1 week Ago
When San Diego Police Officer Mark Wright accepted a badge with a spoked wheel sprouting two Hermes-like wings struck through with an arrow Thursday, he became the only amputee motorcycle officer in the United States.Wright, a 25-year veteran of the U.S.
Marine Corps, joined the Police Department following his retirement as a Marine sergeant major — with three combat tours, one in Afghanistan and two in Iraq — as the oldest recruit in his police academy class. He was 45.Then, after about only a year on the force, on March 13, 2022, Wright was involved in a collision while driving to Temecula that left him with “a bum leg and a shattered pelvis.
” He said when he saw his left foot, he knew it would need to be amputated.Around eight months later, following hospital and physical therapy visits by then-Police Chief Dave Nisleit, he returned to duty with a prosthetic and an upbeat demeanor.San Diego police Officer Mark Wright, who became the nation’s first amputee motorcycle cop.
(San Diego Police Department)“The only two things in life you can control are your attitude and your behavior,” Wright said Thursday before the motorcycle police graduation ceremony. “And if there’s something you learn in the Marine Corps and as a police officer, it’s that no days are guaranteed.”At the San Diego Police Officers Association headquarters Thursday, Wright officially completed the department’s rigorous 120-day motorcycle training course.
Officers Herb Rivers, Jonathan Burnet and Matt Araoz will mount their bikes with Wright as the spring 2025 graduating class.Training involved hours of slow maneuvers in Snapdragon Stadium’s parking lot, as well as escort training, speed training and anything else that allows motorcycle officers to navigate both city and highway traffic while conducting law enforcement operations.Following the presentation of the four officers’ certificates, a department-produced movie featuring highlights and bloopers set to a monologue by podcaster Joe Rogan and songs by Metallica and Eminem was shown.
Each officer dealt with difficulties, including Aroaz losing teeth in an unscheduled sandy road dismount.But Wright, a lower-left leg amputee, may have had the most difficult time. The police brass scrambled to try to make the unit accessible, considering special bikes or modifications.
“The only thing we didn’t think of was just to set him loose,” said training Sgt. Joe Clark.Wright also received the Theodore Roosevelt Police Award in 2024.
The award recognizes officers “who have overcome significant physical challenges and continue to serve with distinction,” according to the award site. He is the second San Diego police officer to win the award.He previously served in the department’s Central Division on the Balboa Park enforcement team.
“His assignment comes with many physical obstacles, such as traversing up and down steep canyons, conducting enforcement in extremely inaccessible areas and enforcement patrols while riding ATVs,” according to the Roosevelt Award nomination.“I’m extremely humbled by the experience and happy. I’m a pretty strong-willed individual.
” Wright said. “I hope my story reaches someone challenged like myself and reminds them of what you can do if you set your mind to it.”.
