Upcoming National Police Week ceremonies and events.
On Friday, May 8, 2015, the 25th annual Wisconsin Law Enforcement Memorial Ceremony will be held at noon at the memorial site located on the Capitol grounds in Madison. The annual ceremony, honoring and remembering Wisconsin law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty, is held in correlation with National Police Week activities. National Police Week is the week which encompasses May 15, National Peace Officer’s Day, and this year is May 10 until May 16, 2015.
There will be a squad procession involving officers from across Wisconsin that will leave Olin Park at 11:30 AM. Olin Park is located off the Highway 12/18 beltline in Madison.
During the ceremony Polk County Sheriff’s Deputy Michael Seversen will be officially added to the memorial. On April 19, 1991, Deputy Michael Seversen was assisting the Burnett County Sheriff’s Office in attempting to locate a homicide suspect. The suspect was located and shot Deputy Seversen in the chin. Deputy Seversen went into respiratory arrest at the scene and was kept alive with rescue breathing until EMS arrived. Deputy Seversen underwent rehab in Colorado where he learned how to breathe again. Deputy Seversen was paralyzed from the shooting and confined to a wheel chair until April 14, 2014, when Deputy Seversen died of complications related to his paralysis. After the suspect shot Deputy Seversen, he fatally wounded Burnett County Sheriff’s Deputy Allen Albee, whose name already is included on the Memorial.
Ceremony speakers include Governor Scott Walker, Attorney General Brad Schimel, and retired Polk County Sheriff Craig Benware.
Additionally, members of the Appleton Police Department, Brookfield Police Department, Fitchburg Police Department, Fond Du Lac County Sheriff’s Office, Hartford Police Department, Manitowoc County Sheriff’s Office, Two Rivers Police Department, University of Wisconsin Police Department, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and Wisconsin State Patrol Honor Guards will post guards at the memorial site starting at sunrise. Similar to the military guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, two memorial guard members will continually encircle the memorial site from approximately 5:00 AM until the memorial ceremony at noon.
With the inclusion of Deputy Seversen 266 law enforcement officers are listed on the Wisconsin Law Enforcement Memorial.
Address/Location
Green Bay Police Department
307 South Adams Street
Green Bay, WI 54301
Contact
Emergency: 9-1-1
Non-emergencies: 920-448-3200