(Mobilus In Mobili. Creative Commons BY 2.0)

This year’s National Police Week will be marked locally on Tuesday, May 11, with a public ceremony honoring fallen local law enforcement officers. The event will begin at 10:00 a.m. on the front steps of the Lebanon Municipal Building.

Organizers are the Lebanon County Chiefs of Police Association, Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #42, and the Lebanon County District Attorney.

Proclamations issued by Lebanon Mayor Sherry Capello and the Lebanon County Commissioners will be presented, District Attorney Pier Hess Graf will read the roll of fallen officers, and Chaplain Dean Cover will offer prayers.

An ensemble of Cedar Crest High School musicians will play “Taps,” and James Scott will perform the traditional hymn “Amazing Grace” on the bagpipes.

Congress created the nationwide event on October 1, 1961 by a joint resolution authorizing the president to designate May 15 as National Peace Officers’ Memorial Day, and the calendar week containing May 15 as National Police Week.

President John F. Kennedy signed the bill into law on October 1, 1962. In 1994, President Bill Clinton ordered that flags be flown at half staff on May 15 to honor officers who died in the line of duty.

In 2002, President George W. Bush proclaimed that “Peace Officers Memorial Day and Police Week pay tribute to the local, State, and Federal law enforcement officers who serve and protect us with courage and dedication. These observances also remind us of the ongoing need to be vigilant against all forms of crime, especially to acts of extreme violence and terrorism.”

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Chris Coyle writes primarily on government, the courts, and business. He retired as an attorney at the end of 2018, after concentrating for nearly four decades on civil and criminal litigation and trials. A career highlight was successfully defending a retired Pennsylvania state trooper who was accused,...