What an incredibly sad and terrible week. I have run the gamut of emotions sionce last Sunday. Disbelief that my friend, Sgt. Mark Renninger was dead. I initially wanted to strap on gear, load the guns and rush to the scene to do anything to help. My emotions were screaming at me to take action. I soon realized that there was nothing I could do but keep my phone on hand and hope that Maurice Clemmons would end up in my teams jurisdiction. The feeling of helplessness was profound. As I watched and heard about SWAT team doing work on this case, I made several angry calls and sent text messages asking why my team was not being called upon. I wanted blood and the desire to kill the bastard that had murdered my friend and colleagues was profound. We were not needed, and the sense of frustration was huge. When I woke up Tuesday morning, I had an e-mail from a friend who was at the scene when Maurice Clemmons was killed. I was happy to read that he was dead and that noone else was hurt.
Mark was an outstanding police officer and SWAT officer. He worked hard, he took his responsibility serious, he trained as hard as anybody, and most importantly he pushed his mates to be better. The Pierce Metro SWAT team is an excellent team, Mark was no small part in that. We talked on the phone frequently to discuss ways to help a guy struggling with weapon qualification, different drills to use and so forth. We also talked about ways to help guys get switched on with team TTP's so they were more than SWAT robots. He wanted guys to know the SOG's, and also know when they needed to react instinctively instead of by the book. We talked about ways to increase situational awareness so that guys could predict what their teammate would do before it happened. We also bitched about lack of work, bean counters and poor leadership. In short, the same types of conversations that SWAT guys around the country have on a daily basis.
Mark was a quick wit and he often gave guys a ration of shit. More than anything, Mark cared about officer safety, team safety and the guys he worked with. If you were ever a victim of his banter (I was plenty of times) it just meant he cared about you. Like alot of SWAT guys, we don't wear our emotions on our sleeve.
I have had a few conversations this week with guys who can't believe a booger eater like Clemmons was able to get the drop on Mark. How is it possible that a highly trained, switched on guy like Mark was able to be killed? The underlying notion is what good was all the training, mindset, and desire to be really good at his job? There are already articles written by police magazines about officer safety, being vigilant, and so forth. I don't want to discount those practices, but the implication that Mark and the other officers weren't on their game is a bit infuriating.
If anything, this should be a catalyst for us to work harder, train harder and do better. I am convinced that nothing Mark could have done would have prepared him for this. It is a terrorist act carried out by an extremist who got to choose the time, place and circumstances. There is no way to guard against this without becoming an introvert who never leaves the house. We simply cannot let it affect our daily lives. I will go have a cup of coffee whenever and whereever I damn well please. A shit stain like Maurice Clemmons does not get to define how I will live or what I will do to prepare myself.
This is only a week old, I went to the memorial and visited with some guys from LPD on Thursday. I was lucky enough to be there when Mark's wife visited the site and I was able to talk to her for a bit. We had a firearms training day on Friday and bullet therapy helped me. I went to a fund raiser on Friday night at the Claim Jumper restaurant in Tukwila, it was a Tip-a-Cop event. I washed the Cop car yesterday so it was ready for the procession this Tuesday. I have had a lot of conversations with my wife. I plan to attend a rifle shoot this coming weekend in Custer, they are dontaing proceeds to the family. I am working with a group of good guys and we are trying to put together a shooting competition/training/raffle/auction event in January. If you're interested in the event shoot me an e-mail and I'll keep you updated. I attended a Leadership class by Kyle Lamb and he pointed out that we need to do a better job of supporting the families of fallen officers. The initial support is always there, it is the continued support that dries up as time goes by. I will endeavor to ensure that Mark's wife and kids are taken care of. It is the least I can do for the many lessons Mark gave me.
I am deeply saddened by the loss of my friend, I wish we had talked more, got together more, trained together more. RIP Mark, you were good people and you will be missed.
