Alumnus Uses Law Enforcement Career to Improve Lives in City of East St. Louis
Lieutenant DeAngelo Franklin (’16 and ’19) was born with law enforcement in his blood. He comes from a long line of relatives who served in the line of duty, from the U.S. military to the Department of Corrections. For the two-time Southern Illinois University Edwardsville alumnus, it was only natural for him to follow suit.
“I chose to go into law enforcement because of the long line of relatives who served in law enforcement when I was growing up,” explained Franklin. “I’m proud to say that all of them retired as high-ranking officials. These family members influenced me to pursue my own career in law enforcement.”
Franklin joined the East St. Louis Police Department in 1994 as a patrol officer. Since that time, he has served the department in various capacities, including gang crime specialist, school resource officer and administrative aide to the chief of police. Franklin earned his bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from SIUE in 2016 and his master’s degree from Lindenwood University in 2017.
Franklin has had many fulfilling moments during his two-and-a-half-decade career, but one moment in 1997 stands out. Franklin was working an overtime shift in the patrol division when he was called to a house fire where two children were trapped in the basement. Upon his arrival, he saw a fellow officer exiting the basement window after being overcome by smoke.
“I immediately helped him out of the window and then entered the burning house through the basement window,” said Franklin. “I walked around searching for the children, but I, too, was overtaken by smoke. I went to the window to get some fresh air and went back to my search. As I was returning to the window again for fresh air, I felt the body of one of the trapped children. I picked him up and carried him to the window where I handed him to a firefighter.”
For saving the child’s life, Franklin was awarded the Public Safety Medal of Valor in 1999. This designation is one of the highest commendation medals awarded by the U.S. Justice Department.
Police officers often face dangerous situations on the job, and Franklin acknowledges that sometimes these situations do not have positive outcomes. After spending years walking past a placard at the police department listing the names of officers who had lost their lives in the line of duty, Franklin felt compelled to do more. In 2005, he founded a memorial program for fallen East St. Louis police officers.
“I planned two tasks, one to create a living memorial for these deceased officers and then something better than a small placard located outside the chief’s office,” said Franklin.
After petitioning the local Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) Lodge 126 for funding, Franklin purchased badges, name plates and a display case to memorialize the officers. He also coordinated with the City of East St. Louis to plan a memorial service in June 2006 honoring the fallen officers.
“I remember speaking with a lot of the officers’ family members, and hearing their stories touched my heart,” said Franklin. “The families were extremely grateful that the city had finally honored their fallen loved ones.”
Over the past 25 years, Franklin has made a positive impact on both his colleagues and the residents of East St. Louis. He credits his education in the criminal justice program at SIUE for supporting the career he has built.
“My education has been fundamental in my law enforcement experience by preparing me in a number of ways from criminology, theories, research and sociology,” said Franklin. “My study abroad experiences through SIUE have allowed me to see how law enforcement agencies work in places like Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and Dublin. I feel my educational experience has also prepared me for phase two of my life.”
This second phase of Franklin’s life includes a second degree from SIUE. Stemming from his passion for history and the role it plays in our current society, Franklin earned his bachelor’s degree in historical studies in 2019.
“I’ve met a lot of wonderful people throughout my educational experience at SIUE,” added Franklin. “I also met some of the most brilliant professors in the world teaching criminal justice, history and sociology. I wouldn’t trade my educational experience for anything.”
