CAMDENTON, Mo. — Concerns of Police Survivors (C.O.P.S.) is responding to the line-of-duty death of a law enforcement officer just a few communities away from the C.O.P.S. National Office in the small town of Clinton, Missouri. On Tuesday, March 6, Clinton (MO) Police Officer Christopher Morton was shot and killed when he and two other officers responded to an unknown situation as the result of a 911 call at approximately 9:20 pm. The other two officers were both shot and are being treated at area hospitals.
This marks the second line-of-duty death for the department and falls exactly seven months to the day of the death of Clinton Police Officer Gary Michael, Jr., who was shot and killed on August 6, 2017.
The Missouri C.O.P.S. Chapter has sprung into action and will be assisting the department, as well as working with the surviving family members. Chapters are all organized and ran by survivors who have experienced a line-of-duty death in their own families.
Wendy Viers, surviving sister of Missouri State Trooper Frederick Guthrie who died in the line of duty on August 1, 2011, is a representative of Missouri C.O.P.S. and gave the update that family members are still being contacted and the agency is working with C.O.P.S. “Right now we are traveling to get to the families. The immediate need is for us to support them, love them, and cry with them,” Viers said. “The sad thing is we have all been through it and we were just doing this in Clinton seven months ago. It’s our mission to let them know they are not alone in this.”
On behalf of the entire organization of C.O.P.S., Executive Director Dianne Bernhard has issued this statement: “Our hearts are with the family of Officer Morton and the entire Clinton community as they suffer another loss of a hero. Our prayers are with the injured officers and their families. Every time an officer dies in the line of duty, the entire law enforcement community mourns and pulls together to support our amazing blue family. C.O.P.S. will take care of these families whose lives have been turned upside down. They will never be alone and their hero will never be forgotten.”
About C.O.P.S.
Concerns of Police Survivors is a nationwide not-for-profit organization with 55 Chapters across the country. Members of C.O.P.S. are always prepared to help survivors when they need it, where they need it. The organization’s mission has always been to “rebuild shattered lives” of the survivors. C.O.P.S. has a membership comprised of more than 48,000 people who have identified themselves as survivors nationwide. Unfortunately, that membership continues to grow as an average of 140-160 law enforcement officers are killed every year in the line of duty. For more information, please visit concernsofpolicesurvivors.org or contact us via Facebook at facebook.com/nationalcops.