Dzambo typically works at Mad River from 11 p.m. to 3 a.m. Friday and Saturday nights. He gets time-and-a-half for the bar assignment, making it one of the highest-paying off-duty shifts available. He's married with two young girls, 6 and 13, and a third on the way. He works the 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. shift at the Southwestern District, making it easy for him to pop over to Mad River after work.
Now he's considering taking a security job at a Wendy's - longer hours for less overtime pay.
Two other bars in Federal Hill also have off-duty officers on this night, supplementing the regular shift of patrol cars and foot patrols that work the bar district in the trendy neighborhood. On Friday night, Dzambo stood outside, bantering with the patrons and the drunks, watching for trouble; a city cruiser idled in a parking lot up the street as two beat cops stood watching the crowds.
"The trouble is mostly pushing and shoving," Dzambo says. "We don't go into the bar unless it's something really serious. If it's just a regular fight, we try to let the bouncers handle it."
That's one of Bealefeld's biggest complaints. There's been no arrest in the beating of the student at Iguana Cantina, despite the dozen or so police officers busy breaking up fights outside the club. Did they choose not to get involved because the fight was inside the bar? Did they even know about the fight? Or were they so fixated on their narrow role as armed bouncers being paid by the bar that they forgot they're still police officers with greater responsibilities?
Just after midnight, Dzambo broke up another fight involving friends attending a bachelor party. Dzambo ran down in time to see a man thrown into the side of a parked car and another man angrily waving his bloodied white shirt in the air.
"If I'm not here, the neighbors are going to see it and they'll call 911," the officer says. "I can get it under control before a police call is even generated. It's done. It's over. I can nip it in the bud."
Starting tomorrow, that will be up to the beat cops and the bouncers.
