Break-In Ch. 01

Me: "Next is J.P. Goldman, who also serves on the Council, and this is going to be his last term as such. He's solidly in Laura's camp."

Me: "Then there's Mr. Harold S. Truelove. He's a decent man of strong moral character. I think he likes Laura personally, but he does not like it that she's the sex professor, teaches what he considers to be illicit and decadent things, and that she has an open marriage with Yours Truly."

Me: "Beatrice S. York is a longtime Trustee, and she's deeply religious. She was a friend of Pastor Westboro and Steven Ikea back in the day." (Author's note: 'The Swap', Ch. 02.) "What with the way University Faculties have gone further and further Left, I'm a bit surprised she's still serving."

Me: "Todd thinks she considers this her last stand to get someone who would probably be a great President for Hillsdale College or Liberty U. to be this University's President, and turn around what she perceives as the corrupt morals of the Student Body. She's definitely not enamored of Laura as the Governor's pick."

Me: "Then there's this guy named Todd Burke. Definitely a bad character, and he's related to some very nasty people. His only redeeming feature is the incredibly smart decision in who he chose to be his wife. Now if only we could get her to be University President."

Teresa said "You do not want me anywhere near that job." Even so, I could see she was inwardly pleased with my comment.

"Touché." I replied. "Anyway, Todd is firmly on Laura's side. Next is George 'Mash' Woodham, the CEO of BigPulpAndPaper. He's a tough, blue-collar, hard working man that rose to the top from the floor of the sawmills. He's streetwise and savvy. He's also one of the Big Boyz, and a friend of the CEOs of many of the big companies, including BigPharmaCorp, BigRoadAndRail, BigCommo, and BigBenefitInsurance. I would think he's in Laura's camp, but those Big Boyz are not our friends, so he may be a vote against her."

Your Iron Crowbar: "Next is our old friend Robert 'B-1 Bob' Berry, the high-powered partner of Chase, Lynch & Berry, P.C. I don't know if he likes or dislikes Laura, but he despises the Police, and despises me as a Police Officer. I'm not counting on his support for my wife."

Me: "Then there's Zack Millner. He's been a school teacher and a college professor, and he's run for Statewide Office as a Democrat several times. He's a decent man, but his politics tend to favor wanting someone more to the Left than Laura is... though Laura is definitely Left-of-Center."

Me: Last is Marsha Harland. She worked for the Department of the Interior some years ago, and she is virulently Leftist and a rabid Climate Change promoter. Like Al Gore, she got wealthy from her work in Government and her advocacy. She will definitely be pushing for Lionel Carmela to be University President."

The Sheriff growled "So that means it's an uphill climb for Laura."

I replied "Yes sir, and especially if some of the Trustees get scared of the students that were rioting yesterday, and may riot again today. As I see it, Mrs. James, Mr. Goldman, and Mr. Burke are solid pro-Laura votes. Maybe she can get Mr. Truelove, Mr. Woodham, and/or Professor Millner. But it's going to be a near thing..."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

"Hello and welcome to Fox University Sunrise!" said Catrina Pierce at 8:00am from the Fox University studios. "I'm Catrina Pierce, and with me is Priya Ajmani. Good morning, Priya."

"Good morning, Catrina." said Priya brightly. "Good morning, everyone. Here's what's in the news. A mob of young people claiming to be University students marched on the University President's office, demanding that Governor Sharon Marshall withdraw the nomination of Dr. Laura Fredricson for the University President's position."

Catrina: "The demonstrations turned violent when the protesters made a pile of trash and set it on fire, then set fire to a vehicle. Campus Police and the State Patrol's elite Combat Strike Team moved in and dispersed the violent agitators. Roll tape." Tape rolled, showing violent demonstrators setting the fires and generally acting violent, then a distant view with smoke or tear gas billowing behind a group of agitators.

Priya: "The University Board of Trustees was scheduled to meet today at the University Conference Center to consider the nomination for the University Presidency, but that meeting has been postponed. Sources tell Fox Eight News that the Board will meet this weekend at an (air quotes) 'undisclosed location'."

Catrina: "In other news, Commander Donald Troy will attend tonight's meeting of the Town & County Council after the Council passed an ordinance that codifies into law that individual Council Members cannot compel anyone to appear before the Council. Councilwoman Kelly Carnes voted against the measure for Commander Troy to appear after weeks attempting to force Commander Troy to appear under the false notion that she had sovereign right to compel anyone she personally pleased to appear before the Council."

