While working for the tribal police we had one officer who was Native American and was 6'5 in his stocking feet, He had a voice like a bull frog in a big deep pipe. He wore his hair long and had two small braids that came down each side of his face. He wore an old cowboy hat with some different pins of the front of it of police stuff and marine stuff. Everyone was afraid of *Jeff (not his real name). He was a great big giant teddy bear if he liked you and I adored him.
He was working the main highway on patrol with another officer who was not a Native American. They pulled a car over from New Jersey for speeding. Jeff was driving the car so he starts up towards the drivers side of the car. The other officer starts up on the passenger side of the car. Due to the fact that he other officer had called the license plate in he was slower getting out of the car then Jeff was.
As Jeff approached the car he could see there was two women in the car and the driver was searching through her purse probably for her drivers license but you never know. When Jeff got to the window he had to lean over since he is so tall which made his braids and long hair fall over part of his face and the other braid hang down and he says in this bullfrog voice. "can I see your drivers license?" The woman turns and looks at him and starts screaming bloody murder and yelling "oh my God! Oh my God, its an Indian" you would have to know Jeff but he never cracks a smile. The non-native is laying across the hood of the patrol car in hysterical laughter when Jeff says "what did you expect on an indian reservation?" The driver says "I'm sorry, I did not realize I was on the reservation. I am so sorry, how do I get off, I promise I will leave" The other lady is crying softly. Jeff says "where did you come from and where are you going?" The driver advised she came from Portland and she is headed towards Bend. Jeff still has not cracked a smile. Sometimes he has a real attitude with people and their reactions to Native Americans and this was one of them. He was not the least pleased with her screaming and crying about the fact he was a Native, let alone acting like he was some monster to be afraid of so he says....You have to go back to Portland and down to The Dalles and take highway 97 to Bend. He gives her a verbal warning for speeding. (I am so surprised as mad as he was that he did not write her a ticket but I think he just wanted away from her) The driver turns around to head back to Portland on her trip that is now about 100 miles longer then it would have been and Jeff walks back and gets in the patrol car. The other officer is still laughing almost unable to walk. Jeff says "shut up your snickering and get in this car or you are walking back to the station" The other officer gets in the patrol car and they come to the police station.
I looked up when the walked in and Jeff looked like he wanted to kill someone. He did not even say “hi” to me but stomps into the squad room. The other officer is still laughing so hard tears are rolling down his cheeks as he tries to tell us the story. We are all laughing and Jeff does not even come out of the squad room.
All the years I worked there the only thing I ever heard him say about the story was when an officer asked if he thought it was kind of mean to send them so far out of their way and he said “they deserved it, if they feel that way they need to stay off the reservation”
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