Support for Ofc. Spears

Hi, my name is Phil Hodges. I want to tell you about my cousin Ja'Price Spears.

During Easter weekend 2021, Omaha Police Officer Spears and his family experienced what they believed was an attempted break-in at their home in their quiet Gretna neighborhood around 12:30 a.m. Ofc. Spears located the individuals responsible for disturbing the peace of the neighborhood and the destruction of the Spears family's front door, and detained them until another agency arrived to formally arrest (cite) the individuals responsible.

On June 1, 2021, Ofc. Spears was notified that he had been charged with terroristic threats against the individuals he detained. Ofc. Spears and his family are shocked and blindsided by these charges and the subsequent unexpected legal defense they now have to fund.

Anyone who knows Ofc. Spears personally or through his work as a dedicated police officer knows that he is a caring, generous, and kind individual who believes firmly and wholeheartedly in helping those in need. It is these personality traits that sent him out to face an unknown threat against him, his family, and the people of his neighborhood alone.

In addition to being a Police Officer (Detective), Ofc. Spears is also a sixteen-year member of the Armed Forces. He is a commissioned Army Officer and an Iraq combat veteran. He is the living embodiment of a hero; someone who races toward danger in order to stop it and to protect others, at a cost of his own safety and, potentially, his own life.

In addition to his military service, Ofc. Spears is a recognizable and loved community figure. He has given his time and effort to bettering the community in the following ways:

• Coach for the Police Athletics Community Engagement (PACE) baseball team for inner city youth
• Volunteer for the Omaha Special Olympics
• Mentor for the BPOA Police Officer Mentorship Program
• Volunteer with the Shop With A Cop children's holiday event
• Speaker at the BPOA/Kappa Alpha Psi Annual Teen Summit event
• Volunteer to deliver holiday meals to those in need
• Member of the Police Honor Guard
• Member of the Army National Guard Funeral Honors Guard
• Member of Multiple Scholarship Committees

During this incredibly tumultuous and divisive time, it's easy to point fingers at and lay blame on the police. But there are real people who wear these badges. Real people who will risk it all in the blink of an eye, up to and including their own lives, if it means they can save someone. Real people who, when they feel they and possibly their entire neighborhood are being attacked or victimized, will run out into the night to face the threat.

These people are the real heroes, and they deserve our love, respect, and support.

My cousin is one of those real heroes, and I want him to know he's not in this alone as he and his family face the hardest challenge of their entire lives.

He's given his time, effort, kindness, bravery, courage, and dedication to not only the cities of Omaha and Gretna, but to this country as a whole. It's time we come together and give back to this man who's given us so much.

Please consider a donation to assist with Ofc. Spears's legal defense.

Thank you,

Phil Hodges