Less than a quarter of the way into this new year, twenty-three law enforcement officers across the country have lost their lives in the line of duty.  That’s twenty-three families with an empty chair at the dinner table, twenty-three funerals attended by grieving loved ones, and twenty-three agencies forever impacted by the loss of their brothers in blue.

Here in Colorado, we have seen nineteen officer-involved shootings in the same time frame and ten more fatalities as a result.  While the second amendment grants the right to keep and bear arms, it seems we have forgotten our founding fathers also had a vision of ensuring domestic tranquility and securing the blessings of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

While we all define what happiness looks like differently, it certainly doesn’t look like a 29-year-old deputy sheriff losing his life in an ambush-style attack in the predawn hours of New Year’s Eve 2018.  It certainly doesn’t look like four fellow officers being shot alongside their partner in a hail of firepower of more than one hundred rounds. Most of all, it certainly was not preventable under current conditions as one of our Douglas County commissioners insinuated by leveraging state statute “already on the books.”

Our elected Douglas County Commissioners have chosen to turn their backs on local law enforcement and the citizens of Douglas County by passing a recent resolution condemning the Red Flag Bill and “expressing its profound disappointment” with the Sheriff for “actions against the Constitution of the United States.”  Over a year ago and according to NPR, even the NRA executive director stated the time has come to “stop dangerous people before they act” declaring that “Congress should provide funding to states to adopt risk protection orders.”

This Douglas County citizen declares profound disappointment with the three county commissioners playing outside of their sandbox and without merit. It’s insulting to think we are “represented” by reactionary officials choosing to put the safety of its citizens in harm’s way despite lessons learned. Not to worry though commissioners, I am certain that our law enforcement officers will continue to hold their heads high and will maintain their oath to the Constitution by continuing to protect those who refuse to do the same.