[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 62 (Friday, May 15, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4936-S4937]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  NATIONAL PEACE OFFICERS MEMORIAL DAY

  Mr. SMITH of Oregon. Mr. President, I rise today in recognition of 
National Peace Officers Memorial Day, a day to commemorate and 
acknowledge the dedication and sacrifice made by the men and women who 
have lost their lives while serving as law enforcement officers.
  The men and women who serve this Nation as our guardians of law and 
order do so at great personal risk. There are very few communities in 
the United States that have not been touched by the senseless death of 
a police officer.
  In Oregon we have seen our share of loss. In January in a standoff 
between the Portland police and a man with a high-powered SKS military 
rifle, Colleen Waibel, a 17-year veteran of the Portland Police Bureau, 
was shot and killed. Two other officers, Kim Keist and Sgt. James 
Hudson, were wounded in that same standoff. In July of last year, 
Thomas Jeffries, a Portland police officer, was shot and killed. In 
1984, a Washington County sheriff's deputy, Robert Talburt, also died 
in the line of duty.
  Mr. President, because of the dedication and sacrifice of our 
Nation's police officers, our communities are safer and our children 
have a better chance of receiving their education in a crime-free 
environment.
  Today, more than 15,000 peace officers are expected to gather in our 
Nation's Capital, together with the families of their recently fallen 
comrades. The National Peace Officers Memorial Day provides our country 
an opportunity to show these public servants that their efforts on our 
behalf and those of their fallen comrades are greatly appreciated.
  To the surviving families of those officers who have paid the 
ultimate price, this day will show that their sacrifice will always be 
remembered.
  Mr. President, I am a proud cosponsor of Senate Resolution 201 
designating May 15, 1998, as National Peace Officers Memorial Day. I 
urge my colleagues to join Senator Kempthorne, myself, and others, in 
recognizing this important day.
  I thank the President.
  I yield the floor.
  Mr. INHOFE addressed the Chair.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oklahoma.
  Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, first, I would like to say to the Senator 
from

[[Page S4937]]

Oregon that I applaud him for this, and I would ask that my name be 
included as one of his original cosponsors.

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