Officers have been fired at several times in Central Illinois, just in the last month. They say the danger's part of the job. But officers admit that still doesn't make it easy. They're hitting the streets to make people more aware of the risk they face everyday. Officers are riding their bikes across the state to remind people of the danger they face everyday they go to work. About 150 officers are killed on the job every year. And it doesn't always happen when they go out on a call.
Women whose husbands were killed while wearing a badge were on the ride. Toni Hardesty, Normal, says her husband was killed during a training exercise. She says she's riding in support of all officers. "That's the job and sometimes people, even myself, we take it for granted and don't realize the danger that's involved with it," says Hardesty.
Carrie Dorwart also lost her husband. "He told me this could happen and I just put it out of my mind because I knew this is what he wanted to do," says Dorwart of Waverly.
Officers say they love the job, even if the danger is part of it. One thing they say is important, is community support. They say knowing the community is behind them makes the job worthwhile.
