Should cops be allowed to use anabolic steroids if it helps them do their jobs better? David Stanley explores.
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Police work is an arms race. West Side Story’s Officer Krupke dealt with gangs who solved their differences in fistfights, with pieces of sand-filled garden hose, and the rare knife fight. Fast forward forty years, and police find themselves facing drug-fueled top dollar gangbangers. No more fists, modern gangstas are clad in body armor and armed with Uzis and Glock 17s. A Glock can fire off seventeen shots in 4 seconds. Each 9 mm bullet makes a hole the diameter of a pencil going into the human body and the size of a salad plate as it exits the human body.
I’m not surprised that cops use anabolic steroids. I am surprised that more officers do not.
The disclaimers:
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There are evil, bad people in every profession. Doctors, nurses, financial planners, teachers, police; there are men and women in all walks of life who find perverse pleasure as they ruin the lives of others for personal gain.
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I was a track cyclist in the 1980s and steroid use was everywhere. I chose not to use, and never made it big. (You can read about it here.) I’ve been hanging out in iron gyms since the late 1970s. I know about PEDs, up close.
Why shouldn’t cops juice? Properly used, steroids make you bigger, stronger, faster—it’s a chance to tip the playing field. Don’t you want fit and muscular men protecting our safety? (Let us leave women officers out of this. Anabolic steroids and women pose a health issue—that’s another topic.) Cops willingly put themselves in harm’s way every day. If 15-20 mg of D-bol is going to help a cop wrestle a mugger to the ground, rather than shoot him, that’s a win for everybody.
My martial arts instructor was a police officer. I have spoken with Bill-sensei about the role of “presence” in his police work. On the street, appearance is everything. As men, muscles are a face that we present to the world. Anabolic steroids and hard work in the weight room create muscles. Muscles create confidence. People respond, quite viscerally, to a muscular, commanding presence. It is said of wolves that their world view is simple: “Will it eat me, or can I eat it?” Is there any more lupine behavior than criminal life on the street?
Steroid usage is the reefer madness of the fitness world. When used properly, steroids are no more a gateway to organ failure and ‘roid rage than the dope most of us smoked in college turned us into heroin addicts. The article references Dr. Charles Yesalis. The Penn State professor is widely regarded as a world authority on PED usage.
On the safety of steroids:
Think about it: medical science has been using steroids safely in a clinical setting for the last 70 years. Anabolic steroids can be used relatively safely, but at even low doses they can have side effects. No drug, supplement, or substance is totally “safe.”
… let me put this whole “rage” thing into perspective for you. You’ve been to college football game. If you told me you’ve never seen outbursts of “rage” at a football game, then I would have to call “bullshit.” They happen all the time. And that’s not steroids, that’s alcohol. It’s not even in the same ballpark.
I have spent many years around athletes who have used steroids. I have witnessed one episode of true ‘roid rage in 35 years. I suggest that, as many men have anger issues, what has been termed ‘roid rage, is solely an example of what happens when an angry and muscular man blows his stack. Police brutality is very real, but I also suggest that it results from a subset of police culture. Good men who use steroids don’t become brutal. Good men who are good cops don’t become brutal.
Legality—there’s the big issue. Steroid use in healthy men is a criminal activity. Do we want our police officers engaging in an illegal activity which will enhance their professional abilities? It is troubling.
From the article:
“…like the four Norman, Oklahoma, police officers whose steroid use was uncovered during a Drug Enforcement Administration investigation last fall, and who were fired. Or the Tampa, Florida, cop who gave a drug dealer a thousand Ecstasy tablets from a police-impounded car in exchange for steroids and was sentenced to 2 years in 2003. Or the Pennsylvania officer who in 2002 pleaded guilty to steroid possession—and to selling ‘roids to two other cops.”
The officers interviewed for the article seem to think it’s worth the risk. As “Officer Jimmy” stated: “Although he professes to feel conflicted about juicing—it is, after all, a felony to take anabolic steroids without a prescription—he thinks ‘roids made him a better cop. ‘What law enforcement needs is a little testosterone.'”
