Ceremony will honor officers who died in line of duty

YAKIMA -- The public is invited to a ceremony this morning in Yakima to honor the nation's law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty.

Today is National Peace Officers Memorial Day, part of National Police Week.

Honor guards from the Yakima Police Department and the Yakima County Sheriff's Office will perform at the ceremony, which starts at 11:30 a.m. in front of the police station, 200 S. Third St.

Speakers will include Yakima police Chief Sam Granato, Sheriff Ken Irwin and Yakima Mayor Dave Edler.

A public reception will follow at the station.

Across the country last year, 140 officers were killed on the job, 57 as the result of felony crimes and 83 in accidents, according to preliminary statistics released this week by the FBI.

State and national databases show that at least a dozen officers in areas stretching from Cle Elum to Prosser to Goldendale were killed on the job between 1916 and 1990.

Next week, the Klickitat County Sheriff's Office will hold a Peace Officers Memorial Ceremony that will include recognition of Sgt. Peter Garland.

Garland's death in a traffic crash last July while in his personal vehicle was recognized as a line-of-duty casualty because he was the on-call supervisor for the sheriff's office.

That ceremony starts at 11 a.m. May 22 in front of the Klickitat County Courthouse, 205 S. Columbus Ave. Search and rescue volunteers will dedicate a bench in honor of Garland, who supervised their unit.