Priya: "The Council will ask Commander Troy to explain why he entered into a contract with Teresa Croyle that enables her to work with the SBI in an identical way that he does. And sources tell Fox Eight News that Commander Troy will take the opportunity to explain why he's made unilateral plea deals, for which he and the TCPD have been sued by District Attorney Miriam Walters..."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

"Interesting." said Teresa Croyle as my three Angels and I watched and drank coffee in my office.

"Definitely a different slant on Fox's propaganda-cast, eh?" said Cindy Ross witheringly, and using the Canadian 'eh'.

Teresa and I both peered hard at her, and the Iron Wolf said "That was a hell of a lot more accurate than Bettina's bullshit."

Tanya said "Surely you don't think Kelly Carnes has the right to order Don around, do you?" Tanya asked Cindy.

"No, of course not." Cindy replied. "But don't tell me that KFXU is any less biased than KXTC is."

"Of course they're not." I replied. "There's really no such thing as a truly unbiased newscast or news article in print. In that particular case, though, Fox Eight News deliberately reported that way to take potshots at Channel Two News. And I, for one, am greatly amused by it. Okay, what's going on in Sheriff Griswold's County and Chief Moynahan's Police Department?"

Teresa said "Has Captain Michaels told you about her telling the MCD and Vice Lieutenants to develop plans to shake up the Detective partnerships, especially in MCD? And despite Lieutenant Davis's objections?"

"Uh... noooo." I replied. "What's going on with that?..."

Part 3 - Old Business - Playing by Crowbar Rules

7:25pm, Tuesday, May 11th. I walked up the hallway to the entrance door of the public Council Chamber. I was dressed in my semi-formal jacket with my many rows of ribbons above the right pocket flap, but I was not wearing my Medal of Valor (just the ribbon for it). The metal star of my rank gleamed on each jacket epaulette.

"What's going on, Commander Croyle?" I said as I came up to Teresa, who was helping four Deputies guard the entrance as if it were her personal Wolf's den. She was wearing her Duty Dress jacket with the 'four boxes' instead of the full 'fruit salad' of ribbons.

Teresa replied. "Katina Jones had her full contingent of blue-shirted Patriots here three hours early and in line. That was really good, because a number of red-shirted and green-shirted people showed up, and were forced by me personally to get in back of the line behind the blue shirts. They were going to make an attempt to break in line or go to the other door and try to get in first, but I redirected their suppositions by threats of arrest, and then sealing off the other door under guard."

"Good." I said. "You ready for this?"

"Like the McDonalds's ad says, I'm lovin' it.": Teresa replied. "It's about time we use the Enemy's tactics against them."

"In-deeeed." I said in the deepest voice I could muster.

At 7:30pm sharp, the Council Members and the Mayor filed in from the side entrance behind the long bench, and took their places. Teresa went in and the doors were closed, leaving me and two Deputies in the hallway.

Mayor Allgood said "Before we sit down, let us honor America by saying the Pledge of Allegiance." Kelly Carnes, Edgar Silas, Sheila Sorrells, and Malinda Adams immediately sat down, and some kudos to Susan Weston for remaining standing.

Of the 300 filled seats in the audience, about 15 wore red Antifa shirts, and they remained seated. Former Council Member Reginald B.F. Lewis was one of them, himself wearing a red Antifa shirt. The rest, all wearing blue shirts with American Flag logos, stood and recited the Pledge along with the Mayor, the Republican Council Members, and Susan Weston.

"Be seated, please." said the Mayor. He banged his gavel, then said "Reports, please?" Reports and lawsuits were submitted by the Town & County Clerk. J.P. Goldman said "Without objection, may we dispense with the reading?" There were immediately five objections. A formal vote was quickly taken, and the readings were dispensed with by a 6-5 vote.

Daniel Allgood then said "We call upon Commander Donald Troy to come to the lectern. Is he here?"

"Yes, Mr. Mayor!" yelled Teresa Croyle, who then pushed the door outward into the hallway opening it. Then she yelled as loudly as her voice permitted: "LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, THE TOWN & COUNTY POLICE COMMANDER!"

As I strode into the Chamber, the 285 blue-shirted people rose to their feet and began applauding me. It was like the President entering the House Chamber for the State of the Union address as I made my way down the aisle, the red crowbar in my left hand, fist-bumping people with my closed right hand.

