Last year, I stood looking out at a sea of yellow flames on the National Mall in Washington, DC, as I read the names of fallen officers at the 30th Annual Candlelight Vigil during the U.S. National Police Week. The emotions and feelings I felt were overwhelming when the name of a sergeant and friend from my department, whose life was lost as a result of 9/11, was added to the wall. I was also honored to be there to pay homage to the all of the officers who made the ultimate sacrifice as keepers of the peace.

To date, the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, DC, bears the names of 21,541 officers. At the current rate at which names are being added, the memorial’s walls are expected to be filled by 2050. This is not the only memorial that honors the brave who have fallen, as we know that violence against the police is not confined to any geographic boundary. There is also the National Police Memorial in the United Kingdom that bears the names of over 4,000 fallen officers; the Israeli Police Memorial; the National Police Memorial in India that commemorates the over 34,000 from all of the central and state police forces in India who have died in the line of duty; Australia’s National Police Memorial; and the Police Heritage Center in Singapore, along with many more throughout the world.

This year many of us here in the United States will gather again for the Annual Candlelight Vigil in May, and more names will be added to that wall. We will stand side-by-side as we honor the lives and legacies of our fallen men and women in uniform. There will be at least 148 names added to that wall, representing the 148 line-of-duty deaths in 2018—with gunfire as the leading cause of death this past year.

As chiefs, supervisors, and law enforcement leaders, our duty is not only to those we swore to protect and to our communities; we also have the enormous responsibility to safeguard our personnel.

When we lose one of our fellow law enforcement brothers or sisters, the sorrow and loss has a sweeping effect. From the officer’s family and friends, to every member of that agency, to the community, to surrounding agencies—we all mourn and grieve. As chiefs, supervisors, and law enforcement leaders, our duty is not only to those we swore to protect and to our communities; we also have the enormous responsibility to safeguard our personnel. In order to keep our officers safe, we must use every tool to do so, from technological advancements and equipment, to training, to implementing and enforcing policies, to mental health and emotional support, to physical fitness and wellness.

To aid law enforcement as they work to keep safe and keep their peers safe, the IACP has published a number of resources over the years on the topic of officer safety and combating violence directed at police.

In response to a particularly deadly 24-hour period in November 2016 where four police officers were ambushed in three different states, the IACP convened a task force to address the issue of violence against the police in the United States. The goal of the task force was to make concrete recommendations to prevent further tragedies, including guidance for law enforcement agencies and suggested changes to U.S. public policy. Materials issued as a result of this task force can be found at www.theIACP.org/resources/violence-against-the-police.

As targeted attacks against police continue to represent a significant threat to law enforcement, it is important to ensure that agencies fully leverage the resources and methods necessary to maximize situational awareness and personnel safety. While no agency can ever fully ensure that a potential threat can be located and halted before an attack is carried out, there are strategies that may help mitigate risk, particularly in the areas of community-police relations.

Violence against the police can imply a deliberate attack on law enforcement, yet many line-of-duty deaths occur every year that do not involve criminal perpetrators and involve dangers otherwise associated with the job. An IACP resource titled Preventing Line-of-Duty Deaths: A Chief’s Duty highlights all of the ways a police officer is at risk while on duty and offers agencies a self-assessment tool designed to help leadership evaluate agency efforts to fully address the needs of officers. Additionally, the IACP Law Enforcement Policy Center offers a Model Policy and Concepts and Issues Paper on the topic of Line-of-Duty Deaths and Serious Injury for your review.

We must always remember those who have gone before us and their families, and do everything we can to safeguard those who stand beside us in keeping our communities safe. The memories of the officers who paid the ultimate sacrifice live on in each and every one of us in the job that we do.

Stay safe. 🛡

Please cite as

Paul M. Cell, “Safekeeping Those Who Keep the Peace,” President’s Message, Police Chief 86, no. 2 (2019): 6–7.