Thursday, December 17, 2009
Day of reflection
December 16th is a tough one for the family of a fine Lincoln police officer who was killed in the line of duty. There have been three Lincoln police officers mudered in our history. Three others have died in the line of duty in motor vehicle crashes. Read the reflections of Greg Soukup on the death of his dad, Lt. Frank H. Soukup 43 years ago yesterday. God bless this family, and those of all our officers who have made the ultimate sacrafice.
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14 comments:
Thanks for posting this, Chief Casady.
"People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf."
I didn't know Frank Soukup, but I thought about him every time I was near a suspect whose hands were not visible. I didn't know George Welter, but I thought about him every time I rode my motor Code 3 to a call. The Soukup family should know that through their tragedy, the lives of other officers have certainly been saved. Thank you and God bless your family.
256
Here is a street named after him and a few other streets named in the honor of police officers. Note that one of the circle's names not shown on the map is "Richard Leyden Cir"...
http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&hs=BmJ&resnum=0&q=soukup+dr+lincoln+ne&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=SW+Soukup+Dr,+Lincoln,+NE+68522&gl=us&ei=_VwqS7qtCs2Qtgf_0eyHCQ&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=title&resnum=1&ved=0CAgQ8gEwAA
Tom, thanks for your comments, and 256 have a merry xmas knowing we made a contribution to keep this country safe
There should be a memorial link on the LPD page.
Not to be insensitive to the victims family or anyone else that may have experienced a similar tragedy, but every time I read a story of an officer giving his life, two questions seem to arise.
1. This is a terrible tragedy to lose human life especially in such a terrible situation but, could tragedies like this be prevented? I am not victimizing the shooter (in most cases), but there is an initial root problem that needs to be looked at. I do not have any statistics at hand (maybe the chief does) but since the war on drugs, and other such laws such as 3 strikes in other states have been enacted have violent crimes against police risen? I would bet it has, or at least most criminals that cause harm to an officer nowadays in some way is affected by certain laws which they do not seem to agree with for one reason or another. One could blame on the increase on new and more advanced weaponry available (though the NRA would deny it), which makes one ponder are certain impositions on human life necessary, and do these cause criminals to react differently? If the job of the police is to uphold the laws, and protect the people((?) although they legally don't have to protect anyone) does the police ever look at underlying issues and try to resolve these? It seems that if the police could resolve the underlying issue and being a position of power use that to not persuade but educate others they could kill multiple birds with one stone so to speak, and in all upholding justice and protecting others with a lot more efficiency and safety.
2. Why do police officers join the force. I'm just curious what goes through the mind of an officer when they apply I am assuming they know the risks involved. Is it to uphold justice, protect the people, be in a position of power, fight crime, all of the above?
"People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf."
Is a misquotation, and was never actually proven to be said by Orwell.
"We sleep soundly in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm." -Churchhill
Jim J -
Like this?
11:33-
The data would not bear that out. Note the 9/11 spike.
I must say, though, that the precipitous decline is due to better training, procedures, and body armor, rather than a lack of effort by the bad actors--at least in my opinion.
People become police officers overwhelmingly due to a comination of two factors: 1. They want to do socially-significant work; 2. They eschew routine jobs--particularly those involving indoor fixed locations (like cubicles.)
Though I admire and applaud those who choose to become police officers, deputies, and the like; I sleep comfortably in my bed at night because I am prepared to defend myself and my property if necessary.
Thank you chief, for posting this to your blog.
My father was never was to look for recognition, and would deny he had done anything special even if he received it.
256; if you and other officers were helped by our loss we're grateful in some small way. But, it's just like Dad; helping out even after death.
As for why people join the force, I can only speak for my belief as to my father's reasons. Helpful even to his own detriment, serving his fellow Lincolnites and many other things. It sure wasn't for the great hours or fabulous pay.
The naming of streets after fallen officers was a tremendous tribute to their sacrifices. Long overdue, but our family was more than thrilled with it.
Good luck with that one Steve.
This would seem related in a small way, since it's an example of how quickly a seemingly-routine contact can turn deadly.
I think Steve is on the right track. When seconds count, the police are minutes away.
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