BARRON, Wis. — As Western Wisconsin mourns the loss of two officers from the Cameron Police Department and Chetek Police Department, law enforcement leaders across the region are pledging their support.
Craig Kolbeck, the chairman of the Wisconsin Law Enforcement Memorial, said the Wisconsin Law Enforcement Death Response Team was activated to provide counseling and other resources to the departments and families.
"As soon as the news broke Saturday, it just spread like wildfire on Facebook with all the different agencies sharing their condolences," Kolbeck said. "Obviously, it's very devastating. You have two small communities... No matter what the size of the department is, it can happen any place, any time."
According to preliminary numbers from the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, line-of-duty deaths have fallen so far in 2023 compared to this time last year (driven in part by the decrease in COVID deaths). However, when specifically looking at on-duty deaths from gunfire, 64 officers were killed in 2022 -- equaling the total from the year before and representing a 21-percent increase compared to the previous decade.
"Whenever this happens, you'll see police officers wear a band on their badge, to show support for these police departments and police officers who were killed," said Jeff Potts, the executive director of the Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association and former chief of the Bloomington Police Department. "I put that badge band on many times during my career, and it brings the law enforcement community closer together. It's a grim reminder of how dangerous law enforcement can be."
Potts said he reached out to his counterpart in Wisconsin to offer whatever assistance is needed.
"Not just in Wisconsin is law enforcement hurting today, but law enforcement in Minnesota and across the country. Whenever this happens, news spreads fast and everybody is grieving the loss of these two Wisconsin police officers," Potts said. "My heart is literally broken for these families and these police departments."
WATCH MORE ON KARE 11+
Download the free KARE 11+ app for Roku, Fire TV, and other smart TV platforms to watch more from KARE 11 anytime! The KARE 11+ app includes live streams of all of KARE 11's newscasts. You'll also find on-demand replays of newscasts; the latest from KARE 11 Investigates, Breaking the News and the Land of 10,000 Stories; exclusive programs like Verify and HeartThreads; and Minnesota sports talk from our partners at Locked On Minnesota.
- Add KARE 11+ on Roku here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Roku Channel Store.
- Add KARE 11+ on Fire TV here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Amazon App Store.
- Learn more about KARE 11+ here.
Watch more local news:
Watch the latest local news from the Twin Cities and across Minnesota in our YouTube playlist: