State police remember those who have fallen
‘Ceremony serves as a reminder ... of the dangers they face on the job every day’
Rows of troopers stood at attention outside the Indiana State Police Lowell District 13 post Friday as the names of those who lost their lives in the line of duty were read.
The somber presentation is an annual remembrance of troopers throughout the state who have died in the line of duty.
The list of names read includes those of officers killed in pursuit of suspects like the first name, Trooper Eugene Teagues, who was shot to death Dec. 20, 1933, while trying to arrest a member of the notorious bank robber John Dillinger’s gang. Then there are those like Trooper Jason Eric Beal, who was struck by a vehicle Jan. 15, 2000, while assisting a tow-truck driver on Indiana 14 in Kosciusko County.
Some of those who have died were from Northwest Indiana, including Trooper Scott Patrick, who was shot and killed Dec. 22, 2003, when he was dispatched to assist a stranded motorist at the Grant Street exit of Interstate 80⁄94 in Gary in Lake County. His mother attended the ceremony.
The most recent name added to this list was that of Trooper Peter Richard Stephan, who died in a single-vehicle crash Oct. 11, 2019, while responding to assist another trooper who was holding several suspects at gunpoint, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page.
Senior Trooper Jerry George, a 13-year veteran of the force, was among the troopers who were part of the ceremony, standing at attention as the names of those lost were read. He said the ceremony serves as a reminder, especially to the road troops of the dangers they face on the job every day.
“It reaffirms the fact how important the job is,” George said. It also reaffirms how dangerous. One minute you can be working your shift, he said, and the next minute everything can change and it may be your last. It serves as a reminder just how dangerous the job can be.
“It makes you more vigilant,” George said.
Sandra Sanders and her grandson Blake Sanders, 9, both of Monticello, were among the members of the public who attended the ceremony.
Sanders worked at the post for
30 years as an investigations secretary and then evidence clerk before retiring.
“I am very privileged to have worked with this group,” Sanders said.
While she attends the ceremony each year it is held, this year more than usual, she said it was important to attend and bring her grandson, who is getting old enough to understand.
“With all the bad publicity (police) have had lately, I especially wanted to come and show my support,” Sanders said.