RICHMOND, Va. -- Virginia state officials capped National Police Week with a ceremony at the Commonwealth Public Safety Memorial on Friday.
Dozens of police chiefs stood with Attorney General Jason Miyares, Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears, Governor Glenn Youngkin and First Lady Suzanne Youngkin.
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The ceremony paid special tribute to Brodnax Police Chief Joe Carey, who died in December 2022 after being struck by a vehicle as he worked to clear an injured animal from a roadway. Multiple members of the Carey family lined the front row of the memorial and laid the ceremonial wreath.
“Please rest assured that we, collectively, will never forget the hero that Chief Carey truly was,” the Governor told the family.
“What's so remarkable about the men and women on this wall, and the men and women who put on the badge every day, is they're willing to sacrifice their life for total strangers,” Miyares said in his address. “It's an honor to be here to recognize these unsung heroes, these quiet heroes. Woe be a nation that ever forgets its heroes.”
National Police Week began in 1962 under President John F. Kennedy. Law enforcement agencies across the country mark this week in May each year with their own traditions, paying special recognition to those peace officers who died in the line of duty for the safety and protection of others.
