NOV 2021 Blues Vol 37 No. 11

PART I - Another Tragic Loss
October was another tragic
month for our Blue Family here
in Texas. On Saturday October
16, at 2am, a cold hearted, lowlife
killer ambushed three deputy
constables working an extra
job on Houston’s north side. Two
survived and one did not. On
that cool Houston night, we lost
Deputy Kareem Atkins from the
Harris County Constable Precinct
Four Office. Deputy Atkins was
only 30 years old. He had been
with the department since January
2019 and recently returned
from paternity
leave. He
leaves behind
his 6-monthold
son,
2-year-old
daughter and
his wife.
That night,
Atkins was
working
with his two
best friends.
Deputy Darryl
Garrett,
28 and Deputy Juqaim Barthen,
26. They were truly the best of
friends. Deputy Garrett was shot
in the back multiple times and
remains in critical condition at
Hermann Hospital. According
to his fiancé, he has undergone
multiple surgeries to remove
a bullet that damaged several
organs, and needs a kidney
transplant.
Deputy Juqaim Barthen was
released from the hospital on
October 20, and was emotional
as he was rolled out of the front
of Hermann Hospital in a wheelchair.
His brothers and sisters
in blue lined the outside of the
hospital and cheered loudly as
Barthen made his way to his car.
He continues to recover at home
and says he can’t wait to get
back to work.
Deputy Atkins was remembered
at a Memorial Service
at Champions Forest Baptist
Church on Monday, October
24th. Hundreds of officers from
around the country came to pay
their respects. Everyone here at
the BLUES sends their thoughts
and prayers to the Atkins family
and Constable Mark Herman and
his entire department during
this trying time.
Someone asked me the other
day, is there anything I would
MICHAEL BARRON
change about the BLUES if I had
to do it all over again? The answer
is yes. There
is one thing I’d love
to see changed.
The staggering
number of fallen
officers we honor
in each issue. Last
month we had 17
Line of Duty deaths
due to Covid and
16 due to other
means. That’s 33
in just one month.
Since January of
2021, the number
totals 383.
We all want this to stop. We
all say, “Enough is Enough.” But
when will it stop? When will
enough truly be enough? What
is it going to take to put an end
to the senseless killing of our
brothers and sisters in Blue?
I truly wish I knew, and I pray
to God that it will stop sooner
than later.
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6 The BLUES POLICE MAGAZINE The BLUES POLICE MAGAZINE 7