*IN THE LINE OF DUTY* OFFICER DOWN

[NoseyOlHag]

I'm with you on that one. I said a prayer this morning for all of our Police Officers and there families and then read about all the Officers who have died. My heart hurts for all the families. Yes those who shoot Police Officers need to DIE!

[Lady Cop]

12/12/11



RIP Officer Peter Figoski








Lamont Pride, inset, was arrested and found guilty of armed robbery in North Carolina in 2009. He was busted near the shooting scene in Brooklyn today.

NYPost
A decorated NYPD cop was killed this morning after a gun-toting burglar shot him in cold blood inside a Brooklyn apartment building, police said.

Officer Peter Figoski, a 22-year veteran, responded to a “burglary in progress” at 25 Pine Street in Cypress Hills at 2:15 a.m. and was confronted by career criminal Lamont Pride, 27, police said.

Pride and his cohort initially hid from the first responding officers and were attempting to make their escape when Figoski and his partner surprised the thugs, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said.

Without hesitation, Pride allegedly shot Figoski, 47, once in the face and took off on foot.

Meanwhile, Figoski’s partner, Glenn Estrada, 42, was tussling with Pride’s unidentified cohort nearby.

Estrada broke away and chased after Pride, slapping the cuffs on him several blocks away on Chestnut Street and Fulton Street, police said.

“I want to commend Officer Estrada, who had the presence of mind to focus on the man with the gun, and the courage to chase him down and capture him,” said Kelly.

Figoski was taken to Jamaica Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Mayor Bloomberg said he was awoken at 4 a.m. and told about the shooting.

"No one had any expectation [Figoski] would make it," the mayor said.

At a news conference, a somber Bloomberg, who had to notify Figoski's family of the incident, said cop shootings are "the worst part about being mayor."

Bloomberg added, “I also met with Officer Figoski’s former wife Paulette, and two of their daughters Carolyn, 16, and Corrine, 14, here at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, and thanked them on behalf of a deeply grateful New York City. There are two other daughters Christine, 20, and Caitlyn, 18, both who are upstate at college.

“Four daughters. I’m the father of two myself and having to tell kids of any age what happened to their father or mother is, without a doubt, the hardest thing any mayor ever has to do."

At 11:45 a.m., Figoski's body was removed from the hospital as relatives and nearly 200 cops exited the building and gathered outside a rear exit.

The body was placed in an ambulance as the officers stood at attention. The family got into a separate vehicle.

"Now it's our chance and our opportunity to say thank you to the family and to step in where he would have been," said PBA President Pat Lynch.

The incident that led to the deadly shooting began when the two thugs wearing ski masks pounded on the door to a basement apartment occupied by a 25-year-old tenant.

When the occupant went to investigate, the assailants said they were cops, demanded cash and jewelry and knocked the tenant down with a blow to the head with a firearm.

The suspects swiped an inexpensive watch and $770 in cash.

Police recovered a silver 9mm Ruger semi-automatic from under a parked car near the area where Pride was taken into custody.

The accomplice is still at large.

In 2009, Pride was found guilty of armed robbery in Guilford County, NC and was sentenced to 13 to 16 months. He was released from prison on October 25, 2010, according to law enforcement officials.






salute to a hero cop and arraignment of murderer here:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-...Pride.html

[Lady Cop]

Hundreds of law enforcement officers joined the family and friends of slain Virgina Tech officer Deriek W. Crouse in mourning Monday afternoon.
Mr Crouse, a husband to wife Tina and father of five, was a former Army Staff Sergeant who had previously served in Iraq, drawing law enforcement groups as far away as Canada to Monday's service to pay their respects.

[Lady Cop]

December 15, 2011

For the past 10 years, a police officer in the United States has been killed in the line of duty every 53 hours.

With 16 days left in 2011, 166 police officers nationally have died in the line of duty according to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund.

This is up from the 152 officers killed in the line of duty nationally in 2010.

