Kriti Mehrotra
If there’s simply one way we can ever describe Nora Allen, it would have to be resilient, considering everything she has been through in life and the way she ultimately managed to realize her dreams. The truth is this Shiprock native was merely a young girl when she first developed a keen passion for the police force thanks to her probation officer mother, only for it to continue expanding as the years passed. “I would sneak into her bag, open her books, and just start looking at them,” she revealed in HBO’s ‘Navajo Police: Class 57.’ “It was in those moments I knew I wanted to become a police officer.”
However, Nora had to put off pursuing this career for a while as she didn’t feel ready; plus, there was a lengthy period where she couldn’t, as she was berated even for dreaming aloud by her abusive ex-husband. “Growing up under reservation, I went through a lot. A lot,” she candidly stated. “…My ex-husband was terrible — mental abuse, physical abuse. He was not supportive of my decision to become an officer. He would sit there and say, ‘You’re just broke. You’re just dumb. You’re just stupid. You’re never going to be a cop.’ So I guess I doubted myself a lot,” only to thankfully soon see the truth.
It took a few years, leaving the ex, and then moving on in every way imaginable by starting afresh with someone new, but Nora finally signed up to attend the Navajo Police Training Academy in 2021. Though little did she realize firearms training would be quite an issue as handling a lethal weapon made her so uncomfortable she often even reached the point when she couldn’t even pull the trigger. This obviously made it clear she’d likely never use needless force, yet firing a gun is almost always self-defense for officers, so she worked through it until she was one of the best, just like in all other facets.
Where is Nora Allen Now?
Therefore, on June 26, 2022, Nora graduated with complete honors, following which she returned to her home ground in New Mexico to begin her on-field duty under training/supervision. Since then, from what we can tell, she has had trouble adjusting to this new life of consistently witnessing heinous crimes and trauma — including domestic abuse — yet she is doing her best not to let it consume her. In fact, she has grown to understand she can’t help everybody, especially if they change their mind about filing charges, but she will continue to try by responding to all the calls she can — now on her own.
“I think the job is changing me,” Nora conceded in the three-part documentary series. “Working through these calls, you can’t show your emotions. It’s very heavy. The emotional part of me, just being able to turn it off and off, whether going to a call or going home, that was really hard for me… You’re going to have to be able to hold yourself together and be there for your people.” Yet, the fact her husband Charles Allen continues to stand by her side makes all the difference in the world, making it clear they’re still undeniably together.
In the original production, Charles said, “Ever since we’ve been together, we’ve been a team. Really, I’m scared for her, just all the dangers involved in being a police officer. But I’m here to support her however I can, whatever she needs… She has a fire in her, so I know she can handle herself, whether she sees it or not.” On the other hand, Nora expressed, “We’ve been through so much together and still continue to build together. I’m very grateful… Just having a lot of support from my husband, it’s helped a lot just for me to be able to open up instead of staying closed off [regarding work]. I know things get better.
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