WASHINGTON, D.C. – Bureau of Indian Affairs Director Michael S. Black will deliver the keynote address at the 23rd Annual Indian Country Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Service on Thursday, May 1, 2014, at the BIA Indian Police Academy in Artesia, N.M. He will be accompanied by BIA Office of Justice Services (OJS) Deputy Bureau Director Darren Cruzan.
The service honors tribal, state, local and federal law enforcement officers working on federal Indian lands and in tribal communities who have given their lives in the line of duty, and is the occasion for formally announcing the names of officers who will be added to the Indian Country Law Enforcement Officers Memorial monument at the academy.
This year, two individuals will be added, bringing the total number of officers listed on the memorial to 103:
- Alaska State Trooper and Village Public Safety Officer Thomas O. Madole who on March 19, 2013, succumbed to bullet wounds while handling an altercation incident in the community of Manokotak, Alaska.
- Sergeant Robert W. Baron of the Sandoval County, N.M., Sheriff’s Office who on Dec. 6, 2013, succumbed to injuries he sustained the previous day after being struck by a vehicle on Interstate 25 near the Pueblo of San Felipe.
OJS holds the Indian Country Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Service in conjunction with other law enforcement organizations and agencies, including the International Association of Chiefs of Police Indian Country Law Enforcement Section, the National Sheriffs’ Association, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Artesia. The FLETC campus is home to the memorial, service and academy.
The Indian Country Law Enforcement Officers Memorial was first dedicated on May 7, 1992, at the BIA Indian Police Academy then located in Marana, Ariz. The academy and memorial later moved to their present site, where the latter was re-dedicated on May 6, 1993.
The memorial’s design is based upon indigenous design concepts. Comprised of three granite markers sited within a circular walkway lined with sage, a plant of spiritual significance to many tribes, the memorial includes four planters filled with foliage in colors representing people of all nations. The planters represent the four directions and are located near the walkway’s entrance.
The earliest inscribed name dates back to 1852. In addition to those from BIA and tribal law enforcement, officers listed represent numerous law enforcement agencies, including the U.S. Border Patrol, the New Mexico State Police, the Arizona Department of Public Safety, the Navajo County Sheriff’s Office, the U.S. Customs Bureau, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The list includes one female officer, from the Navajo Nation Department of Public Safety, who was killed in 1998; a father and son, both BIA officers, who died in 1998 and 2001, respectively; and two FBI agents killed on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in 1975.
The 23rd Annual Indian Country Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Service will be livestreamed. To view the event, visit http://www.ksvpradio.com/BIA and type in the password “biamemorial.”
To view an image of the Indian Country Law Enforcement Officers Memorial and a list of the officers’ names inscribed on it, visit https://www.fletc.gov/indian-country-law-enforcement-officers-memorial.
WHO: Michael S. Black, Director, Bureau of Indian Affairs, DOI Darren Cruzan, Deputy Bureau Director, Office of Justice Services, BIA, DOI
WHAT: BIA Director Black will deliver the keynote address at the 23rd Annual Indian Country Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Service, where the names of two fallen officers will be added to the memorial.
WHEN: Thursday, May 1, 2014, at 10:00 a.m. MDT
WHERE: BIA Indian Police Academy, DHS Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, 1300 West Richey Avenue, Artesia, N.M. Phone (505) 748-8153 for directions.
CREDENTIALS: This invitation is extended to credentialed media representatives, who must display sanctioned media credentials for admittance to the event. Press seating will be provided. Credentialed media covering the event should be in place by 9:45 a.m. MDT for the program beginning at 10:00 a.m.
