FALLEN DEPUTIES HONORED BY COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE
Ceremony marked 25 years since Randall Jennings died in the line of duty
OROVILLE » The Butte County Sheriff’s Office held its annual memorial ceremony Friday morning in honor of its personnel who had died in the line of duty.
Sheriff Kory Honea said each year, the Sheriff’s Office hosts the memorial ceremony to show honor and respect and eternal gratitude to the members who gave their lives serving citizens of Butte County.
“Some might ask why we hold an annual ceremony to invoke the memory of officers who passed away many years ago. … To me the answer is clear. We do this to fulfill the promise to never forget their sacrifice,” Honea
said. “We do this to show current members of our department that risking their lives; that protecting this community matters. We do this to remind the citizens we serve that, as peace officers, we’re willing to stand between them and the force of evil. … And we do this for the families of the fallen officers who sacrifice and suffering endures far beyond the fleeting grief experienced by most others.”
The memorial ceremony honored the lives of six Butte County Sheriff’s Office personnel who were killed on the line of duty: Charles St. Clair, who died Feb. 4, 1893; Arthur Miner, who died Oct. 4, 1934; Alvin Kister, who died Sept. 22, 1957; Charles Brown, who died Jan. 28, 1959; Randall Jennings, who died May 21, 1997; Bill Hunter and Larry Estes, who died July 26, 2001.
The families of Jennings, Hunter and Estes were present at the ceremony.
Terry Jennings, police officer and wife of the late Randall Jennings, who was shot and killed while responding to a report of domestic violence 25 years ago, spoke at Friday’s memorial ceremony.
“My family remembers Randy as much as I do every day, as do his friends and co-workers who were touched by his loss. The trauma of that event is woven into our heart and soul. … The trauma gets down into your soul and just settles there and stays with you for a long time — and that’s the hardest thing to overcome with this loss.
“When a law enforcement officer is killed in the line of duty, there’s a large memorial; it’s in the newspapers, on the local news station and now on the internet. It’s a traumatic, highly emotional time and people are passionate at that point saying they will never forget. Then life goes on and soon you don’t think of your brother or sister in law enforcement as often as your good intentions were.
“You forget. You don’t know these people, so you forget. Because life goes on for everybody else, while we hold our fallen officers dear,” Jennings said. “It’s these memorials that remind us what our fallen officers meant to other people.”
Randall Jennings is memorialized at the Randy Jennings Memorial Bridge on Highway 162 over the Feather River built in 2000.
“They will remember, and that does my heart good,” Jennings said.
For the memorial ceremony, the Butte County Board of Supervisors passed a resolution April 26, 2022 recognizing May 15, 2022 as Peace Officer Memorial Day and May 11 through May 17 as Police Week.
“These memorial ceremonies are a time to remember and honor the brave and dedicated peace officers who accept the job that is difficult and dangerous,” the resolution said.
During Police Week, blue ribbons will be flown on personal and patrol cars.
At the end of the memorial ceremony, Honea presented Jennings with a refolded American flag that had been unfurled since its initial folding in 1997.
The new Butte County Sheriff-Coroner’s Evidence and Morgue Facility will be dedicated to Larry Estes who was killed on the line of duty alongside Bill Hunter.