NDN-SS-05-13-2022

Honoring Honoring

OUR PROTECTORS PROTECTORS OUR May15-21, 15-21,2022 2022 May

Newton News Newton News

Payingtribute tribute•• 33 Paying Letter Sheriff How thefrom roll of police has evolved•4 Halferty •4

Integrity Integrity Courage Courage Honor Honor

Letters from Police Police Letter from Chief ChiefBurdess Burdessand •5 Sheriff Halferty • 5 NPD K9 unit honored NPD K9 unit honored as Professionals of as of theProfessionals Year • 6 the Year • 6 Changing Changing industry •• 7 7 industry

Law enforcement enforcement Law facts •• 11 11 facts

Our Protectors • May 2022– Page 2

The following businesses would like to thank

all law enforcement officers for their bravery

Thank you to all the men and women who serve and protect our community!

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PAYING TRIBUTE ber, 292, was retired by the Prairie City City Council. A memorial was also formed around his police vehicle featuring balloons with his badge number, flowers, Batman figures, notes and mementos in honor of the fallen officer prior to his funeral.

German joins the five officers who previously gave their lives in the line of duty.

They include: Lieutenant Patrick Richardson joined the Newton Police Department July 28, 1990. He was promoted to lieutenant May 10, 2010.

Lieutenant Richardson suffered a fatal heart attack Sept. 1, Richardson 2013, when he was exercising for the department’s agility

Our Protectors • May 2022– Page 3

Remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice test.

Officer Bobby Barr i c k m a n joined the Newton Police Department July 1, 1974.

Officer Barrickman was killed Sept.

30, 1979, in a Barrickman traffic accident while on duty.

Officer Dan McPherren joined the Newton Police Department Dec. 4, 1973. Officer McPherren was shot and killed Sept. 13, 1985, when McPherren he responded with other officers to a robbery at a grocery store.

Officer Donald Rusty Hewitt served the Prairie City Police Department until the time of his death Dec. 3, 1977.

Officer Hewitt Hewitt was killed in an automobile accident during a high-speed pursuit.

Reserve Captain Howard Holdefer served the Jasper County Sheriff ’s Office until the time of his death Oct. 30, 1973.

Reserve Captain Holdefer Holdefer suffered a fatal heart attack while assisting other deputies in the arrest of three individuals near Reasnor.

File Photo Local law enforcement guards march down a sidewalk carrying flags during a 2019 Peace Officers Memorial Day ceremony held on the Jasper County Courthouse lawn.

A group that no one ever wants to grow, the fallen officers of Jasper County gained a new member with the loss of Prairie City Police Chief Mike G er man.

German died of complications from COVID-19 Jan. 13.

German German served in the Prairie City Police Department since 2014, taking over

as police chief following the departure of former chief Joe Bartello in 2020. His death was considered a line of duty death.

“We are deeply saddened with the passing of Chief German, our thoughts and prayers go out to Angi and the rest of his family,” former Prairie City Mayor Chad Alleger said. “I personally will miss our many conversations, laughs and his love for our community. May he Rest In Peace.”

To commemorate his time on the force, his badge num-

File Photo Newton Police Officers walk by wreaths holding portraits of Officer Bobby Barrickman and Lt. Patrick Richardson, both of whom died on active duty, during a 2019 Peace Officers Memorial Day ceremony

Our Protectors • May 2022– Page 4

Each year, during the second week of May, our nation honors our fallen law enforcement officers who died in the line of duty. More recently, we have also used this week to honor their families, and those law enforcement officers that are still serving.

While the entirety of my career has been spent in Jasper County, I have had the opportunity to meet and work with law enforcement officials from all over the country.It is no secret that the last few years have presented unique challenges: police-involved shootings and use-of-force incidents, the pandemic, political unrest and severe weather have tested our resilience.

There is an advantage to working in the Midwest, in Jasper County, Iowa.

The majority of our citizens support and trust our law enforcement officials. We strive for transparency and professionalism, while not only ad-

dressing current challenges, but planning for future needs and problems.

