WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump renewed his call for the death penalty for anyone convicted of killing a police officer and urged that the punishment also be pursued for those who kill firefighters.
Speaking to law enforcement officers and firefighters in the White House Rose Garden on Oct. 15, Trump said he had directed Attorney General Todd Blanche to seek the death penalty in cases involving the killing of an officer.
| SPECIAL REPORT: Where is your agency losing time?
Trump called for the punishment while describing firefighters coming under gunfire as they climbed ladders to fight fires.
“They’re shot at going up ladders. They get shot up in some neighborhoods. You ought to blow up the damn place,” Trump said.
Trump told Blanche that seeking the death penalty would deter such attacks, predicting shootings would stop quickly.
He also pledged his support for the first responders gathered at the White House.
“America owes our first responders a debt it can never fully repay, but as president, I will always stand behind those who stand on the front lines of law enforcement, fighting fires, all of the things that you people do so courageously.”
Trump previously called for a mandatory death penalty for anyone convicted of murdering a police officer during his March 4, 2025, address to Congress, when he urged lawmakers to make the policy permanent.
A Jan. 20, 2025, executive order directed the attorney general to pursue federal jurisdiction and seek the death penalty, consistent with applicable law, for federal capital crimes involving the murder of a law enforcement officer.
Steve Hirsch, chairman of the National Volunteer Fire Council, presented Trump with a firefighter helmet and offered a blessing for his protection.
Trump responded that the helmet could have been useful during the 2024 assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Do you think the death penalty deters attacks on police officers and firefighters? Why or why not?
