Family, Friends & Fellow Officers Remember...

I didn't have the privilege to know Tye, but I do think of him, his girls and his wife all the time. I stopped by his grave and it moved me to tears, and now I can't even drive past the cemetary without feeling my heart sink. The day of his funeral I tied a black ribbon to my car antenna with the numbers "1463" written on it, I guess that was just my own personal way of mourning. One day I hope to become a police officer, and if I could look for inspiration from anybody, it would be Tye.

Thank you Tye for everything you have done.

September 18, 2004

Praying for you and your family, Stacy, during this one year anniversary! I've kept you in my thoughts and prayers often and have esp. had you on my mind since the 11th. As you reminded me, the Lord is always with us carrying us through our grief, comforting us with his grace. Take care of yourself, and go to the spa! :)

Bryce Mazur, Wife of Deputy Andrew Mazur
EOW 8/17/2003 -- Greenville County Sheriff's Office, SC

September 18, 2004

A year ago today the unthinkable happened. This afternoon I walked the ground where you fell. I felt as if you were there with us, watching as we all wept. Our hearts are broken - you aren't here with us. Not a day goes by that I wish I could just find you and talk to you, there is so much that I want to tell you. Keep all of your friends and loved ones safe. We will never forget all that you have done for us. You touched lives in ways that no one else ever will. Love you and miss you so much. Rest in Peace

September 12, 2004

It's been a year since that horrible night. What a terrible and senseless loss.

To those of you that read these reflections: know that Jason is thought of by us each and every night. Everything you have read about him is true. He was a police officer that others (including myself) wished they could be like. Every night, I strive to be just a little bit like Jason. But, I know I can never replace a true warrior like him.

Jason, you are missed, and not forgotten.

NE C-Shift
OPD

September 11, 2004

Tye I can not grasp that in a few days it will all ready be a year. As I sit here on my birthday I think of how difficult the last years has been for your family as all of their birthday's and your's came and went. The moments have gone by so quickly, my brother you are very missed. I have sat by you where you now rest, I have cried and laughed. I have thought about your beautiful girls and wept for their loss. I just read the web site your father has in your name and I am so appreciative for it. I must let you and all who read these reflections know that your brothers and sisters at OPD will ALL WAYS THINK OF AND REMEMBER YOU TIL WE TAKE OUR LAST BREATH ON THIS EARTH.

Anonymous
Omaha Police Department

September 6, 2004

Jason,
It has almost been 10 months since you left us. It is still so hard to believe. I visit this site all the time, but this time was different. This time, I sat and read most of the reflections that were left for you. Not only is it hard to believe that you're gone, but I don't want to believe it. I once thought that time would heal the pain and eventually the tears would just stop, I was wrong. Everytime I think about you, I cry. Everytime I visit the cemetery, I cry. Everytime I visit this website,I cry. Everytime I read something in the paper about you or Stacy or your girls, I cry. Never before has my heart and my memory been filled with so much of one person. I am so proud to be able to say that I knew you, and so happy to be able to call you my friend. You are my hero, I will always look up to you and yearn to be just like you. I hope you are reading this right now, I wouldn't want you to think for one second that anyone down here has forgotten you. We haven't! I miss you so much, there is a void in my heart that may never be filled. Can't wait to see you again. Rest in Peace Jason

Following in your footsteps always.

July 16, 2004

TO THE FAMILY OF SERGEANT TYE PRATT:
I MET YOUR WIFE & OLDEST DAUGHTER & PARENTS IN WASHINGTON TO HONOR OUR FALLEN OFFICERS. YOU HAVE A GREAT FAMILY AND I LEARNED YOU WERE A GREAT GUY. I TRULY FEEL YOUR PAIN AS I LOST MY ONLY BROTHER 11/2/03 TO A CAR ACCIDENT WHILE RESPONDING TO A CALL 9/25/03. HE LOVED HIS JOB JUST AS I'M SURE TYE DID AND WE ARE SO THANKFUL FOR EACH & EVERY POLICE OFFICER OUT THERE. I HOPE THE FAMILY IS DOING WELL. TAKE CARE & KNOW THAT MY THOUGHTS & PRAYERS ARE WITH YOU ALL. MAY GOD BLESS YOU.(I SAT IN FRONT OF YOU DURING THE CEREMONY).
DENISE WOODS/MISSISSIPPI
SISTER OF LT GREGORY MEDLIN
E.O.W. 11/2/03

July 6, 2004

Memorial Day 2004
I stopped by your hallowed grounds to pay tribute for the life you lived and the sacrafice you gave to protect the nation we live in. Your name and those of other fallen officers will always be remebered when this nation honors those who gave to keep us safe and to keep us free. The war we fight is just as dangerous and just as important as any other war. A warrior in the soul, a kid at heart, and a leader amoung friends. You honored yourself, your family, your brothers in arms, and your country. God Bless and God Speed to both you and your dreams.

