Political Quotes

“I rise to pay tribute to the 145 law enforcement officers who gave their lives in service to their communities last year. They are true heroes, and their families are owed our gratitude. This is National Police Week. Tonight, the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund will host the 16th Annual Candlelight Vigil on the grounds of the National Law Enforcement Memorial here in Washington. Three hundred and sixty-two names will be added to the memorial tonight--145 officers who were killed in 2003, and 217 who were lost in prior years. Saturday, the Fraternal Order of Police will host the National Peace Officers' Memorial Day Service on the West Front of the Capitol. Together, these two events, along with other events throughout the city this week, should make us all pause and give thanks to police officers throughout the Nation who protect our communities against crime and terrorism. We lost fewer officers in the line of duty last year than we have in years past, and the total is well below the 230 officers killed in 2001, when we lost 72 officers on September 11 alone. But the numbers of lost officers is still far too high. On average, one out of every 9 officers is assaulted per year, one out of every 25 is injured, and one out of every 4,400 is killed in the line of duty annually. Police risk their own lives in our service each and every day, and we should keep these sobering statistics in mind every week, not just during police week.”