National Police Week: Fallen Michigan Trooper, 2 Others to be Honored

Trooper Chad Wolf, who was struck by a motorist while on motorcycle patrol in northern Oakland County and dragged for several miles, is among three Michigan police officers who died in the line of duty in 2015 whose names will be added to the Police Memorial Wall during National Police Week ceremonies.

Other Michigan officers who will be honored during National Police Week, May 15-21, include Sgt. Joseph Abdella, a 21-year veteran of the Detroit Police Department, and First Lt. Arthur Adolph Green III, an officer for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. They died in August as well.

The three Michigan officers are among 20,000 nationally who have died in the line of duty.

Abdella died of a heart attack on Aug. 14, 2015, while assembling an obstacle course for a training session for the Detroit Police Department’s Mounted Unit. Green was en route to a mandatory service when he was killed in an airplane crash in Harbor Springs.

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“Police Week provides the law enforcement community a time to come together and share with each other some of the highs and lows of the work they do and the impact it has on their lives,” said National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund spokesperson Steve Groeninger. “We honor the fallen, but we also lift those who currently serve in the profession, lift the surviving community of the fallen, and help them through the grief and the struggles that they have. And part of honoring their loved ones is memorializing or commemorating that officer’s service and sacrifice.”

Charles Raymond Warren Jr., 69, of Waterford, has been charged with reckless driving, causing death, and failure to stop at an accident scene — when at fault — resulting in death.

National Police Week has been observed since 1962, but the first public memorial service wasn’t held until 1982. Thousands of survivors and law enforcement officers take part in the series of events in Washington, DC, each year.

Although the observance doesn’t begin until Sunday, activities have already begun. The Annual Blue Mass was held Tuesday, May 3, and Washington, DC, area police officers honored their fallen members on Monday of this week.

Already, about 1,700 officers and supporters are riding their bikes from Florham Park, NJ, to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, DC, as part of the annual Police Unity Tour.

The Tour's goals are to raise awareness about law enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty and to raise money for their memorial and museum.

Also, a candlelight vigil is planned for Friday night. Click here for a full schedule.

Image credit: National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund