There is pride and concern associated with being married to a law enforcement officer. He or she provides a necessary service to the community, but seeing a gun hanging from the waist reminds the spouse that someday it may have to be used. Bad things can happen when a gun has to be used.

My wife was a deputy sheriff. She served as the Sheriff’s secretary and secretary to the Sheriff’s Department. When she interviewed for the position, the Sheriff required me to meet with him. He wanted to relieve any anxiety I may have. He started out my visit by telling me that the door to the secretary’s office was bulletproof. I am sure his comment raised my blood pressure. His comment drove home the fact that, even though she would normally serve as a secretary, she would be a Deputy Sheriff.

She had a second job at the jail. She served as a backup Deputy Sheriff matron. A matron worked with women prisoners. She received the normal Deputy Sheriff training which included learning how to fight and shooting guns. It is an interesting experience to know, that if a fight was to happen at home your wife, could whip your butt and arrest you. As a deputy sheriff, she would normally escort women to court appearances and to other jails. Also, she would do what else was needed, because she was a Deputy Sheriff.

Typically she wore normal office clothes to work. Sometimes she left the house wearing her uniform. She had a deputy sheriff uniform at work and at home. She did not bring her gun home which was kept locked in her office until she needed it. She never knew when she would be called on to change clothes and move from being a secretary using a typewriter to a deputy sheriff wearing a gun. She put on the uniform when there were more bad women in the jail than the normal matron staff could handle.

The state line ran down the middle of a street. The winos often stayed in the state that had the best jail facilities and best food. When bad weather was expected, the winos made sure they got publicly drunk and arrested in the appropriate state so they could have good shelter.

The winos respected and liked my wife. Winos often served as a “Trustee” when serving their jail sentence. When I would drive the car with her sitting in the passenger seat, the winos we would meet would wave, call out her name, yell her name, etc. It is an unusual fact for a husband to know that all the local winos are on a first name basis with your wife.

I had two co-workers that like to play with the idea that my wife was in jail. When we got on the elevator to go to the ground floor, one of them would say something like, “What time can your wife leave the jail today,” “Are you sure your wife can leave the jail today,” “It is going to be nice to have your wife to be home today from jail and be with your kids,” “How long has it been since your kids have seen their mother?” They were very nice to me. They would imply my wife was in jail.

The first time they did it I did not know what was happening. They knew she was a Deputy Sheriff. I finally picked up on what they were doing. They were playing to the people on the elevator. When they did this, I would turn so I could see some of the people. It was interesting to watch their eyes looking at each other. I starting playing along with them and would answer their comments or questions in ways that supported their implications. This did not happen every day. We left work at different times so we were on the elevator at the same time about twice a month. I have wondered what was said by people when I could not hear them talking.

She never arrested me at home.

Dale “The Saint” Lee

A former resident of Pot Neck, Tennessee

Date last changed 8-27-2010

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