[Lady Cop]

see post #162





All five men accused of killing a veteran police officer were lined up in court and indicted by a Brooklyn grand jury on Friday afternoon.
Held without bail: The five men who were indicted on Friday. From left: Alleged getaway driver Michael Velez; accused ringleader Nelson Morales; ex-con Kevin Santos; alleged shooter Lamont Pride and Aerial Tejada




Police officer Peter Figoski, who had more than 22 years experience under his belt before shot in the line of duty on Monday, is pictured with his four daughters

wake

[Lady Cop]

More than 20,000 police officers from across America gathered today to pay their respects to fallen New York Police Department cop Peter Figoski.
In an extraordinary show of solidarity for the slain cop's family and colleagues, a vast sea of uniformed officers lined up outside St. Joseph Church in Babylon, New York.
Mr Figoski, who served 22 years with the NYPD, died after he was shot in the face last Monday while responding to a robbery in Brooklyn.

a sea of blue

[Lady Cop]

[JsMom]

That is Beautiful!

[Lady Cop]

12/12/11
Florida

Lakeland police Officer Arnulfo Crispin, who was shot to death in the line of duty, will be laid to rest Tuesday.

The U.S. Honor Flag arrived at Orlando International Airport Monday morning and was taken to Lakeland, where it will be a part of Crispin's service. The flag was flown over the Texas State Capitol on Sept. 11, 2001, the date of the infamous U.S. terrorist attacks, and then over Ground Zero in New York City.

The funeral will start at 10 a.m. at Victory Church, 1401 Griffin Road, Lakeland. Burial is at Oak Hill Cemetery, 4620 U.S. Highway 98 in Lakeland.

A public viewing is tonight from 6 to 9 p.m. at Church of the Resurrection, 3720 Old Highway 37, Lakeland.

Crispin, 25, died Dec. 20. He was shot in the head Dec. 18 while responding to a call. Police recovered a gun thought to have been used in the shooting.

Kyle Williams, 19, was arrested on a charge of first-degree murder of a law-enforcement officer with a firearm. He is being held without bail in the Polk County Jail.

Investigators say Williams shot Lakeland Officer Arnulfo Crispin Sunday night during a pat down.

Around 10:15 p.m. Sunday, Officer Crispin was outside an apartment complex on Crystal Grove Drive, checking on a group of men who appeared suspicious. He was shot when he went to check the men for weapons, police said.

Officers reached Crispin in his vehicle seven minutes after he was shot. He had been shot in the head.

RIP Officer Arnulfo Crispin




shooter





Lakeland Police Officer Arnulfo Crispin was recalled for his dedication this morning, as several thousand mourners filled Victory Assembly Church for his funeral.

[Lady Cop]

RIP Deputy Matt Miller



Seminole County Deputy Matt Miller (Seminole County Sheriff’s Office, Seminole County Sheriff’s Office / December 26, 2011

Orlando Sentinel
December 27, 2011
Florida Highway Patrol troopers continue to investigate a crash that killed a Seminole County deputy sheriff and put another man in the hospital in critical condition.

Deputy Matt Miller was killed when his motorcycle collided with a Volkswagen Jetta at the intersection of Maitland Boulevard and Gateway Drive on Monday afternoon, causing the car to flip on its roof.

Miller, 53, had worked at the Sheriff's Office for 24 years, a somber Seminole County Sheriff Don Eslinger said at a news conference Monday evening outside the emergency room of Orlando Regional Medical Center, where Miller was taken after the accident.

Eslinger said the motorcycle deputy was "trying to catch up to a speeder" headed west on Maitland Boulevard about 1:15 p.m. when the crash occurred. Eslinger said Miller had activated his lights and siren but was not in a high-speed pursuit.
The Jetta's driver, identified as Abel Romero Linfernal, 28, of Altamonte Springs, also was taken to ORMC, where he was listed in critical condition Monday night, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

Troopers investigating the crash said Linfernal was headed east when he turned left at Gateway Drive and into the motorcycle's path.

"Matt was a consummate professional. Very highly skilled. Loved working traffic, loved working at the Sheriff's Office," said Eslinger, who escorted the deputy's widow, Laura Miller, from the hospital before addressing reporters. "He touched a lot of lives in the Sheriff's Office as well as the entire community. ... It's all one family at the Seminole County Sheriff's Office. It's not only a loss of a great deputy sheriff, but a family member for all of us."

Miller worked at the Longwood Police Department for three years before joining the Sheriff's Office.

[Lady Cop]

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- In-the-line-of-duty deaths of law enforcement officers jumped 13% in 2011 compared to last year, according to preliminary figures released Wednesday by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund.

A total of 173 federal, state and local officers have been killed in the United States, and the year is not quite over yet.

Gunfire accounted for the largest number of deaths, claiming 68 officers. That represents a 15% increase from 2010.

