In 1962, President John F. Kennedy proclaimed May 15 as National Peace Officers Memorial Day and the calendar week in which May 15 falls as National Police Week. Established by a joint resolution of Congress in 1962, National Police Week pays special recognition to those law enforcement officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty for the safety and protection of others.
This year’s Police Week is May 15-21, 2022.
In honor of Law Enforcement Memorial Day, MN LEMA (Minnesota Law Enforcement Memorial Association) is holding a ceremony at the Peace Officer Memorial in St. Paul to honor the state’s fallen officers beginning the evening of May 14. The LEMA Honor Guard will walk the Thin Blue Line beginning at 6 p.m. on May 14 for 24 hours leading into a Remembrance Ceremony at 7 p.m. on May 15. Wreath colors will be Red, Blue, White or a Red, White and Blue multi colored wreath.
In order to honor the service and sacrifice of the 297 Minnesota peace officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty and their survivors, law enforcement officers from across the state are invited to stand in silent vigil at the Peace Officers’ Memorial for 20-minute shifts during the 24 hours prior to the Memorial Service. The LEMA Honor Guard will be Walking The Line during this same timeframe.
On Sunday, May 15, peace officers, family members, survivors, and supporters of peace officers are invited to the recently restored Minnesota Peace Officer’s Memorial for the annual ceremony to remember and honor all officers who have died in the Line Of Duty in Minnesota, including the addition of five fallen officers from 2021.
For the Patriot’s general readership area, the following departments have listed their fallen officers as: two fallen officers in the Little Falls area (Morrison County), one fallen officer from the Sherburne County Sheriff’s Office, two fallen officers from the St. Cloud Police Dept., one fallen officer in the Stearns County Sheriff’s Office, five fallen officers from the Wright County Sheriff’s Office and 11 officers from the following agencies: United States Coast Guard, United States Department of Agriculture - Forest Service, United States Department of Homeland Security - Customs and Border Protection, United States Department of Justice - Bureau of Prohibition, United States Department of Justice - Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Department of Labor - Immigration Service - United States Border Patrol, United States Department of the Treasury - Bureau of Narcotics, United States Department of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service - Bureau of Prohibition and United States Department of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service - Prohibition Unit.
One hundred and thirty nine of the 297 deaths of officers were from gunfire, six were due to aircraft accidents, three were animal related, 10 were assaults, 18 were automobile crashes, five drowned, five were duty-related illnesses, two were electrocuted, three fell, four died by accidental gunfire, 26 had heart attacks, 13 died from motorcycle crashes, 20 were podcast available, two were stabbed, one was struck by a streetcar, six were struck by a train, 15 were struck by a vehicle, one died by a structure collapse, five by vehicle pursuit and 11 by vehicular assault.
Memorial
The Minnesota Law Enforcement Memorial Association was formed in 1974 by Jim Crawford, then Chief of Police in Golden Valley, MN. LEMA was founded with the sole purpose of building a memorial to Minnesota peace officers who had died in the line of duty. This memorial was designed and the fundraising began. In 1977, the beautiful granite memorial was erected in the main concourse of the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. The memorial remained on display there until it was moved to its new home in the centerpiece of the Peace Officer’s Memorial on the capitol grounds in St. Paul.
Once the memorial was built, LEMA expanded its service to include granting college scholarships to the immediate family members of fallen officers. Nearly $100,000 in scholarships have been awarded. LEMA also sponsors an annual memorial service hosted by departments around the state. This service is held the first Sunday in May of each year. It is at this service that a ribbon bearing the name of each officer lost in the line of duty during the year is installed permanently on the LEMA flag. This service also includes the reading of the Honor Roll, the list of names of fallen Minnesota officers. As of 2022, this list includes the names of 297 officers dating back to 1881.
