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The chase led police through the industrial park and into the hills behind it. Carl Yasso scurried up the hillside onto an old access road before the officers saw where he went. Hidden by the trees, he watched them below on the flats. But while trying to traverse a final open area of the road that would have allowed his escape into the forest unnoticed, Officer Lisa Catera spotted him. When he heard Catera shout to her partner, rookie officer Eddie O'Hara, and saw her point toward him on the open road above, he immediately doubled back for the relative safety of the trees and he headed in the opposite direction, through the woods toward the housing plan up on the ridge.

O'Hara scurried up the hillside with Catera fast behind him. O'Hara had been on active only five months. Catera was a nine-year veteran. Together they chased Yasso through the woods, up the ever-increasing slope, but he was outdistancing them, being in excellent shape, an ex-athlete turned criminal. Near the top of the ridge, just below the backyards of the homes there, Yasso decided that it would be safer to stay in the woods and, out of sight of his pursuers, he headed back down the slope, maintaining his northerly direction. If he could get to the shopping center before he was seen, he might be safe.

Both officers were exhausted, but they pushed on as fast as they could. They didn't notice Yasso's change in direction until they reached the top of the ridge. They hurried back down the hillside after him. Meanwhile, Yasso arrived at a point where the woods abutted the stores of the outdoor mall. As he crossed the parking lot and blended in with the people, O'Hara came out of the woods and scanned the vista. At the last minute, just as Yasso was entering a Sears store that he knew had exits out the back, O'Hara spotted him. Catera radioed A's location to their backup in a squad car as O'Hara took off toward the stores.

CUT TO an area beyond the back parking lot of the mall, ten minutes later. In a large alcove between a transmission repair shop and a Sunoco self-serve gas station and mini-mart, Yasso is partially cornered. Two squad cars sit diagonally on the street. As O'Hara and Catera enter the alcove, Yasso sees there is only one possibility of escape, over a small wall, up a short hillside into the woods. Acting before his chances are even further diminished, he takes off. O'Hara calls for him to stop. Instead, Yasso turns back toward him, reaching into his jacket and extracting a gun that O'Hara did not believe he had. At least, O'Hara had thought it was a gun. It turned out to be a small, black case containing the evidence.

Yasso, running backwards, facing O'Hara fully, holding out his hand toward him in what O'Hara perceived to be a threatening manner, prompted O'Hara to fire his weapon, twice. Yasso stopped, but apart from slightly lowering his arm, he did not appear to be affected by the bullets that hit him squarely in the chest. When Yasso raised his arm again, O'Hara fired two more shot, which again seemed to have no effect. When Yasso raised his arm again, O'Hara took careful aim and put two rounds into his head. Still, Yasso seemed unaffected. The two men stood frozen in place, Yasso's arm still outstretched. After what seemed to O'Hara to be minutes, Yasso finally fell face forward onto the ground.

O'Hara felt Catera come up beside him, close. But he could not acknowledge her presence. He, too, felt frozen in place and about to fall face forward.

At O'Hara's hearing:

Did the shots force him backwards? No.

Didn't you think that shots hitting a man, even wearing a vest, would have thrown him backwards? It all happened to fast. There was no time to think that.

Catera who had come up several yards behind O'Hara and had herself drawn her weapon, verified O'Hara's perception of the incident.

There were no charges filed against O'Hara, and the matter was dropped. He was returned to active duty. But two weeks later he requested to be taken off the street. Since he would not willing talk about what he was experiencing to his superiors, his captain suggested that he talk to the psychologist who had been assigned to him after the shooting. But O'Hara didn't want to talk to her either. He went to all of his meetings with her, but he was less than cooperative. He felt she intruded on his personal space.

Catera tried to talk to him, but he began to feel the same way about her that he felt about the psychologist. In fact, he began to feel that same way about all women, although he could hardly admit this to himself. He thought of suggesting to his captain that he be referred to a male psychologist. But instead, after the nightmares escalated and began to recur every night, he resigned from the force, against all advice from everyone.

Everyone liked O'Hara, and no one wanted to see him quit, especially Catera. She tried everything she could to convince him to stick it out, and it was all he could manage to do, after he resigned, to avoid her. She'd even tried to come on to him, to seduce him, thinking she could help him if she became more intimate, he guessed. That was funny, because he thought she was a lesbian. And maybe she was. Maybe she was just trying desperately to help him. He appreciated her attempts, but there was nothing she could do.

The dreams were almost exactly the same, every night. The only thing different about them was the short beginnings, where O'Hara and Catera were talking before the incident occurred. In these short moments, they talked about different things each night. But otherwise, the dreams were exactly the same: at first, O'Hara was Yasso, running through the industrial park into the hills behind it. He scurried up the hillside onto an old access road before the police saw where he went. Hidden by the trees, he watched them below on the flats. But while trying to traverse a final open area of the road that would have allowed his escape unnoticed, he was spotted by officer O‘Hara, not himself. When he heard the officer shout to his buddies and point toward him on the open road above, he immediately doubled back for the relative safety of the trees and he headed in the opposite direction, through the woods toward the housing plan up on the ridge.

