The life of a Carbondale Police officer is not an easy one, especially during Homecoming weekend.

As many Carbondale students celebrated the SIU football team’s 24-17 homecoming victory Saturday night, the Carbondale Police Department buzzed with activity.

Coming off a 13-hour Friday night shift, rookie officer Adam Boyd began his shift Saturday filling out routine paperwork.

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Within five minutes, Boyd and other officers responded to a call on their radios, rushing to their squad cars and screeching out of the parking lot.

“On a weekend there’s just call after call, there’s no break,” said Boyd, an SIUC alumnus.

Boyd’s first call of the night was for a man with a warrant for his arrest spotted in a housing complex on Robert A. Stalls Avenue. Boyd and other officers maintained constant radio contact as they chased down the fleeing suspect.

The suspect was eventually pepper sprayed and apprehended among a crowd of onlookers. In the crowd were several young children, some crying and some looking perplexed.

“People always blame me for what happens to them, instead of blaming themselves,” Boyd said.

Before returning to the police station, another call came over Boyd’s radio requesting an officer to detain an intoxicated and disorderly person on the 600 block of East Campus Street.

Arriving at the scene, a man was described as trying to forcibly gain entry into an apartment and threatening physical harm to its inhabitants.

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The suspect, the caller’s neighbor, was already inside the caller’s home when Boyd arrived. Trying to play off his offense, the clearly intoxicated man pretended to have no knowledge of the incident.

“I can come in or you can come out, it’s your choice,” Boyd said. “Would you like me to come in?”

The man was eventually let go with a warning after the officers gave him a brief talking to.

Not all calls that involved chases or break-ins.

A traffic accident on the 900 block of East Park Street required several officers and an ambulance. Officers arriving at the scene quickly took their posts around the crash site waving traffic batons to hold motorists at bay while the scene was cleaned up.

“I’m always usually on the other side of the accident, driving by looking at it,” said Donald Owens, a senior from Chicago studying computer engineering. Owens’ Buick sedan was one of two cars involved in the crash that sent a woman to the hospital.

Owens said he spent the entire day in the engineering building and had just come home to take a break before going out to dinner. As he left the Bel-Aire mobile home park, he said he was struck by a passing minivan.

“This was my first accident,” Owens said. “I couldn’t even make it to the game today.”

Driving down the streets of Carbondale, several pedestrians showed a visible dislike for police, putting up their middle fingers or shouting obscenities at the passing police cruiser.

Boyd says that is the nature of the job. As a police officer, you have to learn to not let it get to you.

Finally arriving back to the briefing room, Boyd grabbed a cupcake and sat at his computer. He resumed his paperwork for only a few minutes before another call came through that had officers rushing back to their squad cars.

“Our night is just getting started,” said Sgt. Chuck Shiplett as he filled out a board that assigned officers to their beats for the night. “We’re not going to get out of here until five at least, if we’re out of here by four, I’ll be tickled to death.”

David Lopez can be reached at 536-3311 ext. 273 or [email protected].