During the 2020 derecho, first responders and citizens worked side by side, almost immediately after the sky cleared, to address immediate needs of communities.

Recent times have taught us to stand by core standards of law enforcement, but also be willing to look and step outside the box. In some cases, we need to get creative, working with our communities on problem solving and mitigation planning. We have a significant number of groups and resources, both paid and volunteer, in our county, that have provided input, services and time as we work to address these challenges.

However, an area that we have struggled with, and in the past was largely unaddressed, is the mental health and wellness of our first re-

The following businesses would like to thank

sponders and support staff. Recently there has been much talk about taking care of team, and the impact of cumulative traumatic and stressful events that we respond to.

A singular event, may it be traumatic or large in nature, can create significant effects on our first responders, let alone those who respond to multiple events over a number of years. Things can add up and eventually, without proper recognition or coping skills, we can lose our first responders. By losing, I mean they leave the profession entirely, or have work performance issues relating to cumulative effect, requiring resignation or termination.

Finally, in some cases, suicide is the end result.

Last year, we hosted a training for all area first responders regarding mental health and wellness. Recognition of symptoms, self care and coping skills

all law enforcement officers for their bravery

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were key topics introduced to those in attendance. As we look towards the future, we are hosting additional mental health and wellness training in August, along with annual, one-on-one, mental health and wellness checkups with providers who specialize in working with first responders.

Now, more than ever, our first responders are faced with daily challenges and stressors, along with those experienced in normal daily lives- relationships, children, finances, etc.We are committed to providing transparent and professional law enforcement services. But in order to do so, we must take care of our own team members.This is just the start. And we are continuing to look and step outside the box in order to work for and with our citizens and communities.

Jasper County Sheriff John Halferty

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Our Protectors • May 2022– Page 5

In 1962, President Kennedy proclaimed May 15th as National Police Officer Memorial Day and the calendar week of May 15th as National Police Week. This proclamation pays special recognition to those law enforcement officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty and for the sacrifice and service of our officers working today.

The COVID-19 pandemic redefined sacrifice for many in our country over the past two years.

Those labeled as essential employees stepped up to serve their communities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Most did this knowing the risks and with the best interest of their fellow man in mind. To each of us, sacrifice looks a little bit different.

In law enforcement, sacrifice is a way of life and a term that many of us are well aware of when we take the oath of office. We know we’re going to be working the majority of our careers during the nighttime hours, working holidays, weekends and missing family events. We know our personal and professional life will be lived in a fishbowl and we are always on high

alert for danger around us.

The stress of the job makes longevity difficult.

And for those officers who do a full 30-year-plus career, the toll the daily stress has on their body and mind is insurmountable. Sadly, an average of 150 law enforcement officers commit suicide annually in our country, a number that in most years is double the number of officers feloniously killed in the line of duty.

There were 458 law enforcement line-of-duty deaths in 2021, with 301 of those being a result of on-duty COVID-19 exposures. This is a record number and exemplifies the sacrifice that law enforcement officers and their families endured during the pandemic.

Targeted violence against police is on the rise and murders of police officers rose by nearly 60 percent in 2021. This is a concerning trend that is on the mind of each and every police officer in our country.

Fewer individuals want to be a police officer nowadays and recruiting has been challenging. That makes the service of our current police officers even

more important. The men and women of the Newton Police Department are an extremely dedicated and talented team of professionals that proudly serve the residents of Newton despite the inherent dangers and sacrifices that come with the job. They serve not because they have

to, but do so because they want to make a difference in the lives of of those who live in the community they love.

I am honored to lead such an incredible group of men and women and our community is fortunate to have such a dedicated group of guardians protect-

ing and serving our fine city. We appreciate the support of our community and encourage all of you to take a little extra time over the next week to thank a police officer and honor all police officers who have made the ultimate sacrifice.

Newton Police Chief Rob Burdess

Our Protectors • May 2022– Page 6

Dog-gone good

NPD K9 unit honored as Professionals of the Year as K9 Smokey nears retirement

By Jamee A. Pierson Newton Daily News One of the Newton Police Department’s favorite officers is retiring.

