More on the Police

Yesterday I said there's been a lot of extra police around lately and I've been wondering if the reasoning is anything similar to what's going on in Chicago. For those not familiar, Chicago had almost 40 shootings last weekend. The rise coincided with the temperature spiking so now the city has put extra cops on patrol to prevent more bloodshed. Mayor Daly is even pushing to give regular cops automatic weapons, you know, so the gun battles will be extra fierce.

Anyway, aside from the fact that it doesn't get cold here and therefore the rise in temperature isn't really noticeable, I wondered if the same logic was behind the beefed-up patrols here in Zihua. Summer is approaching and that jump from 85 to 95 degrees can really bring out the crazy in people. (Trust me, I know from personal experience. Have you ever noticed your temper goes out the window when you're really, really hot?)

Yesterday we went to Las Gatas, a small beach on Zihuatanejo Bay that is only accessible by boat. I'd only been there once before and I don't think it's that exciting, but the snorkeling is excellent and Ibis has been anxious to try my dad's gear. I read beneath an umbrella while he swam around the little bay and managed to get stung by a jellyfish. It wasn't bad but it was the most exciting thing that happened besides me stepping on a rock and dinging my head on the boat.

When we got home we were cleaning up from dinner when I noticed an ambulance in front of the neighbor's house (across the street from the people who keep setting fires). A crowd had gathered so Ibis and I leaned out the windows to watch. The houses are built up the hills so our fourth floor condo put us at the same level as all the commotion. About a dozen people were on the stairs, along with a couple paramedics. I thought maybe someone had died because they didn't seem to be in much of a hurry, but then two police trucks pulled up and six cops jumped out and ran up the stairs, automatic weapons drawn.

It'd been pretty quiet up till that point but once the police arrived a woman started screaming. Domestic abuse? I wondered. Just then a man emerged from one of the homes, blood streaming down his bare chest.

"Holy @#%!" I didn't expect that.

The man struggled so the cop pinned his arms behind his head and forced him down the stairs. By the time they reached the bottom a second man was escorted out, too. Then came the screaming woman. The police managed to get them down to the street and in the end, all three were put in the back of the truck. (I think that's an additional way to deter crime here; they place you in the bed of the pickup for the drive to the police station so the whole town can stare and laugh.)

Throughout the drama a photographer from the local newspaper was taking pictures and when the man with blood all over his chest realized he might be in the paper he jumped up and started posing like he was on the red carpet.

I'll have to make sure we get a paper today.