By Steven Clark
It is the day you occasionally think about as a police commander. No doubt most of you have attended a memorial service for officers in other departments and thought of the possibility of it happening at your agency crosses your mind as you hear the pipes play Amazing Grace to close the ceremony. February 26, 2013, is when that day came to our department.
I had just finished a meeting and heard several units rolling code out of the police department. They were followed by several more units, and then even more. I knew it must have been something significant, but I didn’t realize how significant until I saw the look of disbelief and concern on a normally calm and composed veteran officer’s face as she came looking for me.
“Chief, did you hear what is going on? We have two officers down.”
Sergeant Loran “Butch” Baker and Detective Elizabeth Butler had been killed in the line of duty.
Thus it began, the biggest challenge to our leadership capabilities as a department administration. None of us knew how to “do this.” In fact, we had never experienced a line-of-duty death in the history of our department.
The following eight days were exhausting, both emotionally and physically, as the department prepared an amazing memorial to honor the ultimate sacrifice of our friends. To pull this off, we had a ton of help from law enforcement partners all over the region. For the department leadership, the real work began after the pipes played their final tribute to our fallen heroes.
I often describe the months that followed as feeling like we were walking on a tightrope carrying a stack of Waterford crystal. If we lost our balance and dropped the crystal, everything would become about the broken crystal, as opposed to honoring our brave colleagues and moving forward as a professional organization. There were so many emotions and interests to assuage during this time.
We adopted contemporary practices and kept abreast of the latest information on emotional survival in this profession, but this was different. This wasn’t our own emotional survival. It was about finding a way to lead an entire organization through the tragedy. What should we expect? What does the organization most demand from us? How do we “do this”?
I explored this topic with trusted colleagues from all organizational levels in other departments that have experienced a line-of-duty death. The common observations and threads were remarkable. This is not meant to be an exhaustive resource, just a recap of some of what I learned in hopes it might help if you have or ever do experience such a tragedy.
preparation Starts Long Before the Event
The culture of the organization is the foundation of your response. That culture is greatly influenced by the leadership example. That culture sets the tone for how lines of communication flow and how well the members learn to care for each other. That culture also lets you know the level of credibility you carry as the leader. These things are engraved in the DNA of the organization well before the tragic event strikes. Once the tragic event happens, it is too late to try and establish the cultural norm for the organization and your credibility as a leader. If you asked members of your department to describe the culture of the organization, what words would they use? How are you known among yourselves and the community? The organization will respond in the way you have trained it to.
One colleague described the divide that manifested in their department during the aftermath of their line of duty death. Admin and line staff mourned separately and neither side felt supported by the other. As the department moved through the cycles of grief at differing paces, emotions like blame and mistrust were allowed to fester. This only served to complicate the tragedy and harden the battle lines for years to come. In this case, the Waterford crystal was broken and the tragedy went on long after the pipes played.
Don’t let this happen in your organization. If it is broken, schedule a meeting today and start working on repairing it. If it is working well, then schedule a meeting to discuss how to continue to feed and care for it.
Listen to the Leaders Throughout the Department
In the aftermath of such an event, you will likely be inundated with suggestions and offers. As leaders, especially law enforcement leaders, sometimes our natural inclination is to go into a highly directive leadership style during a crisis. It’s not your fault, that is how we have been trained and that instinct has served you well. When this happens, we tend to shut down outside suggestions. The truth is, during a crisis or tragedy, you are going to need all those leaders in your organization and they are going to need you. They will have good ideas. They will hear and see things in the department that you won’t. If you have established a culture of trust along with caring and communication, those leaders are going to come to you with valuable information and suggestions during the crisis. A wise leader will listen and let them contribute.
One such example from my department was a suggestion brought forward by one of my detectives. He pitched the idea of producing an official department memorial badge that honored our fallen officers and their end of watch. At first, I wasn’t a huge fan of the idea and I was becoming a bit overwhelmed with the seemingly endless other suggestions and requests. After taking the temperature of others in the organization, I got on board with the request and urged its approval to my chief. This turned out to be one of the most special and meaningful remembrances to honor our fallen heroes. In fact, my memorial badge became the badge of choice whenever I suited up in uniform. But I almost robbed my department of this opportunity. If I had not found a way to listen and say yes to this idea that came forward, well after the pipes had played, the Waterford crystal could have shattered.
