(Terre Haute) Tribune-Star
Law enforcement officers have far too often become targets for violence. Attacks that used to be rare are now all too common.
On Aug. 1, an Elwood police officer was shot and killed while trying to make a traffic stop.
Ten days later, a Richmond police officer was shot and gravely wounded, also during a traffic stop. She remains in critical condition with a head wound.
A year ago this summer, a police detective serving as a special agent for the Federal Bureau of Investigation was ambushed and killed outside an FBI field office in Terre Haute.
Law enforcement personnel know they are in a risky profession. They are trained and equipped to respond to the dangers inherent in their jobs. What they should not have to tolerate is becoming the targets of incendiary rhetoric spewed by those in positions of political leadership.
The FBI recently executed a search warrant issued by a federal judge on the private Florida residence of former President Donald Trump. The aim of the search was to recover documents Trump unlawfully took with him when he left the White House after losing the 2020 election. The search is part of a larger investigation into Trump’s handling of those documents.
While a search of a former president’s residence was unprecedented, there is no evidence that it was inappropriate. Still, it was quickly thrust into the partisan political arena. Trump allies used heated rhetoric to direct ire toward the U.S. Department of Justice and FBI. Social media exploded with anger and conservative media fanned the flames. Extremists spoke of another “civil war” and suggested violent retaliation toward federal law enforcement.
Within days, an FBI field office in Cincinnati was the target of an attempted breach by a man who police say had been posting violent comments on a social media site in response to the search. When his attack was thwarted, the man fled the scene and engaged in an hours-long standoff before he was killed by Ohio police.
Reckless and irresponsible language used to attack any law enforcement institution is an attack on all law enforcement. Civic leaders on all levels should be aware of the potential consequences of their rhetoric when they make unsubstantiated claims or foist heated criticism at public institutions because of disagreements over politics or ideology. Such behavior degrades the institutions they attack and weakens them in the eyes of the public.
During fraught times, America needs leaders with vision, integrity and discipline to set a more constructive tone in the public square. Society needs more such leaders to step forward.