Smokey, the K9 unit who has served the community for the past six years, is hanging up his leash for more belly rubs and games of fetch.

Smokey, along with his partner NPD Detective Zach Walker, were honored with the Law Enforcement Professional of the Year award. Their work for the department has helped it grow in unique ways and along with strengthening relationships with public.

“Typically, K9s can serve their communities for about five to eight years. Smokey has been working for Newton PD for six years now,” Walker said. “His retirement will allow him to spend some years just being a dog.

In retirement he will live with me and just live a ‘normal dog life.’ He will stay active with walks and hiking.”

Since joining the department in 2016, Smokey has been deployed more than 150 times with more than 100 of those being car deployments and 22 tracking related. An employee of the NPD, Smokey also assisted many other agencies including the Jasper County Sheriff ’s Office, Marshall County Sheriff ’s Office, Mitchellville Police Department, Des Moines Police Department and the M.I.N.E. Drug Task Force.

“Det. Walker and K9 Smokey have both been important parts of this community since their partnership began,” Newton Police Chief Rob Burdess said. “Not only have they worked well together in detecting and deterring crime, they’ve also been a part of numerous presentations, community events and school demonstrations

throughout Jasper County that have strengthened relationships with the public.”

Walker’s experience joining a K9 unit was definitely a learning experience for both him and Smokey. A former stray, it took Smokey a little while to warm up to the person that would become his future partner.

“There was not immediate trust as I expected, which I guessed may have been from his past experience as a stray. In our first training session together, he refused to drop a tennis ball and even starting growling,” Walker said. “Since then, we have trained together over 1,000 hours. Our trust and understanding of each other has become very high.”

A hard worker, Smokey was always ready to get out on the job whether it was for a shift, a call in the middle of the night or a holiday. No mater the day or time, the pup was very excited to go to work, Walker said.

“This will probably be what I miss most,” Walker said. “I have learned a lot of patience from Smokey. During our training I was always trying to make improvements but they sometimes did not come as fast as I’d hoped.

I always learned that through hard work and consistency over time you can really make significant progress.”

As the K9 unit, Smokey and Walker did a variety of work. Whether out on a case or visiting kids in school, the team was more than ready to serve the community.

“The K9 unit is a unique tool for the NPD. With narcotics, Smokey is trained to ‘alert,’ which is his way of showing he can detect the odor an illegal narcotic. This allows the PD to be more proactive in locating illegal street drugs and can also act as a deterrent,”

Walker said. “Smokey was also trained in tracking which allowed the PD to more efficiently locate person who run from police or are missing.”

During his first year, Smokey alerted on a vehicle which resulted in the seizure of approximately $10,249 worth of narcotics. He also helped track multiple subjects who fled on foot after vehicle pursuits.

“These opportunities would not be possible without Det. Walker and Smokey’s commitment to this community,” Burdess said. “Thank them both for their service.”

In his police work, Walker has contributed to several high profile investigations as a detective. His work on a murder case in 2021 ended with the suspect pleading guilty to the crime, and he is responsible for putting a stop to multiple predators’ activities with two of these cases resulted in the offenders being sentenced to a combined 75 years in federal prison.

“Det. Walker has established himself as a role model and leader within the department, and is always willing to go the extra step to help other officers with their cases,” Burdess said.

Our Protectors • May 2022– Page 7

CHANGING INDUSTRY

Police chief says law enforcement has changed since the death of George Floyd

By Christopher Braunschweig Newton News Although the murder of George Floyd occurred almost two years ago and more than 260 miles away from Newton, it had a profound impact on many local police departments and the industry of law enforcement as a whole, police chief Rob Burdess said, and at the very least provided opportunities to reevaluate.

Specifically, law enforcement officials took a closer look at their policies and procedures, as well as how police engage with their community. Burdess said officers were given a chance to earn a greater understanding of the needs of their communities while also provide context into officers’ actions.

It’s not like the Newton Po-

lice Department — or any police station in the United States — had a choice in the matter.

The public demanded answers, and it showed in the amount of demonstrations, protests and riots condemning police brutality, particularly against people of color.