"This is a devastating and unacceptable trend," Attorney General Eric Holder said in a written statement.

"Each of these deaths is a tragic reminder of the threats that law enforcement officers face each day -- and the fact that too many guns have fallen into the hands of those who are not legally permitted to possess them."

The National Law Enforcement Memorial Fund notes that for the first time in 14 years, more police and other law enforcement agents died in shootings than in traffic accidents. This year, 64 officers were killed either in car or motorcycle crashes, or by being struck by vehicles while on the job.

"Drastic budget cuts affecting law enforcement agencies across the country have put our officers at grave risk," said Craig Floyd, the chairman of the memorial fund. Floyd and others have expressed concerns that in these tight economic times, there have been reductions in training and equipment for police.

Spurred by approximately 50 officer deaths early this year, Holder met with a number of police chiefs as well as federal law enforcement leaders in March to discuss what could be done and announced a Law Enforcement Safety Initiative. The program provides information and training.

Holder said in his Wednesday statement that a Justice Department program to help local police obtain bullet- and stab-resistant vests has saved 16 officers since January.

Florida has had the largest number of officer deaths this year -- a total of 14. That was followed by Texas with 13, New York with 11, and 10 fatalities in both California and Georgia.

[Lady Cop]

RIP Hero FBI Special Agent Daniel Knapp


FBI San Juan December 30, 2011

SAN JUAN, PR—FBI Special Agent Daniel Knapp, assigned to the San Juan Field Office, accidentally drowned on December 29, 2011, at Playa Escondida (Hidden Beach) in Fajardo, Puerto Rico, while rescuing a young adult swimmer.

Special Agent Knapp was approached for assistance by friends of the struggling swimmer and without hesitation swam out to assist. Special Agent Knapp reached the struggling swimmer and was able to provide assistance. The swimmer was rescued by the Police of Puerto Rico-Maritime Unit; however, it appears Special Agent Knapp was overcome by the severe nautical weather conditions.

“Special Agent Knapp exemplified each of the ideals of the FBI, as well as possessing those traits which define a genuine wonderful person. He died a hero, saving another life. We will miss him greatly,” said Joseph S. Campbell, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI San Juan Field Office. “The FBI family mourns alongside Agent Knapp’s family. We ask the media and the public to respect the family’s privacy during this very difficult time.”

Special Agent Knapp was 43 years old and served the FBI for six years. He entered on duty with the FBI in April 2005 and, upon completing new agent training, was assigned to the FBI San Juan Field Office. Special Agent Knapp was a recipient of the 2011 FBI Director’s Award for Outstanding Criminal Investigation and the 2011 Attorney General’s Award for Excellence in Law Enforcement. He is survived by his parents and four brothers.

[Lady Cop]

Authorities are conducting a manhunt at Mount Rainier National Park in Washington State after a park ranger died in a shooting Sunday following a routine traffic stop, authorities said.

Authorities believed the gunman was still in the woods with an assault rifle. They asked people to stay away from the park, and for those already inside to leave, but Ed Troyer, a Pierce County Sheriff's spokesman, said there were about 100 people hunkered down in lodges and cabins on the mountain. They were asked to stay put because they could be in the line of fire.

The killed ranger was identified as 34-year-old Margaret Anderson. Anderson was the mother of a 4-year-old and 1-year-old.

At around 10:20 a.m. Sunday, another park service employee had tried to stop a man in his vehicle. He didn't stop, so Anderson set up a road block with her vehicle in the middle of the road, said park spokeswoman Lee Taylor. The man pulled up to Anderson about 11 a.m., jumped out, fired and ran off, she said.

There were no witnesses to the shooting, but the shooter was identified as a male, Taylor told Fox News.

"We're searching for someone that does not want to be found," Taylor said. "And who has a weapon, and is willing to use it."

Troyer also said it appeared there were still visitors hiking on the mountain who could not be reached and were not aware of what was going on.

"We do have a very hot and dangerous situation," he said.

Troyer said when authorities arrived they were also shot at, but no one else was hit. About 150 officers were on the mountain, but they had not made contact with the gunman and did not know where he was, Troyer said.

Authorities said earlier that Anderson's body had been removed from the park, but Troyer said police have been unable to get to her.

Park superintendent Randy King said Anderson is a mother of two young daughters who had served as a park ranger for about four years. King said Anderson's husband also was working as a ranger elsewhere in the park at the time of the shooting.

