[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 80 (Wednesday, May 16, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2716-S2717]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          NATIONAL POLICE WEEK

  Ms. HEITKAMP. Mr. President, I come to the floor this afternoon to 
honor the incredible men and women of our Nation's law enforcement 
agencies and to recognize the ultimate sacrifice of one of North 
Dakota's peace officers. Each year, peace officers from all over the 
country and from countries all over the world come to Washington, DC, 
to celebrate and to honor the lives of their colleagues who have lost 
their lives in the line of duty.
  I want first to recognize several law enforcement officers that lost 
their lives in the line of duty last year who do not always get the 
recognition or the honor they deserve, and those are our Federal and 
Tribal peace officers. They protect our homeland, they protect our 
borders and, in the case of Tribal police, they provide safety and 
security in Indian Country in some of the most remote and difficult 
places in the Nation.
  This year, eight Federal law enforcement officers' names were again 
etched in the wall: Rickey O'Donald, Federal Bureau of Investigation; 
Isaac Morales, U.S. Customs and Border Protection; Rogelio Martinez, 
U.S. Customs and Border Protection; David John Hoefler, U.S. Department 
of Transportation; Kenneth Doyle, U.S. Marshals Service; Houston James 
Largo, Navajo Nation; Uga'Shon Curtis Wayne Blackbird, Omaha Nation; 
and Nathan Bradford Graves, Sac and Fox Nation.
  To these Federal and Tribal officers whom we lost last year in the 
line of duty, may God bless you and may God bless your families.
  The men and women who serve as peace officers in our Tribal, Federal, 
State, and local law enforcement agencies selflessly put the lives of 
those they have taken an oath to protect and serve before their own 
lives. I am here not only to remember those peace officers whom we have 
lost but to thank each and every peace officer who puts on that uniform 
or badge every day to protect our communities.
  I wish to recognize briefly a few law enforcement officers I have 
come to know well during my time in the Senate: the southwest border 
sheriffs--in particular, Cochise County, AZ, sheriff Mark Dannels and 
Yuma County sheriff Leon Wilmot--and Macon County, IL, sheriff Howard 
Buffet. They are not only outstanding law enforcement officials, but 
they have become great friends, great mentors, and a great source of 
advice and consent on how we can work better here in Washington, DC, 
not only on the border but across agencies in law enforcement.
  As a former North Dakota attorney general, I have always had a 
special relationship and appreciation for law enforcement. Serving as 
the top law enforcement officer in my State will always be one of the 
most meaningful moments of my professional career. North Dakota has the 
finest collection of peace officers in the country, and I could not be 
more proud than to continue to work alongside them as their U.S. 
Senator.
  I am here to thank each and every one of the peace officers who 
selflessly serve in communities throughout North Dakota and to let you 
know that I just don't appreciate you during police week. I appreciate 
you 24/7 because I know you are protecting the people of my great 
State, and you are doing it at great risk to you and at great sacrifice 
to your families.
  So today I come with a heavy heart. This is now the second police 
week in a row that I have attended where I am memorializing a North 
Dakota peace

[[Page S2717]]

officer. Today, I am speaking of a North Dakota peace officer who was 
killed in the line of duty--Rolette County deputy Colt Allery. He lost 
his life on January 18, 2017, during a high-speed chase that Colt was 
engaged in with several of his fellow officers that evening after a 
report and identification of a stolen vehicle. As the stolen vehicle 
was coming to a forced stop, shots were fired from the car and fired at 
Colt as he approached. Colt fell, and he never got back up that 
evening, succumbing to his injuries not far from the small community 
where he grew up.
  He leaves behind five beautiful young children, including a 
stepdaughter, his fiancee Alexandria, the grandparents who raised him, 
family, friends, and a community that misses him and still grieves at 
the loss.
  Growing up in St. John, ND, and as an enrolled member of the Turtle 
Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians, Colt never strayed too far from 
home. He made a commitment to do more than just be part of his 
community. He decided to serve his community as a peace officer.
  Colt started out as a corrections officer for Rolette County. After 
graduating from the North Dakota Law Enforcement Training Academy, he 
started working as an officer with the Rolla Police Department. He then 
went to work serving his fellow Tribal members as a Tribal police 
officer on Turtle Mountain before he recently moved back to the Rolette 
County Sheriff's Office.
  The loss of this fine young peace officer and young dad was felt 
across the entire State of North Dakota. The impacts are still felt by 
his family, the Rolette County Sheriff's Office, and his Tribal 
community of Turtle Mountain. Colt made the ultimate sacrifice in 
service to his State and to Rolette County. He lost his life to a 
gunshot wound inflicted by an individual prepared to take even more 
lives. The brave action of this peace officer that night prevented that 
from happening.
  Deputy Colt Allery's name is now etched on the wall of the peace 
officers memorial here in Washington, DC. He is no longer just a North 
Dakota fallen hero. He is a national fallen hero, as he is recognized 
with all of his fallen brothers and officers.
  Colt Allery's name will now serve as an example, not just to North 
Dakotans but to people from all over the country and all over the world 
who visit that memorial every year. He is an example of the best that 
our State and our country has to offer. He is an example of what it 
means to have lived and died so that others may be safe. Quite simply, 
he is an example for everyone of what it means to be an everyday hero.
  We must also remember the families of our peace officers, who 
sacrifice so much, not knowing if their loved ones will return each 
time they walk out the door. You have sacrificed and lost so much, and 
no words today will replace the pain of losing a loved one.
  We have a proud history in North Dakota of peace officers like Colt 
serving their State and local communities with distinction. I have had 
the extreme privilege over the years to work with law enforcement 
officials in my State who span the spectrum from highway patrol to 
State and local peace officers, various Federal officers, and certainly 
our Tribal police. Let me tell you again that these are some of the 
finest men and women I have ever met or worked with. These are men and 
women just like Colt who could have chosen a different path. They could 
have chosen a path that didn't involve putting themselves in harm's 
way. Instead they chose to take the oath to protect and serve. They 
chose to selflessly put themselves in harm's way so they could make 
North Dakota a safer place for each and every person that lives in our 
great State or even those who may be passing through. They chose to put 
the needs of others before their own. They chose a more difficult path 
to tread than most of us would ever be willing to follow.
  So I stand here this evening not only to celebrate the life of Colt 
Allery but to celebrate and thank each and every peace officer working 
in my great State of North Dakota, working across the country, and, 
yes, across the world.
  To all of our peace officers, especially those back home in North 
Dakota, I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart for your 
sacrifice for your communities and the State of North Dakota. I beg you 
to stay safe. I beg you to take care of yourselves. Take care of your 
families. And God bless all of you.
  Thank you, Mr. President.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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