R 291
2019 -- S 0875
Enacted 05/15/2019

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

     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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