By Terra Avilla
Last week my daughter told me when she grows up, she wants to be a policewoman like me. The two of us spoke about qualities that come to mind about effective women in law enforcement.
My mind went to my dear friend Laura, who has years and years of experience, and then very quickly, also went to this week’s feature, Meghan Monnahan, who you may know from her role with the Lassen County Sheriff’s Office.
And for obvious reasons. The first being, Meghan is so incredibly smart. The way her brain must constantly be rapid firing astonishes me.
At the District Attorney’s Office, I had the privilege of getting to have a lot of contact with Meghan. Number one, she has always been a go-getter. She is constantly out and about being proactive.
Reading her reports, I am learning new things. I cannot count the number of times I read what she did, and was like, “That was brilliant.” She has a knack for this career.
Number two, I knew I would love her forever when she agreed, and wanted to be trained to be a forensic interviewer. So, through our Child Advocacy Center I have a firsthand view of watching that woman work and, oh my gosh, she has mastered both the art and science of interviewing children.
I will never, ever forget watching her first interview. All the cases we handle are tough, and this one was no exception. Watching her on the monitor – Meghan was truly a pro.
She had so much finesse, but was also mindful to watch her technique, creating a very relaxing atmosphere for our survivor, but also engaging in a very robust interview. I was blown away.
Meghan is also very cool. I know I’m old, but dang, I so badly want to be cool like her one day. It just comes naturally to her.
Meghan is always so polite and courteous to everyone. She could very easily, considering how smart and beautiful she is, be haughty and stand-offish, but she isn’t. She is just the opposite. Approachable and wonderful.
She married David Lee, and the two of them are quite literally a crime fighting duo. I love that our county somehow snagged her, and I am so happy and eager to see where her future goes, because it is incredibly bright and because she is one of the reasons I love where we live.
