Florida Officers Remember The Fallen Heroes of 2017
April 30th, 2018 by Jake Stofan
Officers from around the state filed into the capitol courtyard as solemn bagpipes cried in the background.
Ten officers who lost their lives in 2017 were honored, along with 4 others who were recently discovered.
Families of those lost placed a symbolic red rose on an arrangement of white roses.
“We need to remember and our communities need to remember the sacrifice that these children and their families make so that their loved ones can go out and protect the rest of us,” said Erica Reynolds who lost her father more than 30 years ago.
Nationwide, 129 law enforcement officers lost their lives in 2017.
The ceremony is to honor those who lost their lives last year, but the fact it comes just 11 days after Sergeant Noel Ramirez, and Deputy Taylor Lindsey were gunned down as they ate lunch was not lost on the gathering
Kissimmee Police Sergeant Stacey Baseggio lost two of her fellow officers in a similar incident last year.
“Unfortunately, someone who did not like law enforcement at the time decided to take things into his own hands and he took their life,” said Baseggio.
The threat of violence is an everyday reality for officers as well as their families. Law enforcement says that threat only seems to be increasing
“It’s like we’re sacrificial pieces of furniture, like it doesn’t matter. We’re human beings just like everybody else,” said Fraternal Order of Police Florida State Lodge President, Bobby Jenkins .
The four Florida officers who have lost their lives since January will be remembered next year
806 names are currently inscribed on Florida’s Law Enforcement Memorial.
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