J.P. Goldman was grinning like the Cheshire Cat, and rose in applause also, and was soon joined by the other four Republican Council Members. Mayor Allgood remained seated, but joined the tremendous ovation.

The five Democrats on the Council looked totally stunned. Kelly Carnes's face had an ugliness on it that was rare even for her. Edgar Silas, Sheila Sorrells, and Susan Weston's faces remained passive despite their surprise. Malinda Adams was not quite hiding a little grin; I think she was enjoying the spectacle.

I fist bumped Katina Jones, who was on the first row at the end next to the aisle I'd come down. (For the record, there are two aisles, dividing the audience into three sections.) I then walked onto the floor and to the lectern facing the Council. The applause continued for long seconds until the Mayor finally tapped his gavel for order. The Patriots stopped applauding and took their seats in a respectful manner.

Mayor Allgood said "Let the record show that Commander Troy has responded to the Council's request to appear, and is here now---"

"Point of order!" Kelly Carnes yelled shrilly. "I want to know why the Mayor did not stop that disgusting spectacle by the audience. He always shuts down the peaceful comments by Black members of the audience, but not the White Nationalists in the room that were applauding for this man who has routinely exercised Police brutality against Blacks for years."

There were immediately five objections, pointing out that Carnes's accusations of Police brutality were unfounded, if not outright actionable slander. The Mayor said "The point of order is not recognized. I do admonish the audience to be respectful and remain respectful during the evening."

The Mayor then said "Councilwoman Carnes, you have been demanding for weeks, though under false pretenses, that Commander Troy appear before us. There he is. What are your questions for Commander Troy?"

"Go to hell, you illegitimate Mayor." snarled Carnes, though not loudly. There were immediately five points of order."

"Watch yourself, Carnes." Allgood said. "I'll have you thrown out of here, and there's a man with a red crowbar both ready and eager to make that happen. Does anyone have questions for Commander Troy?"

Susan Weston finally spoke up, and said "Commander, why did you make that agreement with Commander Croyle?"

I said "She was working with me on the case in the City where rogue Federal Agents and rogue City Police were attempting to frame now-SBI-Director Wes Masters for crimes he did not commit. Commander Croyle needed to have legal jurisdiction as well as indemnity State-wide, and by appointing her to the SBI Reserve, I addressed those needs."

Me: "And in doing so, I made the contract with her, which is just like my own such contract, so that she can be paid by the appropriate Agency for her work. It was actually beneficial to the County's taxpayers. Oh... and I do note that the Council ratified that action by majority vote at a later time." That was 'spiking the football', and the Council Democrats noticed it.

Weston: "Did it not occur to you to consult with the Council about that before actually entering into the contract?"

I said "Considering that time was of the essence, and that we were about to rescue a DEA Agent that had been abducted and was being tortured to death... no, it didn't occur to me at the time." (Author's note: 'Who Watches The Watchers', Ch. 02.)

The audience began applauding, and Mayor Allgood allowed it for several seconds before tapping his gavel and getting immediate quiet. Then Edward R. Steele was recognized. He said "I want for everyone to understand why you also made some unilateral plea deals, which you are legally entitled to do---" There were three points of order in objection, by Carnes, Silas, and Sorrells.

Sheila Sorrells said "District Attorney Walters is suing Commander Troy over his entitlement or lack of it to usurp the District Attorney's Office prerogative in making plea deals."

"Point of order and of information." said John Colby, his baritone voice carrying through the Chamber. "The Town & County Inspector General confirmed Commander Troy's legal right to make those plea deals, and D.A. Walters's lawsuit is specious and will fail on the legal merits. What Councilman Steele said is correct."

Mayor Allgood said "We are not here to litigate all that. The I.G. did issue that ruling, and it is being challenged in Court. Let's move past it. What is your question, Mr. Steele?"

Edward R. Steele replied "I'm giving Commander Troy the opportunity to explain the very serious and disturbing circumstances which forced him to make those plea deals the way he did."

I explained how Savannah Fineman had crippled one of my cases (Author's note: 'Price No Object'.) and was going to damage another one (Author's note: 'Bottle Kill'.). I then launched into a tirade against Miriam Walters, publicly accusing her of making bad D.A. decisions that were harming the work of the TCPD and putting the Citizens of the County at risk.

