Department in Mourning

With black bands of mourning strapped across badges and flags flying at half-staff, a heartbroken Oxnard Police Department plodded forward Thursday with plans to bury a popular young comrade.

“People are hurting,” Cmdr. John Crombach said. “You can see it on their faces.”

As many as 3,000 police officers and other well-wishers from across Southern California are expected to pay respects Monday to slain Officer James Rex Jensen Jr. at his 11 a.m. memorial service at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Ventura. A full police burial--including bagpipes, bugles and a 21-gun salute--will follow at Ventura’s Ivy Lawn Cemetery.

Southern California law enforcement agencies received a Teletype announcement of the funeral Thursday, but many had already called in with their support.

Tentative plans call for dispatchers from the Simi Valley Police Department and Ventura County Fire Department to handle Oxnard’s 911 calls during the funeral, the Sheriff’s Department to patrol the city’s streets, and Ventura police and the California Highway Patrol to help with funeral traffic.

The bewildering logistics of planning for a massive funeral service is just one of several painful duties the department must face.

Many officers took time Thursday evening for a memorial vigil in Jensen’s honor, held outside Oxnard’s public safety building. Sgt. Dan Christian, the SWAT team leader who accidentally shot Jensen, attended the brief prayer service. Tearful and wearing a baseball cap, Christian declined to speak to reporters.

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Investigators will work through the weekend looking for answers to one fateful question: Why did Christian, an accomplished veteran, mistakenly fire up to three rounds of buckshot into his protege during Wednesday’s predawn drug raid?

About 20 detectives are poring over ballistics data, radio communications and training records to shed light on the mystery of Jensen’s violent death. A report is expected to be ready for the district attorney’s perusal by Wednesday, Cmdr. Joe Munoz said.

And then there is the continuing business of police work. Officers spent Thursday patrolling neighborhoods, responding to calls and filing reports as usual.

“We still have a shop to run,” Crombach said. “We can’t just close the doors until Sunday. We have to keep providing a high level of service.”

Which is no easy task, Munoz added.

“We’d much rather not be here,” Munoz said. “The emotional toll wears you down.”

Aiding police with this burden is a small cadre of chaplains, peer counselors and psychologists.

Department brass are concerned that if the stress isn’t dealt with properly, despondent officers could quit the force. Two policemen left the department following the death of Det. James O’Brien in 1993, Crombach said.

“We need to save the living officers or we might lose them,” he said.

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From the fellow SWAT officers at the scene to their wives, everyone seems to need a helping hand.

More than 50 officers’ wives met with chaplains in the station squad room for over an hour Thursday afternoon.

Lorraine MacDonald said the shooting had reminded her of the dangers of her husband’s line of work, but that she tries not to dwell on it.

“If you let yourself worry all the time, you will go crazy,” MacDonald said. “I try to keep it in perspective. That is all you can do right now.”

MacDonald was among more than 100 residents, city officials and police officers who gathered for Thursday’s vigil, which was cut short by a light rain.

While many clutched small white candles, police chaplain Larry Modugno offered words of solace to mourners dealing with a psychological double whammy: the accidental death of one officer at the hands of a fellow cop.

“We pray for two officers,” Modugno said. “We pray for Jim, who lost his life. And we also pray for Danny, who had the tragic event of shooting a fellow officer.”

Standing near a line of vases filled with roses and carnations, a cluster of Jensen’s fellow officers listened to the prayers with their hands clasped solemnly behind their backs.

Police Officer Lee Barnard, 29, shared more with Jensen than a job on the force. The two were both from Salt Lake City. And both were former Marines.

“I think all Marines share a common bond whether they are in or out,” Barnard said. “[Jensen] was just a fantastic guy--always willing to help, always had a sense of humor.”

A dozen members of the Little League team Jensen coached turned out to pay their respects to the man who led practices five days a week after his shift.

“He was always there for us,” said Jose Medina, 14. “He taught us never to give up in a game, even if we are losing by a lot.”

Jensen’s wife, Jennifer, did not attend the vigil, but police chaplain Earl Jardine told the crowd “she wanted to thank you all for coming.”

After the vigil, police officers and their relatives hugged each other and exchanged words of sympathy.

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Oxnard Police Officer Jim Stallings, a close friend of Jensen’s, called the dead patrolman and Christian two of the force’s best men.

“If you wanted a role model for a police officer, it would be Dan Christian or James Jensen,” Stallings, 32, said. “They were the Police Department.”

Officer Manuel Vega, another ex-Marine, said he had talked with Jensen about the perils of their job.

“I mentioned to him that if anything happened to me, I wanted the Marine Corps Hymn played on the bagpipes at my funeral,” Vega said. “He liked that idea. . . . We are going to arrange that for him.”