Editorial: Another Great Cop Saves Another Life

Dec. 19--Another day, another hero emerges from the ranks of the Colorado Springs Police Department.

We hear a lot about police officers harming or killing suspects during confrontations. Often an officer-involved killing becomes national news and a significant chapter in history. Eric Garner and Michael Brown have become household names after dying in confrontations with police in New York and Missouri, respectively. Rodney King made history for a near-lethal beating he took from police in Los Angeles in 1991 -- another incident that led to riots in the streets.

What we seldom hear about are the lives police save each day throughout this country, all in the course of routine work.

Consider the start of officer Mike Palmer's shift Wednesday. The Colorado Springs cop saved an innocent, vulnerable person with action he considers no more than a routine part of his job.

As told by KRDO-TV, Palmer and recruit officer Kevin Hall were called to the Spruce Lodge on North Nevada at 7 a.m. because a baby was unconscious and not breathing. They raced to the scene, and Palmer conducted CPR until paramedics arrived. If Palmer hadn't been there, with the skills to save a life, 13-day-old Ezequiel may not be with us today. The swift actions of one good cop saved a family the lifelong grief of losing a child.

Though Palmer did the work, his department prepared him.

"Very recently, our department went through a refresher course for CPR training and it included infant CPR training, and that training was still fresh in my mind," Palmer said, as quoted by KRDO.

The baby recovered in a hospital Wednesday.

It's the third time Palmer has saved a life in the course of doing his job. Many of his fellow officers have saved lives and will continue doing so. Few will ever kill. The police devote themselves professionally to protecting property and life.

Palmer's life-giving act of service won't make headlines far and wide precisely because it is the norm. Media are mostly in the business of reporting what goes wrong, and for good reason. We don't need news crews telling us about thousands of planes that land safe and sound each day throughout the country. We need detailed reports about the one that crashes to the ground, exploding into flames. We need the media asking "why?"

As we see the ongoing coverage of public outrage about cops, in the aftermath of two recent police confrontations that ended in death, it is easy to think law enforcement officers shoot first and ask questions later. It is easy to dread the police, just as one might fear flying after endless coverage of a statistically improbable plane crash.

To keep life in perspective, it's important to understand the role of media. Big stories involve those rare occasions when something goes horribly wrong, regardless of who is at fault. We see little or no coverage when something goes right. It's the burned-out light that deserves our attention, not the one that shines bright.

Sometimes it's good to pause, remembering that what's right in our culture far exceeds what is wrong. Baby Ezequiel lives because most cops are competent and good, spending their typical days protecting, serving and saving innocent lives.

Copyright 2014 - The Gazette (Colorado Springs, Colo.)