Once a Cop
The Street, the Law, Two Worlds, One Man
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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- $18.99
Publisher Description
New York City Book Awards Hornblower Award Winner
African American Literary Award Winner for Best Biography/Memoir
As a youth, Corey Pegues was a criminal. As an adult, he became a high-ranking police officer.
In this fascinating look at life on both sides of the law, Corey Pegues opens up about why he joined the New York Police Department after years as a drug dealer. Pegues speaks honestly about the poor choices he made while coming of age in New York City during the height of the crack epidemic. He’s equally candid about why he turned his life around, and takes you inside the NYPD, where he becomes a decorated officer despite bureaucratic pitfalls and discriminatory practices. Written with the voice and panache of someone who knows the streets, Once a Cop is a credible and informative look at the forces that lead some into a life of crime and what it means to make good on a second chance.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this gripping memoir, former street dealer and retired N.Y.C. police inspector Corey Pegues documents a life on both sides of the law. As a teenager from an impoverished home in Queens, Pegues fell into the drug game just as crack cocaine flooded the marketplace in the mid-1980s. Working for the infamous "Supreme Team" brought Pegues money and prestige, but he was dismayed by the growing violence around him. Soon after graduating high school, Pegues escaped to the army and later joined the NYPD. Pegues faced prejudice for being African-American in a predominantly white organization, but still rose to the rank of deputy inspector despite concerns about his "urban" attire and outspoken positions. The book falls into two sections: Pegues narrates his criminal days in intimate close-up, while taking a more distanced perspective on his years as a cop. Although Pegues remains loyal to the badge, he criticizes the department's old boy network and conflicts with minority neighborhoods, including the excesses of programs such as "Stop, Question, and Frisk." In 2015, Pegues's disclosure of his criminal past ignited controversy and led to a police raid of his Long Island home, a backlash that highlights just how far the NYPD remains from serving all New Yorkers.
