Who is Angela Masters – Part 2

In the first post on the biography of my protagonist, Detective Angela Masters, we looked at her personal background.  This post explores her professional life as an officer and detective with the Santa Rosa, California, Police Department.

 

Early Career in Uniformed Patrol

Angi began as a uniformed patrol officer in 1971.  Following attendance at the police academy, she was assigned to Senior Officer Michael Garrison for field training.  She also spent some shifts riding with Senior Officer Devon Anderson.  Both men would play a part in her later career, Anderson as her fellow detective in the Violent Crimes Unit and Garrison as her unit supervisor.

In June, 1976, Angi and a fellow patrol officer were walking in a downtown alley when they came upon a man lying next to a Dumpster.  As the other officer checked to see if the man was okay, Angi scanned the alley for signs of other people or threats.  Suddenly, from under a fire escape ladder, a man charged toward her.  He was waving a machete over his head.  As he got within feet of her, she fired three shots, killing the attacker.  At the time, there was little psychological support from the department for officers involved in shooting incidents.  She was left to deal with any memories of the event by herself.  This was not an unusual occurrence in police departments across the country at the time.

 

Detective Career

In 1979, she was selected for a vacant spot as a Detective in the Property Crimes Unit, investigating such crimes as burglary, theft, and fraud.  She proved herself to be a very capable investigator.  In late 1980, Michael Garrison, who had been promoted to sergeant two years before, was assigned to supervise the Violent Crimes Unit.  There was a vacancy in the unit, and one of his first acts was to request the transfer of Detective Angela Masters from Property Crimes to Violent Crimes.  This was opposed by a few supervisors but supported by most, including Police Chief Jim Hathaway.

 

Additional Training

In addition to training received by all detectives in skills such as interviewing and evidence processing, Angi has taken special classes in criminal profiling and blood spatter analysis.

 

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