Special team will honor Cape police's fallen officers at Oct. 22 ceremony

For Cape Girardeau officer Darin Hickey, the invitation to join the police department's honor guard team and participate in an October ceremony honoring the lives of the five officers killed in the line of duty over the years was something that hit close to home.

Hickey remembers the day he was serving with the Joplin, Mo., police when a fellow officer died as a result of extensive burns he sustained during an explosion at a house he'd been dispatched to.

"I had first-hand experience with it," Hickey said.

As part of the Cape Girardeau Police Department's new five-member Honor Guard, Hickey is responsible for presenting a tribute to patrol officer Donald Crittendon, who was killed in the line of duty March 21, 1961, three hours away from his retirement as a law enforcement officer.

"That just fascinates me. It makes you think, every day on your shift," Hickey said.

The tribute by the honor guard will accompany an evening of ceremony and presentation Oct. 22 at the Bedell Performance Hall at Southeast Missouri State University's River Campus. The event is planned in celebration of the 150th anniversary of the formation of the department.

Local historian Frank Nickel will speak about the history of law enforcement in Cape Girardeau and Shawnee Community College professor Paul Echols will be giving a presentation titled "Crossing Paths with a Serial Killer," said assistant chief Roger Fields.

Former police chiefs will be at the ceremony, and displays in the lobby will illustrate the various units of the police department and their functions, including school resource officers and the drug division, Fields said.

The honor guard, formed of current officers, is the first created by the police department.

"It's something we've always discussed," Fields said.

At the Oct. 22 ceremony, each honor guard member will recite information about an officer they represent who was killed in the line of duty in Cape Girardeau.

Officer Richard Couch, who represents Willis Martin, killed in February 1921, said he has enjoyed being part of the honor guard not only as a law enforcement officer, but also because he believes in commemorating anyone whose job involves endangering their own life to serve others.

The honor guard participated in last year's memorial service for officers killed in the line of duty and has marched in one parade since its formation.

The five participating officers spend two to six hours of training for each event, said officer Joe Thomas, commander of the honor guard.

Thomas represents Albert Demortiers, who was gunned down Oct. 27, 1917, by a drunk he'd tossed from a local bar during his shift.

Each honor guard uniform is adorned with a silver braid at the shoulder containing five knots, one for each fallen officer.

Eventually, the name of the officer they represent will be embroidered on the police patch of each guardsman's uniform, Fields said.

bdicosmo@semissourian.com

388-3635