Fireside Chat: An Interview with Shiloh's Six

[K. Ross]

*The stage setup is a little different today.  The usual reclining chair we have our guest sit in has been replaced by two sofas that flank the recliner that I sit in at 30 degree angles.  Instead of an end table next to each chair there are two coffee tables in the front of each sofa with another table in front of my chair.  On each table are glasses and pitchers of water for me and the guests.  For decoration on the tables we have pictures, sent in from the department and the guests, scattered about like a collage.  Photos of our guests when they were kids, when they were in the academy, and as they are now.  As the camera goes live I start my opening remarks before inviting the guests on stage.*

'It started in Selkirk and it ended in Kimberly.  It's been nearly two months since Selkirk was rocked by explosions.  Nearly two months since three deputies encountered those responsible for those bombings.  Nearly two months since three other deputies rushed to assist the other three when their encounter became a shootout.  Joining us today are those six deputies who responded to reports of a suspicious vehicle and ended up stopping the Selkirk bombers.  Now, let's please welcome Deputy Alejandro Sanchez, Deputy James Rogers, Deputy Micheal Caldwell, Deputy Richard O'Reilly, Deputy Jerry Wagner, and Deputy Evelyn Hawke.'

*After introducing the guests I stand up from my recliner, in my black dress suit, to greet them and shake their hands before they sit down on the sofas provided for them.*

[E. Hawke]

*After being introduced I walk onto the stage in my Class A's with the others.  Betting the department approved this just to get us to show off our new medals.  Shaking the reporter's hand to greet her I take a seat in the middle spot of the couch on the right side of the stage.*

[A. Sanchez]

*Greeting Ross in my Class A's I take a seat on the couch placed on the left side of the stage.  As I took a spot that's the furthest away from Ross I rest my right arm on the sofa's armrest.  Rogers then sits next to me taking the middle spot on the couch.*

[M. Caldwell]

*I walk in when they introduce me. I still hate wearing class A's but this is a special occasion. I shake Ross's hand and sit down next to Hawke.*

[J. Wagner]

*Sitting down, like the rest of the deputies, on full Class A is not overly comfortable, then again it's a dress uniform, so I get it. I smile towards the camera, trying to by coy, but I know it doesn't look quite like that. Looking at my colleagues, we're all sort of awkward *

'Thanks for having us.'

[K. Ross]

*After greetings I sit back down in my chair as soon as the deputies take their seats.  Wagner, Caldwell, and Hawke are seated on the couch to my left.  O'Reilly, Rogers, and Sanchez take a seat on the couch to my right.  Crossing my legs I look at my note cards filled with questions to ask these guys.*

'Well, thank you for coming.  We're happy to have you.  It was no small ordeal that you guys went through on that night so can you tell us anything about that night that you'd like to share?  How it'd start?  What went through your minds?'

[J. Wagner]

'We were all on pretty high alert that day. There had been a terrorist attack in our Capital, and we knew we were on the possible areas of sighting. I'm sure that no one expected us tot urn out to be the county of exit, but it was all on ours minds. Usually, the SCSD focuses on patrols in Fort Shannon, and provides backup policing to the rest of the county. As you all know, this happened in Kimberley, which is an area I'm not only really unfamiliar with, but also one I don't usually patrol.'

*I look around at the rest of my colleagues.*

'Actually, come to think of it, none of us do. I'd heard of the call over the radio, it came in as a suspicious vehicle actually. I was second in. Deputy Hawke was the first unit to take the call. Hawke?'

*I figure that now is a good time for her to step in and tell her side of things.*

[E. Hawke]

'Well, I live in the area of Kimberly so I do know the streets.  We don't normally patrol there but circumstances with that town's own department had us going there.  The initial call was a suspicious vehicle.  Some farmer found it weird that a vehicle was parked in a lot on his property.  Me, Wagner, and Caldwell went to investigate.  I was the first one there followed by Wagner and then Caldwell.  At first I wanted to see what we were dealing with so I just drove past the lot.  The whole lot was surrounded by trees except for the entrance but the treeline separating the lot from the road was also kind of thin.  Like three feet of brush between the lot and the road.  Anyways on my pass I saw the two vehicles parked there, kind of near the back of the lot, and three guys hanging around.  The thought of Selkirk did cross my mind but honestly I wasn't really thinking it was them.  Well that was my thought up until we made contact and a fourth man appeared that threw a bomb at us.  From there on it's kind of a blur for me.  Only remember three things.  The feeling of being pushed into my open door, the thought of just trying to keep them pinned down to where they were, and not being able to hear for the rest of the night.  Or for the next few days.  Don't know when the thought that those guys could actually have been responsible for Selkirk crossed my mind but at the very least it wasn't until well after the firefight was over.'

