One year ago today, San Diego Police Officer Jeremy Henwood was shot and killed in the line of duty. As tragic as his death was to his family and the community, there is some comfort in the fact that two mothers are alive today because of his final gift as an organ donor.
“We consider donors to be heroes who in their last hour give a lifetime to others,” said Lisa Stocks, executive director to Lifesharing, a federally-designated organ and tissue recovery organization. “Officer Henwood understood that. He registered to be a donor years ago, something we so appreciate.”
Henwood was honored for his organ donation at a ceremony Monday. Those who helped the officer fulfill his final life-saving wish were also recognized, including the County Medical Examiner and the firefighters, emergency room doctors and community members.
Colleagues thanked those who offered support to his family after it became apparent that he would not survive his wounds at the hospital. Stocks explains that often in a homicide investigation there is a concern that recovering organs could affect the investigation, and the Medical Examiner’s Office doctors assist in signing off permissions. In this case, she said, the decision was made very quickly and the process was expedited.
“This office has a long working relationship with Lifesharing … I’m very much committed to it,” said Dr. Wagner, who accepted the award Monday. “It’s a pretty important gift and I will do everything I can to accommodate the desires of Lifesharing and the Eye Bank and the families.”
Wagner said in some other states, organ and tissue recovery can be considered adverse to criminal investigations, but that is not the case in California and our county.
Investigators work with hospitals to preserve evidence, document the case and maintain an appropriate chain of custody for evidence. Organs are recovered at hospitals, and in some cases medical examiner investigators will observe the recovery, he said. Tissue recovery including skin, muscle, bones, tendons and heart valves are done at the Medical Examiner’s Office.
Henwood’s family and the organ recipients were not present at the ceremony Monday at the Mid City Police Station, where the officer worked. His family was attending a memorial service for him in Ottowa. Henwood’s family will have a rare opportunity to meet the recipients in December.
And in January, they will see Henwood honored in the Rose Parade. The officer has been selected as the San Diego honoree on this year’s Donate Life float. His portrait will be designed in flowers.
To learn more about Lifesharing, visit http://www.lifesharing.org/, email info@lifesharing.org, or call (619) 521-1983.
