*IN THE LINE OF DUTY* OFFICER DOWN

[HairOfTheDog]

It is a stain on our country that there is not enough PPE for all of those on our front lines.

I agree.  

It's saddening and maddening that all of our first-responder groups are having to compete with each other, other states, and even international markets where the PPE has been exported even after the coronavirus was a known threat to our country.

It did not have to be this way; our government was unforgivably unprepared for a known risk.  

The citizens who are fighting on the front lines to keep us healthy should have been top priority from the start.  I've heard the analogy that sending our first-responders and health care workers into the trenches without proper PPE is like sending soldiers to war without adequate weaponry/ammunition.  That's how I see it too.

[Duchess]

The citizens who are fighting on the front lines to keep us healthy should have been top priority from the start. 

Completely agree.

I'm so glad you don't have this headache, HotD. It wasn't that long ago that you would have had employees out there working. 

[HairOfTheDog]

The citizens who are fighting on the front lines to keep us healthy should have been top priority from the start. 

Completely agree.

I'm so glad you don't have this headache, HotD. It wasn't that long ago that you would have had employees out there working. 

I feel grateful I’m out of that business every day, Duchess.

Not because I don’t want to contribute.  

But, because there would be no way I could take care of my mom and still manage that 24/7 health care business now, especially during this crisis. 

Police officers, doctors, nurses, firefighters, and other essential workers have my deep gratitude for being willing and able to do it all.

[HairOfTheDog]

The Chicago PD officer who died of coronavirus early this morning  has now been indentified.

Because of the undercover nature of his work, his photo is not being shared.

50-year-old Marco Di Franco was a 21-year veteran and worked on the narcotics team.  Rest in peace.

He leaves behind a wife, two children, ages 7 and 10, and a brother who also works as a Chicago police officer in the narcotics department. His brother is currently in isolation.

"The searing loss is another reminder of the lethal danger to COVID-19 and danger it poses to our city," Mayor Lightfoot said. "The numbers we hear every day are more than just statistics they represent our neighbors, grandparents, colleagues and friends."

Supt. Beck said this virus impacts first responders differently, as they can not shelter in place and are on the front lines. Because of that, the department will explore whether Di Franco's death meets the standards for a line-of-duty death classification.

More:  https://wgntv.com/news/coronavirus/chica...es-report/

[MirahM]

There have been 31 officers who've died in the line duty thus far in 2020.  Their photos and stories are covered here:  https://www.odmp.org/

Two of the most recent downed officers died of coronavirus Covid-19 -- as 911 calls are through the roof and more and more police officers, firefighters and EMTs are becoming infected, and in some parts of the country pleading for personal protective equipment (PPE) .  :(


^ Detective Marylou Armer of Sonoma County, California, died of the virus yesterday.  https://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/10868560-181/santa-rosa-police-officer-who

The other officer down from Covid-19 was with the Chicago PD and will be identified and remembered later today.

Rest in peace all.

This is really sad.

[HairOfTheDog]

It really is a very sad situation and it's getting worse for police officers across the country.

• A California sheriff, 54, died from COVID-19 Thursday after being infected by an inmate at a local prison.
  
• Another 25 officers from the same police department have tested positive to coronavirus, including one who is in intensive care.
  
• Departments across the country reported more deaths Thursday; a North Carolina deputy, 43, and a Chicago officer, 51, both passed from COVID-19.
  
• The NYPD also reported its seventh death, while the number of employees testing positive to coronavirus continued to soar.  
  
• Nearly one in five NYPD officers are out sick, while precincts in Harlem and the Bronx are reporting that nearly one-third of cops are unable to work.
  More:  https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article...5-000.html

[Clang McFly]

Fuck. I was telling my friend that NY is probably headed for a full lockdown. I'm probably not going back to work on the 16^th am l?

[Duchess]

No

[HairOfTheDog]

New York City:  Covid-19 Deaths

With the city shut down and a very low rate of crime taking place, the NYPD is losing personnel at a very high rate due to Covid-19 exposure and infections.

