Newark Officer Protects and Serves in Iraq

A rocket attack outside of her Baghdad base served as a grim reminder that Newark police officer Tina Knutson was in the middle of a war.

“The second week I was here, a rocket came in,” Knutson said. “It made this war real for me. There are some people out there who want us (U.S. Armed Forces) gone and dead.”

Knutson, who just earned a military promotion to captain, says she’s willing to face dangers like the rocket attack and serve her country, far from family and friends, in order to do her part in keeping all Americans safe.

“One of my friends said back home on the news, they’re talking about Charlie Sheen,” Knutson said. “Over here (in Baghdad), we face IEDs (improvised explosive devices) and we get shot at. That’s why there’s a military. It’s so that people back home can live their lives.”

Knutson says one news report that has touched a nerve with troops serving overseas is a recent Supreme Court ruling that allows a Kansas church to continue protesting at soldiers’ funerals.

“We (the military) give those people the freedom to behave like so irresponsibly and take their freedom for granted,” Knutson wrote in an e-mail message. “If it wasn't for us and the fact that they live in the greatest country in the world, they couldn't protest. And just because it's a right for them to protest doesn't make it right to do.”

The former school resource officer for is on military leave from the police department as she serves with Headquarters Support Company, 14th Psychological Operations Battalion, 7th Psychological Operations Group from Moffett Airfield. 

In addition to advising and assisting Iraqi troops, Knutson says her unit helps with the U.S. military efforts of winning the hearts and minds of the Iraqi people.

“We figure out what motivates people,” Knutson said.

This is her first deployment in 19 years. While she was on active duty, Knutson served a year at Camp Carroll Korea with the 307th Signal Battalion. Then she joined the 67th Signal Battalion at Fort Gordon, GA. Knutson also spent six years with the Minnesota National Guard.

She says it was an easy transition from her life as a police officer to her current life as a soldier in a war zone.

“When things don’t go right, you roll with the punches,” Knutson said. “As a Newark police officer, we deal with people all day long. Now, I’m dealing with military people all day and keeping the lines of communication open.”

Knutson says falling asleep and navigating through dust storms were just some of the challenges of working in Baghdad.

“The dust storms were the worst thing so far,” she said. “In some storms, you can’t see 10 feet in front of your face. It’s so thick that it reminds me of fog. You can also taste it and that’s gross.”

In addition to wearing her hair down and sleeping in her own bed, Knutson said another thing she misses is having a bathroom nearby.

“You have to walk far to use the facilities,” Knutson said.

Knutson has served with the for nearly 10 years.

“I like wearing my police uniform. I like my job,” she said.

She says her favorite assignment was being Newark Memorial’s school resource officer (SRO) for the last three years.

Knutson considered a career as a teacher or a school counselor before becoming a police officer.

“Every once in a while, you make a difference with the kids,” Knutson said. “A couple of kids come back after graduation and they talk to me. That means more to me than anything.”

In Baghdad, Knutson and her fellow soldiers continue to help kids.  Recently, she helped shave firefighters as part of a fundraiser for the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, a group that raises money for childhood cancer research.

Knutson says she's scheduled to finish this deployment in February 2012.