[M. Caldwell]

'We normally don't work in the Kimberly area as our primary jurisdiction is to Fort Shannon. I personally don't know it all too well. When we got the call I was the last of the initial to arrive. Initially I thought I had the element of surprise with the unmarked car. If it were anyone aside from a group of terrorists I feel we may have had that edge. It seemed questionable when we first pulled up but I had no idea what we rolled into. If I can be perfectly honest I don't remember most of the night because I sustained a head injury.'

[K. Ross]

*So two of the three deputies that replied to the question see the night as a blur.  What about the other three who came to aid them.*

'What about you three who arrived while the fire fight was still on going?  What was it like to show up with the fighting already in full force?'

[A. Sanchez]

'Just get there.  That's all that was going through my mind was just getting there.'

[J. Rogers]

'For me it was making sure my fellow officers were safe and trying to stay Calm.. as i'm a new officer i hadn't experienced anything this major'

[K. Ross]

'How did you feel, what were your thoughts when you learned that the guys you fought were responsible for Selkirk attack?'

[J. Wagner]

'For me? We all went into our shift expecting them, not actually but in the back of our heads, I'm willing to bet every cop in Saratoga thought the what-ifs out. It could have happened to anyone, so it was shocking when it happened to us. I honestly expected it to be nothing. But with the shooting, the explosions, I wasn't too surprised when we heard these are the guys that did Selkirk. My biggest fear, and this one still keeps me up a bit, would've been that they weren't the guys who did Selkirk. It helps knowing these ones were the only ones sick and twisted enough to do this to our people.'

[J. Rogers]

'I don't have an Answer for that' 

[R. O'Reilly]

*I sit quietly as others answer the questions, letting them get the spotlight. I wasn't one to jump in front and be the first to answer. Wagner lays out his thoughts in reply to her latest question, and I nod.*

'He put it best, really. We all thought about it. What if these are the guys, what if we find them. Hard to be on shift with something like that having just happened and not think about it, you know?'

[E. Hawke]

*As each of my colleagues responds I chime in*

'Yeah, Wagner and O'Reilly really said it best.  We work a job where anything is possible and for something like that to happen only hours away in Selkirk.  Well that puts thoughts in your head when an encounter like Kimberly happens.'

[K. Ross]

'Ok, I think maybe I need to rephrase that question.  My question was not about if you had thoughts that the men you encounter were responsible for Selkirk.  My question was what your thoughts were when your suspicions about the men were confirmed?'

[E. Hawke]

'By that time I was too doped out on pain medication to think properly.  So my thoughts and feelings on that are pretty much mush.'

[K. Ross]

*Guess that's all I'm going to get from that question.*

'Has your sudden thrust into the spotlight affected your families in anyway?'

[J. Wagner]

'Before this I was just a deputy. And I don't mean the shooting, I mean this interview.' I pause for a chuckle. 'I'm still probably going to be just a deputy, but a few people might recognize my name or face now. I think the biggest thing that's changed is the fear my family feels when I go to work is now real. Before this, I wasn't involved in anything this major. I think the limelight on us has changed the way everyone is looking at our job and the dangers we face.'

[M. Caldwell]

'The media attention has taken its toll on our family. We had to explain to my 4 year old son that daddys job is dangerous and that there are bad people who want to hurt me because I am a deputy. He has taken it as well as you would think. My family is hoping to graciously step out of the limelight soon and spend some much needed time together'

[E. Hawke]

'Well I'm single and I live alone so it hasn't really affected my family in any way.  My parents up in Maine have always been worried about my occupation but this new found glory, because it's mostly local to this county and state, hasn't really caused them any troubles'

[R. O'Reilly]

'No, it hasn't caused too much trouble. My girlfriend is worried, but she always is. I wouldn't say it's necessarily increased any that she's let on. She knows it's dangerous work, and she understands why I do it. We both come from law enforcement families, and I think that helps a lot with her understanding.'

[A. Sanchez]

'My madre and hermana threw a fit when they found out and my padre.  Well, he just lit up a cigar and said 'atta boy Alejandro'.  My younger hermanos... well they can't stop talking about me.  It's like I'm the one who won the medal of honor instead of Evelyn.  They're... proud.  Concerned, but proud.'