There are no doubts that cops in general have a unique bulls-eye view of the seedy side of life. In undercover work, they live, breath and sometimes take part in the underbelly of the illicit world of bad-guys. As the patrol cop, they have their regular arrests, and go to the same location on habitual calls. They know their beat, and those who decorate it with their lives. As a correctional officer, they live with the inmates. Often referred to as the ‘other inmates’ because of the time the officers spend in custody supervising those who have made the choice to make it their permanent home. This is as much a female cop’s world as her male counterpart.What bothers me in fiction and on the silver screen  is how ‘bitchy’ female cops are towards their arrestees. They are, ( enough for me to notice) portrayed as insensitive on the edge of cruel, appearing very insecure about their chosen profession.  The angry women with a disfunctional background, with a explosive temper, now legally packing a cannon, with a very ichy tigger finger, seems to be the norm.In reality, most of your female cops are very sensitive, and struggle with the softer side of their personality every time they come on duty. They deal with some pretty ugly and tough situations that force them to push aside all their maternal instincts to make life or death spilt-second judgment calls.The criminals themselves treat the female officer differently. There was at one time a code of ethics, (if you can believe it) among criminals not to assault a female officer. My understanding now, since I’ve retired, the code was thrown out by the new generation criminal.I asked an old-time gangster inmate I knew well, why the code. I was expecting some small speech on respect for the female form, the mother image, something of that nature. His answer surprised me. Criminals have led law enforcement to believe the reason behind the code was because of the size of most females. That to engage in a fight or assault a female was not a fair fight. It’s hard to believe there is a whole code of ethics and concerns about fairness among criminals, but there is, as odd as it may sound. The truth, most criminals don’t assault a female, is because of her training. The criminals aren’t sure what she is capable of, and assume most departments train their female officers better then the males, so they can protect themselves against the possibility of rape. The truth, the real hard core truth, criminals believe the majority of female officers are more then just capable, but will hurt them. It’s embarrassing to get your ass-kicked by a small woman, so the old-time gangster told me. A simple explanation, I personally wasn’t expecting, and that the code has more to do with commonsense then any ethical ideals.When it comes down to it, a female officer has always got to be at the ready, because she just might find herself fighting with a male suspect, hoping and praying the troops are on the way. And it’s not just a struggle, but an all out fight for her life. Is there specialized training for female cops? No. Because of equality in the work place, she receives the same defensive tactics as the men. She can’t be treated special.When a female officer puts on her last piece of equipment in the locker room, and closes the door of the her locker, which is often plastered with photos of her children, pets and the significant-other, she knows there is a 50-50 chance she won’t be coming home at the end of the shift. But it’s a choice. A choice she has made.There is more to the complexity of the female cop and the criminal. Next week I’ll cover the female correctional officer in the men’s jail, because the relationship she has with criminals is significantly different, then street cops.  Question of the Day: What passes through your mind when you see a female patrol officer?