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Police deaths spike- NO calls are routine www.privateofficer.com
So far this year, 26 officers have been gunned down – 44 percent more than the 18 shot and killed at this point in 2010.
National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund fatality statistics
Many of the fallen have been ambushed by violent career criminals with easy access to high-powered weapons.
“The officers are responding to what are called routine calls or a crime call and are being shot and killed before they even get to the location,” said John Timoney, the former Miami police chief.
St. Petersburg, Fla., had not lost an officer in a shooting for 30 years – until Jan. 24 when police cornered a fugitive in the attic of his home. Chief Chuck Harmon said when officers tried to handcuff the suspect, he began shooting.
“He hid a gun in the attic. He pulled the gun out and shot the officer, basically at point blank range in the head,” Harmon said.
With officer Jeff Yaslowitz dying in the attic, police attempted a rescue. The gunman opened up with a fury of fire.
Sgt. Tom Baitinger, wearing a bulletproof vest, was killed by a shot from above.
Over seven hours, nearly 300 shots were exchanged. Police fired 100 canisters of tear gas and used a bulldozer to knock a hole in the house to get to the shooter. With two officers and the gunman dead, the mayor ordered the house torn down.
A state attorney’s investigation found police in St. Petersburg did nothing wrong that day. They followed good police procedures. But they were caught in a trap set by a desperate fugitive.
Incredibly, just one month later, St. Pete police suffered another loss. When officer Dave Crawford tried to question a 16-year-old about a possible car theft, Crawford was killed by four shots to the chest.
“As a chief, like I said, you wonder is this somehow your fault,” Harmon said.
Now, Harmon is left with unanswerable questions – and worry.
“None of us know when the next one is coming,” Harmon said. “And none of us know why it is spiking like this.”
More powerful guns, hardened criminals, desperate economic times – all may play some role. Crime analysts see no common thread to explain the deadly assault on police.
But, with officer deaths climbing at an alarming rate, no call is routine.
Source:CBS NEWS
Police killed more often in car crashes than gunfire www.privateofficer.com
Baltimore MD Dec 7 2010 When we think about police dying in the line of duty, we tend to flash to a thought of a criminal maliciously gunning down an officer.
But a more common fate for law enforcement officers is to be killed in a vehicle collision. According to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, as of last week there had been 70 officers killed nationwide in vehicle incidents compared with 54 killed by gunfire in 2010. Crash fatalities among officers were up 49 percent over the same period in 2009. The majority are killed in crashes involving a single moving vehicle.
The Baltimore Police Department has lost two of its own to such crashes in recent months. In September, Officer James E. Fowler III died when his Chevy truck went off a road in central Pennsylvania while on his way to a police training course at Penn State University. Less than a month later, Officer Thomas Portz Jr. was killed when his patrol car ran into a fire engine parked on U.S. 40 while responding to a call.
There is no denying these officers’ service. Nor is there any doubt about the tragedy of their deaths. But now that the funerals are over, it would be a mistake to brush aside the disturbing questions raised by these crashes. Not about two individuals but about the police department’s training and culture when it comes to operating motor vehicles.
In neither case is there anything to indicate anyone other than the driver was at fault.
Fowler drove off U.S. 22 near Lewistown, Pa., Sept. 27 and hit a berm. Baltimore police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said the crash was “weather-related.”
Portz was answering a call about an injured person in the street when his patrol car hit the fire truck at a speed Guglielmi estimated at 70 mph. He was killed and four firefighters were injured.
In the days immediately after such losses, nobody wants to dwell too much on the errors that led to needless deaths. But at some point, the city and the department should take a hard look at how its officers drive — and give an accounting to the mayor, the City Council and the public.
In Fowler’s case, blaming the weather avoids hard facts. It was early fall. There was no ice or snow on the highway. We’re talking about rain. Every driver, police officer or not, is expected to drive at an appropriate speed and muster the required concentration to keep a vehicle on the road even in miserable conditions.
The Oct. 20 Portz case is even more disturbing — and not just because no injured person was found. It raises serious questions about how the department trains its officers to respond to emergencies and how it reacts to fatalities when they do happen.