In many workplaces which demand high levels of concentration, the illegal use of the wakefulness drugs Provigil and Adderall has become commonplace. How do you feel about people who use illegal substances which make them more productive and proficient in their careers?
Because police officers are sworn to uphold the law, should they be held to a different standard?
For one of the best takes ever on PEDs; what they can, and cannot do, their history in sports and culture, and a weekend warrior’s foray into controlled PED usage, I highly recommend Stuart Stevens’ 2003 Outside Magazine piece Drug Test.
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Photo and more on this on policemen and steroid use at popularresistance.org
it has nothing to do with the officers occupation or demands it is about athletics and for vanity purposes im sure it comes in handy being muscular but im sure when they are working out they are not thinking about how thjis would assist them in their chosen profession, most have been lifting even before entertaing the thought of becoming police officers….im sure it would help them in the police and fire games.. it is all about cosmetic purposes ..not about occupational demands same with the men and woma\n in fire service.. these are dangerous medications and users all pay… Read more »
Forget right or wrong for the moment. Let’s just look at the practical side. Look at the other officers in your precinct. Think about the best cop you know. Is the best cop you know the most muscular cop? Probably not. What’s the BEST use of your self-improvement time? Is it weightlifting? Probably not. You’d be better off spending some of that gym time doing something else: Improving your Spanish or learning conversational Chinese Learning how to type faster Studying human psychology, drug psychology, criminal psychology, etc. Brushing up on civil rights law, constitutional law, conflict resolution systems, etc. Studying… Read more »
No. Why? One name – Justin Volpe. And yes, I
A retired police officer.
@David Ede There are so many flaws in your premise,if it were a diamond it wouldn’t cut glass.I live in Oakland,Ca.There are roughly 1,000 gangs in a city of 400,000.Currently we are first in arm robberies and in the top ten in homocides nationwide.I was robbed at gunpoint several years ago.its a dangerous place.I wanted to know how dangerous it is for police so I did some research on the subject.Roughly 57 Oakland police were killed in the line of duty…in the HISTORY of the entire department.Bear in mind in the line of duty and while on the job mean… Read more »
Sure why not, and let them do a few lines of coke to stay awake because they are worn out from their other, cash, business..
And let them do a little Ritalin why they crib up behind the Fire House and study for law school on the public dime…
Hell they already get a pass on drinking and driving- and drinking and brawling…
heroin isn’t really dangerous- it is the junkie lifestyle that takes it’s toll.
Ha,ha,ha,ha, yeah, right on Brother!
Besides, if you stop them from ‘Juicing’, who’s going to be able to pose for those ‘Hunky Calanders’ that women buy?
No problem, just get male models to pose as cops.
In any event, the guys in the photo are not just doing steroids. They’ve also eliminated carbs from their diet. It’s muscle-building AND fat reduction that makes abs like that!
It would make sense for bicycle cops to use steroids. Taking testosterone shrinks the testicles, which probably makes those shorts and bike seats a little more comfortable. Makes the luggage easier to stow away.
In a streetfight, shrunken testicles would be more difficult targets for your opponent, so maybe that would be a benefit as well.
Anabolic steroids should be freely available to use to anyone who has no history of violent crime, abusive behaviour, or intoxicant abuse. There is no reason that a normal, productive member of society, who respects the rights of their fellow citizens, should be denied access to anabolic steroids if that is their choice. Only when a person has committed violent offenses against other people should they be restricted from access to them, just like repeat-offender drunk drivers can have their driver license taken away, and violent criminals can be banned from owning or using firearms. If you use your physical… Read more »
Police all ready abuse their authority all too often, now juice them up on steroids?! Irresponsible and stupid, a slew of tragedies waiting to happen…someone needs to investigate the behavior of these gun-toting muscle heads pictured on the steps. Other professions that utilize illegal wake-up drugs, most don’t carry a gun and suggesting police be held to a higher standard, yeah, they’ve accepted a fiduciary duty to the public and besides, they can end you in a heart -beat and potentially get away w/it. Human behavior of law enforcement officers, is tenuous at best, they’re fallible like the rest of… Read more »
On the “bigger, stronger, faster” thing:
Clearly steroids make you bigger and stronger, but do they actually make you faster? I highly doubt that.
