When the war in Iraq began in March 2003, Lt. Billy Riggs of Winston-Salem Police Department put up photographs of the two or three officers who were deployed to the country with the Army National Guard.
"Now, we have so many," Detective Greg Dorn said.
Riggs put up a display Tuesday with the photographs of 14 Winston-Salem police officers who are serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. The display is on the second floor of the Public Safety Center.
The officers are shown in their police uniforms, said Dorn, who maintains the display.
The display is "for their brothers and sisters back here," Dorn said. "We want them to know that we are thinking about them."
The display is also open to people outside the department.
If a resident comes into the police department and wants to see it, "then someone will escort them to second floor to see it," Dorn said.
Riggs, a supervisor in the patrol division, said the officers shown in the display serve both their city and their country.
Two police officers, Russell Barbee and Marcus Hamilton, serve as first and second lieutenants with their military units, Dorn said.
The remaining police officers serve in the enlisted ranks as medics, military-police officers, combat soldiers, artillerymen and members of tank crews.
The display's only female officer, Tangela Manuel-Watts, is a member of the Army Reserve, and is being trained at Fort Jackson, S.C.
Several officers are members of the N.C. Army National Guard, Dorn said.
Some served with Bobby Staley, a police detective and National Guardsman who died while off duty in April when a pickup collided with his motorcycle in Davie County.
Dorn has recently returned from a deployment with the 1132nd Military Police Company of the N.C. Army National Guard, where he served for nine months in Baghdad as military police officer.
He is a staff sergeant and a squad leader with the National Guard.
Dorn said he served briefly with fellow detectives John Tesh and Stanley Nieves, who are members of the 30th Heavy Combat Brigade in Iraq.
The deployed officers' individual units have not had any casualties, but 1st Lt. Leevi K. Barnard of Mount Airy, who served with the 30th Brigade, was killed in Baghdad in May with two other soldiers.
The local officers are expected to begin returning to the police department in March 2010, Dorn said.
People should honor their service, Dorn said.
"No matter your feelings about the war, we still support the soldiers," Dorn said.
"They are out doing their jobs. You can't fault them for that."
■ John Hinton can be reached at 727-7299 or at jhinton@wsjournal.com.
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