Newton experienced its own demonstration on June 1, 2020, in the town square. People were watching from rooftops, from the front door of their local business, from their passing cars.

Burdess was there, standing and kneeling alongside the protestors. The chief condemned the reckless use of force against Floyd.

Other cities across the country did not have the same experience as Newton, which ended peacefully. Rumors of “busloads of protestors” from outside of

the state mysteriously did not show up. Burdess had many frank conversations with citizens and demonstrators that night.

Those same conversations persisted throughout the next year. Burdess said the national narrative pushed those discussions in Newton, but the police department itself was never targeted to correct any unjust behavior. Officers were able to learn a lot from the community through those conversations, and vice versa.

“It’s easy to take what’s said at the national level and try to do a broad brushstroke that all law enforcement agencies do something in a certain manner, and I think that was being done to a certain extent,” Burdess said.

“In fact, every law enforcement agency operates a little bit differ-

ently.”

Newton Police Department was able to answer those questions and explain how officers are expected to handle or react to certain situations, or why they are different than perhaps other agencies or individuals. Floyd’s murder opened up broader dialogue, more challenging dialogue.

It goes beyond Black or White, Burdess said. Oftentimes it is about citizens not feeling heard, or they have not developed a sense of trust with their local law enforcement. That is a problem. Officers want and need the community to trust them in order to do the best job possible and keep people safe, Burdess said.

“If there’s some trust missing there, how do we bridge that gap? That mutual under-

standing of issues and concerns is pretty important,” he said.

“Those in-depth conversations don’t happen often in our world.

And you have to be intentional about it. We took some of those steps to have conversations.”

Newton officers would frequently have one-on-one conversations or small group talks with neighborhoods. Some people in the community have had bad experiences with law enforcement, or they sympathize with those did. Burdess said it is the police department’s responsibility to be a part of those talks.

“It’s not Black versus White or law enforcement versus minority groups,” he said. “I think the opportunity was there to open up a conversation bigger than just race. Again, there’s CHANGING • 8

Our Protectors • May 2022– Page 8

Changing

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more than just the minority groups who feel they haven’t been treated well by law enforcement in general.”

‘NO OFFICER WANTS TO USE FORCE’ People demanded change from their police departments following Floyd’s murder, which Burdess described as an “outlier” in terms of the use of force incidents others have seen across the country in recent years. It was pretty cut-and-dry, he said, that the officers’ actions were improper and caused a death.

Whereas, many of the other use-of-force incidents that the public sees are “a little less cutand-dry,” Burdess said.

“They go through investigations and oftentimes we see the officers are found to not be at fault,” he added. “I think residents and citizens in general oftentimes don’t understand.

They saw a death of a citizen and they just don’t understand why the officers weren’t held accountable.”

That is the education piece officers have to keep coming back to. Police have a lot of

discretion to make decisions in their day-to-day jobs, but they work under the guidance of federal, state and local laws.

Although some actions may seem improper on video footage, Burdess said people aren’t getting the full picture.

Burdess encourages individuals to step back a little bit and not only put themselves in the shoes of the person involved in the use-of-force incident, but also the officer. The police chief did admit there are officers who make mistakes or cross the line.

“But we’ve seen historically of the millions of contacts officers have with citizens every year across the country, less than half of 1 percent of all those incidents result in some type of use of force,” Burdess said. “…And the number of those uses of force that are actually improper is just a tiny, minute number.”

Typically, those are the incidents Burdess claimed the public sees on TV most often.

The national narrative also drew criticisms toward police training. But officers are training constantly, Burdess argued, for use-of-force incidents and deescalation and keeping up on the latest case law and tactics, among others.

“No officer wants to use force,” Burdess said. “No officer straps on their gun belt and puts on their badge at the beginning of shift and says, ‘I want to go out and use force tonight.’ Nobody does that. It’s actually the last thing they want to do is put themselves or somebody else in harm’s way.”

Sometimes officers have to use force to control a situation or keep the public as a whole safe, and Burdess said when they’re doing that they’re trying to keep the offender safe, too.