Sheila Sorrells, who was a personal friend of Miriam Walters and former Public Health Officer Beth Paige, said "Doesn't D.A. Walters have the right to assign whoever she wants as ADA to a case, and aren't you obligated to work with that ADA and help him or her succeed in doing his or her job?"

"Not if that ADA is actively damaging my cases, and working against me." I said. "And I'll add that I work for the Police Department, not the D.A.'s Office, and my job is to find and arrest the actual criminal or criminals, regardless of the District Attorney's Office's agenda or opinions. I answer to Truth and Justice, not Miriam Walters."

The audience burst into applause again, which was mightily irritating the Council Democrats. Kelly Carnes yelled "Mr. Mayor, I demand you clear this Chamber!"

"You do not make demands of me, Mrs. Carnes," said Daniel Allgood, "any more than you can make demands of Commander Troy." The audience laughed loudly and began applauding again, and this time Daniel did tap his gavel for order, which was quickly given him. Kelly Carnes's face was beet red with furious anger.

I quickly continued: "Miriam Walters has said that she has the sovereign right to name whichever ADA she wants to whatever case she wants, and she expects us to work with that ADA... and you've done a nice job parroting her and making her points for her, Councilwoman Sorrells."

I went on: "But if I had a Detective as incompetent if not as dirty as Savannah Fineman, Ms. Walters would strongly object to that Detective working cases, because that Detective would get those cases thrown out of Court. In a similar manner, by naming Savannah Fineman to certain cases over the Police Leadership's and the Sheriff's objections, Ms. Walters is potentially damaging those cases..."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

After the interrogation, the Mayor excused me, and I began going up the aisle to leave. Several black persons, including Katina Jones, got up to walk out with me in a show of solidarity. And then, from the back row, Reginald B.F. Lewis stood up and got in the aisle in front of me.

Teresa was moving to stop him, but I looked at her and slightly shook my head. When I got up to Lewis, to my surprise, he extended his hand. As I shook it, he said softly "Very well played, Iron Crowbar. I really do wish it was possible for me to like you."

"It is." I replied. "Come on over to the side of right with me." Lewis just shook his head, though he was grinning. He moved aside for me to walk on out of the Chamber...

Part 4 - Old Business - An Unholy Alliance

10:00am, Saturday, May 15th. The University Board of Trustees met Lakeside Inn & Suites in Nextdoor County, in the large conference room that had once hosted Chef Bruno Mensch's cooking competition (Author's note: 'Chef's Special'.). The nine Trustees were seated behind the tables at the left side of the room as one walked into the door from the hallway, with Chairwoman Myrtle L. James in the middle.

There were a lot of chairs set up; after all, this was officially a public meeting of a public body.. However, the vast majority of the people in the audience were reporters. To the side of the tables and chairs and forward of the front row were Dr. Sidney P. Wellman and Dr. Laura Fredricson.

Sitting in the audience, on the front row on the opposite side of Wellman and Laura were Dr. Lionel Carmela, Dr, Jan Camp, and Dr. Juanita Rivera, who were hopeful of being able to make vociferous objections to Dr. Fredricson becoming University President. They were 'armed' with petitions signed by three dozen professors who were equally horrified by the very thought of Laura becoming the leader and the face of their School.

Yes, I was at the Hotel, but I was staying out of the way. Nextdoor County Police Chief Molly Evans and I were in the main lobby, ready to deploy the dozens of NCPD, TCPD, and State Patrol teams that had been assembled to stop any violent protests.

About forty students had come to the Hotel, and were chanting some ugly things about Laura while the News Media happily filmed them... but were careful to not be seen staging them... as I was watching for that like a sharp-eyed Auburn University eagle, and they knew it. And speaking of Auburn fans, Teresa was with Molly and me, and we were talking about a very important subject: our kids, and what they were being taught in our Public Schools. But I digress...

The Trustees posed for the mass of reporters, mostly ignoring the questions being shouted at them. After a few minutes, Myrtle L. James gaveled the session into order. Almost immediately, Todd Burke made a motion to go into Executive Session to discuss 'a personnel matter'. The motion carried 9-0.

The Press was ushered out. Bill Hacosta began making a snit about the Press being forced to leave what should be an open meeting, but when four State Patrol Troopers in heavy riot gear came up to him, he could see that they were aching to fuck him up. So he left, yelling obscenities all the way.