my opinion, the advantages far outweighed the risks. As we've already covered the other considerations regarding face-to-face in a previous session-"
"Ma'am-Lieutenant," Arnie corrected, with just enough hesitation to make sure she knew it was deliberate. "Is it also correct you provided the subject with alcohol?"
I bet you have a really little dick, Phoebe thought, but nodded. "I provided the subject, at his request, with a beer. Providing alcohol to a subject during negotiations is not encouraged, but neither is it forbidden. This tack would be up to the negotiator, his or her sense of the situation and evaluation of the subject."
"Get him drunk enough, maybe he'd just fall off the roof." Arnie's comment got a few snickers. Phoebe inclined her head, let them die off.
"Next time you're on a ledge, Officer, I'll remember you get drunk off one beer and bring you a nice Coca-Cola instead."
That got more than snickers, and noting the angry red wash over Arnie's face, Phoebe cut through them. "As I've said, repeatedly, while there are guidelines for negotiations, the negotiator must be flexible, be able to evaluate, to think on his or her feet."
"But you agree providing alcohol or drugs is risky?"
"Certainly. My gauge in this case was it was low risk. The subject did not demand alcohol; he very politely asked if he might have a beer. Bringing him one gave him something he wanted, and allowed him some control, allowed him to exchange that beer for his word not to use his weapon on me, to allow me to come out and speak with him. Just you wait," she ordered Arnie before he could open his smirking mouth again.
Then she paused to make certain her tone would be calm and cool.
"The preservation of life is and always will be the primary goal of negotiation. Everything, absolutely everything else, is secondary to that.
Therefore, in this instance-as every single instance is different-I elected a face-to-face, elected to provide the subject with a single beer because I believed those choices would assist me in talking him down. As he's alive, as there were no injuries, as the weapon he held was never discharged but given to me by him, I believe-in this instance-my choices were the correct ones."
"You also used a third-party intermediary."
Now Phoebe smiled, sweet Southern sugar. "Officer Meeks, it appears you have several questions and problems with this particular incident and my handling of it. I wonder if you'd be more satisfied if the subject had just jumped."
"Seeing as he was only sitting up four stories, he'd only have a couple broken bones if he had. Unless he shot you and himself beforehand."
"There's an interesting train of thought. Disbelieving a subject is serious about suicide, or could indeed cause his own death."
Casually, she reached up to secure a stray wisp of hair that had escaped from its pins. And kept her voice just as casual. "I was acquainted with a negotiator who had this train of thought over a jumper who was about twelve feet off the ground, unarmed. Mostly being a nuisance, from my acquaintance's point of view, one that was keeping him from doing more important things with his valuable time. And he allowed that opinion to show. The subject jumped, headfirst, crushing his skull on the sidewalk. He was very dead, Officer Meeks.
"Anybody know why this nuisance ended up with a toe tag?"
"Negotiator screwed it up," someone called out.
"That's right. The negotiator screwed it up by forgetting the prime directive: Preserve human life.
"If you have any more questions or comments about the incident, please feel free to write them up for me. But for right now? We're moving on."
"I'd like to-"
"Officer." The temper Phoebe rarely set free strained on the leash.
"You may be mistaken about who is running this session. I am. You may also be confused about the order of rank here. I am your superior."
"It seems to me, ma'am, that you don't want to address your questionable decisions during a crisis negotiation."
"It seems to me, boy, that you are unable to take no for an answer, by a woman who happens to outrank you, and that you're both rigid in your thinking and argumentative in attitude. These are very, very poor qualities in a negotiator. I'll so note to your captain, and hope that we'll be relieved of each other before much longer. Now, I want you to close your mouth and open your ears. That's an order, Officer Meeks. If you choose to ignore it, I'll write you