The Gay Detail

      This is a story I’ve never talked about, but hell, I’m old enough now to not give a damn. At the time I was mortified but looking back on the situation, it’s funny.

      I was working for the Fort Worth Police Department in the summer of 1989. My name is Steve Johnson and my partner’s name is Frank Strobeck. We worked foot patrol which was attached to the S.W.A.T. team. When S.W.A.T. worked special operations, they called in foot patrol to beef up manpower. I came to work one evening and was called into the Sergeants’ office. He told us we would be working on a decoy detail backing up other officers. We would be in a marked police car several blocks away and respond when S.W.A.T. team officers observed someone trying to rob the decoy. The officer was dressed in shabby clothing acting like he was passed out on the bench. The other officers were hidden close by and waited. After a while a transient approached the decoy. He stood there for a minute looking around. He pulled out a knife while still looking around. The officers came out of the woodwork. My partner and I turned on the lights and siren and were on the scene in seconds. There wasn’t much of a struggle because the guy had trouble maintaining his balance. He kept hitting his head on the bench and sidewalk. He ended up having to go to the hospital, then to jail. We charged him with robbery. As they say, the pen is mightier than the sword. We adlibbed on the report, and he was going to be in jail for a while. 

      Later that evening I went to the Sergeant and told him if he ever needed me to work a decoy I’d like to volunteer. He was a good guy and smiled as he nodded his head. He said, “Sure I’ll keep you in mind for future volunteer work.”

      We went back to working foot patrol and all was normal. One night they called us in late and we were going on a drug raid with S.W.A.T. We approached the house at three in the morning. We observed the house which was blacked out. Everyone was asleep or passed out from the drugs. Four o’clock in the morning is the magic hour. Most people are sleeping hard at this time of morning. When awakened quickly it takes them a while to get their bearings. When the S.W.A.T. team storms in, they’re completely disoriented.  

      It was about four in the morning when we stormed the house. Frank and I were in the middle of the front door entry team. One team would enter from the front and a second team would enter from the side. No one entered from the rear because you didn’t want to get in a crossfire. The person in front of the line would kick in the door and stand aside letting the next officer charge in. The officer at the front door gave the go signal and the doors were kicked in simultaneously. The first three officers had M-16’s. The others had their service weapons. Everyone had powerful flashlights. We searched the house. A man and woman were in bed struggling to wake up and comprehend what was happening. We handcuffed them and escorted the couple outside to waiting patrol cars. Another couple was sleeping in a different room and arrested by the second team. We searched the house and found at least twenty pounds of meth. We went into the first bedroom and there was fifty thousand dollars cash in a container in the closet.

      I’m telling you these stories to let you know about how the operation worked. Also, I’m trying to appear as Macho as I can because I’m now going to tell a story that might make you wonder. I’m not gay, in the immortal words of Jerry Seinfeld, “Not that there’s anything wrong with that.”

      I came to work one afternoon, and the Sergeant called my partner and I into his office. He said, “Johnson, you want to work a decoy operation tomorrow tonight?”

      “Yes sir, I’m ready. What’s the job.”

      The Sergeant sat there with his head down as he started to explain, “You know the two gay clubs just few blocks south of downtown?

      “Yes sir. One is the Cowboy and the other is Stardust. The Cowboy is on Jennings Street and Stardust on Hemphill Street one block away.”

      “Right, those are the ones. There’s an alley across the street from the Cowboy. The couples from the club walk down the alley to do whatever it is they do and end up getting robbed at gunpoint. It’s happened four times in the last week. We want you to take an unmarked car over there in plain clothes and mingle in with the crowd outside. The people walk back and forth between the clubs all night long. It’s crowded, almost like a street festival. You up for it?”

      It was at this point I realized I let my alligator mouth overload my mosquito body. I really felt pressured. I had to go through with the job, “Yes sir. I’ll do it.”

     “Great, we’ll start tomorrow evening. Wear something gay if you have it.”

      He laughed and walked off. I knew I was never going to live this down. My partner and I walked out of the office. My partner knew I was concerned and supported me. He said, “It’s no big deal. You’re doing your job. Okay, you might get harassed without mercy for a while, but it won’t last long. I’ll be your partner for as long as I can, but the time may come when I have to find another partner.”

      I said, “Thanks pal.” He laughed and walked off.

