I arrived home late from work to find the entrance to my apartment building blocked off by two police cars. The officer directing traffic pointed me down a long row of cars. I just wanted to change my clothes and leave again so I asked the cop if I could park on the other side of the entrance where no cars were parked. He nodded and told me to hurry.

My apartment complex consists of more than seven or eight buildings. The building next to mine had a fire in the elevator shaft. Newspaper reporters and a television news crew surrounded the scene. This was the latest in a rash of fires equaling around two dozen in a period of a few months. Smoke still rose from the windows but the trucks had already finished watering the building down.

My usual entrance was blocked off so I went in through the side door. I took the stairs to the fifth floor and started down the hallway to my apartment. My nose started to burn from the smoke smell, steadily worse as I neared my door. I went into my apartment and changed. I grabbed my hat before I hurried out the door.

I usually take the elevator so I wasn't sure if the exit was on the bottom or the first floor. I asked a woman passing me on the stairs.

She snottily replied, "If you lived here you would know."

"I do live here but I don't usually go this way"

She told me to go to the bottom.

"That's all you needed to say," I snapped back and continued down the stairs.

The woman turned to her friend and said, "I still don't think he lives here."

I was in a hurry so I ignored her and kept going before I realized that she probably thought I had started the fire. She started mine instead. I went down two more flights on stairs before I reached the bottom. As I kicked the door open I said, "Stupid ass lady, I should punch her in the fucking head."

Keep in mind that we were going in opposite directions probably three floors apart by then. I continued on my way not even thinking anymore of it. I didn't mean that I was going to go back and beat her to a pulp; it just slipped out.

After leaving the building I went back to my car. Noticing that more cars parked there I decided to watch the building smoke for a few minutes before I left. I put my hat in the car and started back towards the building. As I reached the parking lot the woman came running out from behind one of the buildings and yelled, "There he is! He doesn't live here!"

The cop running at me didn't need to hear anything else before I was up against a car, in handcuffs. First he searched my pockets, then my shoes and I just kept asking him what I was being arrested for. He answered with silence. I told him if happened to be for arson he better just let me go or I would "sue the shit out of him."

Turns out he had different plans for me and he took me up to the office building where the press was and walked me by a cameraman on my way to a squad car. I'm not sure what channel it was but I appeared on the 11:00 news. The police told them the arrest wasn't related to the fires but most of the newspaper articles mentioned the arrest. The cops told them that I ran from them and that I tried to hide something. Both of these statements happen to be blatant lies. They didn't mention my name although they did put my age in the articles.

I was charged with three things. One of the charges, I believe, was a felony. The police finished with me around 11:00 at night and they wouldn't give me a ride home. I had to bum a ride home from an old man dropping off mail at the post office.

My job frequently requires that I get security clearance to different companies. This was not the first time I was arrested but I have nothing on my record. Almost any conviction would have ruined my job. The police gave no consideration that maybe everyone was a little stressed and we overreacted. Most cops only see what they want to see. This is especially true when it involves a young person with a little money. As far as the police are concerned I am either spoiled my mommy and daddy or I am doing something illegal. Either way they don't like it.