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By Jessica Laliberte
AUGUSTA — Law enforcement officers, family and friends gathered in Augusta on May 18 to honor the more than 80 police officers, game wardens and state troopers who have died in the line of duty in the state of Maine.
The event, part of National Police Week, has been held annually for 26 years and is sponsored by the Maine Chiefs of Police Association.
“We are a country built upon the foundation of law and rules,” Falmouth Police Chief Edward Tolan told those gathered. “As a civilized society, it is imperative that all of us recognize these laws and understand the small and fragile line that separates us from chaos and lawlessness.”
Tolan, president of the police chiefs association, and Attorney General Janet Mills addressed a crowd of more than 100, including many state legislators and other state officials. Both praised police officers for “accepting danger every day.”
Tolan said that the “lack of respect some people show police” should not be tolerated.
The ceremony featured many police honor guards, the Maine State Police Pipes and Drum Corps and dozens of police officers from all over the state. A roll call of the names of the 84 law enforcement officers who died in the line of duty was read by retired chief Darrell Malone Sr. No new names were added to the memorial this year. The most recent death was Game Warden pilot Daryl Gordon, who died in a plane crash in 2011. Gordon was the 15th game warden added to the wall, which is more than any other agency.
The names of 10 troopers from the Maine State Police also appear on the wall.
Nationally, 45 police officers have been killed in the line of duty in 2017. In 2016, 145 police officers were killed. Their names were added to the National Police Memorial in Washington, D.C earlier in the week.
PHOTO: Col. Robert Williams, chief of the Maine State Police (left) and Colonel Joel Wilkinson, chief warden of the Maine Warden Service, salute during a May 18 ceremony honoring Maine law enforcement officers who died in the line of duty, held in Augusta. (Photos by Mark Huard/ Owner of Central Maine Photography)
