[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 6]
[Senate]
[Page 8691]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    REMEMBERING OFFICER JASON ELLIS

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I rise today for the sad occasion of 
paying tribute to a brave and honorable police officer from my home 
State of Kentucky who has fallen in the line of duty. Officer Jason 
Ellis, a seven-year veteran of the Bardstown Police Department, was 
tragically killed on May 25. He was 33 years old.
  Officer Ellis worked as a field-training officer and a canine 
officer; with his police dog, Figo, he fought illegal drug use in 
Bardstown. Bardstown Police Chief Rick McCubbin described Officer Ellis 
as one of Bardstown's top officers and credited him with making a 
serious dent in the town's drug problem. Chief McCubbin also said these 
words: ``[He] paid the ultimate sacrifice doing what he loved: being a 
police officer.''
  Jason Ellis, a native of Cincinnati, OH, attended the University of 
the Cumberlands in Williamsburg, KY, where he was a star baseball 
player. He set records for all time career hits, doubles, home runs, 
and career games played, the last of which is still a record at the 
school. He played minor league baseball in the Cincinnati Reds system.
  Even as a star on the diamond, however, coaches and teammates 
remember Jason Ellis talking about becoming a law enforcement officer. 
His wife, Amy, says: ``He was always a go-getter . . . He was dedicated 
to his job and he wanted to clean the streets up. And that was the way 
to get the drugs off the streets.''
  On May 30, Officer Ellis was laid to rest at Highview Cemetery in 
Nelson County. Fellow law enforcement officers from across the 
Commonwealth as well as Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Illinois came to pay 
their respects, and hundreds of police cruisers made up the funeral 
procession. Over a thousand people filled the church sanctuary, with 
more standing along the aisles, to show their gratitude for Officer 
Ellis's service and sacrifice.
  It is incredibly moving to see the broad outpouring of support from 
Kentuckians and the law enforcement community for Officer Ellis, which 
I pray was of some comfort to Officer Ellis's family at such a 
difficult time. Officer Ellis leaves behind his wife Amy and two sons, 
Hunter and Parker.
  It can't be stated enough, Mr. President, how deep our admiration and 
respect is for every man and woman who wears a police uniform and makes 
a solemn vow to defend the lives of others, even at the cost of their 
own. Police officers provide stability and justice in our civil 
society. I know my colleagues in the U.S. Senate join me in extending 
the deepest sympathies to the family of Officer Jason Ellis and the 
members of the Bardstown Police Department. We are very sorry for their 
loss.

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