Officer Clayton reporting for duty: 4-year-old cancer patient sworn in

Clayton Jones plodded forward, wrists extended out front in handcuffs. But he wasn’t under arrest. The cuffs were part of the 4-year-old’s uniform worn Friday during his swearing-in ceremony as an official Vancouver police officer.

The boy’s family and friends, Vancouver police and first responders from the Clark County Sheriff’s Office, Washington State Patrol and Vancouver Fire Department, as well as Mayor Anne McEnerny-Ogle, crowded into the lobby of the department’s east precinct Friday evening to watch the ceremony.

“You being here today, I think, is tremendously special for (Clayton),” Police Chief James McElvain told the audience.

With assistance from Officer Danielle Wass, Clayton and his brother Milez, 9, raised their right hands and took the law enforcement oath, led by McElvain. Much of Clayton’s attention, though, was on the toy pistol in his left hand.

“Boom!” Clayton exclaimed, pulling the trigger.

Afterward, he and his brother were presented with badges of their own.

“(Clayton) says they are his cops,” his mom, Taylor Jones, 28, said of Vancouver police.

The Vancouver Police Department connected with Clayton through the Make-A-Wish Foundation during the department’s annual Shop with a Cop event in December. Officers have kept in touch since — bringing Clayton and his family gifts at Christmas, setting up tours of the east precinct and even visiting him in the hospital.

“This is a family close to my heart,” Wass said Friday. “This is what I feel like we can do for him, because we can’t do much else.”

Clayton was diagnosed with high-grade glioma, a type of aggressive brain tumor, in November 2017, his mother said.

He started experiencing headaches and vomiting. He saw several doctors, but no one knew what was wrong, Jones said. Clayton was eventually taken to Randall Children’s Hospital at Legacy Emanuel in Portland. A CT scan found a tumor in the middle of his brain. He was immediately rushed into surgery and has undergone several surgeries since, as well as chemotherapy, radiation, and occupational and physical therapy, Jones said.

Clayton was hospitalized again last week after the left side of his body went limp. By the time he got to the hospital, his condition had improved, Jones said, and he was kept for observation. Doctors say Clayton’s prognosis is grim, but the family is staying optimistic.

Wass said that Jones has kept the department updated on Clayton’s condition, and it wanted to do something special for him.

But the ceremony wasn’t Clayton’s only surprise.

Suddenly, a call for service came from dispatch. Police response was needed for a car crash. It was a simulation, of course, but Clayton was ready to go.

“Let’s go help somebody! We’re coming!” Clayton yelled, as he and his brother rushed out the back of the precinct with Wass and Officer Clesson Werner, a District 3 neighborhood police officer.

Using lights and sirens, they drove around to the front of the precinct, where they found a white SUV up on the curb, and the driver in distress. The boys helped first responders remove the driver (Vancouver police Sgt. Blaise Geddry) from the vehicle, and doused the imaginary flames with a fire hose.

“Thank you for saving me,” Geddry told Clayton afterward with a high-five.

Following the simulation, police Cpl. William Pardue and K-9 Oso demonstrated how they capture suspects on the run, using fellow K-9 handler Officer Rocky Epperson.

“It’s great. Clayton loves it, and it helps us not think about what’s going on,” Jones said of the afternoon’s events. “Unfortunately, this happens. We are just trying to get through it.”

She and partner Ryan Jones described Clayton as an outgoing and energetic boy. He certainly wasn’t stingy with his high-fives or shy about slapping cuffs on those around him (including this reporter). His parents said he enjoys camping, fishing and racing, and of course, anything to do with his “cops,” whom he considers to be family, Taylor Jones said.

Vancouver police feel the same way.

“We want to support the community, and this is someone who needs support,” Wass said.