As I attempt to absorb the headlines, videos and comments made in light of the recent law enforcement-related tragedies in this nation, I want to express my thoughts clearly and concisely.
First and foremost, my thoughts and prayers are with those who have had loved ones die this week, civilians and law enforcement alike. Having been in this profession for nearly 20 years and recalling the tragedy of 9/11 like it was yesterday, when I was a young officer with four years of experience in the profession, I worked that night, patrolling the streets of Marshfield, worrying then how our profession would be changing … for the better or worse.
The outcome at that time was wonderful, a noticeable outpouring of love and support toward police and fire personnel. Homeland Security was on the forefront, and law enforcement was encouraged to obtain and use any training and equipment necessary to protect and serve their communities.
Now, nearly 15 years later, I read on CNN of the senseless murder of five Dallas police officers that occurred during protests against police. This is described as the “deadliest day for police since 9/11,” seemingly motivated by a hatred and vengeance toward those sworn to serve and protect.
The law enforcement profession is one with inherent dangers, that is a known upon entering the academy and taking the oath. Danger often leads to fear and fear may lead one to be hypervigilant. Hypervigilance is the manner of viewing the world from a threat-based perspective, while having the mindset to see the events unfolding as potentially hazardous. Hypervigilance has the potential of being life-saving, allowing an officer to react to danger in a split second … saving lives, yet unhealthy and dangerous if taken to the unrecognized extreme. To the extreme, one may describe this as being continually on-guard or in survival mode, whether on or off duty.
The complete opposite of hypervigilance is complacency, and we all know that in every profession, complacency is dangerous if not deadly. Complacency causes the machinist to lose a finger, the doctor to misdiagnose their patient, the semi-driver to tailgate, or the police officer to get shot by nonchalantly walking up to a vehicle with her guard down.
What I ask from this community, while we all mourn those involved in these current events looking for answers, is to not jump to conclusions like many do when faced with opinions and video snippets, but rather wait until the investigation is completed or, at the least, both sides of the story are shared. Law enforcement often errs in not getting their story out soon enough with the rationale being to maintain the integrity of the investigation. The hasty statements I have heard and read from President Barack Obama, Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton and other politicians regarding racially-driven motives and the need for police reform, which resulted in the unnecessary deaths of innocent civilians, are in my opinion non-factual and premature, exactly what law enforcement does not want to be labeled.
Imagine an arrest being made based on a partisan investigation lacking fact, yet many take a stand on just that. As we all know, there are two sides to every story and these politicians might be right, yet they make declarations on motive and police error based on an incomplete investigation … fueling the divide rather than looking for collaboration and repairing it. If after a thorough investigation, a police officer is proven to have committed murder, then they should be held accountable. If it was racially driven, that should be made known, and then we look for the root cause and we fix it, whether it be better screening upon hire, more training, public education, building community relations, or recognition of an extreme hypervigilance, and once diagnosed we then seek reform.
I ask all, before you garner your opinion, educate yourself on the facts, be patient while they surface and don’t lose faith in those willing to lay their lives on the line for you.
Rick Gramza is chief of the Marshfield Police Department.
