STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, COLORADO-May 5, 2022-The Steamboat Springs Police Department and Routt County Sheriff's Office will honor and remember the fallen peacekeepers of Routt County during National Police Week, which runs from May 11-17, 2022. The week recognizes officers who lost their lives in the line of duty.
“Every day our peace officers put their lives on the line when they pin on the badge to protect the community,” commented Police Chief Sherry Burlingame. “We know the risks our officers and those across the nation face daily and it is important we pay respect and honor those who paid the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty. We will never forget their service or their sacrifice.”
Local law enforcement agencies will host a special Police Week remembrance on Wednesday, May 11 at 9am. The hour event is open to the community and will take place outside of the Combined Law Enforcement Facility at 2027 Shield Drive, followed by a reception.
Routt County has three law enforcement members who have been killed in the line of duty over the past 125 years. Two deputies with the Routt County Sheriff’s Office and one officer with Steamboat Springs Police Department.
| Deputized Civilian Val Hoy was shot and killed while riding with a posse attempting to arrest a man wanted for cattle rustling and the shooting of a teenage boy on a ranch near Rock Springs, Wyoming, just north of the Colorado border. Deputy Hoy was a Union Army veteran of the Civil War. EOW: March 1, 1898. |  |
| Deputy Sheriff Charles Gibbs, Sr., was killed when he was caught in an avalanche 22 miles northwest of Steamboat Springs while on his way to serve papers on two miners. A search party found his body under tons of snow the next day. Deputy Gibbs was a U.S. Army veteran of WWI. EOW: March 21, 1929. |  |
Officer James Chew was shot and killed by an escapee from a Washington state prison. The suspect had been the focus of a manhunt in the area for several days. Officer Chew was a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and had served with the Steamboat Springs Police Department for four years. EOW: July 28, 1972.
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In 1962, President Kennedy proclaimed May 15 as National Peace Officers Memorial Day and the calendar week in which May 15 falls, as National Police Week. National Police Week pays special recognition to those law enforcement officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty for the safety and protection of others.
-WeServeTheValley-
Contacts
Sherry Burlingame, Police Chief, Steamboat Springs Police Dept, 970.879.4344 or email
Garrett Wiggins, Sheriff, Routt County Sheriff’s Office, 970.879.1090 or email
Michael Lane, Communications Manager, City of Steamboat Springs, 870.871.8220 or email