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Okay you’re probably thinking this might be a little off-topic. Maybe it is. But even cops need a break every now and then and here are a couple of our favorite television shows that police officers of all ages can love and adore.

Our first favorite show sets place in a world of fantasy. Where police officers take on a mysterious role as guardians of the throne. We’re talking about Game of Thrones, of course. One of the absolute best shows to ever hit the screen and one that I, as a long-time police officer, simply love. You can watch Game of Thrones if you haven’t already. We highly suggest that you do. One place that you can watch it at is at www.tvsight.com.

Our next favorite show is about a meth dealer being chased by the police constantly. We’re talking about Breaking Bad. You might think it’s unlikely that a cop would like a show that glorifies a drug dealer but come on, this is just good police television here. If you haven’t watched this, you should. Once you do you’ll be absolutely hooked, we’re sure. Nothing is better than a good old fashion cops and robbers show and this takes it to a new level.

Most people are familiar with the police canine. A loyal companion to their officer handler, who will put their life on the line in a moment’s notice. But there’s one area of dog usage in law enforcement that is often overlooked.

A search and rescue dog at the World Trade Center site after the attacks. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Search and rescue dogs are an invaluable part of the emergency services team. They work with both sworn and civilian handlers in a variety of capacities.

Before a dog can be certified for search and rescue work, they must have the right type of dog obedience training. If you’re interested in being certified for SAR down the road, and need additional training, you can check out the material at www.playwithyourdog.com.

They primarily work off of detecting human scent. It’s believed that humans drop about 40,000 skin cells every minute, in addition to other scents, that make it quite easy for a trained dog to do its job.

Search and rescue dogs work under both tracking and trailing conditions. You can tell a tracking dog by their nose usually being focused on the ground where they can pick up their scent most easily. They are specifically looking for the scent track left behind by whoever they are looking for.

Trailing dogs work slightly differently. They are trained to locate human scent anywhere in their vicinity, rather than following a specific trail.

Both styles are effective at search and rescue techniques. And pretty much any well behaved and focused dog can learn and apply either technique – even dogs normally considered to be companion pets versus working dogs.

In addition to locating missing people, search and rescue dogs are often used for finding cadavers (dead bodies). Again, they have been trained to find the specific odors associated with decomposing bodies. While disturbing to think about, this is an invaluable service to help bring closure to loved ones and uncover valuable evidence for criminal prosecution.

Search and rescue dogs work very closely with law enforcement at the federal, state, county, and local level. And they must be able to work in a variety of conditions like cities, wilderness, snow, forests, etc.

It takes about 12 to 18 months for a dog to be properly trained for search and rescue. And the training is quite rigorous for both the dog and the handler. Training is part of the daily ritual and includes a variety of areas such as odor recognition, tracking and trailing exercises, agility, and obedience.

While it’s hard work, it’s also incredibly rewarding for you and your dog to be part of the law enforcement and emergency services community. You and your dog are able to do things that no human could do alone. And the benefits to the community are immense.

So if you’re considering getting involved in search and rescue, I very much encourage you to do so. It’s not easy, but you and your dog will have a great time while doing a wonderful service.

There are many different types of law enforcement officers. Let’s take a look at some of the different types:

Police Officer: Commonly used when referring to a law enforcement officer of a city, as opposed to a county or other jurisdiction.

Deputy Sheriff: While having the same legal authority of a police officer of a city, deputy sheriffs are county-appointed law enforcement officers.

State Trooper or Highway Patrolman: These are peace officers who are appointed by the State. Their primary area of responsibility is traffic enforcement and other vehicle regulations although they have the same authority as other officers.

Their are also many types of federal law enforcement officers like the FBI, ATF, and Federal Protection Services.

All of these folks put their life on the line to protect the communities in which they serve.

As we said in our previous post, 174 brave police officers died in the line of duty during 2011. And with just about a week left in 2012, the number for his year is fortunately much less.

As of December 22, 2012, we’ve lost 121 law enforcement officers this year. That’s about a 30% decrease from the prior year.

Still, that’s about 121 too many.

We are blessed that other fine individuals are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice and ask themselves every day how to become a cop. Each of them knowing that one day they might have to put their life on the line to save someone else’s.

People interested in joining the force are special. Still, it’s not easy to get hired so there are many resources out there to help them on their journey including a great course at Cop University.

There are many causes of these line of duty deaths. The most common is not by gunfire, which so far has resulted in 45 officers killed. The leading cause of death is actually vehicle related, with 50 offers losing their life in 2012.

Other causes of death include  aircraft accident (3), heart attack (7), heat exhaustion (1), being stabbed (5), assault (1), illness (4), fall (2), accidental gunfire (2), and training accident (1).

Other than last year, traffic accident deaths is actually the most common reason for police officer line of duty deaths. These include deaths from traffic accidents, motorcycle accidents, officers being struck by vehicles, pursuits, and vehicular assaults.

Clearly being an officer carries a tremendous amount of risk. And the people taking the positions know about the dangers of their jobs. And that’s why they are such amazing heroes.

Officers knowingly put their life on the line to protect others. And for that we are greatly in debt to them.

English: National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Welcome to Edwardsly, where we openly and honestly discuss news and information critical to law enforcement officers throughout the United States.

It’s not easy being a cop. And we intend in this blog to enlighten the public and show them the deep sacrifices made by these heroes each and every day.

Over 170 of these brave individuals died in 2011 alone. That’s one nearly every other day.

Hopefully, the public will appreciate the great sacrifices these fine men and women make every day.