Fallen Officers Honored During Annual Oregon Law Enforcement Memorial Ceremony (Photo) -05/07/24

SALEM, Ore. — A ceremony held Tuesday, May 7 in Salem commemorated law enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty in Oregon. Hundreds gathered for the Oregon Law Enforcement Memorial Ceremony to honor the state’s fallen officers and those they left behind.

The annual event is held at the Oregon Public Safety Academy, site of the Oregon Law Enforcement Memorial. Tuesday’s ceremony remembered two fallen officers whose names were recently added to the memorial: Sergeant Jared J. Miller of the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, end of watch Dec. 9, 2021, and Reserve Corporal Joseph W. Johnson of the Nyssa Police Department, end of watch April 15, 2023. 

The ceremony was attended by Oregon Governor Tina Kotek, Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum, elected officials and public safety professionals from throughout the state. Governor Kotek, in her address to the audience, spoke of the sacrifices made by the fallen officers and their families. 

“Sergeant Jared Miller and Reserve Corporal Joseph ‘J.J.’ Johnson were known for rising to the occasion every time. Known for showing up as their best selves when the chips were down. As heroes. And as people who made the ultimate sacrifice,” Governor Kotek said. “There is no sacrifice more noble, no pledge to the public more honorable.”

Sergeant Jared J. Miller fell ill in November 2021 while working as a shift sergeant at the Marion County Jail during an outbreak of COVID-19 at the facility. He died from complications of COVID-19 on Dec. 9, 2021. Sergeant Miller had served with the Marion County Sheriff's Office for 16 years, and 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.

The memorial bears the names of the 196 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.

Keynote speaker Mike Reece, Director of the Oregon Department of Corrections, heralded the sacrifices of the law enforcement members and their families, and stressed the importance of honoring their sacrifices and their memories. 

“These men and women were exceptional. Their value to their families and friends, their service to others, and their ultimate sacrifice deserves our eternal gratitude,” Reece said. “So as we gather today at this annual ceremony, we say their names and we give our sacred promise to never forget.”

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.

Oregon’s memorial ceremony is held ahead of National Police Week events in Washington, D.C. so that family members and coworkers can attend both memorial ceremonies. More than 23,000 officers who have died in the line of duty are honored on the national memorial.

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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.

For more information on the Oregon Fallen Law Enforcement Officer Memorial please visit https://www.oregon.gov/dpsst/Memorials/LawEnforcement/Pages/default.aspx.