[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 42 (Thursday, March 13, 2014)]
[House]
[Page H2368]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 REMEMBERING OAKLAND OFFICERS MURDERED

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Swalwell) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. SWALWELL of California. Mr. Speaker, for the Bay Area law 
enforcement community, few days are sadder and more tragically 
memorable than Saturday, March 21, 2009.
  It is a day that everyone in the community will always recall where 
they were when they heard the news. March 21 will always be remembered 
as the day that four brave police officers of the Oakland Police 
Department were killed in the line of duty, in service to the people 
they swore an oath to protect.
  I rise to recognize four men who died 5 years ago the same way they 
lived--as heroes. I rise to recognize Sergeant Mark Dunakin, Sergeant 
Ervin ``Erv'' Romans, Sergeant Daniel Sakai, and Officer John Hege. We 
lost these officers on the same day at the hands of the same murderer, 
but we make sure today that they were not taken in vain and that this 
killer did not extinguish their memories.
  Sergeant Mark Dunakin was devoted to the East Bay. Raised in 
Pleasanton, he graduated from Chabot College in Hayward and served the 
Oakland Police Department for 18 years. He worked in the patrol 
division, the homicide unit, and the traffic operations section.
  He loved driving through the streets of Oakland on his Harley-
Davidson, making sure the East Bay was safe. He was even a part of the 
Oakland Police Department's motorcycle drill team, which went all over 
the State of California.
  Not only was Sergeant Dunakin a terrific officer, he was a loving 
husband to his wife Angela, who also served as a Dublin police officer 
for the Alameda County Sheriff's Office. He was a father and a friend. 
He also was an avid sports fan, rooting for his Ohio State Buckeyes and 
Pittsburgh Steelers.
  Officer John Hege had been with the Oakland Police Department for 10 
years. Before joining the force, he taught at Tennyson High School in 
Hayward. Even after he became a police officer, he continued to serve 
his community by working with kids as a high school baseball umpire.
  John always wanted to work as a motorcycle officer. A few months 
before his tragic murder, he reached that goal.
  A great neighbor and friend, John was willing to help someone in 
need. This continued even in death, for as an organ donor, his organs 
were used to save the lives of four other people.
  Sergeant Ervin Romans' life was full of service. For 9 years, he 
served our country and kept us safe as a distinguished member of the 
United States Marines.
  Erv continued his service with the Oakland Police Department, a dream 
job for him, for 13 years. He was a dedicated member of the SWAT team, 
always striving to improve and keep up with the latest training. In 
1999, after helping residents escape a fire, he was awarded the Medal 
of Valor.
  Sergeant Dan Sakai spent his career serving the public. Following 
graduation from the University of California at Berkeley, he worked as 
a community service officer with the UC Berkeley Police Department. 
After 5 years there, he joined the Oakland Police Department in 2000.
  Described as a rising star, Dan quickly progressed in the Oakland 
Police Department, including serving as a patrol officer in the K9 unit 
and eventually as a SWAT team entry leader. It is not surprising that 
he was the valedictorian of his police academy class.
  Besides being a terrific member of the Oakland Police Department, Dan 
was devoted to his family and friends. As a resident of Castro Valley 
in the 15th Congressional District, he enjoyed all kinds of outdoor 
activities.
  It is hard to believe that it has already been 5 years since that 
fateful day when these four heroes were taken from us.
  I was working that day as an Alameda County prosecutor when we lost 
Mark, Erv, Dan, and John; and I, like so many, was shocked and shaken 
by the news. The magnitude of loss that the murder of these four 
officers caused was unmeasurable and hit everyone in the community. 
Equally unmeasurable was the community's response.
  In the hours and days after the news, the law enforcement community 
came together to support the families of the officers and the 
colleagues they served with.
  Immediately after the news, hundreds of Bay Area law enforcement 
community members held an informal vigil at the only place they knew to 
gather, The Warehouse, a grill around the corner from the Oakland 
Police Department.
  In the following days, the Oakland Police Officers' Association, with 
the support of brothers and sisters from neighboring Bay Area police 
agencies, grieved together and put on a funeral at the Oakland Arena 
worthy of the officers' bravery.
  I attended that funeral and was stunned to see officers from not just 
the Bay Area, but across the United States. I will never forget the 
Boston police officers who crossed the country to attend and lifted the 
spirits of the mourners.
  In the House Chamber today, representing the Police Officers' 
Association of California, is John Rudolph, President of the Alameda 
County Deputy Sheriffs' Association. He is in town to support the Law 
Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund.
  The following year, I had the opportunity to attend the 2010 Law 
Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, D.C., to witness each 
officer's name permanently placed on the marble wall with 19,000 other 
officers who have given their life across our country in service to the 
public.
  Their names are etched into that wall, their memories are deep in our 
mind, and their courage is stitched forever into our hearts.
  Mark, Erv, Dan, and John, you were taken too young, but forever we 
will remember your service.

                          ____________________