Guglielmi gave the standard defense of the officer’s apparent decision to rush to the scene at high speed. “If it’s your daughter or your mother having a heart attack, you want the police there in two seconds,” he said.
If you weigh the risks of an officer driving to the scene at 50 mph versus racing there at 70 mph for a report of an injury, I don’t see how you don’t come down on the side of the slower speed. Driving at high speeds puts the officer, the public and — as it turned out — other first responders at risk. A delay of two or three minutes in an officer’s arrival would seem to be a minimal risk to the injured person.
The spokesman declined to second-guess the decision to drive to the scene at that speed and speculated that Portz might have been distracted.
“We don’t know if he sneezed. We don’t know what happened,” Guglielmi said. Crashing under those conditions, he said, doesn’t represent a flaw in training.
With all due respect, it would. Drivers are expected to retain control in the face of distraction — even a sneeze.
The fact that an officer would feel compelled to drive so fast to a fairly routine call makes me wonder what messages were absorbed at the police academy and in the department itself. Don’t police realize their driving is scaring people?
Guglielmi said the city has determined that so far this year there have been 224 police-involved crashes in Baltimore that the officer could have prevented. He said that’s not bad considering the police log up to 1.2 million miles a year. Maybe, but a better message to come out of the commissioner’s office would be that it’s 224 too many.
On PoliceOne.com, Capt. Travis Yates of the Tulsa, Okla., Police Department, a national expert on police driving, was unsparing of his profession in an article called “How We Die — the Untold Story.”
“I fear that we have somehow minimized these collisions by calling them ‘accidents’ and throwing our hands in the air as if we can’t do anything. Whatever we’re doing, it’s not working,” he wrote. “I do not shy away from placing blame square on the shoulders of police chiefs and sheriffs for the failure to train their officers.”
When I asked Guglielmi about whether Commissioner Frederick H. Bealefeld had taken any particular initiatives in the field of police driving safety, he couldn’t think of any.
Perhaps it’s time the commissioner took some steps to send a strong message through the ranks — as Commissioner Thomas C. Frazier did in the 1990s.
When it comes to driving, the officers who best protect the public are the ones who protect themselves.
Source:Baltimore Sun
OFFICER DOWN FLORIDA
Patrick Ambroise
Florida Highway Patrol
Florida
End of Watch: Saturday, May 15, 2010
Biographical Info
Age: 35
Tour of Duty: 4 years
Badge Number: Not available
Incident Details
Cause of Death: Automobile accident
Date of Incident: Saturday, May 15, 2010
Weapon Used: Not available
Suspect Info: Not available
Trooper Patrick Ambroise was killed when his patrol car was struck from behind while he was stopped on the shoulder of the Florida Turnpike, near Okeechobee Road.
A vehicle being driven on the turnpike suddenly veered onto the shoulder and struck Trooper Ambroise’s 2006 Crown Victoria from behind, causing it to burst into flames, and trapping him inside.
The driver of the vehicle that caused the crash was seriously injured.
Trooper Ambroise had served with the Florida Highway Patrol for four years. He is survived by his wife, two young daughters, mother, and five siblings.
Agency Contact Information
Florida Highway Patrol
Neil Kirkman Building
2900 Apalachee Parkway
Tallahassee, FL 32399
Phone: (850) 617-2301
Please contact the Florida Highway Patrol for funeral arrangements or for survivor benefit fund information.
OFFICER DOWN GILBERT ARIZONA
Gilbert Police Department
Arizona
End of Watch: Thursday, January 28, 2010
Biographical Info
Age: Not available
Tour of Duty: 12 years
Badge Number: Not available
Incident Details
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: Thursday, January 28, 2010
Weapon Used: Gun; Unknown type
Suspect Info: Shot and wounded
Lieutenant Eric Shuhandler was shot and killed after stopping a vehicle occupied by two males near the intersection of Val Vista Road and Baseline Road, near the border of Gilbert and Mesa.
After pulling into the parking lot of a strip mall shot were exchanged between Lieutenant Shuhandler and the suspects. Lieutenant Shuhandler was fatally wounded in the exchange.
Two sergeants from the Mesa Police Department heard the shot and found Lieutenant Shuhandler at the same time as Gilbert police received a 911 call reporting the shooting. He was transported to a local hospital where he died from his wound.