The head of the NYPD’s detective union called the coronavirus an “invisible bullet” for cops — as two more detectives died from the COVID-19 pandemic, The Post has learned.

One of the detectives, Raymond Abear, who had 19 years on the job, was temporarily assigned to the Special Victims Night Watch, but his permanent command was the Queens Special Victims Division. The 44-year-old is survived by his wife and two kids.  Rest in peace.

The other detective, Jeffrey Scalf, who worked in the Bronx Gang Squad, joined the NYPD 14 years ago.  He was 46 years old and leaves behind a wife and three children.  Rest in peace.

“Our detectives, like every NYPD member, are out there on the front line and have a high risk of contracting this terrible virus,” Detectives’ Endowment Association president Paul DiGiacomo said Sunday. “It’s a very dangerous time for New York City detectives and all first responders.”

(continued)

[HairOfTheDog]

“The fact that you’re out there risking your life every day, one, from the criminal element, and two, from what I call the invisible bullet, this coronavirus,” DiGiacomo said.

“And then you are going home and possibly taking it home to your families, which is very disturbing for all first responders.”

With the deaths of Abear and Scalf, the NYPD has lost 23 total members to coronavirus — four of whom held the rank of detective.

As of Sunday evening, 2,344 uniformed officers and 489 civilian members of the department had contracted the disease.


https://nypost.com/2020/04/13/nypd-loses...ronavirus/

[Duchess]

God, that's awful. I saw that some who work in supermarkets are dying now too. 

I used to think that the horror of ⁹⁄₁₁ was the worst thing in my lifetime but this virus takes the cake.

[MirahM]

K9 Officer Jedi shot

[Clang McFly]

K9 Officer Jedi shot

I guess the Force wasn't with him.

[Duchess]

K9 Officer Jedi shot

Jedi was a very good boy.    

[MirahM]

Officer Down:
Dom Calata
1986-2022


Deputy Sheriff Dom Calata succumbed to gunshot wounds sustained the previous day while members of the Pierce County Sheriff's Department SWAT Team attempted to serve an arrest warrant in the 19000 block of Pacific Avenue South in Spanaway.

The SWAT Team was assisting the South Sound Gang Task Force with serving the warrant. They were making entry into the suspect's mobile home when the man opened fire on them. Deputy Calata and a sergeant were both shot and wounded before the subject was killed by return gunfire. Both deputies were transported to St. Joseph Medical Center where Deputy Calata succumbed to his wounds the following day.

Deputy Calata was a U.S. Army veteran and a Washington National Guard veteran. He had served with the Pierce County Sheriff's Department for 6-1/2 years and was assigned to the contracted Edgewood Police Department. He is survived by his wife and 4-year-old child.

[MirahM]

[Clang McFly]

Pretty good. I like this one better.

https://youtu.be/teIbh8hFQos

[MirahM]

I posted it because he is the one who just passed away.

[MirahM]

Officer Down:
Dom Calata
1986-2022


Deputy Sheriff Dom Calata succumbed to gunshot wounds sustained the previous day while members of the Pierce County Sheriff's Department SWAT Team attempted to serve an arrest warrant in the 19000 block of Pacific Avenue South in Spanaway.

The SWAT Team was assisting the South Sound Gang Task Force with serving the warrant. They were making entry into the suspect's mobile home when the man opened fire on them. Deputy Calata and a sergeant were both shot and wounded before the subject was killed by return gunfire. Both deputies were transported to St. Joseph Medical Center where Deputy Calata succumbed to his wounds the following day.

Deputy Calata was a U.S. Army veteran and a Washington National Guard veteran. He had served with the Pierce County Sheriff's Department for 6-1/2 years and was assigned to the contracted Edgewood Police Department. He is survived by his wife and 4-year-old child.

This happened in the shitty town I grew up in, which is why I posted it. That area has seen the death of a few officers, including a classmate, and one of the community officers that was on patrol at our school.
The procession is Friday.