The state is mourning the loss of two of its heroes this week.
Funeral services for Cpl. Marshall Bailey took place Sunday, and services for Trooper Eric Workman were held Wednesday.
Each service drew hundreds of officers from around the state and country, who joined more than 500 state troopers, as well as family members, friends, and state and local officials, in paying their final respects.
The two State Police officers were mortally wounded last week near the Wallback exit of Interstate 79 after pulling over a pickup truck at the Wallback park-and-ride.
By now, we’ve all heard the details surrounding the tragedy.
The troopers had been responding to a report of a truck traveling erratically on the interstate and, after determining that the driver was intoxicated, the troopers arrested him. But while he was being arrested, the driver slipped out of his handcuffs and shot the officers with a handgun he had hidden on his body.
Bailey died at the scene, and Workman passed away three days later. The gunman was killed in a shootout.
The troopers’ sacrifice in the line of duty is just one more example of the bravery displayed by men and women who are called to serve.
Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, who spoke during Bailey’s service, described both men as heroes. He said the word is thrown around a lot in society, but the fallen troopers lived up to the term.
“For 17 years he got up every day, and a whole lot of nights, and put on the reassuring green uniform of the West Virginia State Police,” Tomblin said of Bailey. “For 17 years he stood on the line that separates good from evil and risked everything to make sure that evil couldn’t go through it. For 17 years he sacrificed his own safety to protect the rest of us without even a second of doubt or to ask why.
“That’s what I call a hero.”
In an effort to help the troopers’ families, the West Virginia Troopers Association has set up the Fallen Trooper fund. Organizers say it’s a way to show thanks to the troopers who sacrificed their lives and to support their families.
The fund is certainly a step in the right direction, and even though official services are over, we must continue to honor these brave men and support their families.
As Dr. Justin Bailey said during his brother’s funeral on Sunday, “The state has a lot of things to be proud of, but none more than the West Virginia state troopers. I’ve never met a finer group of people.”
But let’s also take this chance to closely examine the policies this state’s law enforcement officials have in place.
West Virginia is fortunate to have men and women who selflessly serve. The shootings that claimed the lives of Cpl. Bailey and Trooper Workman were senseless, and it would be a shame if we didn’t do everything possible to ensure that a tragedy such as what happened at the Wallback exit of I-79 in Roane County never happens again.
Opinion
Fallen troopers, through bravery, truly demonstrate the role of ‘hero’
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