OLYMPIA — The state’s highest law enforcement honor was awarded Friday to 11 officers, including a trooper who was killed last year when his motorcycle collided with a truck as he was detouring traffic about a week after a section of the Skagit River bridge collapsed in the river.
Trooper Sean M. O’Connell Jr. was among six awarded the medal for posthumous service. O’Connell’s medal was accepted by his wife and one of his children at a ceremony at the Washington state Law Enforcement Memorial on the Capitol campus.
Five other officers who died on duty between the years of 1919 and 1976 were also recognized Friday: Seattle Police Officer Edwin J. Wilson, who died Sept. 24, 1919, after his motorcycle went out of control and struck a telephone poll while he was returning to headquarters after handling a call; Seattle Police Officer Ellsworth Cordes, who died Dec. 31, 1932, after his police motorcycle collided with a street car; Seattle Police Officer John T. Clancy, Jr., who died Dec. 24, 1949, after his police motorcycle was struck by a drunk driver; Seattle Police Officer David P. Richards, who died Sept. 1, 1967, when his police motorcycle went out of control and struck a guard rail; and Seattle Police Officer Jerry L. Wyant, who died on Oct. 26, 1976, after his motorcycle was struck by a delivery truck.
As of April 14, 280 law enforcement officers have been killed in the line of duty in the state of Washington, according to the National Law Enforcement Memorial.
