Program to Honor Female Officers in Detroit Officers & Firefighers
DETROIT (AP) - Tracey Miller acknowledges that when it comes to police work, many people still consider it a "man's world."
But the 24-year Detroit Police Department veteran says women have a place in law enforcement, work just as hard as men and show results.
"It's not necessarily brute strength that can help people," said Miller, one of 15 Detroit officers and five fire department personnel being honored Thursday at the Detroit Public Safety Foundation's 6th annual Women in Blue breakfast at the MGM Grand.
One officer and one firefighter will be announced as "women of the year" for their respective departments.
Miller, 49, followed her father into police work. He also was an officer with Detroit police.
"I believe I was made for this job," she said, adding she believes police work was "why I was put on the earth."
Assigned to the city's 9th Police Precinct, Miller also is a member of the gang suppression Operation Ceasefire. About three years ago, she decided to pursue a spot on the police department's bomb squad. Miller became a certified bomb technician last year.
"There are lots of people who can be police officers, not everyone can be a bomb technician," Miller said. "You have to be careful with details and those kinds of things. It could affect many, many people if I do something wrong."
Other women nominated for the "women of the year" honors include firefighters, dispatchers and members of the police department's underwater recovery team, domestic unit and crisis intervention team.
A number of them have advanced academic degrees.
The event is a fundraiser for the Detroit Public Safety Foundation, which helps provide training, technology, equipment and community outreach for the city's public safety operations.
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