30
Omaha Police

May 31, 2004

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

May 22, 2004

Dear Jason,

I know you are watching right now, so I guess you know how I did on my police exam. Not so well, like I thought. The test was hard! I waited for days for my scores to come and finally they came today. I got a 71, I passed but not high enough to go to the physical agility test. I was so disappointed, I sat and cried for a few minutes, but then I just thought of you and I felt better. "What would Jason say to me right now?" He'd probably tell me to suck it up and just not give up, and that I'll do better next time. I'm not giving up, not ever. I know you won't let me. I will be a police officer, I promised you.

Anonymous

April 15, 2004

Today they had a ceremony and awarded you the Purple Heart. Inside I felt so hurt and I miss your mischievous smile so much. I find myself thinking of you often as I drive to work and find myself calling my Sgt. to say I am running late only because I don't want to show up for roll call crying. At Christmas I cried because I got to experience the joy of handing out presents to my kids and knew that was something you must miss terribly. It is so hard to be strong when some piece of street garbage talks trash on you the way they still do with Jimmy. I pray for the strength to be the better man. I get dressed in the locker room and stare at your locker each day before shift. We all miss you so much. Famous Dave's will never be the same. Love you brother.

Anonymous

January 10, 2004

Jason, it seems like everywhere I go I see or hear something that reminds me of you. I think that is your little way of letting me know that you are still here. I talk to you all the time and I hope that you hear me. You are truly my inspiration. When I get to the force, I promise to make the city a better place for everyone you love. Always on my mind, forever in my heart. I miss you

Future Police Officer
Omaha, NE

January 9, 2004

Jason, I can remember exactly where I was at when I began to hear the news, but you know what I will never forget, is how you would go out of your way to help others. I remember you helping me through the hiring process. I would call you and ask you if you thought they would hire me, and you were always there to tell me not to worry. There were even times you would take the time to call me back at the end of your shift and answer my questions and give me the boost of confidence I would need. So until we see each other again, I will never forget you, and I know your standing right beside us doing what we love to do.

Omaha Police Department

December 29, 2003

Jason,

There are to many words I could put down here. Everything I have heard about you Makes me envey a great officer. Jason I am sorry I did not get to know you. Even with not knowing you the time I heard what happened I still felt like I lost a brother and continue to think of you just as that. Anybody that does this line of work is just that a brother. The officers there with you when it happened jason one was a friend that I knew I spent 3 months with him and was told he stayed by your side. I know you are watching and helping even from where you are now. My prayers go out to your family and Fellow Officers, My Brothers and Sisters. The only thing else is simply: Thanks Jason

December 7, 2003

"One thing I know: the only ones who will be happy are those among you who have sought and found a way to serve." Albert Schweitzer
My heartfelt condolences on the loss of your officer. I pray that the memory of happier times with him will ease the pain you feel today. He did not lose his life-he gave it in service to his community and for those he loved. He now walks safely on God's beat and watches over you still.
Your hero will not be forgotten. May God bless you in this most difficult time.

Monroe County Sheriff Dept.

November 29, 2003

Rest in Peace Brother...your sacrifices will never be forgotten...rest in Peace.

CPD

November 28, 2003

As a private citizen, I check this site frequently hoping that no new names will be added. Tragicly that is all too often not the case. I offer my heartfelt condolences not only to the friends and famliy of Sgt. Pratt, but to to the families of all fallen police heros. Most of us only have contact with the police when something bad happens to us or maybe when we get a traffic ticket. It's all too easy to take our safety and well being for granted. That safety and well being is ours only because of the dedicated officers who go about their duties day in and day out under the strain of a judical system that is falling apart and represents only a small part of our overall society. We would all agree that violent crime is bad but I say that there is NOTHING WORSE THAN KILLING A POLICE OFFICER. Thank you for what you do and be sure that there is a special place in Heaven for Sgt. Pratt and other that have and sadly will fall in the performace of your duties...

Anonymous

November 20, 2003

My heart aches for the Pratt family. Each day we ask police officers to keep us safe and losing Jason only reminds us of how incredibly difficult that is to do. I think about your family often and hope that time heals your wounds.

sister of an angel in blue

November 19, 2003

I was reading the reflection left by office Steve Martinez, and I have to say I was crying like a baby. It is amazing that an officer I have never met in my entire life could bring me to tears. It's actually the thought of such an enormous loss that tears at me. In 2002 a good friend of mine was murdered as she responded to a "routine call". Shot right through the throat. I remember hearing her call for help over the radio, and then sitting in the hospital as she lay in coma. She couldn't let go until we were ready. Just like your friend Officer Pratt.

