The fallen Summit officer has been identified as Troy Floyd, a veteran police officer from the Lincoln and Pike County area.
At both scenes — the one where Floyd had fallen in the line of duty and the one where officers had taken down the suspect — faces were somber. The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation worked the crime scenes while others tended to business, some keeping the perimeter secure, some relaying messages, some passing around a social media post allegedly put up by Floyd’s killer just after he shot the officer.
“See yall in the after life I just faced a cracker ik he dead,” the post reads.
DPS Commissioner Sean Tindell posted about Floyd too, saying, “He devoted over two decades of his life to serving the people of our state. He leaves behind a family, friends, and colleagues whose lives he uniquely, positively impacted.
This tragic loss is a stark reminder that evil exists, and the men and women who wear the badge stand between us and that evil. They risk life and limb and face unknown danger every day; they deserve our utmost support and gratitude.”
Over in McComb, officers from jurisdictions as far north as Madison County gathered at Southwest Mississippi Medical Center where Floyd had just been pronounced dead after being shot in the line of duty. Hugging and shaking hands, the tight-lipped and teary-eyed group did all they could — just wait.
Some of them had run for office against him, most had worked with him in some capacity. All had stories and photos to share, and many took solace in the fact that Floyd was very much a man of faith.
Floyd was a career law enforcement officer, having worked with the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office, the Wesson Police Department, the Mississippi Department of Corrections, and Summit Police Departments throughout his life. He ran for Constable multiple times, and for Sheriff in the last election.
When it came to his work, Floyd was known as being an all-or-nothing guy. A narcotics officer standing outside the hospital noted that Floyd still enjoyed drug arrests and was still excited about his job.
Troy Floyd did nothing halfway.
Full disclosure: I knew Troy, and I knew probably half of the law enforcement on all the scenes today. There’s something you can’t explain about what it feels like to be among a group of law enforcement officers when one of their own is killed doing his job. It’s a somber resolution mixed with a quiet heartbreak that oscillates into righteous anger. It’s as unique as it is indescribable, and it colors everyone it touches blue.
My heart breaks for Troy’s family and his friends, his coworkers and the rest of the Southwest Mississippi law enforcement family. For Lincoln County, where it feels like this keeps happening to our people, and for the town of Summit, which shouldn’t be big enough to have a line of duty death.
But it is. Everywhere is now.
Godspeed, Troy. Thank you for giving your life to protect us.
