Boy gets to live his dream of becoming a police officer


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OREM — A young boy got to live his dream of becoming a police officer Thursday under a new program launched by the Orem Department of Public Safety.

Police mocked up the scenarios to offer a realistic day-in-the-life feel for nine-year-old McKade Daley, who has spina bifida. He got to watch a SWAT team enter a home, investigate an auto burglary, make a traffic stop and command a trained dog.

“You get to wear the uniform, then you get to take away bad guys to save the city,” said an excited McKade, who also got to be sworn in by a judge, sit at Chief Gary Giles’ desk and attend an actual police briefing.

McKade — who was sharp, analytical and curious throughout the entire experience — seemed to be a true detective at heart. He noticed some suspicious behavior exhibited by a driver during a would-be traffic stop.

“When he was in the car, it looked like he was a little prancy — like nervous,” McKade said. “He stole candy, which I don’t really get.”

Mother Natalie Daley said her son has been talking about becoming an officer for years.

“He always says ‘yeah, I’ll have a desk job, I’ll be a police officer and I’ll have a desk job when I grow up,’ ” she said. “I think with this, it kind of shows him that he can be anything he wants to be.”

The officers themselves seemed to enjoy giving McKade his dream professional experience.


You get to wear the uniform, then you get to take away bad guys to save the city.

–McKade Daley


“I can’t tell you how excited our guys are to be involved in this,” said Lt. Craig Martinez, who noted the department potentially planned to make this a monthly event.

Though McKade seemed mesmerized by the experience as a whole, some moments may have been a little too real-world for the boy — who jolted and screamed when SWAT team members deployed a flashbang grenade.

In the end, he was a police officer for a day but still a child at heart.

“And by the way, hi Dad!” McKade exclaimed in a post-event interview. “I love you!”

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