I don't talk about this a lot but I have a friend who was murdered by her husband, a Pennsylvania State Trooper.

He shot her in front of their children while she was folding laundry in the living room. Claims his gun "went off" while he was cleaning it.

1/

If I got into all the red flag, breaches of protocol, the bizarre firearm design that makes "glock leg" a thing, and what a sweet wonderful person she was, the heartbreaking thread about JoAnna would go for days.

(She was pregnant too)

2/

But what I'm thinking about today is her friends, the other "Wives of Blue" married to her husband's coworkers, the ones who covered for him despite the blatant nature of the murder.

The facebook posts from them, the vigils, the testimonials...

3/

The absolute terror they tried to hide but couldn't - the very real fear that it could happen to them, and no one would do anything about it either.

They never said that. But the careful wording they used - the looks in their eyes - broke my heart.

4/

Cops protect each other first and foremost. That's how they get away with such travesties of justice.

That's what happened in Minneapolis - other cops stood guard while the murderer committed murder in front of an crowd of anguished bystanders.

5/

All four were fired. Let's hope that means all four will be prosecuted.

Because the murderer wouldn't have even tried it if the other three didn't back him up.

6/

Three years later JoAnna's husband ended up pleading guilty to negligence or something like that. He went to prison for two years.

That was two years ago. I don't know when he gets out, or what's going to happen to Joseph and "my Annabel Lee" who live with Joanna's mother.

7/

I shouldn't have to worry about that.

He shouldn't be getting out.

But we had given up hope he would ever be charged with anything at all.

The media was full of reports of his "professionalism" and how "composed" and "cooperative" he was during the investigation.

8/

I guess the guilty plea, and the fact that these four Minneapolis monsters were arrested immediately, represent progress.

Thank god for video.

But we have a long way to go.

9/9