Officer Down Memorial Page

The Officer Down Memorial Page, Inc. (ODMP) is a non-profit organization that maintains a website listing United States law enforcement officers and corrections officers that died in the line of duty.

History

ODMP was established in 1996 by Chris Cosgriff, then a freshman at James Madison University. Cosgriff was inspired to create the website when he read a "Washington Post" article about the release of a murderer convicted of killing two Prince George's County, Maryland police officers from prison after serving 16 years." [http://www.odmp.org/info/history.php History of the Officer Down Memorial Page, Inc.] ." Officer Down Memorial Page.]

The site first only honored officers killed in 1996, but eventually expanded to include officers from the 1990s. With assistance from the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund the site expanded to list officers killed in the line of duty dating back to the 1790s.

ODMP claims to be accessed by 150,000 unique visitors per month." [http://www.odmp.org/info/board.php Board of Directors] ." Officer Down Memorial Page.] ODMP has a volunteer research staff managed by a sergeant from the New York City Police Department. The organization has uncovered hundreds of "forgotten" line-of-duty deaths and has assisted in ensuring those officers are properly recognized on the appropriate police memorials.

In 2000, the ODMP was granted 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status. The operation of the site is paid for through private contributions as well as the proceeds from a gift shop selling T-shirts, bumper stickers, and other items. The site is advertising-free.

Criteria

ODMP maintains a detailed list of criteria." [http://www.odmp.org/info/criteria.php Criteria for Inclusion] ." Officer Down Memorial Page.]

The site lists United States law enforcement and corrections officers from all levels of government—federal and state and local—who have died due in the line of duty due to criminal violence, accident, injury, or illness and natural causes.

The site also lists officers killed off-duty if they were killed while acting in an official capacity to prevent loss of property, injury, or death, or if targeted because they were law enforcement officers. Military police officers in the U.S. armed forces or peacekeepers are listed if they died while conducting conventional law enforcement operations, but not if they died in combat, military exercises, or military operations. Investigators or special agents working for the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, Air Force Office of Special Investigations, or Coast Guard Investigative Service are eligible under the same criteria that applies to conventional police officers, and can be included if killed while assigned to wartime areas for criminal or investigative purposes.

ODMP does not list:
*Deaths of security company or private military company employees killed in the course if their duties for profit private companies, even if they also held a law enforcement commission at the time of their death
*Deaths attributed to voluntary use of alcohol or controlled substances, or while the victim officer is under the influence of alcohol or a controlled substance
*Deaths caused by an officer's intentional misconduct
*Deaths caused by suicide
*Deaths attributed to an officer performing in a grossly negligent manner at time of death
*Deaths in off-duty car accidents where the officer is not involved in any type of duty-related activity

Layout

Each officer listed has a profile, typically displaying a picture or photograph, if available, the agency or department the officer worked for, their rank, years served with the agency or department, age, badge number, and date of death, as well as a brief description of the events that led up to and caused the officer's death.

If the death was the result of an encounter with a criminal suspect, ODMP does not usually give the suspect's name. However, it does usually state if the suspect was apprehended, what sentence they have received if convicted, as well as if the suspect was acquitted or paroled. The profile ends with a list of all the agencies the officer ever served with, as well as any military experience, and the immediate surviving relatives, though it does not give their names).

Each officer profile has a "Reflections" section where visitor can post comments. Comments are moderated and negative, derogatory, or abusive postings are generally not posted or removed.

There is a search function that allows searching by last name, agency, state (either including or not including federal, railroad, tribal, and out-of-state officers killed in the state, range of years, or cause of death." [http://www.odmp.org/search.php?adv=1 Search for Fallen Heroes] ." Officer Down Memorial Page.]

Earliest deaths

The earliest death listed is Albany County, New York constable Darius Quimby, killed January 3, 1791. The earliest death of a federal officer listed is U.S. Marshal Robert Forsyth, killed on January 11, 1794.

In other countries

ODMP has established websites for other countries besides the United States, including Canada.

References

External links

* [http://www.odmp.org/ ODMP's official website]
* [http://www.odmp.org/canada/ ODMP Canada]
* [http://www.odmp.info/ ODMP Central Europe]