The youngest of six, I was born and bred on the west side
of Detroit, Michigan. What most like to call the murder capital
of the United States. True enough, Detroit is home to some of
the most notorious criminals and mob-like gangs. Gangs such
as, the Young Boys Incorporated (YBI) and the more recently
popular, Detroit’s Black Mafia Family (BMF) which was founded
by the legendary Big Meech.
Though I was fortunate enough to have both of my parents
in the household for most of my adolescent years, I still found
myself being pulled into the streets as I got older. Oblivious
at times to what was going on around me as a teenager, I
eventually found that being in the streets could be both
beneficial as well as detrimental to my health.
Some lessons were learned the hard way. Others were
immediately understood. They had to be. A lot of times, that’s
what made the difference between life and death. Sadly, I’ve
lost many friends to those same lessons that still exist in
those unforgiving streets to this day. Thank the Lord, God
walks with me at all times.
The ironic thing is that during my childhood, I was often
guilty of running from the police. Young and dumb, I thought
that they always were harassing me and my friends for no
reason. Now I am the police. Now I know the reasons.
1st Corinthians, 13th chapter, 11th verse. “When I was a
child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a
child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things.”
Little did I know how true those words would become as I
made the transition from a statistic destined for failure, to a
decorated officer blessed with a beautiful family of my own.
In Cursed at Birth, I’m sharing with you a combination of
personal situations and actual events that I’ve experienced
from both sides of the fence; first, as a young punk that was
most likely up to no good at any given time. And finally, as a
highly trained professional guided by the church and state.