The suspects were located minutes later and a 50-mile high-speed chase began along Highway 60, with several units pursuing the pickup through Phoenix-area communities. The suspects fired several rounds and threw objects from their vehicle at the pursuing officers. The vehicle abruptly stopped in the town of Superior, and both suspects were wounded in an exchange of gunfire with officers from four agencies. Both suspects were arrested at the scene.
Lieutenant Shuhandler had served with the Gilbert Police Department for 12 years.
Agency Contact Information
Gilbert Police Department
75 E. Civic Center Drive
Gilbert, AZ 85296
Phone: (480) 503-6500
Please contact the Gilbert Police Department for funeral arrangements or for survivor benefit fund information.
PRESS RELEASE-PRIVATE OFFICER MEMORIAL WEEK
Year after year, private security officers employed worldwide are killed while protecting life and property and in most cases receive little or no recognition, honors or respect.
This situation occurs because there has not been any centralized organization to step forward to thank these fallen heros and to be there as a support for the family that they have left behind.
But in the past several years all of that has changed with the inception of the Memorial Aid Fund sponsored and administered by
PRIVATE OFFICER INTERNATIONAL.
We also realized that there has never been any official week or dedicated time period to remember these men and woman who bravely, valiantly and willingly sacrificed their life to fulfill their duties to their client, their employer and to the public safety of the area that they were responsible for.
Therefore, a committee was formed to aid in the research and designation of a specific date in time when we as professionals in our field along with the rest of the law enforcement and security community,families, friends and the general public could pay homage and respect and gratitude to more than 300 Private Officers who have been killed in the past four years and the many others who died before that in service to those that they were hired to protect, serve, and guard against all criminal activity or other harm that would otherwise come against their
employer’s property, employees, visitors and the general public.
PRIVATEOFFICER INTERNATIONAL has worked diligently for almost a year to seek input from security agencies and organizations and professional associations to select a week each year when we could memorialize our fallen colleagues and we are extremely pleased to announce that we have determined a special time for us to do this each year beginning with 2009.
Each year, the third week in the month of September shall be recognized as the “Official”
“Private Officer Memorial Week”.
During this week each year, there will be many planned activities and they will be announced in advance of
the memorial week each year.
INTERNATIONAL PRIVATE OFFICER
MEMORIAL WEEK
SEPTEMBER 20-26 2009
PRESS RELEASE
Immediate Release
Atlanta Ga. September 22 2009
The INTERNATIONAL PRIVATE OFFICER MEMORIAL WEEK has been scheduled for SEPTEMBER 20-26 2009.
This week has been designated for security officers along with law enforcement and others in the security community, families, friends and the
general public to pay their respects and gratitude to more than 300 Private Security Officers who have been killed in the past four years and the
many others who died before that in service to those that they were hired to protect, serve, and guard, preventing harm that would otherwise
come against their employer’s property, employees, visitors and the general public.
This year’s Memorial Week will include numerous events scheduled in Atlanta Georgia and in Charlotte North Carolina.
On September 20th the event will begin by reading the names of all security personnel
killed in the past five years.
In addition to this, a special remarks wall on the Private Officer website will be available for family members, friends and other visitors to leave
notes, poems, songs, pictures and other mementos for these fallen hero’s.
A candlelight vigil and prayer by the association Chaplain will also take place on
Wednesday evening in downtown Atlanta.
Other events are also planned in numerous states and in the U.K., Brazil, Canada, and Australia.
Each year, more than eighty security officers are killed in the U.S. while in the performance of their duties. Internationally, more than one thousand
security officers are killed yearly.
About Private Officer International: This international association was started in 2004 by Rick McCann, CEO/Founder, as a training and networking resource for private security officers and has grown to include members in six countries.
Membership is open to all security officers, loss prevention agents, campus and school officers, law enforcement, vendors of the security industry and the general public who support the association’s goals and purpose.
