‘The pain is still the same’: Sheriff offers help for grieving officers after deadly police shooting
Departments across the Carolinas are grieving with the families and fellow officers after a deadly attack on police in east Charlotte on Monday.
One in particular is the York County Sheriff’s Office, which went through a similar tragedy in 2018.
Four people were killed on Monday when a U.S. Marshals task force was attempting to serve an arrest warrant for a wanted suspect. A violent standoff claimed the lives of two task force officers, a deputy U.S. Marshal, and a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police officer.
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York County Sheriff Kevin Tolson was standing by Monday to help CMPD because six years ago, CMPD helped in a similar situation.
“Our shooting wasn’t to the magnitude of yesterday, but the pain is still the same, the emotions are still the same,” Tolson told Channel 9′s Tina Terry on Tuesday.
Back in 2018, York County Detective Mike Doty was killed, and three other officers were hurt while responding to a domestic violence call.
HISTORY: Thousands gather to honor slain York County Det. Mike Doty
Tolson said he understands the pain that officers are feeling after Monday’s shooting.
“It’s anger, it’s frustration, it’s fear, it’s denial, then somewhere down the road, individually, it’s acceptance. You never get over it, but that’s when you begin to move on,” Tolson said.
“They’re still shell-shocked. Some of them haven’t come to the realization: is this really happening, did this really happen, did I really lose my partner, did I really lose my friend?”
When Doty died, CMPD was right there to help his officers, Tolson said. On Monday, Tolson has members of his SWAT team standing by to help if needed, and Monday night, he offered support from his director of employee wellness.
“Our clinical psychologist used to work there, so she is intimately familiar with a lot of those officers and she has a heart for CMPD,” Tolson said. “If she can help them now the way that she’s helped us since she’s been here, why would I not offer that assistance?”
Doty’s brother, Chris, told Terry that Monday’s events were “beyond tragic.” He said community support for the families and law enforcement will be really important in this season.
Learn how you can help the families of the fallen officers by clicking this link.
(WATCH: ‘I was trapped too’: Neighbor captures video of shots fired during standoff in east Charlotte)
