Domestic disturbances pose a danger for police officers

June 9, 2008 | Virginia News

By Emily Battle
Fredericksburg Free-Lance Star

Fredericksburg Police Chief David Nye on Saturday stated his firm belief that Officer Todd Bahr and the other officers who responded to a woman's call for help after her ex-boyfriend threatened her saved her life on Friday night.

"There's not a doubt in my mind," Nye said.

He said Gregory Berryman--the man who police believe shot and killed Bahr and later shot himself after exchanging gunfire with other officers--could likely have killed his former girlfriend had she not involved the police.

While Nye's comments highlight the aid that law enforcement officers can bring to domestic disturbance situations, Bahr's death in what police believe was an ambush by Berryman shows how dangerous these situations can be for officers.

During Domestic Violence Awareness Month last October, the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund put out statistics showing that more officers are assaulted or injured during domestic disturbance calls than during any other circumstance.

According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, 30 percent of the assaults on officers reported during 2006 occurred while those officers were responding to disturbance calls.

In its "Crime in Virginia" report for 2006, the latest year available, the Virginia State Police reported that of the 1,346 Virginia law enforcement officers assaulted that year, 372 were assaulted while responding to disturbance calls.

That's higher than the number of assaults on officers that occurred during any other police activity.

A domestic disturbance played a role in an earlier officer death in this region. Stafford County Sheriff's Deputy Ford T. "Toby" Humphrey was gunned down on Oct. 9, 1980, while helping out on a domestic disturbance call.

"Domestic disputes are one of the most dangerous calls a police officer can go into," said Tod Burke, a criminal justice professor at Radford University.

Burke said there are several factors that make that so.

If the call involves entering a home, the officer can find himself in a situation where emotions are running high, the aggressor is much more familiar with the territory and weapons--whether they be guns or ordinary objects like kitchen knives--abound.

Friday night's deadly incident did not involve police officers entering a home.

It started when a woman called police saying Berryman, her ex-boyfriend, had threatened her and had shown up at her apartment at the Commons at Cowan Boulevard with a gun.

When Berryman realized police had been called, he drove away, but officers found him at the Park & Shop shopping center.

Berryman then led police on a chase. He drove to the Belmont apartment complex--which is right next to the Commons on Cowan--and got out of his car and ran.

Police believe Berryman was hiding and shot Bahr as he pursued him. Minutes later, a city officer and two city sheriff's deputies encountered Berryman heading toward his former girlfriend's home.

Police said that after Berryman fired at officers, they returned fire, striking Berryman several times. Berryman then shot and killed himself with his own gun.

Burke said the tragic chain of events includes several different elements that are among the most dangerous situations police train for.

"You have a domestic dispute, you have a foot chase, you have an auto chase. All three things, plus dealing with an armed suspect," he said. "It doesn't get much worse than that."

In addition, Bahr and his fellow officers were dealing with a suspect who was willing to take his own life.

"When they're determined to take their own life, they are not thinking of the lives of others," Burke said.

Emily Battle: 540/374-5413
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