Website: http://www.privateofficer.com
Contact Info: Kyle T. Greene
Email:kyletgreene@privateofficer.com
704.559.4151
OFFICER DOWN VIRGINIA www.privateofficer.com
Southampton County Sheriff’s Office
Virginia
End of Watch: Saturday, August 29, 2009
Biographical Info
Age: 22
Tour of Duty: 3 months
Badge Number: Not available
Incident Details
Cause of Death: Automobile accident
Date of Incident: Saturday, August 29, 2009
Weapon Used: Not available
Suspect Info: Not available
Deputy Christopher Ray was killed in an automobile accident as he and his FTO were responding to a fight call in Newsoms at 5:20 am.
A tree had fallen across General Thomas Highway during an overnight storm. Their patrol car swerved to avoid the fallen tree and went off the road, striking another tree. Deputy Ray, who was the passenger, suffered fatal injuries.
Deputy Ray had served with the agency for only three months.
Agency Contact Information
Southampton County Sheriff’s Office
PO Box 70
Courtland, VA 23837
Phone: (757) 653-2708
Please contact the Southampton County Sheriff’s Office for funeral arrangements or for survivor benefit fund information.
OFFICER DOWN
Lewis County Sheriff’s Office
Washington
End of Watch: Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Biographical Info
Age: 34
Tour of Duty: 6 years
Badge Number: Not available
Incident Details
Cause of Death: Automobile accident
Date of Incident: Monday, August 17, 2009
Weapon Used: Not available
Suspect Info: Not available
Deputy Mike Gallagher succumbed to injuries sustained the previous night when his patrol car collided with an elk on Highway 12. He was responding to backup another deputy at the scene of a domestic disturbance when the accident occurred near Packwood at approximately 8:30 pm.
After striking the elk, his patrol car ran into a storage shed and then into a utility pole. He was transported to Harborview Medical Center, where he succumbed to injuries the following evening.
Deputy Gallagher was a U.S. Army veteran and had served with the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office for six years. He is survived by his wife and two young children.
Agency Contact Information
Lewis County Sheriff’s Office
345 West Main Street
Chehalis, WA 98532
Phone: (360) 748-9286
Please contact the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office for funeral arrangements or for survivor benefit fund information.
OFFICER DOWN
Puerto Rico Police Department
Puerto Rico
End of Watch: Sunday, August 16, 2009
Biographical Info
Age: 37
Tour of Duty: 17 years
Badge Number: 18715
Incident Details
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: Sunday, August 16, 2009
Weapon Used: Gun; Unknown type
Suspect Info: At large
Agent Jorge Sanchez-Santiago was shot and killed as he and the director of the Vehicle Theft Division transported a prisoner to jail. The prisoner was somehow able to obtain one of the officers’ weapons.
Agent Sanchez-Santiago was shot once in the head and the lieutenant was shot three times in the chest and critically wounded.
The suspect fled the scene and remains at large.
Agent Sanchez-Santiago had served with the agency for 17 years. He is survived by his wife and two children.
Agency Contact Information
Puerto Rico Police Department
PO Box 70166
San Juan, PR 00936
Phone: (787) 792-1234
Please contact the Puerto Rico Police Department for funeral arrangements or for survivor benefit fund information.
Colorado officer killed, 2 others shot www.privateofficer.com
A domestic disturbance exploded into gunfire in an affluent Montrose neighborhood, and when it was over, three police officers and the suspect lay wounded or dying.
Killed late Saturday was Sgt. David Kinterknecht, 41. Wounded were Officers Rodney Ragsdale, 55, and Larry Witte, 23.
Police did not identify the suspect, who was killed, or indicate whether police had shot him or he shot himself.
Beverly Howell, a neighbor who witnessed some of the events at 16915 64.50 Road, said police had gone to the house on domestic-violence calls several times over the past year.
Property records show that the $632,320 home across the road from the Cobble Creek Golf Course is owned by Dennis and Pamela Gurney.
Through a friend, Cindy Gay Dick, Pamela Gurney, 50, declined an interview with The Denver Post on Sunday.
Sheriff’s deputies and police went to the home about 8:30 p.m. Saturday and began talking to the person who reported the incident, according to a police statement.
A man who had locked himself in the garage began shooting, hitting the three police officers, the statement said.
All three officers were taken to Montrose Memorial Hospital. Police Chief Tom Chinn said Sunday that both survivors were doing well.