In any event, even if there are no serious side effects to steroids, larger muscles are at best a trade-off. When weightlifting is out of balance with other forms of exercise, it makes you stiffer and more rigid. They certainly won’t you more flexible or more coordinated. Larger muscles will reduce your effectiveness as a swimmer.
If I were a career criminal, I’d definitely want cops to be as bulky and inflexible as possible. Easier for me to escape that way. Make them so buff that they have trouble getting out of the car. Make them so buff that they can barely get two hands on their weapons. Make them so obsessed with their muscles that they look at their own reflections instead of the street.
Yes, please, more muscle….
Absolutely. If I were a felon on the run, I’d want the cops chasing me to be stiff, bulky, vain, and overconfident. Give me meatheads any day of the week.
Then if they ever catch me, when I sue for police brutality my lawyer can point to the muscles on the big scary cop who tests positive for steroid use. And scrawny little me sitting there with a neck brace.
Playing right into my hands.
IMO it comes down to whether it’s illegal. If it’s not illegal, it comes down to personal choice. Whether someone should make the choice to use it or not is a different story and maybe the real possibility of roid rage should make it illegal for police officers specifically to use it. I know some police officers and the way alcohol use, which could theoretically cause the same issues, is governed is that the officer uses their best judgment. That’s probably how legal PEDs should be governed. Should we make it illegal for pregnant women to knowingly endanger their fetuses… Read more »
Are you serious? Do you have any idea how much the police in the U.S. are already out of control? Here are just a few sample; there’s plenty more where these came from.
http://www.alternet.org/speakeasy/2010/08/30/off-duty-black-cop-facing-gunman-calls-for-help-white-cops-beat-him-and-his-family
http://www.alternet.org/newsandviews/article/581025/cop_arrested_for_taser_abuse_on_fellow_cop
http://www.alternet.org/progressive-wire/dad-calls-cops-teach-son-lesson-cops-shoot-son-dead
http://www.alternet.org/rss/breaking_news/812848/ex-playboy_playmate_stephanie_adams_wins_%241.2_nypd_lawsuit
http://www.alternet.org/story/138309/cop_tasers_minor_five_times_for_not_getting_off_his_bike_fast_enough
http://www.alternet.org/story/154164/how_an_attractive%2C_undercover_cop_posed_as_a_student_–_then_entrapped_a_smitten_teen_to_%22sell%22_her_marijuana
http://www.alternet.org/newsandviews/article/927409/ca_cops_finally_face_charges_for_beating_mentally_ill_homeless_man_to_death
http://www.salon.com/2013/07/07/“why_did_you_shoot_me_i_was_reading_a_book_the_new_warrior_cop_is_out_of_control/
Please compare your statistics contrasting to how out of control the populous is, and then you’ll see that a minute fraction of a single percent of which you quote is actually fact. Why not put your stats up against all the good LEO’s do. You won’t, because if you did, you and your nerdy little friends could never do a job that you are too cowardly to do yourselves.
Muscles build confidence? So does ethical, hard work. So does integrity. And, I guess, so does a loaded gun. But steroids are the “easy way.” A quick fix. A short cut. Do our law enforcement officers deserve a break now and then, sure. But they also have a responsibility to uphold the law. When they use steroids (and yes, it’s obvious if you’re paying attention) it sends a subtle message to the 16-year old kid hanging out in the same weight room that “if it’s OK for a cop, it must be OK for me, too.” Those same police officers,… Read more »
Sorry Merritt, but you seem to be massively uninformed about steroids and their effects. You may not believe they can be used properly, but medicine has been doing it for decades, as have a large amount of people in strength sports. Their illegality was fought againts by doctors, specialists – even the freaking DEA, but those wise people in congress decided they knew better than these specialists and criminalised them.
Steroids are not the “easy way” or a “quick fix”. You don’t just inject, sit on the couch and get massive.