Authorizing the Use of the Capitol Grounds for the National Peace Officers Memorial Service and the National Honor Guard and Pipe Band Exhibition

Floor Speech

I rise in support of H. Con. Res. 9, which authorizes the use of the Capitol Grounds for the 44th Annual National Peace Officers' Memorial Service on May 15, 2025. I thank the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Perry) for his leadership as the subcommittee chair.

This incredibly important event, which is hosted by the National Fraternal Order of Police, will honor Federal, State, and local law enforcement officers who lost their lives performing their duties in the year 2024.

In addition to the family and friends of the deceased, event organizers expect up to 25,000 police officers from around the country to be in attendance.

Among those honored and remembered will be Officer Adam R. Buckner of the Tucson Police Department, Officer Joshua Briese of the Gila River Police Department, Detective Ryan So of the Scottsdale Police Department, and Officer Zane Tristan Coolidge of the Phoenix Police Department.

Police Officer Zane Coolidge was shot in the line of duty while responding to reports of larceny, passing away at the hospital. He served with the Phoenix Police Department for 5 years and is survived by his wife and infant daughter.

Officer Buckner was killed on March 31, 2024, when he was hit by a car while responding to a reported crime. He is survived by his wife, mother, sister, and three brothers.

Mr. Speaker, 23-year-old Joshua Briese was shot and killed while responding to a disturbance call in the Gila River Indian Community. He had served with the Gila River Police Department for less than 1 year and was still completing field training. His father, Deputy Sheriff David Leroy Briese, Jr., of the Yellowstone County Sheriff's Department, Montana, died in the line of duty on November 3, 2006. We owe a special debt of gratitude to this family that has lost two of their family members, police officers who died in the line of duty.

Ryan So was accidentally shot and killed after serving a search warrant and conducting an arrest in Scottsdale. A United States Navy veteran who served with the Scottsdale Police Department for 9 years, Detective So is survived by his wife and three daughters.

Mr. Speaker, this is an important resolution. This is an important event to honor police officers who died in the line of duty and also to honor those living who are willing to die in the line of duty to serve their community.

Therefore, I support this resolution, and I urge my colleagues to do the same.

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