The officer is not always right, but they have to be reasonable with what they’re doing.

“And when they’re not, it’s my responsibility — and the responsibility of law enforcement leaders across the country — to

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hold their officers responsible when they are out of line,” Burdess said.

MORE EMPHASIS ON ACCOUNTABILITY & EQUIPMENT Officers have been participating in deescalation training years before Floyd was murdered. Burdess said the issue was politicized in the wake of his death, but it also was put in to Iowa law requiring deescalation training every year for law enforcement agencies throughout the state.

“It’s been done at least since the beginning of when I became a police officer 25 years ago, but I know deescalation has been done years before that,” Burdess said, noting more emphasis has been placed on the training and

tactic. “It’s what we do every day. We deescalate situations.”

Deescalation is one piece of an entire assessment of an incident, too.

If a person is swinging a samurai sword at people, endangering themselves and others, there probably is not much time for a conversation. The officers have to act. In contrast, there may be other instances where in the past officers acted too quickly, and perhaps there was time for a less hostile interaction.

That is where police officers have to focus their training.

Rushing into a situation like a bunch of cowboys to try and solve the problem, might not be the best solution. If officers can ease in and evaluate as they go, judgements become more focused and proper. Which is ideal for incidents involving mental illness.

“That hasn’t necessarily been as a result of George Floyd. That’s kind of been the mantra for the past decade with many of the mental health struggles we’ve been seeing in our local communities,” Burdess said. “Resources for mental health have been pretty scarce,

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CONTINUED FROM 8

not only in Iowa but across the country.”

Accountability of police actions has also been given more emphasis these past few years.

Equipment like body cameras help in that regard. Newton Police Department has been wearing body cameras for a number of years. Burdess said they are amazing tools and he wishes he had them when he started.

When he was first hired as a police officer, Burdess had incar cameras hooked into the dashboard of a patrol vehicle.

Officers wore microphones on their belt. But unless the officer was standing in front of their police car, the footage didn’t capture every action.

Body cameras do.

“Body cameras are a great accountability tool,” Burdess said. “We use them extensively in a number of ways, but the biggest one we use it for is to evaluate incidents and see how we can improve. So every one of the use-of-force incidents that we do … is reviewed by a supervisor and use-of-force instructor.”

This piece of technology — which Burdess says is an unbiased witness — makes sure officers are complying with department policy and the rights given to citizens through the Constitution, and it also gives a broader scope of whether their use of force complied with the law.

By reviewing footage, the police department can improve its procedures and tactics.

Maybe less force could be used. Or, in some cases, maybe more force could be used. Burdess said a byproduct of the Floyd incident is there have been circumstances where of-

ficers are hesitant to use force, not wanting to be “the next YouTube video,” or the next officer arrested for using force.

“That’s in their mind. So when they don’t use the appropriate amount of force, they’re actually putting themselves and the public in danger. That is something we have seen as an industry,” Burdess said. “That’s scary. And officers have died across the country because of it.”

RECRUITMENT STRUGGLES A WORRYING TREND There is an overarching sense of liability now that maybe was not there before, Burdess said, and it may be having an affect on police recruitment. Officers are thinking about the personal ramifications of intervening or are second guessing themselves in certain situations.

Burdess does understand the personal liability piece.

But despite what some narratives say, he said it is an officer’s job to keep the public safe. Doing that is difficult when there are not enough viable applicants to hire for the job. Burdess doesn’t sugarcoat it. Recruiting numbers have been “horrible.”

Out of nine applicants the Newton Police Department received, four met the minimum standards and were invited to test. Four showed up to the test. Three failed some form of the process. Which left the department with one candidate. That’s not an uncommon situation.

“We are fortunate enough here in Newton that our retention rate has been pretty good recently,” Burdess said. “We’ve been able to find that diamond in the rough over our past few hiring processes, but that’s not the same experience many agencies are having around the country and around the state.”

As a result of smaller candidate pools, departments may be hiring people they would not have before. That does not necessarily mean they are bad, Burdess noted, it just means they are hiring new officers with less education, training or experience than they have before.