Move Forward with Purpose
Rediscovering our unifying purpose is essential to bringing the organization through the tragedy. Every successful team needs to be certain of what they are playing for. There are still a lot of people in our community who will call 9-1-1 today and tonight and they will need us to be at the top of our game. There is a shift out there right now responding to every call for help, bringing calm to the chaos and proactively looking for those who would dare to bring harm to our communities. There will be another shift out there tonight, tomorrow and the next day doing the same thing. We owe our fallen heroes the commitment to ensure that the cause and organization they gave their lives for remains great and honorable, not mediocre and suspect.
As a leader, you owe it to them to defend the profession and not let it be attacked or disparaged. The demands of our profession will continue in spite of the hardships we are facing. Our responsibility to meet these demands does not wane as we work our way through the challenges. We stand on the shoulders of those who built this profession before us and we have an obligation to our colleagues (past and present) and our fallen heroes to maintain the excellence of the profession. That is the unifying purpose each of us carries every time we don the uniform and stand at the ready for whatever comes.
This bond and understanding need to be part of the organizational DNA well before the tragedy strikes. This will help strengthen that Waterford crystal and steady your balance as you walk that tightrope.
Expect That You Will Lose People
Understand that the grieving cycle moves at a different pace for everyone. Not everyone will be at the same place on in the cycle when you are. I reached out to a colleague whose department had gone through a similar tragedy a few years ahead of ours. I remember his words, “Boy, do you have more to come, we’re still seeing it.” Boy, was he right!
Despite the best of employee assistance and peer support programs, some people will leave the organization and possibly even the profession in the aftermath. It can’t be an easy decision for them, but I believe it is actually courageous for someone to come to the realization and move on. Support them as best you can through the process and give them their due for the service they gave.
For some agencies, the sudden loss of personnel creates a residual problem of staffing hardships and increased workloads. This can contribute to frustrations as people moved through the grief process. Moving quickly to replace those vacant positions will help to normalize staffing levels and subsequent workloads for those who are working through the tough times. Look for ways to adjust workloads, reduce workplace frustrations and anxieties during this transition. Don’t allow these frustrations to cause your tightrope to sway.
The Community is Grieving Too
Not only is your department going through the grieving process, but many in the community are too. The sense of community vulnerability spikes when they see one of their protectors killed. If the police aren’t safe in our community, who is?
The community is looking to you for a way forward and many are looking for a way to help. Be wary of those who are looking to exploit the situation, but be open to help from those who truly want to help. Your consistent message needs to be one of confidence, resiliency and purpose.
I was attending a memorial for another department when I was asked by a reporter why officers travel from all points to attend a police memorial. Aside from honoring our fallen heroes and their family, I believe we send a strong message of support to that community as well. We are demonstrating that the entire profession stands ready to come from all points to protect and defend that community, if necessary. For those who intend harm on any single community, it is a reminder that you are taking on all of us. That is a message we must bring.
I will never forget a visit from the San Jose Police Department in the morning following our tragedy. Chief Esquivel and his command staff drove 40 miles over a winding mountain highway just to offer their condolences and support for anything we needed. They made good on that promise in the days ahead.
As a chief, be ready to send support to your neighboring departments and communities. Help them hold up that Waterford crystal after they hear the pipes play. When tragedy strikes, rest assured your neighbors will be sending help to you.
Build a Memorial
In the aftermath of our tragedy, we took to building a memorial garden to honor our officers. This was a healthy activity to focus on for both the department and the community members. There were many in the community who took pride in donating money and talents to building a lasting and honorable tribute.
Building a memorial is important for both the department and the community. A memorial honors the service and sacrifice of your officers. A memorial gives a place to gather thoughts and remember what we do and why we do it.
It tells the story for generations to come reminding the department and community of the ultimate price paid in the name of public safety.
It is a blessing and an honor to lead the fine men and women who do this job. In these turbulent times, it is especially challenging. Remember to let them know how proud you are of them. We owe it to these officers and support staff to be ready to lead through the tragedies well after the pipes play to honor our heroes.
NEXT: How do you save a hero’s place?
About the author
Steven Clark is a retired deputy chief of police for the Santa Cruz (California) Police Department.