Thank you.
Like Mark said, I'm Sergeant. Rich scan.
If I'm the commander of the Pierce
County Sheriff's Department SWAT team.
I was with Dom during this incident
and I'm honored to have been asked
to say a few words about my friend
who died just as he lived with great
determination and great heroism.
Dom joined the team in 2018
and immediately made an impact.
His tactical prowess,
intelligence and leadership
were evident right away.
As a team we value character,
personality and heart over
innate tactical skill. However,
Dom came to us with all of those traits.
Sure, Don possessed great technical ability,
but more importantly,
his character just who he was pulled
our team together and made us stronger.
Don became a shield operator and most
recently was an assistant team leader.
Dom was always a joy to be around,
his smile, storytelling and positive
attitude lifted the team and made us closer.
I can clearly remember speeding down the
road to a location to serve a warrant.
Dom was driving our armored vehicle.
We were all piled in the back and just
as we were about to hit a huge bump.
He gleefully yelled, hold on to your butts.
Tom's positive energy was infectious,
I think. Of all the times I
came to him with a difficult,
dangerous or taxing mission or assignment.
Don would just reply.
Yeah, rich, let's do it.
You couldn't help getting
fired up while talking to Dom.
On the Friday before
this incident took place,
I spent two hours on the phone with Dom.
We talked about the team,
what my vision was and where we were headed.
We talked about how to build that vision,
how to lead and inspire the team,
and how to ensure the team
continue to grow and develop.
I told Dom how he was an integral
part of that vision and that I
saw him taking over my role as
a team commander when I retired.
I would give anything to have Dom here today.
I am heartbroken and I am sorry.
I wish more than anything, the
Dom was still here laughing
and inspiring us to be better.
When this gun battle started,
I knew I had been gravely injured.
Dom rushed to my side to
fight shoulder to shoulder.
He was heroic. He was determined
and he was brave.
So our work is
dangerous. We train hard,
we plan thoroughly, and we keep fighting.
Reach a point where it becomes
time to just nod and get moving.
When we reach that point,
I tell the team something
and Dom always loved it.
I tell them, let's roll.
Because sometimes it sucks.
Sometimes we have to push through.
Sometimes we have to endure hardship.
So to all the Dom's friends and family.
To my team, to the department, and to
the community for Dom hit. This role.