"It's just a huge tragedy -- for the family, the park and the park service," he said.

Adam Norton, a neighbor of Anderson's in the small town of Eatonville, Washington, said the ranger's family moved in about a year ago. He said they were not around much, but when they were Norton would see Anderson outside with her girls.

"They just seemed like the perfect family," he said.

The town of about 3,000 residents, which is a logging community overlooking Mount Rainier, is very close knit, he said.

"It's really sad right now," Norton said. "We take care of each other."

It has been legal for people to take loaded firearms into Mount Rainier since 2010, when a controversial federal law went into effect that made possession of firearms in national parks subject to state gun laws.

The shooting occurred on an unseasonably sunny and mild day. The park, which offers miles of wooded trails and spectacular vistas from which to see 14,410-foot Mount Rainier, draws between 1.5 million and 2 million visitors each year.

The Longmire station served as headquarters when the national park was established in 1899. Park headquarters have moved but the site still contains a museum, a hotel, restaurant and gift shop, which are open year-round.

The Washington State Patrol also was helping with the investigation.


RIP Ranger Margaret Anderson

[Lady Cop]

manhunt

Detectives are looking for 24-year-old Benjamin Colton Barnes as their person of interest.

"We don't know much about him other than he has some weapons training and he has some pretty high-end weapons," said Troyer. "He was up here ... it looks like, by the items that were in the car, he planned on being up here, maybe even hiding out up here."

The suspect is believed to be armed with several rifles.











his dead ass



Updated at 2:20 p.m. ET: A body was spotted by aircraft in a remote area and there's a strong probability it is Benjamin Colton Barnes, the man thought to have killed a Mount Rainier National Park ranger on Sunday, a sheriff's spokesman says.

"One of the air units and some of the FBI SWAT team members and sheriff’s SWAT team members have found a body," said Pierce County Sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer. "We have not gotten to it, we are nowhere near it, it’s still buried in the snow."

many photos here:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-...-dead.html

[Lady Cop]

(CBS/AP)
OGDEN, Utah -- Authorities say a Utah police officer has died following a shootout that left five other officers and a suspect wounded.
Ogden police say in a statement early Thursday that Jared Francom died from his wounds following Wednesday night's drug-related shooting. He leaves behind a wife and two young children.

Gunfire erupted as anti-drug police served a search warrant in an Ogden neighborhood, fatally wounding one officer and injuring five other police and a suspect, authorities said.

The shots rang out before 9 p.m. Wednesday as police converged at a residence on Jackson Avenue, police spokesman Lt. Tony Fox said.

The six officers were hospitalized along with a suspect, Fox told The Associated Press.

Ogden police said in a statement early Thursday that agent Jared Francom died from his wounds following Wednesday night's drug-related shooting.

Five police officers from multiple agencies remain hospitalized with serious to critical injuries. No more information on their conditions was released.

The sole suspect in the shooting is at a local hospital under guard, with non-life threatening injuries.

No names have been released.

The shooting occurred as an anti-drug strike team was serving a warrant. The Standard-Examiner in Ogden reported that more police responded upon word of at least one officer shot.

Police blocked off the area from 34^th Street and Jackson Avenue to 32^nd Street and a SWAT team took positions.

Authorities have not released information on how the remaining officers and the suspect were shot. The paper said police eventually surrounded the suspect near a backyard shed.

The residence was secured after the arrest, and at 9:45 p.m. police announced that there was no longer a threat to the community, the paper said.

The team serving the search warrant involved officers from the Weber-Morgan Narcotics Strike Force. The force's website says the unit is made up of officers from the Weber County Sheriff's Office, local police departments and the Federal Drug Enforcement Agency.

Four of the officers were taken to nearby McKay-Dee Hospital. Several off-duty doctors and nurses were called in to help with the situation, said hospital spokesman Chris Dallin.

Dallin said he was unable to provide information on the officers' conditions. Dallin said he didn't know where the suspect was being treated.

Police said Francom was a seven-year veteran and is survived by his wife and two young children.

Nearby witnesses said they heard three quick pops followed by a two to three minute pause, then lots of gunfire.

"We came running outside to see what was going on," Janessa Vanderstappen, who lives nearby, told the Deseret News. "Officers told us to go back in our house."

Vanderstappen said she went back inside, and minutes later heard yelling coming from the backyard. She said she walked onto the back porch to see officers addressing a person hiding in a nearby shed.

