Honoring a fallen officer

By: | Inside NoVA
Published: June 14, 2008

Last Friday, June 6, Fredericksburg Police Officer Todd Bahr was murdered while investigating a routine domestic disturbance call. He and several other officers were on foot searching for the male
suspect when he was shot. Officer Bahr’s tragic death is a stark example of the daily risk that officers face in striving to keep their community safe.

Each day, the men and women of the police department put on their uniforms, say good bye to their families and report for duty not knowing what situations they will face. In fact, just this past week end,
three of our officers were assaulted and two were injured in routine arrest attempts. One of the officers was even bitten on the head, which required stitches. Each police officer understands and accepts
there are risks involved in their chosen profession, but that does not make it any less tragic when an officer is injured or even killed while protecting others.

Last year, Prince William County Police received almost 10,000 domestic disturbance calls, more than 1,350 of which involved some type of violence. Since January of this year, officers have arrested 273
individuals for domestic assaults. While a number of officers were attacked in dealing with these incidents, fortunately none were seriously injured.

Last week, Prince William County Police officers and other officers in Virginia were wearing a black bunting across their badges in memory of Officer Todd Bahr and to honor the sacrifice that he has
made. The members of the Prince William County Police Department understand too well what the Fredericksburg Police Department and the Bahr family are going through, and we stand with them in
their time of grief.

I ask our community to pause and reflect on Officer Bahr’s life, his profession, and to remember the risk that all officers face.

CHARLIE T. DEANE

Chief of Police
Prince William County