual leave, retirement, and if you complete a bilingual certification as a Chinese speaker, there’s another pay raise. Join us, partner.”