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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (March 15, 2017)
18 S moke S ignals MARCH 15, 2017 Grand Ronde police joining Polk County support effort By Brent Merrill Smoke Signals staff writer Grand Ronde Police Lt. Tim Her- nandez will participate in the Polk County Sheriff’s Office’s soon-to-be formed peer support group for offi- cers involved in police shootings. Hernandez, who was recent- ly promoted to lieutenant in the Tribe’s seven-man department, was tapped by Tribal Police Chief Jake McKnight to join Polk County’s new program. McKnight said he chose Hernan- dez based on Hernandez’s previous experience with the major incident task force in Deschutes County. “He’s got the most experience and he’s just a good guy,” McKnight said. “He’s really articulate and he cares. I just think he will be a good fit for the position.” Hernandez, who was the past vice president and president of the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office Employee Association, spent sev- en years in Central Oregon as a criminal detective primarily inves- tigating deaths before joining the department in Grand Ronde. “Those emotions and things you go through and the things you don’t talk about like suicides and things like that – having that experience is helpful to be able to mentor some- body and tell them it’s OK to feel the way you’re feeling and it’s OK to talk about it,” Hernandez said. “More importantly, what the sheriff is doing is really, really important just so those guys know that there is somebody out there that is part of a peer group that you can reach out to.” Hernandez said his past experi- ence took him to many crime scenes and that there is a bond between officers who have been involved in traumatic events. “I’ve investigated a lot of of- ficer-involved shootings so you know the emotions and the things the guys go through when they go through a critical incident,” Her- nandez said. “Having a familiar face that goes through and helps you go through the process. It’s easier to tell someone how I feel than tell somebody who won’t understand or maybe they think I’m weak. It’s a lot easier to talk to somebody who has been through something like that.” Tribal Emergency Operations Coordinator Steve Warden agreed that Hernandez is the right person for the job. “There is a guy who cares about where he’s at and the people who he works with,” Warden said. “He has years of experience under his belt and he is really into making sure that things get done right. I think he’ll be a real benefit to the program.” Polk County Sheriff Mark Garton said the idea for the peer support team began after two officer-in- volved shootings in the local area last year got everyone’s attention. “We’ve had two officer-involved shootings in the last seven months – one for Dallas and one for my agency,” Garton said. “The police chiefs and myself started talking about how we can help our own folks because we utilized the trau- he doesn’t know. He’s that guy that ma team wants to take care of our fellow dep- from Marion uties. He has a good perspective. County at “It takes a special person to be the Dallas that peer support person. It has to shooting. be the right person – not everybody We called can do it. The team leaders will for their help find the right people within their and they organization that they think would came over be good at listening and helping in and helped Lt. Tim Hernandez that way. The mission will be the our guys. same for all of us.” “We thought let’s address this Lane County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. as a county so all the chiefs and Greg Rice oversees the peer support I figured out that we want to go team in his department in Eugene forward with this so we’ve had a and he said the key to making the couple of meetings about planning peer support concept work is the how to build a team.” language in state law that makes On July 5, 2016, 29 year-old Josh- information gathered during peer ua Bolster of Salem was shot and support sessions confidential. killed by a Polk County deputy near “The ORS gives the support team Doaks Ferry Road. The deputy was some protection,” Rice said. “If a cleared by a Polk County jury one department has month later. a team then the On Dec, 16, communications 2016, Jeremiah between staff Anderson of Dal- and that person las was shot and is confidential. killed in the Wal- That is huge for Mart parking lot us because that in Dallas by re- enables the staff sponding officers to feel comfort- after Anderson able talking to allegedly resisted the peer support arrest for drunk- team.” en driving. Warden said he Garton said the Polk County ~ Tribal Emergency has only had to Sheriff’s Office Operations Coordinator pull the trigger on his weapon will supervise the Steve Warden once during his team and that law enforcement each area police career and it still haunts him. agency will send a representative Warden had received a call about to be a team leader. a burglary and hostage situation In an article written by retired near Sheridan early in his career. Lane County Sheriff’s Office Lt. When he arrived on scene he saw a Dell Hackett, he said officers have young man pointing a handgun at always confided in each other when him after already shooting a man they faced tough times. and firing the gun at joggers. Hackett, who graduated from the “He saw me and I jumped out FBI National Academy and worked with the shotgun,” Warden re- in the Police Services Division called. “He turned and I could during his career, wrote that the see him squeezing the trigger so I idea for peer support teams found squeezed the trigger on the shotgun its genesis from police officers and nothing happened and nothing gravitating to other officers on the happened on his end of it. He threw force who were natural listeners the gun away and I racked another and good communicators. round in it and came down on him “It is no secret that our profession and told him to freeze and he did.” is wrought with emotional turmoil,” To Warden’s surprise the shooter Hackett wrote. “Critical incident turned out to be an 11-year-old boy exposure, cumulative stress, orga- with a history of problems greater nizational stress, family and rela- than his age. tionship difficulties can all seem “He was a kid,” Warden said. “It overwhelming at times.” had an impact. Even though the Hackett, who was a board certi- fied expert in traumatic stress, said that in Oregon communications and information gathered during officer peer counseling sessions is now privileged information protect- ed by law. Garton said officers involved in the peer support team will undergo training to help them prepare for the issues they will face in support- ing their fellow officers who have been involved in crisis situations. Garton has tasked Polk County Sgt. Todd Fink with heading up the peer support team. “He has the right temperament and truly the right mentality of wanting to help take care of peo- ple,” Garton said. “Todd can really talk to anybody and calm them down. He’s a good people person and he interacts well with people “Just pulling the trigger is a tough deal. That set me back quite a ways. I don’t talk about it to any- body." guns didn’t go off, it had an impact. When I retrieved his handgun it was a revolver and it had three dented primers on rounds that didn’t go off. I figure those are the ones he was squeezing off at me.” Warden said he still has night- mares about that moment. “Just pulling the trigger is a tough deal,” Warden said. “That set me back quite a ways. I don’t talk about it to anybody. I’ve just gotten to the point recently where I think it’s important to share those feelings.” Warden said he found help through a state-sponsored program that helped him deal with the after- math of the near shooting incident. “That was really helpful because I got to listen to a lot of other people tell their stories and we discussed a lot of the same feelings of not wanting to be in that position again,” Warden said. “Hopefully it (finally talking about his feelings) helps others realize they have to be prepared all the time. Warden said he is glad Polk County is beginning this program to support officers at such a critical point. “Having peer support groups is a real important thing,” Warden said. “To have that support group there, I think that’s huge.” Incidents like those mentioned by Garton are happening closer and closer to Grand Ronde and they led McKnight to ask Hernandez to get involved with the peer support team. “The biggest thing is I agree with the other chiefs and the sheriff that it is important that you have that support there as soon as possible,” McKnight said. “You know I’ve never been through anything like that. I can’t imagine what they are thinking or what’s going on in your head when you go through some- thing like that. The more stress you can take away from them the best. “Unfortunately, slowly but sure- ly, surrounding Grand Ronde the county has been involved in a lot of shootings. Yamhill County has been involved, Lincoln City has been involved. It’s just a matter of time unfortunately that something will probably occur here. When it does I want to make sure I have all my ducks in a row and that my guys know they are going to be supported and that we will take care of them like a family.”