How Will They Handle Officer’s Funerals?

Here is an interesting story posted at the Jogging Blogger.

    I read the Sacramento Union’s blog last week and found that Craig DeLuz had contributed the following item:

To: All Employees

DISSOLLUTION OF CHAPLAIN PROGRAM AND CESSATION OF INVOCATIONS AT OFFICIAL DEPARTMENTAL FUNCTIONS

The purpose of this Management Memorandum is to notify all employees that the departmental Chaplain Program is being dissolved, effective immediately. This dissolution is in response to a recent court case, Michael Cole, et al., v. Andrea Tuttle. Ms. Tuttle was sued in her capacity as the director of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Prevention (CDFFP). In this case, six firefighters went to the federal court seeking an end to the CDFFP Chaplain Program, contenting that it illegally commingled church and state. Under the terms of the settlement agreement, the CDFFP Chaplain Program was disbanded and employees of the CDFFP were restricted to providing Chaplain services on a voluntarily basis only.

With the dissolution of the California Highway Patrol’s (CHP) Chaplain Program, CHP personnel will no longer act in the official capacities of either departmental Chaplain or Associate Chaplain and the official wearing of religious insignia will not be allowed. However, religious support/counseling services will continue to be available to departmental employees and their families through the CHP’s Pear Support Program, but only upon request and only through the use of internal and external volunteers. CHP employees, who acted as or would have otherwise qualified as departmental Chaplain/Associate Chaplains, can choose to now be included on a volunteer list of chaplains.

For outside volunteer resources, commanders are encouraged to identify a listing of religious local employee support resources within their communities, which could be mad available upon request. Guidelines for identifying community-based volunteer religious resources are being developed and once completed, will be provided to commanders to assist in their selection process.

Counseling and employee support services continue to be available through other programs such as the Employee Assistance Program, Employee Substance Abuse Program, Cancer Survivor Support Group, and Critical Incident Stress Debriefings.

Effective immediately, the Department will also cease the practice of providing invocations at official CHP functions. As an alternative, if appropriate, a moment of silence may be observed at such events.

This information will be incorporated as policy in the next revision to HMP 10.5, Employee Assistance Manual and HPH 10.13, Guide to Employee Death.

Questions regarding this Management Memorandum should be directed to Mr. Carl Lord, Commander, Hiring and Special Projects Section, at (916)375-2160

OFFICE OF THE COMMISSIONER

OPI: 033
DISTRIBUTION: ALLL EMPLOYEES
Unless you are a military recon expert operating in Iraq or Afghanistan, few Americans have careers in which they carry the responsibility that our police, sheriffs and highway patrol do.
Think about it; if you have a bad day as a regular schmo you might accidentally shred a few critical documents, forget to pick up the boss’s dry cleaning or even drop hot coffee in the lap of an important customer. If a law enforcement officer has a really bad day it usually means that he has been forced to unload his gun into some thirteen-year-old car thief whose parents are sure to accuse him of police brutality.
It would be dumb to suggest that the dissolution of the CHP’s chaplaincy program will cause every officer in the state to proceed up the steps of the nearest bell tower and proceed gunning down civilians by the truckload but it sure as hell is not going to help matters.
The last thing I want is some officer who, after having just kicked in the door of a suburban home where he found six emaciated and feces-smeared kids being kept in a closet between bouts of being sadistically raped by their deranged father not having someone to talk to at the end of the day.
These types of encounters don’t help contribute to a particularly cheery outlook on life and I really detest the idea that the psychological and spiritual needs of an entire department can be shoved aside to protect the wounded inner child of a few cry-babies. If these people get their way every active-duty CHP officer should have a Jack Daniels van that follows them around. Hell, save the taxpayers some money and have the state sell ad space on the cruisers while they are at it. It would be like crack cocaine is to rock stars.
The commercial could go something like this:
Burly Commercial-Guy Voice Over: Hey there Officer Martinez, did you just dump three magazines of ammo into the head and chest of a man holding his wife and four children hostage? Did you just save their lives by shooting the guy who has been terrorizing them at gunpoint for the past several hours? Is there one less woman who will endure savage beatings at the hands of her husband due to your gut-wrenching actions?
Do you find it difficult to sleep at night because you keep reliving the moment? Are you riddled by doubt? Are you feeling tortured by relentless guilt at the prospect of having taken someone’s life, no matter how justified?
Too bad you don’t have a chaplain any more.
While we here at Jack Daniels cannot claim to know your pain, we do encourage you to drown your sorrows in this complimentary 750ml bottle of our finest black label.
Officer Martinez: Thanks Jack Daniels! Instead of seeking the comfort and guidance of a trained chaplain, I will just drink myself stupid while weeping in a corner by myself.
Picture of Jack Daniels with his thumbs up: Jack Daniels… just because you can’t have Jesus doesn’t mean you can’t drown your spiritual pain in liquor and cheap whores. Jack Daniels supports the California Highway Patrol even if special interest groups don’t.
If you are interested in supporting the CHP’s chaplaincy program, call Mr. Carl Lord who is the Commander of the Hiring and Special Projects Section at (916) 375-2160

Is it me or is it ironic that the guy dissolving the Chaplain program is named Lord? Why has thou forsaken the officers, Lord?

I agree with the conclusion. Why do a few people have their wishes honored over the desires of the overwhelming majority? There is no such thing as separation of Church and State. Maybe if the left could get that through their heads we would not have these kinds of problems. This whole idea of volunteer Chaplains, what the heck is that? When something bad happens you need a trained professional. Can you imagine what it would be like if officer Jones gets killed in the line of duty and one of the volunteers goes to tell his widow?

    Knock knock.
    Mrs. Jones answers door. A man in a police uniform is there.
    Mrs. Jones: Hello, may I help you?
    Officer: Are you the widow Jones?
    Mrs. Jones: No.
    Officer: The hell you ain’t.

Real class all in the name of political correctness. We worry about libraries having to provide the titles of books you read and call it a violation of your liberties but when they take away our rights as citizens then it is a bogus idea of Separation that we are all supposed to roll over and be happy with. Perhaps we should have a box on employment applications that reads “How do you feel about companies that have clergy on staff?” If they answer in a negative fashion, don’t hire them. Some will call it discrimination but it is no more so than discriminating against the vast majority of people who believe (legally and rightly so) that it is OK. My God, the left is going bonkers over some alleged mishandling of the Koran in Cuba. They are upset because we are not giving these terrorists their religious rights. Yet, they want to deny the citizens of this country those very rights. It is getting out of hand and I think will be a sore spot in the future. To the guys in the CHP; you should all take off on Sunday to attend worship services. Tell them you need off because there is no Chaplain.

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