      The next day I came to work wearing a dark blue pullover T-shirt with a white and light blue sleeveless vest made of jean material along with blue jeans. I wore the vest at the beach, and it looked cool. If you wear it in the city, I guess it looked kind of gay. I didn’t carry a gun or badge. When you do decoy work, you’re just out there on your own. I walked into roll call and everyone started clapping. I started thinking maybe I should look at other police departments who are hiring.

      I was wired up so they could tell when I was in trouble. I got in the unmarked car and drove to the position they told me. It was by the alley where the robberies took place. There were plenty of bushes just feet away to hide the officers backing me up. My partner and another officer were in an unmarked car sitting in the parking lot of the Cowboy. My partner was operating the recorder from my wire so everything would be on tape. I had no clue what went on in this world, so I wasn’t ready for what happened.

      I got out of my car and looked around. It was a party atmosphere, and the people walked between clubs. The Stardust was about fifty yards from the Cowboy and couples would walk back and forth from the clubs regularly all night. I got on the hood of my car and lay against the windshield. After a few minutes a guy comes up. He wasn’t bad looking and had a big smile, “Are you with somebody?”

      “Yeah, he’s in the Cowboy. He’ll be out in a minute.”

      “Oh, too bad.” He walked off.

      I was ready to deal with armed robbers, but I wasn’t ready to get hit on by the guys in the club. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, as long as they’re not hitting on me. Several minutes later another guy came up and asked if I was with anyone. I looked at him and remember thinking, I’m not gay but if I was, I’d like to think I could do better than him. I told him, "Yes, my partner would be along soon." He walked off. Then a guy walked up, and I could tell he had been drinking. He was staggering and said, “Hey man do you do poppers?”

      I had no idea what that was, “Oh yeah man. I do them all time.” I looked down at the bushes and they were shaking because the officers were laughing so hard. I looked over at Frank and both officers in the car were bending forward laughing. I reached in my shirt and turned off the wire. I then looked back at my partner, and he was so mad he was pounding his fist against the window. I didn’t want any evidence of this conversation.

      The bushes could hear me, but they had no evidence. The guy then said, “Let’s go back to my apartment and do some.”

      I said, “I’ve got somebody coming. He’ll be here in a little while.”

      He got right in my face uncomfortably close and said, “If he doesn’t show up let me know. We can go a long way with the poppers I have.” He walked off. I then decided I had enough. I got off the car and walked down the alley ten or fifteen yards where the robberies took place. I turned the wire back on. I meandered around checking out the area. If anybody was there, they might have thought I was too aware and decided not to do anything. I was looking around to see if I could spot anything. I walked back up to the car and got back on the hood. Several guys approached and I blew them off. Then one guy came up and started asking me questions. He was wanting a date. When I tried to blow him off, he said, “I’ve been watching you. You’ve just been sitting here all night not doing anything. You’re a cop aren’t you.”

      I played it cool, “No, you want to search me? Go ahead, I got no badge or gun.” I didn’t even have a wallet.

      He turned around and yelled to everyone, “Hey, this guy’s a cop. Cop right here.” He was pointing at me. All the couples looked but didn’t seem to care. They just kept walking. The guy finally walked off towards the Stardust. I decided to walk down the alley again. This time I went further but nothing happened. The clubs were closing, and the Sergeant drove by in a marked patrol car, which made the lingering patrons uncomfortable and said, “Okay everybody. That’s it for tonight. Let’s go home.”

      I didn’t wait for anyone. I jumped in the car and headed towards the precinct. We all met up there and I found out what poppers were. When you’re having sex, just before you finish, your partner puts smelling salts, called poppers, under your nose. It’s supposed to enhance the final act of the sexual experience for maximum pleasure.

      I went home that night and hugged and kissed my wife. She finally asked what was wrong. My wife was a good police wife. You could tell her stuff happening at work and she was sympathetic. Although, I told her the story and she had a sense of humor that often enjoyed seeing me in a predicament. She laughed and laughed. I know she told our friends because we would be at a party and someone would come up and say, “Hey Steve, do any poppers lately?”

      I was later thinking about it and the operation would’ve worked better if I had a partner. We would both go down the alley, but no one would volunteer to hold my hand, I’m sure.

      I later told the Sergeant I would still do decoy work but not within five hundred yards of a gay establishment. He acknowledged with a big smile, but he was still looking at me funny. To this day I talk to my partner almost every day and he’ll bring it up sometimes. We get a good laugh out of the whole thing.