THP Encourages Citizens To Participate in C.O.P.S.

NASHVILLE — During this holiday season, the Tennessee Highway Patrol will honor the men and women of law enforcement who have died in the line of duty by participating in the Concerns of Police Survivors (C.O.P.S.) Project Blue Light. A blue light will be displayed at each of the THP District Headquarters across the state in remembrance of fallen law enforcement officers.   

In 2011, THP suffered the loss of two State Troopers in motorcycle crashes, including one in the line of duty. Since 1929, there have been 39 Tennessee Highway Patrolmen who have been killed in the line of duty and one who died in an off-duty accident, totaling 40 State Trooper fatalities in the history of the THP.

"This has been a particularly difficult year for our agency, as we have lost two dedicated public servants and more importantly, two good men," THP Colonel Tracy Trott said. "We want to encourage all Tennesseans to display a blue light in their homes in honor of fallen law enforcement officers across the state and nation. It's a small gesture to recognize those heroes we have lost in the line of duty."

Each Captain in the eight Tennessee Highway Patrol districts, along with the nine scale complexes, will display at least one blue light during the month of December.  A blue candle also adorns the Colonel's office at Foster Avenue in Nashville and at his home in support of the effort.

"The holidays are tough for anyone who has lost a loved one," Colonel Trott added. "While we remember the fallen, this candle also represents and thanks those who continue to keep our communities and highways safe."

For more than 20 years, Concerns of Police Survivors (C.O.P.S.) has asked law enforcement families, surviving families, and police families to put a blue light in their windows during the holiday season. The idea began in 1988 when Mrs. Dolly Craig wrote to C.O.P.S. that she would place two blue candles in her living room window that holiday season.  One candle was for her son-in-law who had been killed in the line of duty while serving the Philadelphia (PA) Police Department and one for her daughter, the officer's widow, who had been killed in a car crash.

According to C.O.P.S., Project Blue Light now burns bright in the hearts of the nearly 15,000 surviving families of America's fallen law enforcement officers during the holiday season. For more information on C.O.P.S., please visit www.nationalcops.org

A list of Tennessee State Troopers who have been killed in the line of duty can be found at the following link:

http://www.tn.gov/safety/thpmemorial/memorialmain.shtml