It is always sad to hear of the death of a police officer. It is particularly difficult when it is one of our own. We think of cop killings as something that happen in New York City, not Georgetown, Ind.
The thought of someone killing a police officer goes against our middle class sense of order. When a policeman dies, the way Frank Denzinger did, we feel that the our buffer between good and evil has been breached.
Deputy Denzinger had served the people of Floyd County for four years. I never met him. Like most of us, I have probably seen him in the course of his duties.
Over the next few days his death will be the focus of a tremendous amount of media attention. City officials will give interviews. Television stations will broadcast live from City Hall. Reporters will interview nearly everyone that knew the slain officer.
Later will come the very public funeral. Law enforcement officers , from near and far, in crisp uniforms, will salute their fallen comrade. He will be eulogized ,by a few chosen friends and coworkers, as a good officer and a family man. Big crowds and a long row of carefully polished police cars will take him to his final resting place.
Over the next few weeks, the Sheriffs Department will take a hard look at what happened that Monday afternoon. They will look to see if anything could have been done to prevent this tragedy. In all likelihood, they will conclude that the events happened much as we understand them today. Two good cops, serving this community, walked into an ambush. They never had a chance.
A few weeks from now, most everyone involved will settle back into their normal lives. Deputy Denzinger will not be forgotten, but life must go forward. For awhile, our police officers may pause nervously before they answer a call. Then, they will do their job, as they always have done. The officer’s families will wait ,a little more anxiously, for their loved one to come home.
In time, the city will erect a bronze memorial in Deputy Denzinger’s honor. Officers and citizens alike, will pause ,from time to time , to remember a brave young man that died way too young. For most, their lives will return to normal.
Sadly, for a handful of people, particularly his wife and young daughter, life will never again be the same. For a child, Dad is never coming home. There is a loving wife, who will never, in this life, see her husband again. There are parents that must endure a parents worst nightmare. The loss to Frank Denzinger’s family is immeasurable.
I genuinely believe that the vast majority of police officers are good people doing a difficult job. Not that I have not, at times, questioned the actions of the police. Like all professions, there are good and bad. Unfortunately, the bad seem to get the most attention from the press.
However, at the end of the day, I sleep better knowing the quality of people that protect us from harm. Frank Denzinger’s death should serve to remind us all that our safety comes with a price.
From all accounts, Frank Denzinger was a good cop and a good man.
May he rest in peace.
Andrew J Albatys is a Henryville resident. He can be reached via e-mail at douglasslopp@aol.com.
Columns
ALBATYS: Don’t forget price for our safety
- Columns
-
-
CLERE: Walkout is absurd
The walkout by Indiana House Democrats entered its third week yesterday as tensions continued to rise and misinformation proliferated.
-
LADD: New Albany has new energy
New Albany is evolving. Public art has become more prevalent in the downtown, drawing more locals and outside visitors to our community; bringing more publicity.
-
HARBESON: The compromising nature of compromise
But there’s nothing inherently wrong with the concept of compromise. This is simply an example of how government coercion can skew and twist any concept beyond its original meaning and purpose.
-
RESCHKE: My Amazing Ohio River Bridges Project Plan
The point of sharing this memory is that once we have tolls, they will be there for as long as the bridges exist and the dollar price for frequent commuters that’s been proposed is the cheapest those tolls will ever be.
-
MOORE: The system can still work
On the local scene, services like Jerry Westmoreland’s recovery services, Bliss House, the Drug Courts (adult and juvenile) and the like are proper uses of this alcohol and drug fund money. Families in need due to a member having an addiction that affects all of them seem appropriate beneficiaries, too.
-
BEAM: As ‘Time’ goes by: A magazine’s maternal ploy
What does disgust me is the way Time used the cover photo to paint an inaccurate picture of attachment parenting and, some could argue, motherhood.
-
HAYDEN: For many, voting didn’t count for much
Three-fourths of Indiana voters who did vote, did so in the Republican primary. That makes sense: The Lugar-Mourdock contest was the marquee race, so plenty of Democrats sat it out.
-
HOWEY: Mourdock, Donnelly and the great divide
An hour after Mourdock made that explanation, U.S. Rep. Joe Donnelly met with reporters at Ralph’s Great Divide restaurant. Donnelly insisted the site was chosen because “they have great meatloaf,” but used the place as a metaphor that the contrast between him and Mourdock “cannot be clearer.”
-
CUMMINS: Where did the Sabbath day go?
In the old days the little towns and rural areas across America, the churches were a vital part of our lives. They were sacred places where we received moral instruction and guidance.
-
DODD: The total package
One of the character traits anyone must possess in order to have a happy, fulfilled life is to know your own strengths. Even more important is to know your weaknesses and shortcomings. If you don’t think you have any or don’t recognize your own, someday after you get married they will be made imminently clear to you.
- More Columns Headlines
-
Defense Rests in John Edwards Trial
GM Says It Will Stop Paying for Ads on Facebook
911 Call: Confusion at Home Where Mom Shot Kids
Jury Convicts Steve Powell of Voyeurism Charges
Skechers to Pay $40 Million for Bogus Claims
Coffee May Be Key to Living Longer
Police to Groom of Slain Bride: Turn Yourself In
Laurie Fine: My Life Has Been Destroyed
FTC: Skechers Deceived Consumers With Shoe Ads
FBI Confirms Leak Probe on Al-Qaida Plot
Romney Calls Obama a 'Disappointment'
Honda Unveils New Robotics-powered Scooter
NJ Gov., Mayor Channel Seinfeld in Video Parody
Blood Drive for Woman With Flesh-Eating Disease
AG Race Tops Oregon Primary Interest
Obama Welcomes Beckham, Galaxy to White House
Raw Video: Mladic's Genocide Trial Under Way
Court Records Detail Zimmerman Injuries
Local Community Prepares for G8 Summit
New Guidelines for US Nuclear Plants
