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More than two years ago, Patrol Officer Cassie Johnson was shot and killed in the line of duty as she responded to a parking complaint. The tragedy served as inspiration for state Senate Bill 490, which is meant to help protect first responders by increasing the penalty for anyone who willfully causes their death.
"The kid just wanted to serve the city of Charleston and the members of Charleston and the community that she had grown up with and that she considered her friends and that she loved," Cassie's mother, Cheryl Johnson, said during the senate hearing on the bill.
Those are the kinds of people who tend to become first responders. They just want to serve. They want to be there for their communities. That trait is not limited to law enforcement, of course. Firefighters, EMS and others are included in the bill.
A reminder of the need for change came recently when a gun was pulled on an EMS worker who responded to a call in Cabell County.
"Unfortunately, it's happening more now than it did years ago," Gordon Merry, Cabell County EMS director, told WOWK. "This is the second time we've had a gun pulled on us. The world's changed … anything we can do to deter people from assaulting first responders is a plus."
Sadly, Merry hit the nail on the head. The world has changed. It begs the question, will the threat of a more severe penalty actually deter the kind of person who would willfully kill a first responder?
But if the possibility exists, lawmakers have got to give it a try. The Patrol Officer Cassie Marie Johnson Memorial Act should quickly make its way to the governor's desk.