When a police officer is killed in the line of duty, most people assume they were in the wrong. In the society we live in today, people are very quick to jump and defend the guilty without having all of the facts. When they hear a police officer and a civilian have been hurt, they automatically assume the police didn't do their job correctly. But what happens when the police do their job correctly, when nothing goes wrong, and they are killed in the line of duty anyways?
That's what seems to be the case involving state trooper Thomas Clardy, a Marine Corps veteran. On the night of March 16, he was performing a routine traffic stop on the Mass Pike, pulling over a driver for a traffic violation. Both the Chevy Tahoe and the police cruiser were pulled over in the breakdown lane. After approaching the car, he went back to his cruiser to enter the information for the violation and pull up the records. At this point he was not strapped into the car, which is when a speeding Nissan Maxima crossed over three lanes of traffic and rear-ended the trooper's cruiser. The force of the impact was so great that the cruiser smashed into the back of the Tahoe, bounced off, and then came to a stop in the grass along the side of the highway.
As a result of the crash, trooper Clardy sustained severe traumatic injuries. He received CPR and emergency first aid on scene and was then transported to UMass Medical Center in Worcester, where he later succumbed to his injuries. Trooper Clardy leaves behind a wife, Reisa, and seven children, his eldest child being estranged and whom he had never gotten the chance to meet.
So, is it plausible that society would think that trooper Clardy did anything wrong? He did not provoke the driver of the Nissan; he didn't even see him coming. Now, Clardy's seven children will grow up without a father. His eldest, whom was just starting to rekindle a relationship, will have only one memory of his father. His other six children will graduate without their dad in attendance, they will all get married without him there. His grandchildren will never get to meet the spectacular person that trooper Clardy was. Every person that has ever met trooper Thomas Clardy will only have their memories.
We can all learn something from this experience. Police aren’t always the bad ones; they have families just like you and I. They are not always in the wrong. They risk their lives every day to protect and serve us. Trooper Clardy did not deserve what happened to him; no one does. To Trooper Clardy and his family and friends, I pass along my deepest sympathy and condolences to you all. May he rest in peace.
