A Part of Doing Business:  Law Enforcement Today
 

I pull up the Officer Down Memorial Page almost every day.  I do it for a myriad of reasons and each time I do it, a flow of emotions goes through my head.  The primary reason I do it is to bring myself back to reality. 

As I go about my day I suffer from the same things that many of you suffer from.  I actually sometimes believe that my worries and concerns are actually a big deal.  I think it matters that this officer did this or that politician thinks that.  In the reality of things those worries and concerns mean nothing.  I may be getting a paycheck to deal with some of those issues but it is awful silly to spend energy on things that mean so little to officers as a whole.

The reality is this.  It is the same reality every week.  At least one officer dies in a traffic related incident and this week, two officers died.  On October 19th, Coahoma County (Mississippi) Deputy Jerry Hudgins died in a vehicle collision while responding to a traffic accident.  His car left the roadway and struck a tree.   On the same day, Stafford County (Virginia) Deputy Jason Mooney  died while responding to another collision.  His vehicle hydroplaned and left the roadway.  This 24 year old Marine Corp Veteran survived a tour during the War on Terror but died in a patrol car driving down the road.

Am I the only one that is mad that these heroes will no longer come home to their families because of a traffic collision?  Where is the outrage?  Where is the commitment to training?  It makes me angry and it makes me passionate.

Have these incidents become a part of doing business in our profession?  Are we giving our officers the training they need to do their jobs safely?  The protection of our officers must be the primary mission of our leaders in law enforcement today.

If you are reading this and you don't feel emotion or outrage then do your officers a favor and find another profession because these deaths are not a part of doing business.

If you are reading this and it makes you feel uncomfortable then good!  It means you care and it means you are going to do your part to reverse the senseless deaths of law enforcement officers. 

Disclaimer:  This site is not affiliated with the Tulsa Police Department nor does it endorse or recommend any particular product or training technique.