DAVIS, California — The president of a college campus group is condemning a post made by some of its members protesting a photo of a police officer who was recently killed in the line of duty.
The critical post, which has since been deleted along with the group's Facebook page, was published by the University of California, Davis Ethnic and Cultural Affairs Commission (ECAC), which falls under the umbrella of the Associated Students, University of California, Davis (ASUCD).
The ECAC starts off by sending their condolences to the family of Davis Police Department Officer Natalie Corona, who was gunned down on Thursday, January 10, a day after Law Enforcement Appreciation Day. Corona had been described as a "rising star" within the department.
But then, the post takes a different turn.
The group goes on to reference a photo of Corona where she is seen wearing a blue dress and carrying the "Thin Blue Line Flag." The image began circulating online from a Facebook post Coronoa originally made on October 21, 2016. The picture also served as Corona's Facebook profile avatar.
Cornoa's post reads:
I would like this photograph to serve as my gratitude for all those law enforcement men and women who have served, who are currently serving, and those who have died in the line of duty protecting our liberties in this great country.
The ECAC then goes on to attack the flag pictured with Corona.
"We would also like to provide resources for students triggered by this event and the circulating images of a flag that has been popularized by the 'Blue Lives Matter' crowd. We see it necessary to call-out [sic] all community members who continue to post and disseminate images of the 'Blue Lives Matter' flag."
The group continues by saying, "to decontextualize the flag would be an erasure of its symbol of political repression and white supremacy."
They end by stating the flag is "blatantly anti-black and disrespectful" before providing resources for students to "discuss the issue at hand."
This prompted ASUCD President Michael Gofman to make his thoughts known on Facebook in regards to the ECAC's post.
On Saturday, January 12, Gofman wrote:
Last night the Davis community was rocked by an unspeakable tragedy. A 22-year-old rookie police officer was killed in the line of duty. No member of the Davis Police Department has been killed in the line since 1959.
This post asserts that this flag only exists as a challenge to the Black Lives Matter movement.
The Thin Blue Line Flag in question, which has been shared repeatedly in posts held by Officer Natalie Corona, is used by the law enforcement community as a memorial symbol to honor the fallen.
Thin Blue Line USA said in a statement, "We reject, in the strongest possible terms, any association of our flag with racism, hatred, and bigotry. To use it in such a way tarnishes what it and our nation believe in. The thin blue line flag stands for the sacrifice law enforcement officers of this nation make each day. We ask our nation to hold faith with those that defend the thin blue line."
It's easy to sit on the third floor of the Memorial Union when there are at least 100 brave men and women in blue between you and the shooter. It is easy to argue hypotheticals, politics and ideology when you’re in safety. I am ashamed that some of these same people, protected by the very officers that they are condemning, have the audacity to politicize the loss of a young officer. Her only crime was being a police officer.
I wholeheartedly condemn the Ethnic and Cultural Affairs Commission for this disgusting post, and urge them to take it down and issue an apology.
ALLEGED SHOOTER IDENTIFIED
The man who allegedly murdered Corona has been identified as 48-year-old Kevin Douglas Limbaugh. According to The Sacramento Bee, police say Limbaugh was on a bicycle when he ambushed Corona just before 7 p.m. as she was investigating a minor three-vehicle collision. The newspaper reports Limbaugh reportedly pulled up on his bike as Corona was speaking with one of the drivers involved in the wreck, walked toward the officer and began firing.
“The suspect basically just opened up firing, shot her once and she went down to the ground, and he ended up shooting her multiple times,” Davis Police Chief Darren Pytel said at a news conference, according to The Sacramento Bee. “At that point, he unloaded a magazine, reloaded and started shooting in another direction.”
Chief Pytel said Corona was wearing a protective vest, but was initially shot in the neck, which caused her to go down before being shot again numerous times.
Corona was rushed to a Davis-area medical center, where she died from her injuries.
Limbaugh was later found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Police recovered a letter Limbaugh had written in which he claimed he was a target of a law enforcement conspiracy, according to CNN.
In the letter, Limbaugh stated the DPD was hitting him with ultra-sonic waves meant to prevent dogs from barking. He said he notified the media, DPD Internal Affaits and the FBI. He claimed he was "highly sensitive" to the sounds and couldn't go on living like that.
The letter was signed, "Citizen Kevin Limbaugh."
A vigil, organized by the "End of Watch Fund" to honor the officer, will be held Monday, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Elk Grove Police Department.
The memorial service for Corona is scheduled for Friday, January 18, at 11 a.m. at the UC Davis ARC conference center. CBS Sacramento reports following the service, a law enforcement procession will escort Corona’s body from the UC Davis campus to her final resting place in Arbuckle.
