Fresno Deputy Killed

[sigy]

Please keep Deputy Dennis Phelp's family in mind. He was murdered last week in a shootout with a suspect.

:crying2:

[rbowens]

Do you know of an address or anything where one might send condolences to the family of this officer?

[DelC]

If you have access to it, how about posting the news story here.

[SteveO911]

Found this Link to Story:
http://www.fresnobee.com/opinion/lets_ed/story/3122917p-4147290c.html

Sad Story

Lena Garcia, Fresno
(Published Wednesday, June, 5, 2002 5:25AM)

In response to "Undeserved attention" and "Two victims" [letters June 2]:

Mark Volpa's behavior and fear of police officers may have been amplified by his mental illness, which made it possible for him to take the life of Deputy Dennis Phelps. A deranged mind could have created an irrational reality of capture and torture by police so that giving up peacefully was not an option.

He would rather have died, and he did.

There are many people in need of competent psychiatric care, but could treatment in a psychiatric hospital for an extended period of time be so costly that releasing them from proper medical care into the community is the most cost-effective solution? Are the professionals in charge of their treatment and release of the mentally ill competent enough to make these decisions?

Catholic priests are now being accused by many children who were molested only because they survived and the numbers of those who spoke of their abuse became so great they couldn't be ignored. Mark Volpa is dead, and though the numbers of mentally ill patients who daily take their own lives and the lives of others are great, they are not able to speak out. We must speak
for them.

It saddens me that Deputy Dennis Phelps gave his life for a profession that helps and protects people in our community, and his family and community's great loss has been reduced to complaints about the media, police and the Volpa family.

http://www.lawenforcementjob.com/eastern/images/roscoe.gif

[sigy]

Trust Fund Information

Arrangements have been made for financial donations to Deputy Phelps’ family. The Fresno Deputy Sheriff’s Association has set up a trust fund and checks can be made payable to the Dennis Phelps Memorial. Please mail your checks to Kerman State Bank, PO Box 277, Kerman, California 93630.



Sigy

[Ranger337]

Almost a week after Dep. Phelps murder, the suspect Mark Volpa Jr. was located in a camper. Fresno County SWAT (and many other department SWAT teams) surrounded the camper. The SWAT teams called out to Volpa to surrender. After a short standoff SWAT vollied tear gas into the camper. Volpa then exited the camper and shot several rounds at the officers from an AR-15 rifle that he stole from Deputy Phelps' patrol car after he murdered him.

As you all may have guessed SWAT had no chioce but to return fire fatally woundng Volpa. Volpa would have celebrated his birtday the following Tuesday (ironicly the same day as Phelps funeral)