McLean, VA (October 8, 2024) - Every year in May, hundreds of officers, survivors of the fallen and citizen supporters gather in Tallahassee, Florida, to honor and remember those across the state who have died in law enforcement service. In 2010, then National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund Chairman and CEO Craig Floyd spoke at that memorial service. He told the stories of several Florida officers who had left an impression on him and many others. One of them, Charles “Ray” Shinholser Jr., a sergeant with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, wrote a song, “When’s Daddy Coming Home?” as a tribute to a fallen colleague. His intention was to sell tapes of the song and raise money to build the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial, which would soon be built in Washington, D.C. Sadly, the day after he finished recording the song, Ray died in the line of duty in a motorcycle crash on December 13, 1988. His family and friends went on to sell 10,000 of the tapes to help build the monument that would bear Ray Shinholser’s name. And Ray’s father, Charles, would later become a leader for C.O.P.S. (Concerns of Police Survivors), carrying on Ray’s devotion to helping others in need.

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McLean, VA (October 1, 2024) - On November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was shot and mortally wounded by an assassin in Dallas, Texas at approximately 12:30 p.m. It was less than an hour later when Dallas Police Officer J.D. Tippit spotted a suspicious man who fit the description of the assassin. After some brief discussion with the suspect through the passenger side window of his patrol vehicle, Officer Tippit exited his car and approached the man. But before any further questions could be asked, the man pulled out a handgun and shot Officer Tippit four times. The 39-year-old officer died on the way to the hospital. He left behind a wife, Marie, and three young children. Witnesses saw his killer run into a local movie theater where he was soon arrested for the murder of Officer Tippit. The man’s name was Lee Harvey Oswald.

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McLean, VA (September 24, 2024) - Around 5 p.m. on January 30, 2007, Mellie McDaniel was talking on her mobile phone with her husband, Jackson County (FL) Sheriff John P. McDaniel, when she pulled into her driveway after shopping for groceries. She suddenly became concerned when another car pulled in behind her. She told her husband about the suspicious activity and then let out a long scream. Sheriff McDaniel immediately radioed for officers in the area to respond. Deputy Harold Michael “Mike” Altman was the first on the scene just two minutes later. A police dispatcher could hear him say over the radio, “Get off of me”—then silence. When the sheriff and other deputies arrived, they were met with a hail of gunfire. When the gun battle had ended, the two assailants were dead, along with Mrs. McDaniel and Deputy Altman. It was an apparent revenge killing. One of the assailants was suspected of killing his wife six years earlier and a life insurance claim had recently been dismissed. The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office had been investigating.

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McLean, VA (September 17, 2024) - Jayme Lee Biendl was a hard working star athlete who became a correctional officer with the Washington State Department of Corrections in 2003. On January 29, 2011, Correctional Officer Biendl was strangled to death with a microphone cord in the chapel of the Washington State Reformatory by an inmate who was serving a life sentence without parole for a series of violent attacks against women. The cold-blooded killer told investigators that the reason he strangled Officer Biendl was because “he had nothing to lose” and felt that “the staff would change their attitudes if a body showed up.” More than a year after her death, a colleague, Corrections Officer Kristen Marken, said, “It has been one year now, and there is not one day that goes by when I or any of our correctional officers walk through that wall to work and do not think about Jayme.”

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McLean, VA (September 10, 2024) - The three deadliest shootouts in law enforcement history claimed the lives of 16 law enforcement officers. The first occurred on December 15, 1890, when federal officers from the Bureau of Indian Affairs attempted to arrest the legendary Sioux Indian leader, Sitting Bull. Six officers were killed. On January 2, 1932, Greene County (MO) Sheriff Marcell Hendrix took nine officers with him to arrest suspected cop killer, Harry Young, and his outlaw brothers. They were met with a hail of gunfire and when the shooting stopped Sheriff Hendrix and five of his officers were dead. And on February 28, 1993, 75 federal agents went to serve court-ordered warrants for suspected weapons violations on a religious cult compound in Waco, Texas. But cult leader, David Koresh, had been tipped off and when the agents arrived they were fired upon in an ambush attack. An intense gunfight erupted, resulting in the deaths of four agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF)—Conway LeBleu, Todd McKeehan, Robert Williams and Steven Willis. Sixteen other agents were wounded.