Jim Howell, Beverly Howell’s husband, said police arrived at the home several hours before the shooting started. He said he was in his bathroom when he heard two or three gunshots.
Beverly Howell said she saw Dennis Gurney, 52, back away from police, his hands above his head, as she looked through her kitchen window.
“Then it looked like he crouched down and went around the back of the garage,” she said.
“There was a lot of chaotic activity, and we heard some shots, and then some more shots,” she said.
Pamela Gurney had told the Howells that she was a victim of domestic abuse, Beverly Howell said.
Tisha Langston Slater, a Vermont resident who was once engaged to the Gurneys’ son, Eric, was shocked to hear of violence at the house.
“His parents took me in,” she said. “His parents were great people. They were always so nice to me.”
Dennis Gurney had been badly burned when he worked on an oil rig that exploded several years ago, Slater said.
“I know that Mr. Gurney had been disfigured in a fire and that he had been depressed,” Beverly Howell said.
Kinterknecht joined the department, which has 43 officers, in 1999 after serving in sheriff’s departments in San Miguel and Montrose counties.
“He is a Montrose boy. He grew up in Montrose; all his roots are here,” said Chinn, the Montrose police chief.
According to the Officer Down Memorial website, Kinterknecht was the second Montrose officer to die in the line of duty.
In April 1983, Officer Larry F. McMaster was shot to death and another officer was twice wounded after they entered a bar where a disturbance had been reported.
In the incident Saturday, Ragsdale was shot three times in his left leg and once in his right, said his daughter-in-law, Victoria Ragsdale.
Doctors operated on him and placed a rod in one leg, she said, adding that he was doing well.
“He has been joking and laughing, and that is a good sign,” Victoria Ragsdale said.
Rodney Ragsdale is a 20-year veteran of law enforcement. He previously served with the Northglenn Police Department and, before that, the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department, Victoria Ragsdale said.
Rodney Ragsdale moved to Montrose in November.
“He always wanted to live in a mountain town,” his daughter-in-law said.
Witte joined the department about three years ago after graduating from Western State College in Gunnison, where he was a track star, Chinn said.
“He is a very athletic kid,” he said.
The Colorado Bureau of Investigation and the 7th Judicial Critical Incident Team are investigating the incident.
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OFFICER DOWN CHICAGO IL www.privateofficer.com
Police Officer Alejandro (Alex) Valadez
Chicago Police Department
Illinois
End of Watch: Monday, June 1, 2009
Biographical Info
Age: 27
Tour of Duty: 3 years
Badge Number: 9534
Incident Details
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: Monday, June 1, 2009
Weapon Used: Gun; Unknown type
Suspect Info: Not available
Officer Alex Valadez was shot and killed while investigating reports of gunfire on South Hermitage Road shortly after midnight. As he and his partner were questioning several residents a vehicle drove up and an occupant opened fire, striking Officer Valadez once in the leg and once in the head.
He was transported to a local hospital where he succumbed to his wounds later in the day.
Officer Valadez had served with the agency for three years. He is survived by his parents, sister, brother, and girlfriend. His siblings and girlfriend also serve with the Chicago Police Department.
Agency Contact Information
Chicago Police Department
3510 S. Michigan Avenue
Chicago, IL 60653
Phone: (312) 746-6000
Please contact the Chicago Police Department for funeral arrangements or for survivor benefit fund information.
Two Arizona officers killed in copter crash www.privateofficer.com
Peoria police Officer Mike Gauchat, 41, and police services Officer Donna Cullum, 45, died when the two-seat homebuilt Safari helicopter they were in crashed west of Interstate 17 just south of Black Canyon City.
“This is a major tragedy for the families involved and for members of the department,” said Police Chief Larry Ratcliff. “Both Mike and Donna are highly respected members of the department.”
The helicopter burst into flames after it hit the ground, law enforcement officials said. The cause of the crash remains under investigation.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with Donna and Mike’s families and the members of our department who are processing this tragic event while continuing to provide law enforcement services to the community,” Ratcliff said.
A memorial service for the pair is set for Saturday at 10 a.m. at Christ Church of the Valley, 7007 W. Happy Valley Road.
