Temporary Shields Let People ‘Know That We’re Remembering’
by Josh White, Washington Post
Law enforcement agencies across the country have chosen to remember the victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in different ways: Some officers are wearing memorial lapel pins, some display U.S. flags on their cruisers, and many are wearing black bands across their badges.
In Prince William County, police officers have replaced their standard badges with a special memorial badge, which they’ll wear until the end of this month.
It’s the first time the police department has approved an alternate badge for officers, and it’s intended to make a strong statement.
“We all seek our own way of expressing our support for those that were left behind and to show honor to those who were killed in the attacks,” Police Chief Charlie T. Deane said. “We want the Prince William families of people who died at the World Trade Center or at the Pentagon to know that we haven’t forgotten them.”
The new badge, designed by detective Sandy Conlon, is based on the county’s standard-issue shield. Replacing the “Prince William County” inscription at the top of the badge is an image of the World Trade Center towers against a cloudy sky. Beneath the towers are the Prince William County seal, a small Pentagon emblem and a symbol representing United Flight 93, which crashed in Pennsylvania. Centered at the bottom is a bold “9-11" and “Prince William County Police.” A black band crosses the badge at the center.
The badge is framed by a pair of U.S. flags, and an eagle at the top of the badge holds a banner in its beak that reads: “September 11, 2001.”
Prince William officers first donned the badges after memorial ceremonies in the county Wednesday, setting aside their standard shields until Sept. 30. Each officer had the choice of buying the special badge for about $50, which includes a pin and a case, so the new badges didn’t cost the county anything.
Officer Robert O’Loughlin, who has patroled the east end of the county for five years, said the special badges are just a way of showing solidarity with the victims, survivors and law enforcement agencies affected by the attacks.
“It’s important for us to do this,” O’Loughlin said. “Though we weren’t personally involved, we want people to remember it. We want people to see it on our chests, to know that we’re remembering, to know that it had an important impact on us, too.”
Deane said he approved the unprecedented change to the department’s badge because he thinks this is the one time it has been warranted in the department’s 30-year history. He said that it was a grass-roots effort sparked by officers and that he thought it was the most appropriate way of memorializing the attacks.
The department also gave a set of the badges to members of the Board of County Supervisors last week, so they, too, can show their support.
Chairman Sean T. Connaughton (R-At Large) said the badges are significant to him. He said they show the community that if there were a terrorist attack in Prince William, officers here would respond in the same way they did in New York and at the Pentagon.
“It reminds people that when the call went out on September 11, those in the fire and police services responded,” Connaughton said. “For many of them, it cost them their lives. But they responded without hesitation. While the nation mourns the victims of September 11, those in the fire and police services feel a part pain because so many of their own were killed. I think it’s admirable that our department has chosen this manner to recognize the sacrifices of their brothers in arms.”