Beaver's Pond Books : CopBook

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CopBook

ISBN:

978-1-59298-282-0

Size:

5.5 x 8.5

By:

Richard Greelis

Subject:

Memoir | Non-fiction

Format:

Softcover - 424 pp

Dimensions:

5.5 x 8.5

Pub Date:

June- 2009

$14.95

Qty:

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Whether encouraging his cowering K-9 to reengage during a crime in progress or interviewing an unrepentant shoe molester, veteran cop Richard Greelis gives the reader a personal view of law enforcement that is sometimes hilarious and at other times painfully tragic. Copbook takes the reader on this fascinating ride-along for a taste of the human experience police are called to mitigate. Greelis draws on his career as a street cop, a SWAT team operator, a detective in both the Violent Crimes and Sex Crimes Units, a member of the FBI’s Terrorism Unit, and an undercover intel investigator for the 2008 Republican National Convention. Greelis reveals the true heart of a cop, beating wildly at times, but always insulated within layers of blue.

About the Author

Author Richard Greelis grew up in Robbinsdale, MN and had no interest in police work as a child. He graduated from the University of MN in 1980 and worked as a Realtor for a short period of time before entering the Police Skills Program. In 1981 he was hired by the Hennepin County Sheriffs Office as a Sheriff's Deputy, and after a short stint there was hired by the Bloomington Police Department.

Greelis worked as a patrol officer for twelve years, five of those years as a K9 officer and SWAT team operator. Following patrol, he transferred to Investigations; his first role in that unit as Liaison Officer at Jefferson High School. From there he went to Child Abuse/Sexual Assault and from there to Adult Crimes of Violence. Shortly after the 9/11 attacks, he served as a task force member on the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force. After five years with the FBI, he returned to the Bloomington Police Department where he finished his career in the Narcotics Unit.

Greelis served on nearly every unit possible on a police department.

This varied experience gave him a unique and broad understanding of the inner workings of both street level crime and the police response to it.

Contemporaneous with the publication of Copbook, Greelis retired from the police department after 27 years. In addition to writing, he enjoys reading history, canoeing, splitting wood, and spending time with his family.

Greelis lives in Bloomington, MN with his beautiful wife and has three brilliant sons.

Customer Reviews

Name:

Joy Lindgren

Date:

07/28/2009

Review:

In Cop Book, recently retired police officer and debuting author, Richard Greelis, records his most memorable experiences from his twenty plus year tenure with the Bloomington Police Department. He draws from his career as a patrol office, SWAT team member, detective, and intelligence officer to offer the reader a glimpse into what it is like to be a cop. Although there is a fine chronological thread that runs throughout the book, most of the chapters could stand as their own story. Generally, I am leery of books that are set up in the manner. Oftentimes the writer will present the lion's share of the stories using the same format. Thus, material that is fresh and engaging at the start of the book begins to feel stale and predictable somewhere in the middle. And as the reader nears the end, the promise of starting a new book provides the primary incentive to finish. That is not the case with Cop Book. Although many chapters deal with a specific case or call, the author nimbly avoids this boilerplate style of storytelling. Instead, he relates his thoughts and reactions to his experiences. In one chapter Greelis tells of his discomfiture in securing the site of a suicide from family members while awaiting the arrival of the medical examiner. In another case involving a convicted pedophile, the reader is made to understand not only the tactics used to elicit a confession, but the incredible pressure felt by the interrogator knowing that this may be the only chance to charge this particular crime. Greelis' philosophical musings and sometimes humorous commentary offer insight into person as well as the cop. Greelis ponders the Christian view of the body as a vessel for the soul while witnessing an autopsy that leaves the subject in a form resembling a canoe. His wit shines with pithy observations such as 'anarchy turned oligarchy' when describing a small group of anarchists and their efforts to orchestrate the activities of other protest groups at the Republican National Convention. After reading Cop Book the overarching conclusion that I came to was that police officers should not only be commended for putting their lives on the line in the course of duty. They should also be commended for dealing with situations and carrying out tasks from which the rest of us would turn and shudder.

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