We live life the best we know how, and when we lose someone close, we lose them the best we know how. We continue to respond to routine calls, even though we may not live to write the report. When we go to high risk calls we keep our guard up because your friend in blue, and my friend in blue were taken away from us. The one thing that never gets better is the pain of them being gone. Although this pain gets worse, it is still the best way we know how to lose them.

We still have our memories, and walking into a dinner and not seeing our friends sitting there is hard. But what else can we do, we must fight the good fight and protect our community because it's all we know how to do.

My friend would tell me to suck it up, She would have said go on and get the bad guys. She wouldn't tell me to do it for her, but I do. I'm sure you guys are all doing it for your friend Tye.


I wish you guys all luck in your lives, and I pray that Officer Pratt's wife and to children understand the legacy that there father has left. It sounds like he was amazing.

Officer Pratt- Please watch over us as we all continue to patrol.

jessica

November 15, 2003

To all my brothers and sisters at OPD and to the family that Sgt. Pratt left behind I am saddened at your loss. My you find happiness in his memory and may you never forget the person he was. Try not to dwell in sadness and hatred, rather smile when you think of him as he will be watching down on you from above.

Ofc Rech
Alameda PD, Alameda CA

November 12, 2003

Unbelievable, I was on a traffic stop with a lady from Omaha, NE. Nothing serious just speeding. I was releasing her from the scene, no ticket issued, when she handed me a post card sized picture of Sgt. Pratt and the words "we miss you daddy" and pictures of his family. One of the saddest things, she said he was a friend of mine just a reminder to be safe out there. Its amazing how far reaching Sgt Pratt's death is. Its a true testament to how wonderful of a man he must have been. Truely amazing his memory lives on throughout the nation. Blessings to Sgt Pratts family from Illinois

Patrol
Illinois

November 10, 2003

Tye,
Those of us who served with you and knew the warrior and the prankster you were will forever have a place in our hearts that is both dark with the pain of your loss and glowing with the memories of your past. We all love you and hold those memories dear.

The following is re-printed form the Omaha Police Union official newspaper The Shield. I hope it sheds light on the type of man we all lost for those of you who did not know him. He was truly one of a kind.


