a 1% day

When my husband and I first started going out, he was a rookie Chicago Police officer. One of the hardest things in the first year was adjusting to the reality that he might not get home if something went seriously wrong during his shift. It was a reality I'd never experienced before and gave me some sleepless nights until I got used to it. He was working the midnight shift in a busy west side district, so I never what might happen on any given night.

We've had a running joke over the years - that the job is 99% routine, unexciting stuff and 1% sheer terror. Most of the time the possibility of that 1% is a bogeyman that stays in the closet.

Yesterday was a 1% day for so many CPD officers. The bogeyman was out in full force.

As I saw and heard dozens of police cars speeding south past my office yesterday afternoon, I had a bad feeling that something was very wrong. The last time I'd seen that kind of police response was the afternoon when Commander Paul Bauer was shot and killed.

Later we were watching news coverage of the tragedy on TV, and my husband recognized officers from his district at the scene. I was grateful that he wasn't scheduled to work yesterday.

The family and friends of hundreds of on-duty first responders went through anxious, stressful hours, living the reality of that 1%.

My sympathy goes out to family, friends and co-workers of Officer Sam Jimenez, Dr. Tamara O'Neal and pharmacy resident Dayna Less who died yesterday.   Gun violence is a cancer on our city and our society. Too many lives have been ended or forever scarred by this sickness. There might have been a lot more people killed or wounded if not for Officer Jimenez and others who responded to the scene at Mercy.

Doctors and other health care professionals shouldn't stay in their lane regarding gun violence. This is one more big reason for them to speak out. Can we all say ENOUGH now and do something to enact meaningful national gun reforms?