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Written by Erin Frustaci
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Thursday, 28 December 2006 |
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David Kaes is the person you don’t want to meet on New Year’s Eve. And believe it or not, he’d rather not see you either. He’s not a mean guy— on the contrary, he’s quite charismatic. Given his line of work though, you’ll have a happier New Year if you don’t spend it with him.
Kaes, 38, of Loveland is a DUI Enforcement Officer with the Fort Collins Police Department.
“New Year’s is one of the few times a year where people actually plan to get drunk,” Kaes said. “One thing I encourage people to do is if they are going to drink and drive, they should do the driving part first. It is not illegal to go somewhere and then get drunk.”
It is illegal, however, to get behind the wheel after drinking — illegal and sometimes deadly. Unfortunately, Kaes learned this early in life.
“In high school, a friend of mine was involved in a DUI accident and was killed,” Kaes said. “Unlike most stories, my friend was the drunk driver.”
His name was Doug He was a successful athlete— a star football player. The night he died, Doug had been drinking at a party. He and another kid decided to race their hot rods.
“Even though Doug had been drinking, he decided to go,” Kaes said. “A guy tried to stop him at the party.”
Doug, at 6 feet 4 inches and who weighed 220 pounds, punched the guy, who was only 5 feet 7 inches and 130 pounds, and got in his car.
“He ran off the road at 95 mph, hit a fire hydrant and split his car in half,” Kaes said.
Kaes delivered his first death notification at the age of 17.
“As I was standing on the front porch telling Doug’s parents the news, his dad asked me how I got out of the car with only a split lip,” Kaes said. “I was the one he fought in the front yard. I was the one who tried to stop him.”
Years later, Kaes tells those convicted of driving under the influence how lucky they are to have been stopped. He reminds them of what could have happened.
With New Year’s Eve being a busy party night, law enforcement officers will be on the lookout statewide. The DUI enforcement period will start at 5 p.m. Friday and will end 8 a.m. Monday.
“We try to express to people to have a plan and put that plan in place before you take that first drink,” he said.
Maybe that plan is a sober driver or maybe it’s a cab ride home.
“As a last resort, have a phone number in your wallet,” he said. “Everybody can find someone to come and get them.”
Kaes said many people overlook the responsibility of an alcohol-serving establishment.
“If you tell them you are too drunk to get home, they should help you find a way to get you home,” Kaes said. “That may be a cab at your expense.”
And hey, you can always walk, right? After all, it sure beats a ride to the slammer.
IN HIS WORDS
What’s the stupidest thing you’ve ever done at work?
This is an easy one: My first year in Fort Collins, October 2002. I was driving on a side street after a snowfall. I managed to find the one spot in the road covered with ice, and I slid my squad car into a fire hydrant. The resident came out and saw the tire tracks and thought I was looking for a hit-and-run driver. Then he saw the matching dent on my fender with the yellow hydrant paint.... the word “Texan” was repeated several times when I walked into a room at the police station.
Smartest?
Used my CPR skills to help a woman in the parking lot at the hospital. She had gone into cardiac and respiratory arrest and her husband and son pulled into the parking lot at PVH honking and yelling for help. I guess I was in the right place at the right time and the training just took over.
What’s the most unusual thing you’ve done to make money?
The typical stuff in college — donate plasma, pick up cans on the road/beaches.
What’s the one thing you wish you could do on the job that you can’t right now?
If possible, I’d ride a Harley. All day! Everyday! I was lucky enough to be selected for Police Motorcycle Training back in April. I can’t use it all the time, especially with current DUI duties, but it makes a nice diversion and special assignment opportunity.
What do you do when you’re not at work?
Away from work, I spend most of my time catching up with my family. With my weekend/evening schedule, I miss stuff with my wife and kids. The three older boys are sports minded: baseball, basketball, soccer, lacrosse and archery. My wife and I climbed Longs Peak over the summer, our first 14er. I have also help coach my sons’ athletic teams.
Family?
My wife Kelly is a nurse. We have four sons, Zach, 16; Ben, 7; Luke, 6 and Mark, 3. Mark was the first native born Coloradan in the family. We also have a yellow Labrador — Queen Esther.
Favorite TV shows.
Favorite TV show is CSI, followed by sporting events. We watch all the major sports except hockey. With the exception of the “wardrobe malfunction” a few years back, it is pretty safe to watch sports with the younger kids and not have to worry about content.
Movies.
The “Star Wars” series, “Bourne Identity/Supremacy” and what guy doesn’t like “Top Gun”?
Books.