Internment will be at Sunland Cemetery in Sun City.
Peoria police spokesman Mike Tellef said Gauchat was a traffic officer who enjoyed flying helicopters and was at the controls when his aircraft went down. Cullum was his girlfriend.
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OFFICER DOWN NORTH CAROLINA
On Jan 20, 2007, Trooper Barber was assisting another trooper that had stopped an all-terrain vehicle on a rural road in Wilkes County. The all-terrain vehicle rolled striking Trooper Barber and pinned him against his patrol car. He sustained major injuries to his lower legs. Trooper Barber has received numerous medical treatments, including 10 surgical procedures.
Commander Walter J. Wilson said, “My thoughts and prayers are extended to Trooper Barber’s family. The patrol is feeling the loss of one of our own, one who lost his life serving the citizens of the state.”
Trooper Barber is the 61st trooper to die in the line of duty since the formation of the Highway Patrol in 1929.
Trooper Barber grew up in Glenn Falls, New York, where he graduated from Queensbury High School in 1980. He leaves behind a wife, Lynn Barber, and three children.
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OFFICER DOWN ALABAMA
Headland Police Department
Alabama
End of Watch: Friday, April 24, 2009
Biographical Info
Age: Not available
Tour of Duty: Not available
Badge Number: Not available
Incident Details
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: Friday, April 24, 2009
Weapon Used: Gun; Unknown type
Suspect Info: Shot and killed
Officer Dexter Hammond was shot and killed while responding to reports of a man waving a gun around outside of his trailer. When Officer Hammond arrived at the scene he was fatally shot.
Responding deputies also were fired upon when they arrived. The deputies returned fire, killing the suspect.
Officer Hammond had previously served as the police chief of the Midland City Police Department.
Agency Contact Information
Headland Police Department
9 Park Street
Headland, AL 36345
Phone: (346) 932-222
Please contact the Headland Police Department for funeral arrangements or for survivor benefit fund information.
Alabama officer dead, 2 others shot www.privateofficer.com
WSFA 12 News has confirmed that the slain officer was from the Headland Police Department.
Two other officers were injured as well. A Henry County Sheriff’s Deputy is fighting for his life at this hour. Sources tell us the deputy is in surgery at Southeast Alabama Medical Center in Dothan. The third officer suffered minor wounds.
The gunman, identified as Fred Davis, was shot and killed by responding officers.
Investigators say the Henry County Sheriff’s Department received a call around 4:55pm stating that a man had a weapon.
Twenty minutes later the unidentified Headland police officer responded to the house, located at 5501 Co. Rd 55, where he was fatally wounded.
Other officers arrived on the scene and reported that Davis began firing at them.
At this time a motive is not known and investigators say the investigation is in its “infancy stages.”
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OFFICER DOWN LOUISIANA www.privateofficer.com
Louisiana
End of Watch: Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Biographical Info
Age: 37
Tour of Duty: Not available
Badge Number: Not available
Incident Details
Cause of Death: Automobile accident
Date of Incident: Friday, April 3, 2009
Weapon Used: Not available
Suspect Info: Not available
Deputy Richard Stiles succumbed to injuries sustained four days earlier when his patrol car was struck head-on by a pickup truck on Plank Road.
The driver of the pickup truck swerved into Deputy Stiles’ lane to avoid striking a car that was attempting to make a left turn. The driver of the pickup truck was also killed.
Deputy Stiles had served with the East Feliciana Parish Sheriff’s Department for one year.
Agency Contact Information
East Feliciana Parish Sheriff’s Department
11315 Bank Street
Clinton, LA 70722
Phone: (225) 683-8572
Please contact the East Feliciana Parish Sheriff’s Department for funeral arrangements or for survivor benefit fund information.
OFFICER DOWN TEXAS www.privateofficer.com
Texas
End of Watch: Thursday, April 2, 2009
Biographical Info
Age: 32
Tour of Duty: 5 years
Badge Number: Not available
Incident Details
Cause of Death: Vehicle pursuit
Date of Incident: Thursday, April 2, 2009
Weapon Used: Automobile
Suspect Info: Charged with capital murder
Sergeant Randy White was killed when his patrol car was struck from behind by a stolen vehicle being pursued by other officers Texas 114, near Farm Road 2123.
