Group holds a Back the Blue rally to show support for local police

A local group hosted a rally outside the South Bend Police Department headquarters Thursday afternoon to show their support for police.

The group says the rally is an opportunity to show residents of St. Joseph County and the men and women in law enforcement how much they appreciate them and the job they do.

"This is just a public statement from us to show the community and the police how much we value them and support them," said Kathy Maloney, Coordinator of the St. Joseph County Tea Party Patriots. "We want to get the message out there of what a great job they’re doing and this is not a counter to the other publicity that there is another side to the coin."