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McLean, VA (September 3, 2024) - Wesley Brown grew up in a tough Maryland neighborhood. During his teenage years, he was stabbed in one incident and shot in another. He could have succumbed to the evil elements that surrounded him. But thanks to a loving family, Wesley did not let that happen. At the age of 20 he became a Maryland State Trooper. That same year, 2007, Wesley also launched a mentorship program for at-risk youth called, “Young Men Enlightening Younger Men.” For the next three years he was truly making a difference. Sadly, it all ended on June 11, 2010, when a drunken man brutally assassinated Trooper Brown in a cold-blooded, cowardly act of vengeance. Some 6,000 people attended Wesley’s funeral. It took three hours for two dozen speakers to eulogize this very special individual. One of the young men he mentored said, “It crushed me when he died, it was like losing a best friend. I became a squared-away young man thanks to Wesley.”

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McLean, VA (August 27, 2024) - The United States Capitol Police (USCP) held a ceremony this past Saturday to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the line of duty death of USCP Sgt. Christopher Eney. By all accounts Sgt. Eney was an exemplary officer and “one of the best supervisors on the department,” according to a colleague. On August 24, 1984, he was shot and killed inadvertently by a fellow officer—and good friend—during a training exercise. Chris left behind a wife, Vivian, and two young daughters, Shannen and Heather. Their lives had been shattered, but Vivian soon decided to turn tragedy into triumph. She became National President of C.O.P.S.—the Concerns of Police Survivors—and became a leading advocate for improving the plight of law enforcement’s surviving family members. And she became a leader of the campaign to build a National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial and played a major role in developing the design for law enforcement’s national monument. It is also Vivian’s quote on the Memorial that helps to explain to visitors the essence of the monument: “It is not how these officers died that made them heroes, it is how they lived.”

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McLean, VA (August 20, 2024) - For the last four years of his distinguished career as a correctional officer with the Fairfax County (VA) Sheriff’s Office, Frederick H. “Butch” Cameron Jr. was assigned to the Facilities Services Section. And during the height of the pandemic he led the response team that sanitized and sterilized high use and Covid-infected areas for the protection of inmates and staff. This work, and his close proximity to inmates put him at great personal risk. At least one in five incarcerated people in the U.S. contracted Covid. Yet, regrettably, most states did not prioritize incarcerated people in their vaccination plans. Sadly, Butch contracted the disease while on duty and died on January 12, 2021, at the age of 51. He was one of 660 law enforcement officers who made the supreme sacrifice in 2021. It was the deadliest year, by far, in law enforcement history. Covid was the number one cause of death and, over a three-year period, more than 800 officers would die of the disease. In fact, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that law enforcement officers had the highest Covid death rate of all American workers. The reason was obvious. Law enforcement officers had a job that did not allow them to stay at home—and stay safe—like the rest of us.

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McLean, VA (August 13, 2024) - On June 18, 1985, Saugus (MA) Police Officer Harold L. Vitale attempted to arrest an 18-year-old driver with outstanding warrants. The suspect rolled the car window up trapping Officer Vitale’s arm and took off, dragging the 14-year police veteran at speeds up to 40 miles per hour. As the other occupants in the car screamed for the driver to stop, Officer Vitale was rammed into a street sign and killed. Officer Vitale left behind a large and close-knit family. They channeled their grief into a force for good, determined not to let Harold be forgotten. They helped build the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, D.C., and soon after worked to establish a memorial in Saugus for Harold and other local officers who made the ultimate sacrifice. Last week they held their 30th annual memorial golf tournament honoring Harold and other fallen law enforcement heroes. The tournament has raised more than a million dollars over the years, which has been donated to teenage students and deserving groups like the Concerns of Police Survivors (C.O.P.S.), the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund and Citizens Behind the Badge.

L to R: Les Vitale; Dick Vitale; Harold’s portrait; Bill Vitale; Harold’s wife, Eileen; and Bobby Vitale

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McLean, VA (August 6, 2024) - On March 22, 1989, a hostage-taker high on drugs shot two Alexandria (VA) police officers. Corporal Charlie Hill, a highly respected 13-year police veteran, was killed. His partner, Officer Andy Chelchowski was severely injured. Officer Chelchowski returned to the job he loved, but he never fully recovered from the physical and emotional pain that resulted from the shooting and the loss of his partner. Four years after the incident Officer Chelchowski died by suicide. But there was more to the story. In 2010, 21 years after his father’s death, Robert Hill was sworn in as a member of the Alexandria Sheriff’s Office, and now serves with the Alexandria Police Department. He wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps and carry on his proud tradition of law enforcement service. Charlie Hill could receive no greater honor.

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