The pursuit had started earlier in the day when a Wise County deputy attempted to stop the suspect following a hit-and-run accident. The suspect was able to evade officers, but was located a short time later in a stolen vehicle and another pursuit was initiated.
Sergeant White was clearing Texas 114 of traffic ahead of the pursuit and was parked on the shoulder when the suspect rammed the rear of his cruiser, pushing it into the back of a pickup truck hauling a trailer.
The suspect was injured in the accident. He was charged with capital murder.
Sergeant White had served with the Bridgeport Police Department for 5 years. He is survived by his wife and 5-year-old daughter.
Agency Contact Information
Bridgeport Police Department
1000 Thompson Street
Bridgeport, TX 76426
Phone: (940) 683-3430
Please contact the Bridgeport Police Department for funeral arrangements or for survivor benefit fund information.
OFFICER DOWN www.privateofficer.com
OFFICER DOWN http://www.privateofficer.com
Biographical InfoAge: 45
Incident DetailsCause of Death: Vehicular assault
OFFICER DOWN CA. www.privateofficer.com
OFFICER DOWN CA. http://www.privateofficer.com
Biographical InfoAge: 50
OFFICER DOWN ALABAMA www.privateofficer.com
OFFICER DOWN ALABAMA http://www.privateofficer.com
Biographical InfoAge: 21
Incident Details-Cause of Death: Automobile accident
OFFICER DOWN OHIO www.privateofficer.com
OFFICER DOWN OHIO http://www.privateofficer.com
Dean was clearing debris from an earlier crash on Ohio 8 south at Hines Hill Road when he was struck and killed, Chief Joseph Varga said at the scene.
Police closed southbound Ohio 8 at Hines Hill Road. Dean was struck about 5:30 a.m. He was pronounced dead at the scene at 06:22 a.m. The busy route remained closed at 7:30 a.m.
Varga said Dean was an excellent, energetic officer “who wouldn’t sit still. He loved his job.”
Dean’s brother is a Hudson police officer, Varga said.
Police Officer Jarod Dean
OFFICER DOWN- Dallas TX
OFFICER DOWN- Dallas TX
Biographical Info Age: 43
Incident DetailsCause of Death: Gunfire
Sr. Cpl. Norm Smith, who was transported to Baylor University Medical Center, was shot in the head while serving a felony aggravated assault warrant with a team of officers.
“They knocked on one of the apartment doors,” said Lt. Andy Harvey, Dallas Police Department. “And when they did, they were met with gunfire.”
Authorities said Smith was shot through the door.
Police identified the suspected shooter early Wednesday as 26-year-old Charles Patrick Payne, who faces a capital murder charge.
The man wanted on a felony warrant was identified as William Jobe, 29, who was also in the apartment and was arrested. A third man in the apartment was questioned and released, police said.
Authorities said Smith had come into the office at 6 a.m. after receiving a tip on some aggravated robbery suspects. He worked a 12-hour shift in his attempt to catch the suspects.
Smith was a longtime veteran of the gang unit.
“He was as good as any police officer that we have in the department,” Chief David Kunkle, Dallas Police Department.
Kunkle also said he always thought of Smith as invincible. Smith’s wife, Regina, is Kunkle’s administrative lieutenant and works closely with the chief.
“I don’t know any two people that were better suited for each other, who loved each other more,” he said. “They have one of those magical-type relationships.”
Smith, who was once awarded officer of the year and is the father of two teenaged children, would have celebrated his 18th year as a Dallas officer Wednesday. He was praised for his work with the communities in southeast Dallas and the Pleasant Grove area
For hours after the shooting, SWAT officers and armed vehicles remained at the scene at the Oak Wood Place Apartments, located in the 4900 block of Wadsworth Drive near Loop 12 in Dallas. Authorities said SWAT officers cleared out the apartment.
In May 1998, two other officers were shot at the same apartment complex, which were then named the Sara Garden Apartments. While officers Edward Menchaca and John Midyette both survived the shooting, a suspect was killed from a chest wound.
Much like Tuesday’s shooting, the officers were checking a tip about a drug deal.
