On March 8, 2022, two Joplin police officers responded to a disturbance in my local shopping district. While attempting to arrest the subject, he opened fire on them. Both officers were killed. The subject stole one of their police vehicles and crashed in my neighborhood nearby. As he was attempting to steal a second vehicle, another officer obstructed the subject’s ability to exit and was shot in the face before a fourth officer returned fire, killing the subject.
Seven years ago, before I became a private investigator, I worked as a crime analyst for Joplin Police Department. These were my colleagues and friends.
On the night of the tragedy, I made the following post to my personal Facebook page. I think it’s appropriate to share with the outside world to show that police officers are husbands, wives, fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, uncles, aunts, and friends before they are police officers. They are people before they are statistics. And now, two of them are terribly, terribly missed by all who loved them.
Note: At the time of this post, Officer Jake Reed had not yet passed away from his injuries. His family kept him on life support so that he could donate his organs. He gave of himself in the greatest way in life and in death. May Officer Jake Reed and Corporal Ben Cooper be forever remembered for their sacrifice and heroic efforts that day. May Officer Rick Hirshey and Captain Will Davis be honored for their heroism and fearlessness. And may all of the officers who responded on March 8th, maintaining their jobs and their composure while their friends lay injured and dying, be recognized for their selfless acts.
Thank you to officers everywhere for choosing a most honorable profession that seldom receives anywhere near the compensation it deserves. You all are loved beyond measure by so many. We recognize your daily sacrifices. We are in awe of your courage and fearlessness. We are so, so grateful for you.
Joplin Police Department has suffered a tremendous loss today. It’s not the first time the headlines are proclaiming an officer is down at the hand of a perpetrator. It seems we can’t endure a news cycle anymore without another law enforcement officer down. Somewhere. In some town.
Today, that town is my town. Joplin, Missouri.
If you live in Joplin, you either personally know at least one JPD officer yourself or you know someone who calls a JPD officer a friend. I call a lot of JPD officers friends. And they’re all hurting tonight.
The reason so many in Joplin can’t believe this happened in our town is because, while we’ve been living our lives in safety and comfort, our officers have been protecting us so well from the things that lurk in our own backyards.
Joplin Police Department is brimming with men and women who put themselves on the front lines every day to protect their people. We are their people. And I’ve never been prouder to be one of their people.
Police officers protect us in so many ways. They fight the bad guys so we don’t have to. They keep law and order so we can ride our bikes around the neighborhood with our kids. They patrol the streets on Christmas, New Years Eve, Fourth of July, and every other holiday under the sun while we are opening gifts, attending parties, and shooting off fireworks. Police officers perform the tasks that are of utmost importance, but are also thankless, emotionally draining, and physically hard.
Police officers and their families sacrifice every single day. They sacrifice a lot more than any of us realize. One of our own has paid the ultimate sacrifice today. It should be tearing all of us up, but it should also make us so incredibly proud. And thankful.
We don’t know what it’s like to put on the weight of a uniform, especially during such a tumultuous time when officers are targeted every single day for being… officers, protectors, defenders of society. Targeted for doing their job. Targeted for no reason at all.
Don’t stand by. Seek out an officer, an officer’s wife or husband, mother or father, brother or sister. Tell them how appreciated they are. Tell them you’re grateful that they do the hard things so you don’t have to. Make them feel loved, appreciated, seen, and cared for.
JPD officers, thank you for answering the call, the tug on your heart, to become a police officer. Thank you for the hard things you endure so I don’t have to. Thank you for the support you’ve always shown our community. You show kindness and compassion. You keep a cool head in situations that would cause most of us to come unglued. We run from danger while you run toward it.
Thank you for running toward the danger today and for laying your lives down for your people. We are forever grateful and will continue to hold you in our prayers and in our hearts.