Oregon To Honor Fallen Law Enforcement Officers (Photos) (Photo) -05/06/24

SALEM, Ore. - The 2024 Oregon Law Enforcement Memorial Ceremony will take place at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, May 7, at the Oregon Public Safety Academy in Salem. The ceremony is held annually to honor the state’s law enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty.

The names of two fallen Oregon law enforcement officers were added to the Oregon Law Enforcement Memorial during an engraving ceremony on Tuesday, April 16: Jared J. Miller of the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, end of watch Dec. 9, 2021, and Joseph W. Johnson of the Nyssa Police Department, end of watch April 15, 2023. 

On Nov. 10, 2021, Sergeant Jared J. Miller fell ill while working as a shift sergeant at the Marion County Jail during an outbreak of COVID-19 at the facility. Sergeant Miller died from complications of COVID-19 on Dec. 9, 2021. Sergeant Miller had served with the Marion County Sheriff's Office for 16 years. He is survived by his wife, father, sister, brother, and grandfather.

Reserve Corporal Joseph W. Johnson shot and killed on April 15, 2023, while making a traffic stop in Nyssa. After being dispatched to a domestic incident, Reserve Corporal Johnson engaged in a short vehicle pursuit with the suspect, who stopped and opened fire on the officer while he was still in his patrol vehicle. Reserve Corporal Johnson succumbed to his injuries at the scene. He had served with the Nyssa Police Department for almost five years, and also served as a corrections officer with the Oregon Department of Corrections for 15 years. He is survived by his wife and two children.

Sergeant Miller, Reserve Corporal Johnson and 194 previously fallen officers will be honored during the ceremony at the academy, located at 4190 Aumsville Highway SE in Salem. The Oregon Law Enforcement Memorial honors officers who have died in the line of duty since the 1860s. This includes law enforcement, corrections, and parole and probation officers from city, county, state, tribal and federal law enforcement agencies.

The ceremony is a significant event that the Department of Public Safety Standards and Training (DPSST) is proud to host each year in partnership with the Oregon Law Enforcement Memorial Fund, Oregon Concerns of Police Survivors (C.O.P.S.), Oregon Fallen Badge Foundation, and Oregon's various statewide law enforcement associations.

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About DPSST
The mission of the Department of Public Safety Standards and Training (DPSST) is to pursue excellence in training and accountability for public safety professionals. DPSST certifies and licenses police, corrections, and parole and probation officers, as well as regulatory specialists, emergency telecommunicators and medical dispatchers, criminal justice instructors, private security providers, private investigators, fire service professionals, and polygraph examiners in the state of Oregon.  DPSST works with public and private safety agencies around the state to provide basic, leadership and specialized training at the 237-acre Oregon Public Safety Academy in Salem and regionally throughout the state.