Last year, more Texas police officers were killed in the line of duty than in any other state. Fourteen officers were killed in Texas, but none of those were in the North Texas area.
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OFFICER DOWN MICHIGAN www.privateofficer.com
OFFICER DOWN MICHIGAN http://www.privateofficer.com
Biographical InfoAge: 28
OFFICER DOWN Avon Park Fla. www.privateofficer.com
OFFICER DOWN Avon Park Fla. http://www.privateofficer.com
Sgt. Marc Wilbur, 43, of Avon Park Police Department died approximately 8:30 a.m. Christmas morning at the Winn Dixie shopping plaza parking lot in his patrol car with a trainee when he “fell unconscious,” after he began his shift at 6:00 a.m. He was accompanied by a police officer trainee who notified emergency dispatch that he collapsed.
EMS responded and attempted to revive him with cardiopulmonary resuscitation but were unsuccessful. He was transported by Highlands County Emergency Medical Services to Florida Hospital Heartland Division, where he was pronounced dead at 9:00 a.m.
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OFFICER DOWN Louisana www.privateofficer.com
OFFICER DOWN Louisana http://www.privateofficer.com
Biographical InfoAge: 22
Incident Details Cause of Death: Duty related illness
OFFICER DOWN California Highway Patrol http://www.privateofficer.com
California
Biographical Info
Age: 29
Tour of Duty: 1 year, 2 months
Badge Number: Not available
Cause of Death: Struck by vehicle
Date of Incident: Monday, December 15, 2008
Weapon Used: Automobile
Suspect Info: Not available
The vehicle that struck him had collided with another car on the rain-slicked highway at approximately 4:20 am. Officer Sanders was flown to a nearby hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.
Officer Sanders had served with the agency for 14 months. He is survived by his expectant wife and three children.
California Highway Patrol
PO Box 942898
Sacramento, CA 94298
Phone: (916) 657-7261
Please contact the California Highway Patrol for funeral arrangements or for survivor benefit fund information.
OFFICER DOWN..Woodburn Ore. www.privateofficer.com
CAPTAIN TOM TENNANT
Woodburn Police Department
Oregon
End of Watch: Friday, December 12, 2008
Biographical Info
Age: Not available
Tour of Duty: Not available
Badge Number: Not available
Incident Details
Cause of Death: Bomb
Date of Incident: Friday, December 12, 2008
Weapon Used: Explosives; Bomb
Suspect Info: At large
Captain Tom Tennant and Senior Trooper Bill Hakim, of the Oregon State Police, were killed when a bomb detonated as they examined the device.
A bomb threat had been called into a local bank earlier in the day, but the device was determined not to pose a threat. Later in the day a second bomb threat was made to a neighboring bank. A bank employee discovered a suspicious object in bushes outside of the bank. At some point after officers responded to the scene the device was moved inside of the bank.
As Trooper Hakim, Captain Tennant, and the Woodburn police chief examined the device it detonated, fatally injuring Trooper Hakim and Captain Tennant. The police chief was critically injured.
Related Line of Duty Deaths Senior Trooper Bill Hakim
Oregon State Police, OR
EOW: Saturday, December 13, 2008
Cause of Death: Bomb
Agency Contact Information
Woodburn Police Department
1060 Mt. Hood Aveneue
Woodburn, OR 97071
Phone: (503) 982-2345
Please contact the Woodburn Police Department for funeral arrangements or for survivor benefit fund information.
OFFICER DOWN New Orleans LA. www.privateofficer.com
OFFICER DOWN New Orleans LA. http://www.privateofficer.com
Biographical InfoAge: 74
OFFICER DOWN….TEXAS SHERIFF www.privateofficer.com
OFFICER DOWN….TEXAS SHERIFF http://www.privateofficer.com
Incident Details Cause of Death: Vehicle pursuit
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OFFICER DOWN FLORIDA www.privateofficer.com
OFFICER DOWN FLORIDA http://www.privateofficer.com
Biographical Info-Age: 38
OFFICER DOWN FLORIDA www.privateofficer.com
OFFICER DOWN FLORIDA http://www.privateofficer.com
Biographical Info-Age: 31
