by Sgt.George Brown, Retired/Disabled Police Officer and founder of the American Police Veterans www.policevets.com
Sadly, I had occasion to read of the death of Toledo Police Detective Keith Dressel. American Police veterans offers our sincere condolences to the detectives family and to the Toledo community. I was made aware of his death when I read the article, "Ohio provides safety net for a fallen officer's loved ones." I'd like to address this article as it creates several false impressions.
"Ohio provides safety net for a fallen officer's loved ones" reads the headline. The story makes me wonder about the others and why the media avoids the reality of career ending injuries and occupational disease to public safety workers. We need to explore the issue further to expose this thin blue lie.
What does Ohio do for cop's families when they die or become permanently disabled? The new look to this issue will reveal a dramatic story in which the hopes and dreams of the dead can live, while the hopes and dreams of those that live will die!
American's have embraced an idea that cops are taken care of when they die or become disabled. Cops buy into it as well. It is the thin blue lie of law enforcement. Families of officers killed in the line of duty (LODD) often do not receive Public Safety Officer Benefits (PSOB) from the US Dept. of Justice Administration (USDJA) payments of $295,194. The sad fact is that the PSOB benefits are promised to the disabled as well. The truth is that USDJA is set up to deny families this financial security. Dying a hero's death is not a magic pass to opening the USDJA wallet. For a Injured on Duty Disability (IODD) retiree the criteria is that you have to be so close to death that you could not personally spend a cent of the money. The USDJA also administers an educational benefit, but this is contingent upon the families having qualified for the PSOB payment. Smoke and mirrors are the sign posts to abandonment and permanent financial insecurity.
To make matters worse many states rely on the award of the PSOB to trigger payment of the state's death/disability benefit. In another truly ironic twist can be found in the mission of the group Concerns of Police Survivors. It States,
"Concerns of Police Survivors, Inc. provides resources to assist in the rebuilding of the lives of surviving families of law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty as determined by Federal criteria. Furthermore, COPS provides training to law enforcement agencies on survivor victimization issues and educates the public of the need to support the law enforcement profession and its survivors."
How do Ohio's benefits to LODD families compare to IODD retirees families? My guess there is a huge discrepancy. Nationally, we see huge gaps in how the states take care of families of the dead compared to the permanently disabled. Officers suffering career ending injury or occupational disease get a small fraction of their wages, injury related medical bills go unpaid, no PSOB from the state or nation, and little to no educational assistance for their children..
This all happens in an environment where some or all income earned by the disabled officer is subtracted from retirement benefits. The financial needs seem to be greater on the permanently disabled officers families for a couple of reasons. The officers medical care and medical necessities, i.e. personal care and specialty mobility devices and transportation is often not provided by state statute. Additionally, a disabled officer is still consuming valuable family resources. Frequently, a spouse's wage earning ability is limited as they must provide care to the injured officer.
While not minimizing the loss of an officer to death or arguing that the disabled should get more than a LODD benefit, it is important to explore the disparity. We often see that permanently disabled officers are indeed lost to the family as an active participant in many of life's most important activities and roles. An officer is abruptly removed from the role of providing for the family financially and unable to participate in the physical roles of parent and spouse. The officer may indeed be as absent as his deceased colleague.
Families of permanently disabled officers are left to fend for themselves. They receive assaults on their financial security when pay is arbitrarily stopped. Family members may suffer severe emotional trauma in morning the loss of a loved one to disability. College educations, healthcare and homes and basic life necessities are endangered for one or more generations.
Concerns of Police Survivors (COPS) are there for families of deceased officers. They fundraise and their mission speaks of disabled officers. The harsh reality is that for the most part COPS concerns for the disabled is at least misleading and at the most fraudulent. It our society
This is all very disturbing to me when I read of the LODD notices. We all know that the facts, circumstances and people that fall to LODD are reflective of the disabled law enforcement community. Most disabled cops are young men and women with families, they have not entered their prime earning years in an underpaid service profession. They do not have resources to supplement their retirements. They are usually cash poor with heavy mortgages. Disabled officers most often have student loans looming large as we have such a professionalized occupation. These loans are not forgiven making paying them back a heavy burden.The burden of protecting their pensions is often shifted from labor organizations to the officer and family.
When an officer dies, society compensates the family and tells them that mom or dad was a hero. Their service valuable to the state and nation. They'll mourn and move on comforted by the community. Memories of an heroic life and financial security fill some of the voids.
The family of an injured officer is discarded and left to suffer in a neglectful and abusive process. They are left to their own devices. Mom or dad suddenly becomes a burden on the community. The state erases any heroics, while tarnishing a career, because it ended in career ending life long disability. Community cut off and turn a deaf ear to the disabled as they secure their pocketbooks. Agencies and the police brotherhood push the disabled off a truly thin blue line.
It is sad to see young officers in their early twenties and thirties looking to a lifetime of poverty for themselves and their families simply because they served. I am reminded how many police families fail. That is even more true of disabled police families. The stress of police disability makes the normal police stress pale in comparison. Police stress is well documented to lead to divorce, substance abuse and suicide. How much more acute is the problem for disabled cop's families? No one seems to care enough to research the problem or offer solutions. As the founder of American Police Veteran's, I can tell you that the stress is destroying disabled officers and their families . To make matters worse, there are no local support structures to help these victims. PTSD is a frequent companion to career ending injuries. Sadly, this PTSD arises as a result of the injury, rather than because of the injury.
Injured officers may live or die. The path to that turning point on who lives or dies is ominously similar. Some die and they are taken away from their families, while others are injured and taken away from their families. Often the only difference between being a hero or worthless is the timing or quality of the medical care.
How these families are treated so differently is a national disgrace. Two different outcomes so closely aligned. It is sad that death is embraced and mourned, while life is discarded and lost.
That these families are treated so differently is a national disgrace.
Source of original article may be found at
About the author
Sgt.George Brown, Is a Retired/Disabled Police Officer of the Plainville Massachusetts Police Department and founder of the American Police Veterans an online community of retired and disabled law enforcement officers.
www.policevets.com.
Mission Statement
It is the mission of the American Police Veterans to create a community that supports retired and disabled law enforcement officers through peer support, advocacy and fellowship. Policevets working with the community to build social, economic and health support systems for America's aging, infirm and disabled law enforcement officers. American Police Veterans is governed by the principle that no policevet should live in isolation and their many personal and family sacrifices shall not be forgotten.
Never alone - Together as One!
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