2019 -- S 0875

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LC002422

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2019

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S E N A T E   R E S O L U T I O N

PROCLAIMING THE WEEK OF MAY 12 THROUGH MAY 18, 2019, TO BE "NATIONAL

POLICE WEEK" IN THE STATE OF RHODE ISLAND, IN REMEMBRANCE OF ALL

POLICE AND LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS WHO HAVE LOST THEIR LIVES IN THE

LINE OF DUTY

     Introduced By: Senators Coyne, Ruggerio, Metts, Algiere, and Lombardi

     Date Introduced: May 15, 2019

     Referred To: Recommended for Immediate Consideration

     WHEREAS, In 1962, President John Kennedy signed a proclamation declaring May 15th

of each year to be National Police Officers Memorial Day and the week in which May 15 falls to

be National Police Week. In 1994, President William Jefferson Clinton directed that the United

States Flag be flown at half-staff every May 15th; and

     WHEREAS, This year, during the week of May 12 through May 18, we remember and

honor all the brave men and women serving as police and law enforcement officers who through

the years have made the ultimate sacrifice in order to protect the public and in service to our

nation; and

     WHEREAS, The FBI database states that from 2008 to 2018, a total of 1,167 police

officers lost their lives in the line of duty across the United States, 135 in 2016, 129 in 2017, and

144 in 2018, an increase of 12 percent from 2017; and

     WHEREAS, According to the Officer Down Memorial Page (ODMP), a nonprofit

organization that keeps track of all statistics and facts related to law enforcement officers killed in

the line of duty, since 1791, there have sadly been 23,305 known line-of-duty deaths, including

45 from the State of Rhode Island; and

     WHEREAS, Firearms-related fatalities were the leading cause of officer deaths in 2018,

with 52 officers killed in this manner. This represents a 13 percent increase from 2017. Fifty

officers perished in 2018 due to traffic-related incidents, and another forty-two officers died due

to other causes; and

     WHEREAS, Each year during National Police Week, approximately 25,000 to 40,000

attendees congregate in Washington D.C. at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial

where they attend vigils and services to honor the memory of all the police and law enforcement

officers who have perished in service to our nation; now, therefore be it

     RESOLVED, That this Senate of the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations

hereby proclaims the week of May 12 through May 18, 2019, to be "National Police Week" in the

State of Rhode Island; and be it further

     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to

transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to the International Brotherhood of Police

Officers, and Mr. Chuck Canterbury, National President, Fraternal Order of Police.

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