You've got to always be vigilant, and in yellow or orange alert. Uniformed officers are now targets. We're seeing more incidents where bad guys and crazy actors want to kill a cop, or want death by cop. Recently, the Kansas City Star reported that on the evening of March 3rd 2008 at about 9:30 p.m., a retired sheriff's office commander, who remains in active service with his agency as a reserve deputy, was carjacked in the parking lot of a Kansas City area bingo hall where he was working an off-duty security job. The thieves took his weapon and personal vehicle.
This story highlights the danger of working security jobs. I recently visited the Harris County (TX) Sheriff's Office website's Fallen Deputies Memorial and it chilling to read the obituaries of fallen brothers and sisters who have died while working off duty jobs. One of them was a childhood friend of mine, Deputy Randy Eng, who was tragically slain in 1996, while working a wedding off duty. I remember him as a wonderful guy who would do anything for you. I know that he loved his job in law enforcement.
We're in a dangerous profession. Recent gang initiations have attempted to kill on-duty LEOs in marked units. Recently, a Suareno-13 three-man team, including a minor, attempted to do just that to a Deputy in the metro area of Columbia, S.C. This shotgun attack occurred to the K-9 unit at 3 a.m. in the early morning -- a time when typically nothing happens.
The bottom line is be safe, stay safe, remain ever vigilant and alert, go with your instinct, and do what you can to ensure that you go home at the end of shift. 10-7
