Recent Dallas Tragedy

The recent tragedy in Dallas is heart wrenching in every way. This is especially true every time we lose a law enforcement brother or sister in the line of duty as it impacts each of us in very personal ways.  Those losses are occurring far too frequently in recent history.  Members of our office - deputies and civilians – go out every shift to stand the thin blue line.  In my mind and heart that thin blue line represents two distinct values.  It represents our first mission – to protect the innocent from the evil that lurks in the shadows.  Secondly, it also stands for the professional and exceptional service that our staff provides to the citizens of Beatrice and Gage County every day.

As sworn law enforcement we wear a mourning band on our badge to honor the fallen heroes and their families who have paid the ultimate sacrifice. Traditionally, we don’t wear the mourning band when the slain officer is from an agency outside of our local community.  This incident in Dallas is an extreme and hopefully rare incident that cries out for our support.  Effective today and through July 31, 2016, all our sworn staff will wear the mourning band on their badges.Civilian staff are also asked to wear a blue ribbon on their left chest while on duty during the same timeframe.

The purpose of this effort is to demonstrate our solidarity as law enforcement to stand the thin blue line, to honor the fallen in Dallas and around the country and to remind the families of the slain that they are not alone. My hope is that this effort, although small, will be a reminder for our staff just how much we appreciate their valiant efforts under difficult conditions and that our community does believe in and support us.

 Several Nebraska agencies have agreed to allow their staff to wear the morning bands and ribbons as described above.  They include the Omaha Police Department, the Sarpy County Sheriff’s Department, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Department, the LaVista Police Department, the Papillion Police Department, the Bellevue Police Department, the Cass County Sheriff’s Office, and the Nebraska Sheriff’s Association. In that vein, the Iowa Police Chief’s Association and the Iowa Sheriff’s Association have pushed out this opportunity to all their members as well.  It would be incredible to see this spread nationwide – to let everyone in Dallas know that they are not alone and to show the nation how much we support our law enforcement agencies.

In the coming days former Dallas Police Officer and current Gage County Deputy Spencer Behrens will be making the trip to Dallas to attend the funeral for one of the fallen officers (Lorne Ahrens) he personally knew and worked with. The thoughts, prayers, and support of the entire Gage County Sheriff’s Office goes with him as well.

In closing, I would ask that each of you keep the officers and their families of the Dallas Police Department and D.A.R.T, as well as the civilians who were injured, in your thoughts and prayers. The days and weeks ahead will be just as hard as the initial incident. My hope is that this will mark the thin blue line where we all work to unite our communities and support our law enforcement agencies instead of pitting one against another.

Millard "Gus" Gustafson

Gage County Sheriff