End of Watch Call: Difference between revisions

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The "End Of Watch Call" or "Last Radio Call" is a funerary tradition used by some US Police forces and Fire Fighters in the United States of America.

The tradition of the End Of Watch Call started in the mid 2000s in the East Coast of the United States. As time went by, the tradition spread, and by 2010 it had spread to the west coast and was common throughout the country. The practice was initially started with police, but spread to Fire Fighters and Forest Rangers/Wardens.^[1] The practice is not done outside the United States.^[2]

The tradition generally honours a police officer who has fallen in the line of duty,^[3] though it may honour an officer who has passed away due to illness, or some other non work related complication. Originally used by Police Officers and Fire Fighters in the East of the US, the honorary practice has spread to American Police generally, throughout the country.

In some cases the call is made twice, initially when the officer has died, and then more formally closer to the funeral, at a later date, or actually at the funeral^[4]

An example of a short End of Watch Call;

"Radio Lakewood 101…No answer Lakewood 101…Lakewood 101 out of service. Gone but not forgotten." ^[5]

When an officer dies, the police officers from his/her unit/department gather around a police radio. The police radio operator calls to the deceased officer, as if to contact him. Thus it is the final call to the officer. After two calls, the radio operator acknowledges that the officer is not responding. The Radio operator then announces that the officer has fallen in the line of duty. The operator then may make some extra mentions honouring the officer, some practices see the call with some words added in memoriam, while others are shorter.

The practice has been depicted in The TV detective show Elementary, depicting how the practice is currently done by the NYPD. In the episode "End Of Watch" a police officer in the line of duty dies and the Police unit, including Holmes and Watson, gather around the radio to honour the fallen officer.^[6]

• Example of End Of Watch call for SPD Officer Thomas LaValley - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKc6HPBoYqc
• Terms used used in Police Funerals - https://www.funeralwise.com/customs/police/definitions/