DOC Community Corrections Supervisor Eric Morgan passed away peacefully on Oct. 22, 2022 after a long battle with a bacterial infection. CCS Morgan supervised Unit 604 of the Longview Field Office from April 2016 until his death. His devotion to his job, his unit and the Department inspired all whose lives he touched. His work as a CCS and as a Community Corrections Officer made a significant public safety impact in Cowlitz County.
Eric began his Department of Corrections career as a CCO in Longview in March 2003. He worked a variety of caseloads, including sex offenders, Drug Offender Sentencing Alternative cases, and a general high-risk caseload. In 2007, he was promoted to CCO3 and served as the lead officer for four CCOs. From 2007 through 2009, Morgan and one of the CCOs on his team were attached to the Longview Police Department’s Street Crimes Unit. He maintained a full caseload while leading other CCOs and assisting Longview Police in operations targeting drug trafficking and violent criminals.
In 2009, Morgan was selected as the Section 3 Community Corrections Officer of the Year. Among the many accomplishments cited in the CCO of the year nomination was an after-hours arrest of a supervised individual who threatened to kill Governor Christine Gregoire, a judge and prosecutor; the individual was returned to prison after the new felony conviction. Through his great energy and hard work, Eric also found time to perform several additional duties including firearms instructor, DOC liaison officer to the Cowlitz-Wahkiakum Narcotics Task Force and DOC representative on the Cowlitz County Sex Offender Assessment Committee.
As a supervisor, Eric forged a very strong, close-knit unit and worked tirelessly with his fellow supervisors to standardize field office operations and procedures, along with strengthening community partnerships.
Eric’s corrections career began in the late 1990s when he served as a correctional officer for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. He later moved to Oregon and became a correctional officer with the Federal Bureau of Prisons at Federal Correctional Institution, Sheridan. He left that job to return to his home in the Longview-Kelso area when he joined DOC.
Prior to working corrections, Eric served five years in the US Army, including combat time in 1993 as an Airborne Ranger with the 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment in Somalia as well as a tour in the Republic of Korea. After leaving active duty, Eric continued to serve in the US Army Reserves until he returned to the Pacific Northwest.
To honor Eric, DOC has approved wearing of mourning bands through the evening of his memorial service, which has not yet been scheduled. Mourning bands can be worn on an officer’s agency metal shield, and for non-uniformed staff, a small black ribbon can be worn on your clothing, but must not cover your DOC identification. Bands are authorized until the memorial is concluded.
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