East Mississippi law enforcement officers, families and supporters joined the Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Department in paying tribute Thursday to those killed in the line of duty during the Peace Officers Memorial Service at the Lauderdale County Government Center. The event was held as part of National Police Week, which runs May 10-16.
“A Peace Officers Memorial Ceremony is not only a time of reflection, it should also be a time of gratitude, a time where we honor these officers who lived with commitment, integrity and a willingness to stand between danger and the communities that they served,” said Sheriff Ward Calhoun.
District Attorney Kassie Coleman said law enforcement is a thankless profession, and the general public can never fully understand the trials and sacrifices officers take on to keep their communities safe. Families of law enforcement also make sacrifices, she said, and family members of fallen officers will always feel the loss.
“This week is about two things, remembrance and also gratitude. To those of you that are here today because you lost a loved one because they made the ultimate sacrifice, we recognize that you are living with that sacrifice each and every day. We recognize that because your loved one was willing to stand in the gap to protect their community, you now live life without them,” she said. “We want you to know that they are not forgotten, and we will not allow them to be forgotten.”
For others, Coleman said it falls to the community to live up to the ideals those officers gave up their lives to defend. Don’t simply voice support for law enforcement but show it by building a better community.
“Be a community that’s worthy. Be a community that shows appreciation,” she said.
Lauderdale County Supervisor Josh Todd said county and Meridian law enforcement are the reason he feels safe. Should something happen, he knows there will be dedicated officers coming to help.
Todd, who serves as president of the Board of Supervisors, presented a proclamation passed by the board recognizing local law enforcement during National Police Week.
“On behalf of the board, and myself, and my family, thank you for what you do,” he said. “What you have is a thankless job, and it goes unnoticed a lot of times, but to me it does not.”
As part of the Peace Officers Memorial Service, leaders of Newton, Kemper, and Lauderdale county law enforcement agencies, as well as Mississippi Highway Patrol, read the names of fallen officers throughout their agency’s histories.
Calhoun said each name represents an officer who served their community, a family member who is gone and in many cases a friend.
“Though they are no longer with us, their examples continue to guide and inspire us. May we never forget their sacrifice, and may God bless the memory of the fallen and all who continue to serve,” he said.
Fallen Law Enforcement include:
Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Department
— Jailer J.R. ‘Bob’ Temple – 4/6/1910
— Deputy J. Edward Bolton – 12/4/1929
Meridian Police Department
— Patrolman James Madison Collins – 10/28/1888
— Patrolman Eugene L. White – 5/21/1908
— Patrolman James H. Culpepper – 10/10/1910
— Patrolwoman Alma B. Walters -12/28/1985
— Patrolman John Ruffin – 2/16/2022
— Patrolman Kennis Winston Croom – 6/9/2022
Clarke County Sheriff’s Department
— Constable Henry Prince – 1/18/1961
—Deputy Robert Curtis Goodwin – 4/6/2004
Enterprise Police Department
— Police Chief Randy J. Boykin – 3/19/2013
Heidelburg Police Department
— Patrolman Lawrence Dale Coker — 1/2/1981
Jasper County Sheriff’s Office
— Deputy James Garfield Pugh – 8/24/1929
— Deputy Buford R. Bunch – 4/16/1966
Kemper County Sheriff’s Department
— Wahalak Constable John O’Brien – 12/24/1906
— Deputy Giles Joiner – 3/19/1934
—Sheriff Michael L. McKee – 8/9/1997
—Deputy William John Walters – 7/15/2007
Neshoba County Sheriff’s Office
— Deputy John Adam Myers – 10/7/1927
Philadelphia Police Department
— Patrolman II Leann Simpson – 11/24/2018
Union Police Department
— Town Marshall John James Speed – 12/25/1937
— Town Marshall George I. ‘Senie’ Worthen – 6/11/1944
Mississippi Department of Public Safety
— Trooper Daniel E. Smith, Mississippi Highway Patrol – 11/7/1959
— Agent Marc Lee Whatley, Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics – 8/20/1998