[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 70 (Friday, May 14, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E961]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        HONORING AND RECOGNIZING SLAIN LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. BENJAMIN A. GILMAN

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 11, 1999

  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to 
recognize Police Memorial Week. It is a time when the citizens of the 
United States join the families, friends and colleagues of our Nation's 
slain peace officers, to honor and remember the sacrifices they have 
made.
  On September 24, 1789, Congress created the first federal law 
enforcement officer, the United States Marshal. Five years later, on 
January 11th, 1794, U.S. Marshal Robert Forsyth became the first 
officer, in a long list of men and women who have given their lives to 
protect and serve the communities of their beloved Nation. Since then, 
over 14,000 officers have died in the line of duty, including over 
1,000 from the State of New York. The city of New York has lost more 
officers than any other department in the Nation, with more than 500 
deaths. These heroes must never be forgotten, and their sacrifice must 
serve as a reminder that the price of a safer America, an America based 
on law and order, is being paid for by the blood and lives of our 
police officers.
  Although our Nation's crime rate is at its lowest level in years, on 
average, one law enforcement office is killed somewhere in America 
nearly every other day. Over the past ten years, America has lost one 
police officer every 54 hours; over 1,500 men and women. Already in 
1999, forty officers have given their lives in the line of duty, a 
poignant reminder that crime reduction comes at a stiff price.
  Police Memorial Week is a time to remind us that when a police 
officer is killed, it is not a city that loses an officer, it is an 
entire nation. We must believe that the senseless murders and crimes 
against our Nation's bravest men and women will one day stop; until 
then we will do everything we can in order to remember and honor all of 
the law enforcement officers who have ever given their lives.
  I would like to take this opportunity to recite the names of those 
fallen heroes from New York, who, in the name of duty, gave their lives 
over the past two years: Chief Constable Norman E. Carr Jr., Officer 
Robert McLellan, Officer Sean Carrington, Officer Gerard Carter, 
Officer Anthony Mosomillo, and Officer Matthew Dziergowski. I would 
also like us to remember an officer from my congressional district 
Vincent Guidice of Stony Point, NY., who died in the line of duty on 
May 22nd, 1996. To our fallen officers, we express our Nation's 
gratitudes.
  In your spirit, I will continue to fight for those laws that provide 
our Nation's peace officers with the tools needed to fulfill their 
mandate of making our communities a safer place in which to live.
  I urge all Americans to visit the National Law Enforcement Officers 
Memorial in Washington. It is a tribute to the dedicated service of our 
law enforcement officers and their distinguished service and sacrifice.

                          ____________________