LAPD hosts a Memorial Ceremony to honor 241 officers who passed away in the line of duty
A rifle volley and the sound of bagpipes marked a somber ceremony on Wednesday in downtown Los Angeles, where city leaders and Los Angeles Police Department brass honored hundreds of officers who have died in the line of duty.
Family members of some of the 241 officers who passed away in the line of duty were also present for the annual memorial ceremony, which also featured a volunteer choir and a helicopter flyover.
Linda Rigney, center, looks for her husband, at the time, Los Angeles Police Department Officer Jack Evans, who was killed in 1983, to place a rose at his nameplate on LAPD’s memorial wall, during the department’s memorial ceremony for 241 fallen officers at police headquarters in Los Angeles on Wednesday, May 27, 2026. Cathy Beyea, left, mother of James Beyer, who was killed in 1988, also attends the ceremony. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
At Los Angeles Police Department’s memorial wall, Candelaria Deng touches an image of her husband LAPD Sgt. Shiou Lih Deng after leaving a rose during the department’s memorial ceremony for 241 fallen officers at police headquarters in Los Angeles on Wednesday, May 27, 2026. Deng died in 2025. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Dennis “Mouse” Gildehaus, 84, a retired LAFD firefighter engineer, holds his 8-month-old grandson Cruz Valle while sitting next to his son-n-law Ernie Valle and granddaughter Charlie, 13, during the Los Angeles Police Department’s memorial ceremony honoring the 241 LAPD officers killed in the line of duty in Los Angeles on Wednesday, May 27, 2026. Gildehaus’ father Chester Gildehaus was killed in 1951 when Dennis was 8 years old and he attends all the memorial ceremonies. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
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Linda Rigney, center, looks for her husband, at the time, Los Angeles Police Department Officer Jack Evans, who was killed in 1983, to place a rose at his nameplate on LAPD’s memorial wall, during the department’s memorial ceremony for 241 fallen officers at police headquarters in Los Angeles on Wednesday, May 27, 2026. Cathy Beyea, left, mother of James Beyer, who was killed in 1988, also attends the ceremony. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Also attending the Wednesday morning ceremony were Mayor Karen Bass and other elected officials, with Chief Jim McDonnell presiding.
“These moments remind us of the importance of supporting one another, treating each other with greater kindness and carrying forward the values so selflessly embodied by those who made the ultimate sacrifice,” McDonnell told the gathering.
Traditional police honors, a roll call of fallen officers, a riderless horse, the rifle volley, a missing-man formation helicopter flyover, bagpipers playing Amazing Grace, a solo bugler playing Taps and an “End of Watch Broadcast” were also part of the ceremony, which included performances by the LAPD Choir, a group of sworn and civilian LAPD employees who join up and perform on a volunteer basis.
Family members, friends and partners of fallen officers shared memories of their loved ones and placed long-stem roses near the officers’ name plates on the memorial wall in the courtyard at LAPD Headquarters, where the ceremony was held.
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