Clark County law enforcement officers, elected officials and members of the public gathered in Vancouver on Thursday to honor officers who have died in the line of duty.
“I reflect on the fact that our community, our state and our nation rely on the rule of law as a part of the very fabric of who we are as a people, and that we can only live our lives as we do, in part, because of those who choose to serve,” said Clark County Prosecutor Tony Golik, standing before a crowd of more than 100 people.
Many of those in attendance at the Clark County Law Enforcement Memorial Ceremony stood in the back of the plaza at the county’s Public Service Center as flags were raised, the national anthem was sung, prayers were given and Golik delivered his speech.
Kalama Police Department Chief Randall Scott Gibson was the sole law enforcement official to die on duty in Washington last year. Gibson died Jan. 10, 2017, after going into respiratory distress while performing a high-stress arrest.
The last time a local officer died while performing their job was in 2004. Clark County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Bradley W. Crawford was killed July 30 of that year when his patrol car was intentionally rammed by a vehicle whose driver was fleeing a standoff.
Across the nation, there were 129 law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty in 2017.
Over the past decade, a total of 1,511 police officers died on the job nationally — an average of one death every 58 hours.
Golik worked alongside Crawford. The prosecutor said the detective was kind, easy to speak to and cared about his community as well as the people involved in his cases, even those who’d made mistakes.
“I remember thinking (on the day Crawford died) how much he reminded me of other officers I’ve known,” Golik said. “Those men and women represent the best in us.”
Undersheriff Mike Cooke, who served as master of ceremonies, said he was on the call that ended Crawford’s life. Cooke said after the event that many of the officers and deputies in the crowd personally knew the sergeant.
“As officers, we’re vulnerable to dangers and often put our lives at risk. I believe it’s by the grace of God that we haven’t had another death in a number of years,” Cooke said.
He said Clark County is no different than other communities — it has a batch of people who will, by their nature, harm others. But the officers and deputies here are well-trained, and the 14-year stretch without an on-duty death is a testament to those who wear the uniform, he said.
Also in the crowd, Becky Sowders-Palm said she’s been attending the ceremony for decades. Her husband, Deputy Sheriff Martin S. Sowders, died while on the job in 1976. He was accidentally shot and killed by another deputy during a shootout with a suspect wanted for robbing a pharmacy.
Sowders-Palm brought her grandson to the ceremony. She said she wanted him to know the respect other officers show for their colleagues.
The Ridgefield resident described Martin Sowders as “police officer’s police officer” who followed every rule in the book. She remembered he would yell at her to slow down if she started to creep above the speed limit while driving.
“He’d be rolling over in his grave if he was here to witness the horrendous ways in which officers are dying,” she said.