“And they may be overlooking some past behaviors that somebody’s had in their background that they may not have looked past before,” Burdess said. “Is that concerning?

It could be. There’s a concern there. There’s also a hesitancy for officers to step into supervisory positions, or even positions like mine.”

The spotlight. The extra responsibility. The liability. Officers do not want all that. Bur-

,,

Changing

No officer wants to use force.

,,

— Newton Police Chief Rob Burdess

dess noted Iowa police stations are not yet in a crisis point, but there are some states and large metro areas that have reached that point.

Although finding a large pool of qualified applicants is a challenge, the Newton Police Department is making headway with its recruitment.

For starters, the police station is the most diverse it has ever been. Newton has two Hispanic officers, one Asian officer and two female officers on staff.

Across the country, there are more people of color and more women applying to become police officers, which Burdess said is encouraging.

“We’ve got more minority officers working now than we

ever have in the history of the department,” Burdess said. “…

We’ve seen some positive results of that. One of our newest officers, Officer Garcia, actually is very fluent in Spanish. He has helped in a number of incidents where communication was a significant issue.”

Having a more diverse police department helps when building relationships with communities of color. Burdess said Newton takes a more “all-encompassing approach” for community engagement, which is partly why the department created the community engagement officer position in 2021.

“Not only do we have to engage with minority members of our community, but our entire community needs that consistent engagement,” Burdess said. “We need to hear all of the voices. Although the minority community is an important voice, we kind of went at it as a bigger picture approach.”

Working to keep up with every population in the community needs to be intentional. It has been a weakness of law enforcement agencies nationwide, Burdess said. They have been so busy doing police work that what inevitably gets lost is that intentional relationship building piece.

WHAT IS KEEPING OFFICERS FROM GIVING UP? With all this extra stress being put on law enforcement agencies, Burdess said he tries to think back on his purpose as a police officer. Despite the negativity that is out there, Burdess is glad the community has his back. They want to be safe and have a high quality of life. It’s a big job to keep the public safe.

“It’s a pretty big honor that we’re entrusted to keep our

community safe,” he said.

“That’s what I always go back to is that. It is easy to get caught up in the national conversation and the beating down of law enforcement and the finger pointing. We’re part of huge system. We’re at the bottom of that, the start of that.”

As a whole, the criminal justice system is not great, Burdess added. There are problems.

Many of the supports and institutions outside law enforcement are not great either, with Burdess noting the struggles of mental health and social service providers. Despite individuals’ access to those resources, the police show up.

“If we can make a situation a little bit better, that’s our goal,” Burdess said. “That’s why we keep coming back.”

Burdess said his purpose as the chief of police in Newton is to make sure his staff have the resources and support needed to do their job, keep the community safe and ensure the public has trust and faith in officers, no matter what the situation is.

“I’m pleased with this community and their support for us. That’s been one of the best things that I’ve seen working here. Despite negativity that happens every day in this world, we have a very supportive community that wants their law enforcement here,” Burdess said. “They want them to police. We need to.”

Some want more. Some want less. Either way, officers adapt to their community’s needs.

“That’s part of community policing, right? Not every police department polices the same around the country,” Burdess said. “They police how they need to police based on community dynamics, community feedbacks, community direction. We’re pretty fortunate where we’re at.”

Our Protectors • May 2022– Page 10

Why law enforcement is essential for the community Much news has been dominated by events few people will not soon forget.

Unprecedented and stressful circumstances can contribute to spirited debates and uncertainty about the future. Complicated situations can affect people in many ways, but the public may be wise to take some cues on how to navigate challenging situations from the professionals who routinely find themselves confronting adversity.

Law enforcement officers who don the uniform each and every day routinely put others first in the name of public safety.

According to the National Law Enforcement Memorial Fund, there are now more than 800,000 sworn law enforcement officers serving in the United States, which is the highest figure ever. Officers often

step up to serve despite the risks associated with working in law enforcement. A total of 1,627 law enforcement officers died in the line of duty over the past 10 years. There were 135 law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty in 2019 alone.

