WM Police Response to Officer Killings Praised

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - The response by the West Memphis Police Department when two officers were slain by an anti-government activist and his teenage son has drawn praise from a group whose duty is to prepare for terrorist attacks in the Memphis region.

Bob Nations, director of the Shelby County Office of Preparedness, praised the West Memphis department during a meeting of the Memphis and Shelby County Urban Areas Security Initiative. The regional initiative includes six counties in Tennessee, Mississippi and Arkansas as well as the federal department of Homeland Security.

West Memphis police Sgt. Brandon Paudert and Officer Bill Evans were slain at the side of Interstate 40 on May 20 after stopping a minivan that carried 45-year-old Jerry Kane and his 16-year-old son, Joe. The Kanes were killed in a gun battle with officers about 90 minutes later.