Read Online Hero To Zero 2nd edition by Zach Fortier - Free Book Online
Authors: Zach Fortier
Tags: Crime, Police, True Crime, Criminals, Autobiography, Cops, gang crime, bad cops, Ann Rule, cop criminals, zach fortier, Street Crime
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brothers working as cops. Looking back now, I recall at least five sets of brothers working for the department. But none of them were more dysfunctional than the Preston brothers. They are great examples of amazing cops who went down in flames.
The Preston brothers were as different as night and day. Mike, the older one, was tall, thin, and had a head full of dark hair. He loved attention, loved to party, and went to all the department functions. Scott, the younger one, was stocky, athletic, had thinning hair, and was edgy as hell. He hated parties. He trusted and socialized with no one. Both were gifted in their own way. Here are their stories:
MIKE PRESTON
Mike Preston had one major goal as a kid. He wanted to be a cop more than anything. He watched every Dirty Harry Callahan movie, every John Wayne movie, and every cop show there was to watch on TV. He had to become a cop; it was an obsession. But he had some very serious obstacles to overcome to make that goal a reality.
First, Mike and Scott were both raised poor in the city in which they worked. That meant baggage from inner-city life. Mike was a high-school dropout. At seventeen, he had been kicked out of every high school within driving range for fighting and failure to attend classes. He could not overcome the demons of his childhood. Angry and looking for a face to smash so he could vent his anger, he fought all the time, and when there was no one to fight, there was always his favorite punching bag: his brother Scott.
At twenty-four, Mike decided it was time to turn his life around. He was working as a gas-station attendant for minimum wage. He had not graduated high school. He had an arrest record for drugs. He was married to a woman he had met at a drag race in which he was driving, and he had impregnated her with one of the five illegitimate children he would eventually sire. But in spite of all that, he decided one day to try to become a cop.
If he had had any idea what a long shot it was for a convicted drug grower and user to become a cop, he would have tried for something else. But he had no idea that people who get arrested for drugs never make it as cops. So he charged forward.
To make a very long story short, he amazingly overcame all those obstacles. He had his criminal record expunged, obtained his GED, he divorced the crazy drag-racing groupie he’d married, and through a series of incredibly lucky breaks became a cop in the city in which he and his brother Scott had grown up.
In his mind, Mike had arrived. He had dug himself out of a crushing hole of poverty and no future and had become a cop. He bought a used Corvette to reward himself.
He worked all the overtime shifts he could get, and saved up for his dream house in the mountains above the city. He was not a good father, or a good husband. But he had achieved his childhood dream of being a cop.
His father was immensely proud of Mike, his oldest son, and of his accomplishments. He bragged about him often at the coffee shop in the afternoons, after work, and on the weekends.
One day Mike’s dad had coffee at his favorite coffee shop with a man who was also a cop.
“Do you know my son, Mike? If so, what do you think of him?”
“You should be proud of him. Mike is an outstanding rookie and a bright star in the department. Mike has some issues, he has a hard time controlling his anger, and the department has taken his nightstick away for excessive force, but overall he is going to be a solid cop…someday.”
Mike’s dad beamed with pride at this report on his oldest son. Think of how he felt, knowing his oldest son was a cop in the city in which he had raised him. He could not have been more proud of his son and all that he had overcome to get where he was.
Mike paid his dues in patrol. He handled calls like the rest of the rookies. He had a few bumps along the way, and nearly lost it all when one day a senior patrolman suddenly remembered who Mike really was. Mike had a
The Preston brothers were as different as night and day. Mike, the older one, was tall, thin, and had a head full of dark hair. He loved attention, loved to party, and went to all the department functions. Scott, the younger one, was stocky, athletic, had thinning hair, and was edgy as hell. He hated parties. He trusted and socialized with no one. Both were gifted in their own way. Here are their stories:
MIKE PRESTON
Mike Preston had one major goal as a kid. He wanted to be a cop more than anything. He watched every Dirty Harry Callahan movie, every John Wayne movie, and every cop show there was to watch on TV. He had to become a cop; it was an obsession. But he had some very serious obstacles to overcome to make that goal a reality.
First, Mike and Scott were both raised poor in the city in which they worked. That meant baggage from inner-city life. Mike was a high-school dropout. At seventeen, he had been kicked out of every high school within driving range for fighting and failure to attend classes. He could not overcome the demons of his childhood. Angry and looking for a face to smash so he could vent his anger, he fought all the time, and when there was no one to fight, there was always his favorite punching bag: his brother Scott.
At twenty-four, Mike decided it was time to turn his life around. He was working as a gas-station attendant for minimum wage. He had not graduated high school. He had an arrest record for drugs. He was married to a woman he had met at a drag race in which he was driving, and he had impregnated her with one of the five illegitimate children he would eventually sire. But in spite of all that, he decided one day to try to become a cop.
If he had had any idea what a long shot it was for a convicted drug grower and user to become a cop, he would have tried for something else. But he had no idea that people who get arrested for drugs never make it as cops. So he charged forward.
To make a very long story short, he amazingly overcame all those obstacles. He had his criminal record expunged, obtained his GED, he divorced the crazy drag-racing groupie he’d married, and through a series of incredibly lucky breaks became a cop in the city in which he and his brother Scott had grown up.
In his mind, Mike had arrived. He had dug himself out of a crushing hole of poverty and no future and had become a cop. He bought a used Corvette to reward himself.
He worked all the overtime shifts he could get, and saved up for his dream house in the mountains above the city. He was not a good father, or a good husband. But he had achieved his childhood dream of being a cop.
His father was immensely proud of Mike, his oldest son, and of his accomplishments. He bragged about him often at the coffee shop in the afternoons, after work, and on the weekends.
One day Mike’s dad had coffee at his favorite coffee shop with a man who was also a cop.
“Do you know my son, Mike? If so, what do you think of him?”
“You should be proud of him. Mike is an outstanding rookie and a bright star in the department. Mike has some issues, he has a hard time controlling his anger, and the department has taken his nightstick away for excessive force, but overall he is going to be a solid cop…someday.”
Mike’s dad beamed with pride at this report on his oldest son. Think of how he felt, knowing his oldest son was a cop in the city in which he had raised him. He could not have been more proud of his son and all that he had overcome to get where he was.
Mike paid his dues in patrol. He handled calls like the rest of the rookies. He had a few bumps along the way, and nearly lost it all when one day a senior patrolman suddenly remembered who Mike really was. Mike had a
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