Corona began her career with the DPD in 2016 as a part-time volunteer Community Service Officer, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page (ODMP). She graduated from the police academy in July 2018 and completed her field training just three weeks prior to her murder.
TWO DAYS, TWO MURDERS
Corona was the second female rookie killed in just two days.
The day before Corona's murder, Shreveport Police Officer Chatéri Payne was shot as she was preparing to report for her shift. She was not engaged in an active scene when the crime occurred. She later died at a Shreveport hospital. The Shreveport Times reports Payne, who was also a mother, had been an officer for less than two months when her promising life was cut short.
The Shreveport Police Officer's Association released a statement in which they describe Payne as young, beautiful and dedicated to serving the citizens of Shreveport.
The SPD says a public viewing to honor Payne's life will be held Friday, January 18, from 12 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. at Winnfield Funeral Home, located at 3701 Hollywood Avenue.
A wake will take place Friday, January 18, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the Sanctuary at Summer Grove Baptist Church at 8924 Jewella Avenue.
The funeral service is scheduled for Saturday, January 19, at 11 a.m., also at Summer Grove Baptist Church.
Three men have been arrested in connection with Payne's death.
INCREASE IN LAW ENFORCEMENT DEATHS
According to the ODMP and the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund (NLEOMF), seven police officers and one K9 officer have been killed in the first two weeks of 2019. Five of those deaths have been gun-related while the other three have been categorized as traffic-related.
The NLEOMF reported there were 144 law enforcement deaths across the U.S. in 2018. Overall fatalities increased 12 percent from 2017 (127) with firearms-related fatalities being the leading cause of officer deaths.
Firearms-related fatalities claimed the lives of 52 officers in 2018, a 13 percent increase compared to the 46 officers killed in firearms-related incidents in 2017. Of the 52 officer deaths, 14 occurred while officers were attempting to place an individual under arrest. Eight officers were killed while conducting an investigative activity. Six officers were killed responding to domestic disturbance and public disturbance calls, each totaling 12. Five officers were ambushed in 2018, a 50 percent decrease over 2017. Four officers were shot and killed conducting traffic stops. Two officers were killed while serving warrants and two officers were killed while handling or transporting prisoners. Two officers were inadvertently shot by other law enforcement personnel. One officer was killed while responding to a burglary; one was killed during a tactical situation and one was killed while responding to a call for an armed suicidal suspect.
Handguns were the leading type of firearm used against law enforcement in 2018. Of the 52 officer fatalities, 31 officers were shot and killed with a handgun; four were disarmed and shot with their own duty weapons.
Traffic-related fatalities increased nine percent from 2017 with 50 officer deaths. Of those, 32 officers were killed in crashes. Fourteen officers were struck while outside of their vehicle, a 56 percent increase over the nine officers struck and killed in 2017. Four officers were killed in motorcycle crashes.
Of the 32 vehicle crashes, 16 were single-vehicle crashes, a 14 percent increase over the previous year when 14 officers died in single-vehicle crashes. Seven of those single-vehicle crashes involved officers who were responding to a call for service or as backup to another officer at the time of the crash.
The number of officer deaths from other causes also rose in 2018. Forty-two officers died of causes other than firearms- or traffic-related incidents, a 14 percent increase over the 37 who died in 2017. Job-related illnesses such as heart attacks or strokes were the cause of 18 officer deaths, a 17 percent increase over the 21 who died in 2017. Of those 42 deaths, 15 officers died due to cancers related to search and recovery efforts after the attack on the World Trade Centers on September 11, 2001. Four officers drowned. three were beaten to death and two officers were struck by a train.
Texas, Florida, California and New York had the highest number of officer fatalities with 11 each. North Carolina had seven deaths; South Carolina, Georgia, and Indiana each had five. Two territorial officers and nine federal officers also died in 2018. Fourteen states and the District of Columbia did not lose an officer in 2018.
Of the 2018 fallen officers, 134 were male and 10 were female. The average age was 41 years with an average length of 12 years of service.
“The rising number of law enforcement officer deaths in 2018 is disappointing news after a decline in 2017,” declared National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund CEO Craig W. Floyd. “Sadly this reminds us that public safety is a dangerous job and can come at a very steep price. We must never take the service and sacrifice of law enforcement officers for granted, and we must remember the families of the fallen who are left behind.”
There are currently 21,541 names of officers killed in the line of duty inscribed on the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, DC, dating back to the first known death in 1791. The deadliest year on record for law enforcement was 1930 when 307 law enforcement officers were killed in the line of duty. The last time officer fatalities dipped below 100 for a single year was 1944.
EDITOR'S NOTE: The statistics released are based on preliminary data compiled by the NLEOMF and do not represent a final or complete list of individual officers who will be added to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in 2019.