"There's cops telling him to `put your hands up, put your hands up," she said.

Mat Weinberger, who lives about a half block from the scene, said he first thought the noise was fireworks.

From the porch, he told the Salt Lake Tribune that he could see several police cars parked at a nearby intersection. He also could hear a voice on the police radio shout that an officer was down.

He estimated that between 30 to 40 shots were fired during the shootout.

"Chaotic end to a quiet night," he said.




RIP Officer Jared Francom

[Smegma]

One of the injured cops is a brother of a co-worker. We were all in shock about this today.

And how stupid are the 'witnesses' that all said they heard shots and immediately ran outside to see what was going on? Holy shit.

[Lady Cop]

comprehensive article and 74 photos here:


Deseret News
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/70539...otout.html


Thursday, Jan. 5, 2012

OGDEN — An emotional Ogden interim Police Chief Wayne Tarwater summed up the feelings of police officers and the community Thursday:

"It's a very, very sad day for all," he said, fighting back tears.

Law enforcers across the state were in mourning Thursday following the news that one of six officers from the Weber-Morgan Metro Narcotics Strike Force shot while serving a search warrant Wednesday night had died.

Agent Jared Francom, who had been with the Ogden Police Department for seven years, succumbed to his injuries and died at Ogden Regional Medical Center early Thursday. He is survived by a wife and two young children.

Strike Force Commander Lt. Darin Parke called Francom an experienced agent who trained other people in the unit.

During an emotional press conference Thursday at the Ogden Police Department, police and city leaders talked about how the law enforcement community had lost a family member.

"This is a family. This is a law enforcement family. The law enforcement community is mourning," Tarwater said.

Francom and other members of the Weber-Morgan Narcotics Strike Force were attempting to serve a warrant about 8:40 p.m. at 3268 Jackson Ave. when a gun battle erupted.

Six officers and the alleged gunman were shot. The conditions of the five other injured officers range from serious to critical, according to the Ogden Police Department.

Those injured and hospitalized were:

• Ogden police officer Shawn Grogan

• Ogden police officer Kasey Burrell

• Ogden police officer Michael Rounkles

• Weber County Sheriff's Sgt. Nate Hutchinson

• Roy police officer Jason Vanderwarf

• The alleged gunman, Matthew David Stewart, 37, suffered injuries that were not life-threatening, according to police, and remained hospitalized Thursday under guard.

Grogan, Burrell and Rounkles were in critical condition Thursday at McKay-Dee Hospital, said hospital spokesman Chris Dallin. Hutchinson was upgraded to stable condition. Vanderwarf was treated at ORMC and was later released.

At least 12 strike force members were serving a "knock and announce warrant," meaning they first knocked on the door to announce their presence and then entered if no one responded.

"They forced entry onto the door and when they entered, the officers came under fire," Tarwater said.

"There was not a great deal that set this investigation apart from other similar types of investigations other than the outcome," Parke said.

Bulletproof vests are common for officers to wear while serving search warrants. It is assumed the officers were wearing them Wednesday night, but investigators would not say on Thursday.

Dallin declined to release any details about the nature of the officers' injuries, saying he had not been authorized by family members to go into details. "As you can imagine, these families have had a rough night," he said.

But according to a law enforcement source, Grogan was shot in the face through the cheek; Burrell was shot twice, once in the stomach, and his face was hit with fragments; Rounkles was shot in the leg and the bullet was still lodged inside; Hutchinson was shot four times, twice to his vest, once to his arm and once through his hip; and Vanderwarf was shot in the hip.

"We've never had this many officers come in at the same time," Dallin said, adding that all available critical care staff responded to the hospital to assist.

Stewart's father described his oldest son as having mental problems and said he was "self-medicating" with marijuana.

"We were concerned for him. But there was just nothing we could do for him. He wouldn't have anything to do with his mother or his father," Michael Stewart told the Deseret News Thursday.

He said his 37-year-old son has been estranged from his family for several years.

Army spokesman Troy A. Rolan Sr. said from the Pentagon that Miller joined the Army in July 1994 and was stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C. until January 1996. Miller was then assigned in Germany until he was discharged in December 1998. During his service, Miller maintained communications equipment and received the Army Achievement Medal and the National Defense Service Medal.

Rolan said Miller's service came between the two wars in Iraq and that the soldier was never on a battle deployment. Despite that, Miller's father said his son was a "different person" after his military service and acted like he had been in combat.

