By DAVID TELLER
Staff Reporter
Cheney Police Cpl. Chris English has a colorful background and his co-workers know it.
As part of the community policing program, the veteran officer brings a lot of experience to Cheney residents. He has seen a lot in his 11 years in law enforcement.
English's area of responsibility is from North Sixth to Elm to Washington streets, and from Betz Road to Washington Street.
His sector is a combination of city residents and college students.
“A big portion of Eastern (Washington University) is in my sector,” said the father of two girls.
English, like any high school kid has had some lapses in judgment that got him into trouble.
When he played on the Cheney High School football team, the Blackawks clinched a berth to the Washington high school football championships called the King Bowl. To commemorate the achievement, he and a friend went running around in a 1976 Plymouth Volare.
“I was spinning brodies up in (EWU) lot 12,” English said with a sheepish grin.
A man he has now served with in two different departments arrested him at the time: Sgt. Kelly Hembach.
English paid a $40 fine for his performance. The friend that was with him at the time is now a sergeant with the Kennewick, Wash., police department.
After high school English wasn't ready for college.
He got a job waiting tables across the street from the Spokane Opera House at Sully's. Kinko's/Fed Ex is in the building is now. He also drove a delivery truck.
He thought about what he wanted for a career, and had a good idea
His influence to become a police officer started when he was young. The father of a friend of his was an officer. English said he was impressed by the man's presence.
“He was clean-shaven, and well-spoken,” English said.
He added the man was a fun guy, but was also about doing things right.
First, English became an emergency medical technician (EMT). Because of his earlier encounter with Hembach, he said the ambulance company, American Medical Response (AMR), would not insure him to drive their vehicles, so his options were limited.
English decided to go to the police academy. In 1995, he got a job prior to graduation with the Lincoln County Sheriff's Department.
He encountered Hembach again after he began patrol in Lincoln County. Hembach had forgotten the earlier brodie incident.
He also learned a lot from other senior officers of the department. Most of it, he sums up saying it was a principle of “shut-up and listen to the old guys.” Though no individual is a stand out in his mentoring, as a rookie officer, he took parables and lessons from all of the senior officers he worked with.
English stayed with Lincoln County doing boat patrol. He was also the deputy coroner. He saw collisions and suicides. After getting some experience, he decided it was time to come home.
He has been with Cheney Police Department since 2002. Hembach has returned to Cheney also. The two men sit next to each other in the Police Department office.
David Teller can be reached at [email protected]
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