Just Filling the Cracks
by Steve Martinez


I cannot recall a time when my heart ached as much as when I heard those words come through my phone.
“It’s Pratt.”
Jason Tye Pratt, my colleague, my friend, my brother. The man with the quintessential “s**t-eating grin”. Preparing myself for the worst, I began to wonder how he could lose. It was unthinkable to me that any piece of street garbage could emerge victorious from a battle with Tye. He was a victim of a tragic circumstance. He was a victim of a flawed judicial system. He was a victim of his own trust in human nature and the belief that no one would perpetrate such a horrible crime. He was an officer of the law that swore to protect and serve, and perhaps make that ultimate sacrifice some day. He was everything I aspire to be, and in that, I am not alone.
In the days following September 11, I spent many hours at the hospital to support the family. Many of us did. It was in these times that I heard stories and saw things that painted a picture of a man so loved and so special that his passing has brought together a community and brought our “family of blue” closer than ever.
I was fortunate to get to talk with many of Tye’s relatives and hear about other sides of him and was audience to some great stories. One day at the hospital I talked with Stacy’s father about Tye. He told me ho when Tye had court he would come over to their house and raid the fridge instead of driving all the way home. He was amazed at how much he could eat. He would tease him about eating so much and Tye would smirk and declare, “Just filling the cracks. Just filling the cracks.” But isn’t that what Jason Tye Pratt was all about? He was filling the cracks in the lives of every single person who knew him. He filled them with a loud razzing of a crew-mate at roll call, a locker room rant that made you smile and think, or a hilarious perspective on something that left you shaking your head as you laughed your ass off, able only to mutter one word, “Pratt”.
I started to reflect back on the first times I met Tye when he was a brand new officer. I remember my first impression of Tye. It took me all of 20 seconds to come to the conclusion, “This guy is nuts!” I was partly right. He was nuts about life. You can see it in every picture, the smirk. You could look at him and just know he was up to something. He always was. I used to marvel at how strong he was when I’d see him in the weight room, music blaring like you were actually at the Def Leppard concert. And the tirades he went on when someone neglected to put away the weight equipment. That just was not proper weight room etiquette, and he would let you know it.
Stacy told me how they took a flight out of state down to pick up the car of his dreams and then drove it back home. The time they spent on the road together was a priceless memory that I could see in her eyes she would cherish forever. I tried to imagine just what side-splitting misadventures a road trip with Tye would bring. He was unique in that he could bring down the house with his antics so effortlessly and he never seemed to run out of things to say or do to make you smile.
A friend told me of his last 8-0 with Tye the night he was shot. He was in typical Tye form, boasting about what a great command officer he was going to be. He was so eager to get the stripes he said when he was promoted he was going to get two tattoos. One on each bicep... “Thunder” and “Lightning ”! That was soooo Tye. Who among us can’t picture him flexing to show off his tatoos growling “Thunder and Lightning! Yeah baby!”?
The same friend sat with me and we talked about some of the fun times we remembered with Tye. He came up with the perfect example of what kind of affect Tye had on people. He said that if you went into a place for dinner and saw another cop or two you would say hello and maybe shoot the breeze little. You might even sit down and eat with them, you might not. But when you walked into a place and saw Tye sitting there, it was “All right, I get to eat with Pratt!”
How do we say goodbye? Who will fill the cracks left behind by a loss so devastating? How can anyone try to adequately fill the cracks in the lives of his two beautiful girls? The truth is that having met the Pratt family, having seen the love and fellowship they share not only with each other, but with all who brought to them their best wishes and prayers it is clear how he came to be the friend and brother that we all knew and loved and will miss with all our hearts. During my time spent at the hospital with Tye’s family I developed a great appreciation for them. A great appreciation for the strength with which they dealt with this tragedy, and a great appreciation for giving us such a great friend to love and share our lives with. Tye was top notch because he came from a top notch family.
The support of the community for the Pratt family and to us officers has been overwhelming. At the many fund raisers it has been obvious that people have adopted Tye into their hearts as one of their own. At football games I saw adults and young people give and offer the sincerest of condolences. I saw a group of 12 year-old Millard North Middle School students give every penny they had, then plead for others to help the Pratt Family. I’ve heard other officers talk of the great outpouring of affection shown by the public. During the funeral procession we were all amazed at the number of people who paid their respects. From the elderly to the school children whose innocence gives us motivation to continue the good fight, each banner and each flag waived truly touched our hearts. Of all the homemade signs I saw, one stood out. It was but one word, so simple, yet it said everything that needed to be said and reflected Tye’s life and sacrifice poignantly, “Hero.”
I went to the fund raiser at the Rush St. Car show and spent a few minutes talking with Tye’s cousin, Vito. Jason was still hanging on, ever the fighter. We started asking the tough questions to each other. What was keeping him going? What was he hanging onto? What is he waiting for? I remembered one of the photos hanging over his bed in his ICU room. The one of him giving Eskimo kisses to his youngest daughter. I thought if ever there was something to fight for, something defy death for, it was moments like the one in that photo.
Cousin Vito said he could picture Tye arguing somewhere with a higher power. He said he could see Tye wanting to come back to his family, but not wanting to settle for any less of a life than he already had. Vito and I laughed at the thought of Tye flexing his arms and chest and yelling “Bulls**t!” at the notion that he couldn’t come back the way he wanted. We laughed because we believed it, and it was all we could do to keep from crying.
Perhaps he was waiting for his day. His opportunity to say goodbye with a bang. His opportunity to give us all a venue to be together and celebrate his life. His chance to fill the crowd at Burke Stadium with the energy he once displayed on that very field. His chance to see his family there to witness him honored with his jersey being retired. His chance to fill twelve girls with caring and love for others and watch them shine. His chance to give us all time to come together and mourn his passing as a community and a family. He waited not because he wasn’t ready to go. No, he waited because we weren’t ready to let him go. That, I believe, was his final act of unselfishness. His final gesture of love for those he was bound to leave behind. If we could thank him for giving all he had to give he would smile his smirk, shrug his broad shoulders and say...
“Just filling the cracks.”
Goodbye my friend.

Officer Steve Martinez
Omaha Police Department

November 2, 2003

Go now, and walk with the Lord. Lay your worries aside, you are home now. Until we meet again my brother.......

anonymous
Jacksonville Sheriff's Office, FL

October 31, 2003

The Watauga County Law Enforcement Auxiliary (Boone, NC) wanted to
offer our deepest sympathy to Officer Pratt's children, wife, and agency
during this tragedy. You are in our thoughts and prayers!

Watauga County Law Enforcement Auxiliary

October 28, 2003

Those of us who are still fighting the good fight will NEVER allow the memories of our fallen brothers and sisters be forgotten or tarnished. May God hold your family in his arms and shower them with love. RIP brother!

Patrolman Kenny Emshoff
Mt. Vernon Police Department, Illinois

October 22, 2003