Favorite authors are Tom Clancy, WEB Griffin, Dean Koontz, Robin Cook and Michael Crighton. I have read almost everything those guys have written.
What Web sites do you have bookmarked?
This will put me in the “square peg in square hole” group: most common Web sites are the Fort Collins PD’s e-mail server, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, Colorado Department of Transportation homepage, Timberline Church, 14ers.com and Fort Collins Baseball Club... I’m a pretty simple guy.
Where do you play?
I like to play anywhere outside: I grew up near lakes, so any water activity is fine. I am learning more and more about mountain lifestyles— skiing, climbing and hiking. I hope to add fly fishing, white, water rafting and hunting to the list. As my wife put it, “We moved here to be near the mountains, it would be a shame not to do something with them.”
Go out to eat?
Most of the family style restaurants are toward the top of the list — Inca’s, On the Border, Old Chicago’s, and the kids’ favorite, Red Robin.
What makes this job challenging?
The biggest challenge in this line of work is the dynamic nature of the day. You really don’t know what the shift might bring.
Makes you get out of bed in the morning?
The biggest motivation to “get out of bed” is knowing that I am making a difference in somebody’s life. I try not to slap on the “Superhero” attitude, but our primary goal is to make the community a better place to live, work and play.
Things that impress you?
The things that impress me with my work has to be my co-workers. This is a great organization of dedicated professionals. The level of teamwork and camaraderie that I see here is unlike anyplace I have ever worked.
Things that don’t.
Not so impressive? Some of the priorities set by the community and trying to help them achieve those goals without really sharing those priorities.
How do young/new employees get ahead?
The best way for new employees to get ahead is similar to other lines of work: be honest, be reliable, and if you don’t know-ask, don’t try to fake it. Another key influence, though often overlooked, is always seek reliable, trusted mentors and pay close attention!
Did you ever think in a million years you’d work here?
I never in a TRILLION years would have thought about working here. I was working in the Dallas area. I lived minutes from where I grew up, my parents were close by, my sister lived 30 minutes away, and my brother and his family had just bought a house in the next town over. My wife and I started looking for other places to live/work and Northern Colorado has what we were looking to find.
If you weren’t doing this, what would you do?
I had considered joining PFA as a firefighter or fire investigator before being hired by FCPS. I was trained as a firefighter and paramedic from my job in Texas. The thought of going back to school has also been a topic with my wife and I trying to finance the future.
Any interesting anecdotes?
Pick a topic-My friends will tell you I can talk for hours and hours.... just don’t expect them to be funny. I usually am the only one who gets my jokes. I’m married and have four boys at home, they will gladly point out “How funny Daddy isn’t”.
What do you do during your breaks?
Break times aren’t really set. I start my shift at 6 p.m. and end around 4 a.m. If I use middle of my work day, that would put me having dinner round 11 p.m. to midnight. I am usually busiest after 10 p.m., so I try to squeeze it in before 10 or I have to wait until after 2:30 a.m. or so. Most of them are spent eating dinner, catching up with my family by phone/e-mail, or working out at the department’s exercise area.
What’s one thing about your job you would do, even if you weren’t paid to do it?
I already mentioned the Harley thing, so I guess next would be the public forum events. I work with Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) to help educate people about the dangers of drinking and driving. As a DUI Officer, I get to explain to people the way it affects the whole community, not just the arrested person. I would not pass up an opportunity to help educate someone “the easy way” as opposed to the tough lessons that life sometimes throws at you.
Name one thing in your life that really prepared you for your job.
The biggest thing that prepared me for my job had to be my parents. They explained to me from an early age, sometimes forcefully, that honesty and hard work are keys to success. My parents wouldn’t tolerate lying or laziness. No matter what, you give it your best effort. If a mistake is made, apologize to the offended party, try to fix it, and deal with the consequences as best you can. Most people will forgive a mistake, you just have to stand up and take responsibility for the mistake.
What’s the biggest payoff in your job?
The biggest payoff is having somebody say, “Thank you” and mean it. It is especially meaningful when it comes unsolicited or from someone you truly respect.
Are you the boss? Do you think you should be?
Am I the boss? In a distant sense of the word, yes I am. I make small, simple decisions that may affect the course of my day, but realistically I am “the low man on the totem pole”. There are several layers of supervisors above me, and they set the direction and big picture goals for the department. I try to figure out a way to help meet my portion of those goals. I don’t think I am ready for an official leadership role at this point in my career. I’d like to do more across the department before trying to climb up the ladder. Not to mention, staff meetings would make me spend a lot of time doing administrative tasks and not being a cop. | Only registered users can write comments.
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