Sheriff Hammond Says Dallas Shooting Could Happen Here

  • Friday, July 8, 2016
  • Jessica Kramer

Sheriff Jim Hammond held a press conference Friday morning concerning the recent police shootings in Dallas. He warned about the possibility of a similar incident occurring in Hamilton County.

“Make no mistake about it, it can happen here if we don’t get a handle on folks understanding that with the freedoms and the rights we have there comes a responsibility to use (them) wisely,” he said. “We need to ferret out those who take the law into their own hands and do such a barbarous and hideous act.”

Sheriff Hammond said tears have been shed around the country by fellow law enforcement following the “needless act of barbarianism” that occurred in Dallas while “police were doing their duty to help protect people’s rights to have a peaceful protest.”

He said steps have already been taken in Hamilton County to ensure the safety of local officers.

“I’ve ordered all of my captains and my staff to talk with their individual divisions and tell our officers to be very, very cautious, to make sure that we’re watching our back at all angles. It’s gonna be business as usual and we’re going to do the job that we’re hired to do,” he said. “I have had no officers tell me that this will cause them to rethink their careers, although I’m sure that would be understandable across the nation.”

Sheriff Hammond also told the press he was “disappointed in Washington not coming out stronger, not only in condemning what has happened here, but going forward to make sure … that we protect those who serve us.”

“There’s an old saying that says that if you can’t make friends with your police, you better make friends with … the criminals,” he said.

He warned that the only way to stop this kind of incident from happening is if “we see a complete new attitude on the part of many groups as to what it means to live in a free country where you can freely express your concerns.”

“And there are concerns,” he said. “With almost 700,000 officers across this nation there’s going to be some officers that do the wrong thing, but we’re going to investigate every one of them if that happens. If there needs to be criminal charges, we will do it. But for the most part—99 percent of all police officers in this country—they train well, they go out and serve well, they have families back home that worry about them going out there to do their job. As sheriff of this county I’m going to tell you we’re going to continue to do the right thing with the training and the deployment of our officers, but we’re also going to react in a way to protect our officers out there.”

When asked if the department offers any bias training, Sheriff Hammond responded that they “offer every training there is,” however, like any occupation, there are “some bad apples.”

“I feel like there’s not much more we can do in the way of checking on our own,” he said. “What we really need is the encouragement from the media and from the public.”

He advised the media to “be careful what you put out there,” saying that some people can react in inflammatory ways.

“99 percent of the time (officers) do the right job, but when you get a news issue where one thing goes wrong you have this kind of tragedy,” he said.

Sheriff Hammond explained that he never turns down an interview with the media. He recognized that there are groups in the area “that obviously are not happy with law enforcement” and said he would “be more than happy to sit down and listen to their concerns.”

He released the following statement on the Dallas shooting Friday morning:

“As Sheriff of Hamilton County and having worked in law enforcement for over 45 years, I am deeply saddened by the horrific events that unfolded last night in Dallas, Texas, that claimed the lives of (5) police officers and seriously wounded (7) others. Each day, each hour, thousands of men and women across our great Nation don the uniform and badge of law enforcement and leave their homes to serve as a symbol, a beacon of hope, for justice and peace.

"These men and women, dedicate their lives to protect those they call their friends, their family, and their neighbors. They are fathers, they are mothers, they are sons and they are daughters… Each day, they leave to perform their work not knowing if they will return to whence they came.

"What happened last night in Dallas is a picture of pure evil and it is ghastly to think that there are people in this world who would purely target our men and women of law enforcement for sport. In trying times like these, we must all remember what makes our country great… Our love of compassion, our ability to come together and unite, and those who are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for the greater good…

"On behalf of the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, I would like to ask our Heavenly Father to bless the officers and the families of those who were killed or wounded in last night’s tragic events.

"To the members of the Dallas Police Department, I would like to offer our condolences, our support, and our prayers.”

Breaking News
Latest Hamilton County Arrest Report
  • 3/28/2024

Here is the latest Hamilton County arrest report: ADERHOLT, FELICIA DAWN 1110 ST CLAIR ST DUNLAP, 37327 Age at Arrest: 37 years old Arresting Agency: HC Sheriff Booked for Previous ... more

Signal Mountain Must Determine How To Use Remainder Of ARPA Funds
  • 3/27/2024

The town of Signal Mountain has $358,637 remaining from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds it received and there must be a plan in place by the end of the year for how the money will be ... more

Chattanooga Man Gets 21-Year Sentence For Fentanyl Death Of 19-Year-Old
Chattanooga Man Gets 21-Year Sentence For Fentanyl Death Of 19-Year-Old
  • 3/27/2024

A 25-year-old Chattanooga man, was sentenced to 21 years in federal prison for supplying drugs that led to the death of 19-year-old Charlotte Gallant. Jonathan Bash appeared before Judge Curtis ... more