By Kisty Fairchild
Police1 Contributor
Just this month the state of Ohio lost two officers within days of each other – Thomas Patton, 30, from the Cleveland Heights Police Department and Officer James Kerstetter, 43, from the Elyria Police Department.
Patrolman Thomas Patton
Cleveland Heights PD
End of Watch – March 13, 2010
Thomas Patton responded to assist another officer in a foot pursuit of a suspect who had been harassing two women inside a convenience store. During the pursuit, Patton bent over and rested his hands on his knees momentarily before continuing to run. He collapsed shortly after and was transported to Huron Hospital where he died from cardiac arrest. According to friends and family, Patton was in excellent physical condition and an avid runner. He had a wife and a four-month-old daughter.
Officer Patton, the son of Ohio State Senator Tom Patton, comes from a long line of law enforcement family serving at the Cleveland Police Department and Cleveland Heights.
His cousin Tim Gaertner, also a police officer, spoke with Newsline about this tragedy and how shocking it was to friends and family. “Thomas was in excellent shape. We have no history of heart problems in our family, and he was training to run a marathon.”
Officer James Kerstetter
Elyria PD
End of Watch – March 15, 2010
It had been 68 years since the city of Elyria had suffered the loss of a law enforcement officer. But on March 15 at 10 p.m., Kerstetter, a15-year-veteran patrolman was gunned down responding to a disturbance call leaving the community of Elyria and the state of Ohio in mourning.
Phillip Hammonds, a lieutenant at the Elyria Police Department, and a friend to Kerstetter, spoke with Newsline about the incident.
Hammonds explained that on the evening of Kerstetter’s death, dispatch received a call about a man, 58-year-old Robert Palmer, exposing himself to a neighbor and kicking in her window. The woman reported the incident after Palmer had already left the scene.
Kerstetter responded to the call, spoke with the woman, and then walked over to Palmer’s home. Details have still not been released, and the incident is still under investigation, but at some point Kerstetter entered Palmer’s home where Palmer opened fire on him. Kerstetter managed to call for back up but then collapsed and was pronounced dead upon arrival at Elyria Memorial Hospital. Palmer exited the house where he confronted police and was shot and killed.
According to police reports, Palmer had a history of violence and arrests. Last March he was charged with aggravated menacing, domestic violence and unlawful restraint after a domestic disturbance incident involving Palmer and his wife. The officers noted in their report that the couple had a “history of mental issues.”
Kerstetter’s death is truly a tragedy. He was highly trained (SWAT and as a sniper). He was a member of the department’s special response team, and he trained rookie officers. He leaves behind a wife and three daughters, ages 17, 14 and 8.
What we must learn from those we lost
“The one thing about James Kerstetter’s situation that we want others in law enforcement to know is this was a ‘routine one-man call’ that turned unpredictable very quickly. Kerstetter was responding to an incident that was already over,” said Lt. Hammonds. “James was highly trained, and in excellent shape. Unfortunately in this profession, you can never let your guard down and tragedy can happen at any time.”
Although not all the details are known in this particular incident, it is important to remember that law enforcement everywhere answers calls like the ones that Kerstetter and Patton answered. While no one person can ever predict what will occur on any given call, Street Survival Seminar Senior Instructor Dave Smith reminds us to refresh our level of awareness.
“Routine is one of our deadliest performance destroyers,” Smith says.
“In the seminar we have as one of our underlying goals the hope to reverse the way day-to-day routine is perceived and how it erodes officer performance and awareness – either by creating a sense of complacency, familiarity or false sense of control.”
Smith adds, “It is invisible in its effect, it happens to everyone, and it must be actively resisted, through awareness and training. Whenever tragedies occur, we should use that sense of loss to reaffirm our own commitment and refresh our awareness of the risks, the tactics and the attitudes we need to succeed whatever challenge we face! Mortally wounded, Kerstetter was able to call in a warning and prepare those following behind! And officer Patton, although clearly winded by his condition, continued his pursuit. Both were true warriors to the very end.”
Let us not forget...
It is the stories like these that truly drive us to learn. The stories of our fallen warriors and the sacrifices they’ve made burn the lessons deep into our hearts and ultimately saves the lives of those who follow in their footsteps.
It is truly an honor for those of us at Calibre Press to work with thousands of officers every year through the Street Survival seminar and it is devastating any time a loss is suffered. It is important to us that we honor all our fallen. We are proud to lead the charge in doing so. For the past 14 years, we have worked with the Greater Cleveland Peace Officers Memorial Society (GCPOMS) to kick off its annual Police Memorial Week. And each year, we pay tribute to those lost not only in the state of Ohio, but all across our great nation. Our instructors have marched with thousands of officers and carried the memorial torch during the Cleveland memorial ceremonies.
This year is no different. We will kick off the memorial event on May 19 with a Street Survival seminar and we will honor those we have lost throughout 2010. We encourage you to participate in honoring our fallen in any way you can, whether it is by participating in memorial events like the one in Cleveland, or the National Police Memorial Week in Washington, or even locally in your own community. Remember our brothers and sisters who have made the most supreme sacrifice. Get to know their stories and, most importantly, LEARN from them. It could save your life.
Read more about the GCPMOS Police Memorial Week festivities on May 20-23 and how you can participate.