No one has had a closer look at law and order in Baghdad this year than Capt. Christopher Hormel of the U.S. military police. The 32-year-old father of three from Washington state has been in charge of police operations there. Recently, on the day before his tour of duty ended, he spoke with Tribune editorial writer Jim Beamguard about what he has seen accomplished.

On his mission:

I'm out every day. I work with the Iraqi police. Just watching their growth has been tremendous over the last six or seven months. They're starting to plan their own stuff out, and execute it -- something new. With us helping them with their equipment, they're increasing their capabilities.

When I first got here, it was always coalition forces that were conducting the offensive operations. Now, you see the Iraqi security forces, both the military and the police, conducting missions to help slow down the insurgency. That's why they are a big target. The Iraqi security forces continue to get killed over here because they are conducting these missions.

I've had a couple of close ones. A suicide VBID [vehicle-borne improvised explosive device] was targeting one of the Iraqi leaders. I was about 200 meters away when the VBID went off. I was right there where the fireball was. Amazingly enough, they actually hit their target, but the force of the explosion pushed his vehicle forward and he survived.

One [Iraqi policeman] that I worked with closely for the last few months just a couple days ago was at his house, outside with his wife and his daughter and brother-in-law. Some one drove up and shot them all, sprayed them down with a machine gun. That's the price people in the States don't realize. They're pretty brave to put on their uniform each day.

And I have never been so proud in my life of soldiers as I am here. Every day [U.S. troops] gear up and go out. They know at any time they can have an IED [improvised explosive device] strike them. [Insurgents] place a bomb on the side of road, wait for someone to drive by.

These soldiers, they're the unsung heroes. If the people back home could see them, they would be just as proud as I am.

On Iraqi progress:

Their confidence has improved tremendously over the last six to eight months, because of their equipment and training. I spend every day with them. The morale is pretty high. They're getting tired of all the violence, just like everyone else who lives over here is. They want to bring peace so their kids don't have to live in chaos. They're working pretty hard.

Really, the main focus is on security. Just basic security. That's what they're trying to bring to their country. Just a sense of security.

We just had the election. I lived at Baghdad headquarters for a week during the elections. I lived right with all the Iraqi police officers. I worked in the operations center and tracked what was going on. If polling sites were attacked, we were the ones calling in support.

That was probably the best experience I've had over here. It was planned and executed by the Iraqis, not by the U.S. forces. The plan was developed by the chief of police of Baghdad. It was his troops that secured the polling sites, not U.S. It was a real success story.

In my opinion, the future looks bright. A country that hasn't known freedom before has just voted on its own constitution and passed it. They'll be electing officials this December.

Look at the long picture. What's a greater thing for the United States to do than to bring peace and stability to a country? Just the peace of mind to walk down to the market and not be afraid that the regime is going to throw you in prison because you didn't agree with them. To help bring an environment where they don't have to live in that type of fear is a great cause and should be supported by the American public.

On the risks:

You always have to be a little bit cautious that someone is going to see you and indiscriminately kill you. It's nothing personal. The insurgents just want to be on TV.

If we pull out now, it would be be open season on both the Iraqi police officers and the Iraqi army.

We've taken so many strides forward, it would be a shame if we threw it all away. If the average American citizen could see the amount of progress being made, I don't think we would have so much opposition.

There's gonna come a time here soon when Iraqi people are fed up with the insurgency. We see it every day. We get a lot of tips about insurgents. People calling in the hot line -- this person who lives down the street is engaged in insurgency. Civilians every day stop our patrols and point out where the bad guys are. That shows you a mood swing of the population supporting what we are doing.

On supporting the troops:

We don't need for anything. Everybody has all the protective gear we need. Nice chow hall. Plenty of water. Care packages are always nice, just for morale. Usually what I do with care packages, I'll take all the candy and hand it out to the kids.

On his family:

My wife is in Olympia, Wash. I have three boys, aged 7, 5 and 2.

There's a special place in heaven for military spouses that raise them by themselves.

My wife knows I'm outside the wire every day. I try to call at least twice a week so she knows I'm all right.