Law enforcement personnel serve many important roles in the communities they serve. Here’s a closer look at the integral roles of police and other law enforcement personnel.

Law enforcement is an essential component of orderly, safe and supportive communities. Recognizing and respecting the important role law enforcement officials play is a great way to show them how much their efforts and sacrifices are appreciated.

— Metro Creative

• Maintain law and order: The police force is made up of many different departments with the collective goal of maintaining law and order. Traffic police are responsible for enforcing the rules of the road and minimizing the chance of accidents. Other departments canvas the streets ensuring that residents’ civil liberties are not being compromised.

• Save lives: Whether they’re preventing a life-threatening crime or administering emergency medical care at a car accident until an ambulance can arrive, law enforcement officers save lives every day.

• Assist in adverse situations and provide crisis support: Police officers often fill the role of counselor or friend to people who find themselves in difficult situations. An officer can play a part in helping people make better life choices in the future. Training in situational de-escalation also means police officers are capable of defusing difficult situations before they snowball into serious, potentially life-threatening confrontations.

• Investigate crimes: Police are the first people to respond when crimes have been committed. These individuals investigate the situation and find the perpetrator.

• Foster strong communities: Law enforcement officers share a unique solidarity with other officers, peers, community leaders, and even medical professionals, which helps to create a strong fabric for a community. Officers frequently have each other’s backs as well as the respect and support of the public for putting their lives on the line.

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Our Protectors • May 2022– Page 11

Law enforcement facts

•

There are more than 900,000 sworn law enforcement officers now serving in the United States, which is the highest figure ever.

About 12 percent of those are female.

•

According to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports, an estimated 1,197,704 Violent Crimes occurred nationwide in 2015, an increase of 3.9 percent over 2014.

•

Crime fighting has taken its toll. Since the first recorded police death in 1791, there have been over 20,000 law

enforcement officers killed in the line of duty. Currently, there are 20,789 names engraved on the walls of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial.

•

•

A total of 1,439 law enforcement officers died in the line of duty during the past 10 years, an average of one death every 61 hours or 144 per year. There were 123 law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty in 2015.

There have been 51,548 assaults against law enforce-

ment officers in 2015, resulting in 14,453 injuries.

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The 1920s were the deadliest decade in law enforcement history, when a total of 2,437 officers died, or an average of almost 243 each year. The deadliest year in law enforcement history was 1930, when 304 officers were killed. That figure dropped dramatically in the 1990s, to an average of 162 per year.

The deadliest day in law enforcement history was September 11, 2001, when

72 officers were killed while responding to the terrorist attacks on America.

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New York City has lost more officers in the line of duty than any other department, with 705 deaths.

Texas has lost 1,682 officers, more than any other state. The state with the fewest deaths is Vermont, with 23.

There are 1,102 federal officers listed on the Memorial, as well as 668 correctional officers and 36

military law enforcement officers.

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There are 292 female officers listed on the Memorial; 11 female officers were killed in 2015.

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During the past 10 years, more incidents that resulted in felonious fatalities occurred on Friday than any other day of the week.

The fewest number of felonious incidents occurred on Tuesday.

National Law Enforcement Officer’s Memorial

Our Protectors • May 2022– Page 12

We Appreciate Our Police

Every day, our nation’s police officers put their lives on the line to protect our neighborhoods and keep us safe. The positive impact of their service and dedication to our communities and our country is invaluable, and we owe them the full measure of our respect and gratitude.

During National Police Week, we honor the brave men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty and recognize those who continue to serve our communities as officers of the law.

To all of the police officers who go above and beyond the call of duty, we thank you for your service. We stand with you, and we keep your safety in our thoughts and prayers during National Police Week and always.

The following businesses would like to thank

all law enforcement officers for their bravery

Our clinic and laboratory are open every Saturday morning to better fit your schedule.

STRONG HISTORY - SECURE FUTURE www.trubank.bank

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE 641-792-2112 or 888-788-2804 300 N. 4th Ave. E., Newton www.newtonclinic.com

2506 1ST AVENUE EAST, NEWTON

641-792-3246 LOCALLY OWNED