Fallen Police Officers Honored At Albany Memorial Ceremony

Governor George Pataki announced the addition of twelve police officers to the State of New York Police Officers Memorial during the 2005 Police Officers Memorial Remembrance Ceremony at the Empire State Plaza on Tuesday.

“Today, we give our thanks, convey our reverence and pay our deepest respect to the brave men and women of law enforcement who laid down their own lives as they strove to protect those of their fellow citizens,” Governor Pataki said. “The names of these heroes have been indelibly etched in stone just as their sacrifice, dedication to duty and honorable service have been indelibly etched into the collective memory, consciousness and heart of their fellow New Yorkers.”

In January 1989, New York State enacted legislation providing for the construction of a monument to honor and reflect the duty, dignity and devotion of the police officers of New York State who are slain in the line of duty.

Director of Criminal Justice Chaun-cey G. Parker said, “This remembrance ceremony serves as a fitting tribute to honor the lives of these brave fallen police officers. This memorial is, and will remain for generations, a place where everyone can come and reflect on the noble sacrifice that each of these officers made serving all New Yorkers.”

Since the wall was dedicated in 1991, the names of 1,104 slain police officers from 132 police agencies, spanning over 200 years of service to the people of this State, have been engraved in the memorial’s black granite wall. The earliest recorded memorial was Darius Quimby, an Albany County Constable who was killed in 1791 attempting to arrest a subject on a warrant for trespass.

Among the 12 officers added to the Memorial, including four from the NYPD, were:

• New York City Police Department Sergeant Keith A. Ferguson January 31, 2004. Sergeant Ferguson apparently died of a heart attack while running to back up another officer who was chasing an illegal vendor. The Medical Examiner’s autopsy concluded that the cause of death was most likely the result of a ventricular fibrillation.

• New York City Police Department Detective Robert L. Parker September 10, 2004. Parker was shot and killed by a suspect in an open domestic violence case when the officer attempted to affect an arrest.

• New York City Police Depart-ment Detective Patrick H. Rafferty September 10, 2004. Rafferty was shot and killed by a suspect in an open domestic violence case when the officer attempted to affect an arrest.

• New York City Police Department -Police Officer William Rivera November 24, 2004, who died of complications from injuries sustained when he lost his footing and fell from a rooftop while chasing a burglary suspect.

• Albany Police Department Lieu-tenant John F. Finn February 12, 2004. Lieutenant Finn died on February 12, 2004 as a result of gun shot wounds sustained on December 23, 2003 while in pursuit of a robbery suspect.

• Schenectady Police Department Police Officer Eric J. Verteramo April 11, 2004. Officer Verteramo was killed when his police vehicle crashed into a telephone pole while responding to an emergency involving a motorcycle accident.

• Allegany County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Sheriff Derek P. Ward July 3, 2004. Deputy Ward was killed when his police vehicle was struck by another vehicle who had failed to yield the right of way.

Suffolk County Police Department - Police Officer Edwin Hernandez July 27, 2004. Officer Hernandez was killed when he lost control of his police vehicle after attempting to avoid a collision with another vehicle striking guard rails and then skidding off the road striking a tree.

Historical inclusions were:

Batavia Town Constable William H. Johnson March 15, 1895; New York City Police Department - Police Officer Neil A. Forster December 11, 1997; Port Authority Police Officer Charles Kessler December 16, 1951, and Schoharie County Deputy Sheriff William Huddleston October 9, 1818.