We mourn the tragic loss of our good friend, Vietnam veteran,
and life-long public servant, the late Carroll County State’s Attorney Jerry
Barnes.
Word spread quickly early Saturday afternoon, November 29,
2014 through the tight-knit Carroll County community of law enforcement, public
officials and old main-line Carroll County families that Mr. Barnes had passed
away.
By Kevin E. Dayhoff November 29, 2014
Late at night – Westminster, Md. - - Over the years I have
written several stories about my friend Mr. Barnes. I had the chance to talk
with him at length on November 2, 2007 for several articles I wrote for
Veterans Day. It was one of the first occasions he and I took to talk about
Vietnam in all these years.
Jerry Barnes served as a Sergeant in Vietnam with the 5th
Special Forces from September 16, 1969 to September 16, 1970. In Vietnam, one
of his assignments was working as a Special Forces advisor with twelve
Montagnard fighters of the Civilian Irregular Defense Group (CIDG) at a radio
relay site, in Kon Tum Province, on the Ho Chi Minh trail ‘near’ Laos.
Soon after arriving at Cam Ranh Bay in September 1969, he was
assigned to the first of three “A-Camps” in Kon Tum Province which is located
in the Central Tay Nguyen Highlands and is bordered on the north by Quang Nam;
on the south by Gia Lai; on the east by Quang Ngai and on the west by
Laos. The “A-Camp” counterinsurgency
concept is still being used to this day and was used extensively in Afghanistan
and Iraq.
In Kon Tum province he served at A-241 Polei Kleng; A-244
Ben Het; A-245 Dak Seang – about 20 miles from the Laotian border as one of
approximately 10 American “advisors” serving with several hundred Montagnard
tribesmen in the “Civilian Irregular Defense Group” counterinsurgency
program. The Montagnards had aligned
themselves with the South Vietnamese and the Americans to patrol the Ho Chi
Minh trail.
In particular one of Barnes’ assignments was to work with
twelve Montagnard fighters at a radio relay site. While serving with the 5th
Special Forces Group a “typical” assignment was to go out on 8 to 10-day
operations as (more often than not) the lone American with a contingent of
South Vietnamese Special Forces counterparts – or Montagnards, to monitor and
patrol the Ho Chi Minh trail. “Our
objective was to interdict and disrupt the supply activities of the trail.”
“It was while out on one of these patrols that Barnes’
heroic actions earned him the first of two Bronze Stars for valor,” according
to a biographical sketch written a number of years ago by former Carroll County
Maryland State Delegate and newspaper reporter Carmen Amedori.
Mr. Barnes explained that he was with 20 Montagnards 18
miles from the Laotian border “manning a radio relay station for a larger
operation farther out when we were attacked as dusk by a (contingent) of the North
Vietnamese regular Army.” The ensuing
firefight lasted throughout the night.
“We took some casualties and before it was all over, it took calling in
an artillery attack, then Cobra helicopter gunships followed by suppression
fire from C-130’s, known as “Puff the Magic Dragons,” and finally two fighter
jets to save them.
Before returning home he was awarded a second Bronze Star
and the Combat Infantry Badge among a number of recognitions.
Word spread quickly early Saturday afternoon, November 29,
2014 through the tight-knit Carroll County community of law enforcement, public
officials and old main-line Carroll County families that Mr. Barnes had passed
away.
Those of us who work with death notifications often never
quite know what to say publicly… If I am on a fire, accident or crime scene, I often
wait until the Office of the Maryland State Fire Marshall or another law
enforcement agency puts-out a statement so that I may have an idea to how to
approach a death…
When a public official dies, those of us who serve as public
information officers are equally careful as to what to say and when. In the case
of Mr. Barnes, Captain Richard L. Hart Jr., Commander Investigative Services
Division of the Carroll County Sheriff's Office released a statement at 5:03
p.m.:
“On November 29, 2014
at approximately 10:30am, Carroll County Sheriff’s Deputies responded to a
private residence in Westminster for a report of an attempted suicide. Upon the
Deputy’s arrival, EMS personnel were providing aid to a male who was suffering
from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The man was
transported to the Carroll Hospital Center where he was pronounced dead.
“The man has been
identified as Jerry Francis Barnes, who is the State’s Attorney for Carroll
County.
“Mr. Barnes was a
lifelong resident of Carroll County and has served as a criminal prosecutor for
a total of 38 years, including the past 20 as Carroll County’s State’s
Attorney.
“Mr. Barnes’ body has
been transported to the State Medical Examiner’s Office. The investigation is
continuing….”
This comes a cold wake-up call to always remember the
sacrifices made by our nation’s military, law enforcement and public officials
to preserve the quality of life and freedoms we hold so dear.
Day after day, they
take some brain away…. The demons never go away. They conveniently hide in
the shadows of our everyday hectic lives. On Feb. 26, 1995, I wrote, in part….
[We] are a walking sandwich board testimony to our messy, imperfect lives as
much as the amused passers-by. It’s what one does with their relationship with
the absurdities of life that makes one unique... and one’s repository of
discarded sandwich boards... are what counts. As Mr. Shakespeare once said: “Let
the end try the man. Or as the Masai say, “Epwo m-baa poking in-gitin got,” - “Everything
has an end."
Our only defense is to put on the Whole Armor of God:
10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the
power of His might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to
stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh
and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of
the darkness of this age,[a] against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the
heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God that you may be able
to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth,
having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet
with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 above all, taking the shield of
faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked
one. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is
the word of God; 18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the
Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for
all the saints— Ephesians 6: 10-18
