Dallas Police Department unit formed after 7/7 ambush helps officers after tragedies like Officer Daron Burks' death.
Joe King, a wellness unit officer with the Dallas Police Department, poses with a framed portrait of officer Darron Burks on Nov. 25, 2024.The Dallas police officer yanked on an outfit and sprinted to his car. He tried to shake an eerie feeling as he drove, but couldn’t ignore the resemblance to July 7, 2016 — when a sniper fatally shot five officers downtown in the deadliest attack on U.S. police since 9/11., he felt an additional responsibility.
The team had a lengthy list from supervisors’ references, those who seemed to be struggling, people who knew Burks or the injured officers, and employees who’d responded to the crime scenes that day. “It’s like catching water with a net,” King said. “It’s just so big. People are going to slip through, but it’s our job to keep continuing looking for the people that are affected.”
When Burks was killed, García was already in talks to leave the department, the former chief said. The wellness team gave him comfort that officers were still in good hands.“We’re planting trees that we’re never going to experience the shade of, right?” García said during an interview in September before he left Dallas.
Already, though, he spots a difference: in the on-site counselors, in the wellness unit’s quick-turn meetings and in granted requests to take time off work. He doesn’t yet have official numbers, but said there was “a huge increase in counseling” after Burks died.
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