Weber County Attorney Dee Smith instructed investigators not to discuss details about the case pending an internal and external investigation being conducted by the Weber County Sheriff's Office. Officers could not answer questions about whether the gunman was barricaded, what kind of weapons he had or whether Francom was first inside the home when police entered.

When asked about the potential charges the gunman might be facing, Smith became choked up, and said his office would be filing the appropriate charges as the law allows.

"We have an officer who is deceased. ... Until we have the investigation completed, I'm not going to say exactly what he's facing," he said. "But we have an aggravated murder as well as a number of attempted aggravated murders."

Tarwater said Stewart had a "limited" criminal history. A search of Utah court records indicates he has a misdemeanor conviction of driving without insurance in 2005 and a seat belt violation in 2004.

"We will grieve this loss, knowing officer Francom laid down his life for his friends and his community," added Weber County Sheriff Terry Thompson.

"As the chief who hired each of these officers over the last 16 years and has worked with them on a daily basis, this is a very sad day of my life," said former Ogden Police Chief Jon Greiner. "These were wonderful men who have given their all and they rose their right hand to God and said that they would support and defend the Constitution and they were doing that for the safety of our community last night."

Roy Police Chief Greg Whinham asked everyone in Utah to remember the sacrifices law enforcers everywhere make every day as well as the sacrifices made by their families that go unrecognized.

At McKay-Dee Hospital Center Wednesday night, between 40 and 70 law enforcers from across northern Utah arrived to offer support to the families of the officers involved.

Wednesday was also the first full day on the job for new Ogden Mayor Mike Caldwell. He said he was with some of the officers' families when a doctor came in to deliver updated news. He called the experience "crushing."

"This is a one of a kind, one in a billion event that happened to be in our community," he said. "It's just terrible circumstances. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families."

Caldwell said grief counselors had been made available to officers since last night as well as other support as needed.

"It's a full-court press from everyone on the city level," he said.

Witnesses said they heard three quick pops followed by a two- to three-minute pause, then more gunfire.

"I was sitting in the front room watching TV, heard three pops. My fiancé asked if they were fireworks. I said, 'No, those are gunshots,'" said resident Clayton Payne. "I ran out here to see what was going on and I was escorted back to my house by the cops. They said, ‘Get in your house. Get down.'"

Stewart was reportedly arrested in a nearby shed, but officers would not address details about that on Thursday.

Matthew Stewart was working graveyard shifts at Walmart and was likely sleeping when police arrived at his door about 9 p.m. Wednesday, his father said. He said he believes his son probably reacted the way he did because he saw people in the house where he lives alone.

"I don’t know that he had the intention of shooting any police officers," he said, adding he didn't know his son had any guns.

"We're very upset about this," Michael Stewart said. "We're upset that an officer was killed."

Michael Stewart said he believes his son was growing marijuana only for himself. "He didn't want to get involved in the drug system, the illicit drug trade," he said.

Matthew Stewart, he said, has "mental difficulties" and is very shy.

"We're praying for him," he said. "Maybe he'll get the help he needs now."

Michael Stewart and his wife, Sonja, later issued a statement expressing their "deepest regret" about the tragedy. "So many of our lives have changed forever. We are so sorry for the families of all the officers hurt."

Dozens of markers could be seen in the street, the front yard where the shootout happened and in the grass on the church property across the street from the crime scene.

Jerri Johnson lives two homes away from Stewart's house. She said based on the number of gunshots she heard Wednesday night, she initially thought more than one person was firing at officers.

"The number of shots was indescribable," she said. "It was a really scary experience."

Johnson said she had her three young children all lay on the ground of their bedroom floor. She said they were "terrified."

Through the screen door, Johnson watched as police dragged one injured officer across her lawn to safety and carried another. An officer who saw her at the door told her to stay in the house, she said.

Johnson believed Stewart had lived in the house for several years. She described him as "friendly" and a person who would say "hello" if you saw him working in the yard. She said her ex-husband, an Iraq war vet, talked more to Stewart than she did. She said the fact the two were vets gave them something in common to talk about.

Johnson said she never noticed any red flags from Stewart that would indicate something like the shooting could happen.

Other neighbors said they rarely saw Matthew Stewart outside of his home.

“I had never met Matthew before,” said Matt King, a neighbor. “It seemed like he kept to himself.”

