Officer Diab, who joined the force in June 2017, turned 25 on June 20 and is recuperating from a gunshot wound she sustained while transporting 38-year-old Trenton resident Jamey A. Griffin to St. Joseph for a mental health evaluation on June 14. During a struggle in the vehicle, Griffin was able to gain control of Officer Diab’s weapon, shooting her in the abdomen. Griffin was wounded in the hand during the incident. He attempted to take the patrol unit and flee from the scene, but two bystanders, Rick Shannon and Jason Gamm, were able to capture him and hold him until law enforcement officers arrived on the scene in Winston. Griffin is being held without bond in the Daviess-DeKalb Regional Jail on three felony charges.
While the story of her injury has garnered a lot of attention across the entire area, Officer Diab is focusing on getting better and celebrating every breath. The outpouring of support she has received has left her nearly speechless – something that anyone who knows her would find somewhat unbelievable.
“I really appreciate the support of the community and everything that everyone has done for me,” she said Wednesday. “It has really touched my heart and opened my eyes about how this community really cares about me. I appreciate the prayers. I had no pulse and now I’m awake and talking, so it’s working.”
The long road to recovery has begun and no one knows exactly what the future will hold, but community members are making the road a little bit easier with numerous fundraisers being planned and individuals and organizations donating funds for expenses, utilities, etc. A fund has been set up at North Central Missouri College, where Officer Diab is a criminal justice major. Dino’s Diner will hold a fish dinner fund-raiser tonight (Friday), with the proceeds from the $10 meal to be donated to the officer. Other opportunities to help can be found on the Facebook page Helping Jasmine Diab.
As one would expect, Officer Diab is not the only one being affected by the incident. Her fellow officers at the Trenton Police Department have had to come to terms with the incident and how close they came to losing a member of their family. The community support for Officer Diab, however, has been a bright spot, according to Trenton Police Chief Rex Ross.
“I think the whole department has been impressed with the show of support,” said Chief Ross. “At a time when morale was really low, we’ve been able to recognize that we really do have a lot of community support.”
Chief Ross said the officers have held a group meeting to be able to process the events of June 14 and another one will be offered in the future. The department is also reaching out to those who have been in similar situations to be available for Officer Diab and her fellow officers. The thing that no one believed could happen here has happened and Chief Ross is just looking for the positives that can come from it.
“I definitely think this gave everyone a new perspective – it’s opened everyone’s eyes to how dangerous this job really is,” he said. “Hopefully it will help us overcome any complacency we may have had.”
Those wishing to donate to the fund at North Central Missouri College, which is being coordinated through the college’s Criminal Justice Club and hosted by the NCMC Foundation, may do so online at https://sail.ncmissouri.edu/Sail/Finances/MakeDonation.aspx or mail a check to the NCMC Foundation at 1301 Main St., Trenton, MO 64683. Officer Diab’s name should be written in the memo line of the check.