He felt desperate and alone. He wanted to undo everything that happened, all of the crime, all of the police involvement in his life. He felt the pain in his lungs as he gasped for air, a delicious pain that reminded him of his days as an athlete. He knew he could outrun his pursuers. All he needed was a few lucky breaks.

Then, as himself, O'Hara scurried up the hillside with his partner, Catera, fast behind him. He was only a rookie then, having been on the force only five months. Catera was a nine-year veteran. Together, they chased Yasso through the woods, up the ever-increasing slope, but he was outdistancing them, being in excellent shape, an ex-athlete turned criminal. Near the top of the ridge, just below the backyards of the homes, Yasso decided that it would be safer to stay in the woods and, out of sight of his pursuers. O'Hara knew this because he dreamed it. He headed back down the slope, maintaining his northerly direction. If he could get to the shopping center before he was seen, he would be safe.

Both officers were exhausted, but they pushed on as fast as they could. They didn't note Yasso's change in direction until the reached the top of the ridge. They hurried back down the hillside after him. Meanwhile Catera arrived at a point where the woods abutted the stores of the outdoor mall. As he crossed the parking lot and blended in with the people, O'Hara, as himself, came out of the woods and scanned the vista. At the last minute, just as Yasso was entering a Sears store that he knew had exits out the back, O'Hara saw him. Catera radioed Yasso's location to their backup in a squad car as O'Hara took off toward the stores.

CUT TO an area beyond the back parking lot of the mall, ten minutes later. In a large alcove between a transmission repair shop and a Sunoco self-serve gas station and mini-mart, Yasso is partially cornered. Two squad cars sit diagonally on the street out front. As O'Hara and Catera enter the alcove, O'Hara, dreaming he is Yasso, sees there is only one possibility of escape, over a small wall, up a short hillside into the woods. Acting before his chances are even further diminished, he takes off. O'Hara calls for him to stop. Instead, Yasso turns back toward him, reaches into his jacket and extracts a gun that he did not believe he had. At least, he thought it was a gun. It turned out to be a small, black case containing the evidence.

Yasso, running backwards, faces himself fully, holding out his hand in what he perceives to be a threatening manner. O'Hara fires his weapon, twice. Yasso stopped, but apart from slightly lowering his arm, he does not appear to be affected by the bullets that hit him squarely in the chest. The pain, though, is excruciating, feeling like the worst case of physical exhaustion he has ever experienced. Yasso raises his arm again, and O'Hara fires two more shots, which again seemed to have no effect. When Yasso raised his arm again, O'Hara takes careful aim and puts two rounds into his head own head. Still, Yasso seems unaffected. He stands frozen in place, his arm still outstretched. After what seemed to be minutes, he finally falls face forward onto the ground. He feels himself hitting the pavement, the pain extending from his head and neck down through his body and into his feet.

O'Hara feels C come up beside him, close. But he cannot acknowledge her presence. He, too, feels frozen in place, face forward on the pavement.

At O'Hara's hearing:

Did the shots force him backwards? No.

Didn't you think that shots hitting a man, even wearing a vest, would have thrown him backwards? It all happened to fast. There was no time to think that. He only felt the pain.

Catera, who came up several yards behind O'Hara and had herself drawn her weapon, verified his perception of the incident.

There were no charges filed against O'Hara, and the matter was dropped. He was returned to active duty. But two weeks later, he requested to be taken off the street. Since he would not willing talk about what he was feeling to his superiors, his captain suggested that he talk to the psychologist who had been assigned to him after the shooting. But he didn't want to talk to her either. He went to all of his meetings with her, but he was less than cooperative. He felt she intruded on his personal space. Catera tried to talk to him, but he began to feel the same way about her that he felt about the psychologist. In fact, he began to feel that same way about all women, although he could hardly admit this to himself, even in his dream. He thought of suggesting to his captain that he be referred to a male psychologist. But instead, after the nightmares escalated and began to recur every night, he resigned from the force, against all advice from everyone.

Everyone liked O'Hara, and no one wanted to see him quit, especially Catera. She tried everything she knew to convince him to stick it out, and it was all he could manage to do, after he resigned, to avoid her. She'd even tried to come on to him, to seduce him, thinking she could help him if she became more intimate, he guessed. That was funny, because he thought she was a lesbian. And maybe she was. Maybe she was just trying desperately to help him.

He appreciated her attempts, but there was nothing she could do. He couldn't stop the dreams, and as long as they continued, there was nothing that anyone could do for him.

The dreams were almost exactly the same, every night. The only thing different about them was the short beginnings, where O'Hara and Catera were talking before the incident occurred. In these short moments, they talked about different things each night. But otherwise, the dreams were exactly the same: at first, O'Hara was Yasso, running through the industrial park into the hills behind it. He scurried up the hillside onto an old access road before the police saw where he went. Hidden by the trees, he watched them below on the flats. But while trying to traverse a final open area of the road that would have allowed his escape unnoticed, he was spotted by officer O'Hara, not himself. When he heard the officer shout to his buddies and point toward him on the open road above, he immediately doubled back for the relative safety of the trees and he headed in the opposite direction, through the woods toward the housing plan up on the ridge.


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