A roomful of police on a Wednesday night

Last night there were four policemen in my living room, and four police cars out in front of my house.

Kathy’s sister called us at about 8:15pm to tell us that her daughter Jessica was coming over with her boys and that we should just let them in. So of course we did, not knowing any details. It seems that Jessica and her husband Phil, never on the best of terms anyway, had gotten into an argument that night. It became physical and she gave him a bloody nose. He said, “I’m going to take care of you once and for all.” Then he stood in the kitchen feeding bullets into a handgun.

At that point, Jessica grabbed the boys, ages 3 and 8 and jumped into her car. They arrived at our house without any shoes, they had left in such a hurry. When we heard the details of what led up to their flight, I told her to call the police. She reluctantly did so, and then my living room filled up with officers.

She was in such a state, she kept asking us what she should do. Of course, you can’t really tell someone else what they should do in a situation like that. All you can do is explain options and let her choose. We went back and forth for over an hour and a half discussing all this. The police were very good and convincing and in the end, she decided to file domestic violence charges against him. He went to jail for the night, and now she has to go on from here.

This morning they were in court and fortunately, they got a very strict judge who set up a restraining order against him. He’s not allowed to have any contact with her or the kids unless her parents are present. He is not allowed in the house. She is to call 911 if she sees him anywhere near them. A few days ago a woman was shot to death in a similar situation, so everyone is very jumpy about this stuff. That must be why there was such a show of force at our house last night. We must have tied up half the city police force between the two houses.

Another sad thing about the whole deal is that this coming weekend is the eight year old’s First Communion. Kathy and I are his godparents so we will be at the Mass. At the very least, we have to decide where to have the party, since our niece is in no shape to host twenty-five people. Of course the father is not allowed to attend (he did ask the judge and the judge said absolutely not).

I have to say I was very impressed by the police who showed up. An older guy, a sergeant, took the lead on explaining Jessica’s options to her. He didn’t try to tell her what to do, but did a great job steering her in the right direction. I hope she did it because it’s what she wanted, and not because she thought it was what everyone else wanted. I hope she doesn’t back down. I am praying for the whole family.