King, who lives five houses down from Stewart, said he clearly heard shots during the 10- to 12-minute gunfight. Yellow crime tape still blocks off a wide area around the crime scene.

A couple of employees at Walmart in Riverdale, where Stewart worked overnight shifts, told the Deseret News they either did not know him or were instructed not to talk about him. A call to a corporate spokesperson was not immediately returned.

Flags in Ogden were ordered to fly at half-staff Thursday and Utah Gov. Gary Herbert said he'll order all flags throughout the state at half-staff on the day of the funeral.

"It really is a tragic situation. It gives us all pause," Herbert said. "Today I know we're united in mourning this incident, particularly with the loss of Jared Francom and his family and what they're going through."

Herbert met with some of the family members of the wounded officers Thursday. "Their medical outlook looks at least somewhat positive," he said.

"They are surprisingly upbeat, the families I met with," the governor said. "I think they are proud of the service their loved ones have given."

Francom is the eighth Ogden police officer in the department’s history to be killed in the line of duty, and the 134^th statewide. The last Ogden police officer killed in the line of duty was detective Marshall White, who was killed by a burglary suspect in 1963. The Marshall White Center in Ogden is named after him.

The Bank of Utah set up accounts in the names of each of the officers who were injured on Wednesday. All funds raised will go directly to the officer to whom the funds were donated, Ogden police said.

A Facebook page was created Thursday honoring Francom. A makeshift memorial with flowers and and candles was also erected outside the home where the shootings occurred.

At note placed at the memorial said: "Thank you agent Jared Francom for your sacrifice and unwavering heroism in the line of duty. You will not be forgotten. And may God bless your family and loved ones in their time of needs."




the shooter Matthew David Stewart.

[Lady Cop]

RIP Deputy William Coleman



AZ Central.com

A Maricopa County Sheriff's deputy was slain early Sunday after a burgary suspect opened fire at him at an Anthem medical plaza, sheriff's deputies said.

The burglary suspect, whose name was not released, was fatally shot by a sheriff's deputy after he opened fire, according to Sheriff Joe Arpaio.

Deputy William Coleman, 50, a 20-year veteran, the first deputy killed since 1995, was one of three who responded just after 4 a.m. Sunday to a report of a burglary in progress on Anthem Way just east of I-17, Arpaio said.

"Unfortunately, one of our deputies was killed in the line of today," Arpaio said. "It is extremely sad, for everyone. He was an excellent officer."

A minivan was parked outside near one of the medical buildings at the plaza when the three Sheriff's deputies arrived. The MCSO patrols Anthem, a master planned community roughly 20 miles north of central Phoenix.

"The suspect came out and started shooting at our deputies," said Arpaio, speaking from John C. Lincoln Deer Valley Hospital. One of the deputies, Arpaio said, "returned fire and killed the suspect."

The suspect carried a semiautomatic rifle, Arpaio said. Coleman wore a vest, but such vests are no match for such weaponry, he said.

"Not when the (bad) guys carry semiautomatic weapons," Arpaio said.

Deputies said they could not yet comment on how many times and where Coleman was shot.

Nor do they know, yet, what the suspect had stolen, if anything, and whether he has a criminal record. It's difficult, at best, to know what was in the suspect's mind, authorities said.

"Number 1, there's a war on against police," said Arpaio. "We live in a violent world."

Coleman leaves behind several children, including a 4 and a 7-year-old and a few who are older and have left the nest, Arpaio said.

[Cracker]

RIP. Thank you for your service to your community. That is so sad.

[Lady Cop]

RIP Officer Shawn Schneider











MN
LAKE CITY – Lake City paid tribute to slain police officer Shawn Schneider Saturday as his family and 2,000 public safety officers from across Minnesota and around the country laid him to rest

Schneider attended his three children’s Christmas pageant the day before Alan J. Sylte Jr., 25, of Hager City, Wis., shot the officer in the head.

Schneider and another officer responded early the morning of Dec. 19 to 618 W. Lyon Ave. in Lake City to a reported domestic incident involving a handgun. Sylte, an Iraq war veteran, had broken up with his 17-year-old girlfriend, it was learned later. Schneider was helping the girl safely escape when he was shot.

After a daylong standoff that included a lockdown of local schools, officers found Sylte dead. He had shot himself in the head.

Schneider, a nine-year veteran of the police department, died of his injuries Dec. 30 at St. Marys Hospital in Rochester.



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