Local residents are invited to help local law enforcement personnel remember their fallen partners this weekend in the Havre town square park. Law Enforcement Memorial Day will be observed in Havre on Saturday at 1 p.m.
The ceremony honors the 153 officers killed in the line of duty last year and remembers the more than 16,000 who have died protecting and serving, Havre Police Sgt. Mike LaBaty said.
"This is a very important time of the year for law enforcement," LaBaty said. "We're a very close-knit family. Even if a law officer is killed on the East Coast, it's important to us."
The remembrance is especially important for LaBaty and other area officers, who will remember Blaine County Sheriff's Deputy Joshua Rutherford, who was killed May 29, 2003.
"It's a time for me to remember him and make sure his sacrifice wasn't in vain," LaBaty said. "It's also to let his family know that they and he have not been forgotten."
The ceremony will begin with a motorcade from the Havre Police Department to the park, he said.
The honor guard will raise the American flag and drop it to half-staff. Taps will be played and "Amazing Grace" will be sung. There will be opening and closing prayers and a short speech by Havre Police Capt. Stan Martin.
Residents are "highly encouraged" to take part in the ceremony, LaBaty said.
