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Woods College of Advancing Studies senior Nick Rolfsen recently got to experience first-hand one of the first rules of police work: It can be pretty routine and uneventful — until something happens that turns everything upside down.
Rolfsen, a criminal justice and social science major from Quincy, Mass., who is an intern this summer with the Massachusetts State Police, assisted two state troopers in delivering a baby after the mother went into severe labor while stopped in a traffic jam at Wellington Circle in Medford on July 18. Having received an emergency call from the driver of the car in which the mother was riding, troopers Keith Segee and Paul Higgins — who were in the State Police barracks nearby — went out on foot to locate the vehicle, and then managed to direct it into the barracks despite the severe gridlock, made worse by inoperative traffic lights.
Rolfsen happened to be working in the barracks at the time, and when the troopers arrived with the mother-to-be he hurriedly gathered blankets and medical supplies to help with the delivery while Emergency Medical Services crews were on the way. Mother and child were taken to Massachusetts General Hospital and State Police said both were doing fine.
So, about a month into an internship that had been largely devoted to clerical work and related duties, Rolfsen suddenly found himself at a press conference being interviewed about the event. Several local newscasts ran segments later that evening.
"I never thought something like this would happen," said Rolfsen, speaking with the Boston College Chronicle shortly after the incident. "Technically, you're supposed to be prepared for anything, but it was certainly a shock. Officers Segee and Higgins did a great job of responding to the situation; I was just trying to do whatever I could to help."
Not that Rolfsen needed an episode of real-life drama to appreciate the value of his four-days-a-week, five-and-a-half hours a day internship. He's already found it to be rewarding and enlightening, and an opportunity for which he is grateful — there were, he notes, "a lot of applicants" for the position.
"Essentially, the internship gives you an overview of the Massachusetts State Police operation and what they do. You help put together reports, you go to the courts and observe cases — whatever will help the troopers do their jobs," explained Rolfsen, who when interviewed was preparing for a stint with a ballistics team on the state police CSI unit. "You really get to see everything that goes into being a state trooper."
Rolfsen traces his interest in law enforcement to his freshman year of high school, when a police officer in his hometown invited him to take part in a K9 officer training program. "I knew then that law enforcement was it for me, and I've gone on to pursue my dream," said Rolfsen, who plans to pursue a master's degree after graduation and hopes to eventually work in the federal sector.
While he knows very well that law enforcement professionals don't encounter this kind of situation every day, the emergency in Medford has affirmed Rolfsen’s desire to stay on the path to his dream. "It was definitely an eye-opener, and made me want more than ever to follow through on the goal I set for myself."