Many agencies have standardized and detailed responses to be followed when a Line of Duty Death occurs. For example, the Baltimore Police Department has Policy 1714 that was published in April of 2017 by the order of the Police Commissioner. This policy begins with the following statement: “Standardized Response. It is the policy of the Baltimore Police Department is to provide detailed guidelines for the planning and implementation of police related funerals and to standardize the BPD response to the death of all active and retired members.” The policy continues with explaining the efficiency aspect of following the procedures of a set policy. A Line of Duty Death poses many tasks, such as the logistics of a large scale, public funeral. It is explained that “the policy will eliminate the duplication of efforts; delineate responsibilities for those involved in the implementation; minimize confusion; and ensure the BPD presents families with well-organized and professional services” (BPD, 2017). This same logic should be followed by the funeral home to ensure that the wishes of the family are carried out while honoring the life and sacrifice the officer has made. Funeral homes may not be able to have a written policy to follow exactly as the Baltimore Police Department and other agencies do. This would not be feasible due to the necessity of serving multiple groups with various needs. However, being organized and intentional with the planning and execution when the need arises will benefit all involved. The lead director of a Line of Duty Death funeral or memorial service should be prepared to incorporate the policies and procedures of a department in the duties and responsibilities of the funeral home staff. Though there will always be a variance in the wishes of families and departments, there are typically many similarities. Of these similarities is that the family of an active or retired law enforcement officer will often wish for the deceased to be dressed in an official uniform. If the family does not have the personal uniform of the deceased readily available, the agency will usually be able to assist in obtaining such. The Quartermaster or another member of the department can assist with obtaining the required uniform, as well as the appropriate accouterments. As previously stated, fellow officers of the deceased will often stand guard near the deceased at the funeral home, sometimes around the clock. Before the deceased is prepared, dressed, and casketed, the officers standing guard will normally choose to remain in a position relative to the door of the preparation or dressing room. These fellow officers will not necessarily be members of the formal honor guard, and thus may not be the same as the formal “Casket Guard.” During any formal viewing and visitation periods at the funeral home or church, members of the honor guard will perform a formal and ceremonial “Casket Guard.” The Casket Guard will typically consist of a rotating team of two members of the honor guard. On fifteen-minute intervals, a member of the Casket Guard will take up post on either end of the casket. After posted for fifteen minutes, the two members will be relieved by two other members in a formal changing of the guard. As a funeral director, it is important to remember to leave sufficient room at either end of the casket for the guard members. There will also need to be a designated room at the funeral home, church, or other venue for the honor guard members to gather and stage. This room or area should be private, with comfortable seating and easy access to the area of the viewing.
Agencies who have motorcycle units will normally use these to provide a formal escort of the family to the funeral home, church, and/or cemetery. This escort may also be provided by marked patrol units in lieu of or in addition to the motorcycle units. The same type of escort will be provided for the funeral coach transporting the deceased to the place of service and to the cemetery or other place of final disposition. In addition to the escort, there may be a procession of official vehicles from other departments. During the 2016 services for the Texas officer who was previously mentioned, the service was held at a large high school football stadium a few miles from the funeral home. The four-lane road in front of the funeral home was closed to traffic in both directions for several blocks prior to the procession leaving for the service. The road was used as a staging area for vehicles from other agencies to line up for the procession. The official vehicles of agencies from near and far were all lined up in the prepared staging area, with a lane through the center for the coach and procession. When the properly trained personnel are available, there will be a variety of honors presented at the funeral, memorial, or committal service. These honors may include a bugler to play “Taps,” a bagpiper, a rifle salute, a helicopter fly-over, and pallbearers. When the deceased is a veteran of the military, the family will need to decide as to any participation by a military honor guard. When a military honor guard will be involved, the efforts will need to be coordinated with the law enforcement agency honor guard. The pallbearers are provided by the department at the request of the family. The pallbearers are most commonly members of the honor guard or the fellow officers that worked most closely with the deceased. However, the pallbearers may also include friends and relatives of the deceased officer. Regardless of whether the pallbearers are members of the honor guard, other officers, or civilians, they will be properly instructed prior to the service by the Honor Guard Commander or other dedicated honor guard representative. A relatively new tradition that some agencies are utilizing to honor fallen officers is known as a “battle cross” or a “soldier’s cross.” This memorial includes displaying the officer’s boots on a raised stand with a photograph of the officer. This is not a practice that was traditionally seen in law enforcement services, but was more common to military services. In the honoring of a military soldier, the boots are normally presented with the helmet, inverted rifle, and identification tags of the soldier. An inverted rifle with bayonet was traditionally symbolic of a time for prayer and a break in the battle to pay tribute to the dead. In this tribute, the boots represent the final march of the last battle (Honor, Glory, Respect). A solemn and final tribute to a fallen law enforcement officer is the “End of Watch Call.” This is a final call made to officers who are no longer able to respond. It symbolizes that they have completed their duty and may now rest in peace. The voice of a dispatcher will be heard over the sound system of the church. As an illustration, the following is the End of Watch Call for Sergeant Derek Johnson. On the way back to the station at the end of his shift on September 1, 2013, Johnson was mortally wounded by a lone gunman.
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