During the month of April the United States lost ten Police Officers and two K9 Officers.  Below are the names of the Officers who gave the ultimate sacrifice in service to their communities.  

Assistant Chief Deputy Clinton Greenwood, 57, of the Harris County Constable’s Office, lost his life April 3 in an ambush.  Deputy Greenwood was arriving at his police station when he was shot and killed.  The suspect later committed suicide.  Clinton Greenwood had served the people of Harris County, Texas for thirty years.  He is survived by his family.  

Master Sergeant Carl T. Cosper, 56, of the Barry County Sheriff’s Office, lost his life on April 7 in a vehicle collision.  Sergeant Cosper was driving down a county road when his vehicle was struck and overturned, killing him.  Carl. T. Cosper had served the people of Barry County, Missouri for ten years.  He is survived by his family.  

Deputy Sheriff Levi Pettway, 61, of the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office, lost his life on April 10 in a vehicle collision.  Deputy Pettway was driving when his vehicle left the road, killing him.  Levi Pettway had served the people of Lowndes County, Alabama for twelve years.  He is survived by his wife.  

Trooper Anthony J. Borostowski, 34, of the Wisconsin State Patrol, lost his life on April 11 in a vehicle collision.  Trooper Borostowski was traveling down an interstate when his vehicle left the road, killing him.  Anthony J. Borostowski was a member of the Wisconsin Army National Guard and had served the people of Wisconsin for three years.  He is survived by his family.  

Master Police Officer Jason G. Harris, 39, of the Spartanburg Police Department, lost his life on April 13 in a motorcycle accident.  Officer Harris was attempting to assist a fellow Officer when his motorcycle was struck by a vehicle.  He later died of his injuries.  Jason G. Harris had served the people of Spartanburg, South Carolina for twelve years.  He is survived by his wife and three children.   

Deputy Sheriff David Wade, 40, of the Logan County Sheriff’s Office, lost his life on April 18 in a shootout.  Deputy Wade was attempting to serve an eviction notice on three suspects when he was shot and killed.  The suspects were later apprehended.  David Wade was a U.S. Army veteran who had served the people of Logan County, Oklahoma.  He is survived by his wife and three children.

Agent Benjamin De Los Santos-Barbosa, 32, of the Puerto Rico Police Department, lost his life on April 19 in a shootout.  Agent De Los Santos-Barbosa and two other Officers were pursuing a vehicle when the suspect dismounted and opened fire, killing him.  The suspect was arrested.  Benjamin De Los Santos-Barbosa had served the people of Puerto Rico for five and a half years.  He is survived by his nephew, who he had gained custody of after his sister, also a Police Officer, lost her life in 2010.  

Corporal Steven J. Ballard, 32, of the Delaware State Police, lost his life on April 26 in a shootout.  Corporal Ballard was investigating two suspects in a suspicious vehicle when one opened fire, wounding him.  The suspect chased Corporal Ballard after he sought cover and shot and killed him.  The other suspect was arrested at the scene, and the shooter was later killed by Police.  Steven J. Ballard had served the people of Delaware for eight-and-a-half years.  He is survived by his wife and daughter.  

Sergeant Meggan Lee Callahan, 29, of the North Carolina Department of Public Safety-Division of Prisons, lost her life on April 26, 2017 during an assault.  Sergeant Callahan and two others went to investigate a disturbance when she was assaulted by an inmate.  Sergeant Callahan later died of her injuries.  Meggan Lee Callahan had served the people of North Carolina for five years.  She is survived by her family.

Deputy Sheriff Justin L. Beard, 26, of the Ouachita Parish Sheriff’s Office, lost his life on April 30 in a vehicle crash.  Deputy Beard was responding to a burglary during a thunderstorm when his vehicle left the roadway, killing him.  Justin L. Beard had served the people of Ouachita Parish, Louisiana for three-and-a-half years.  He is survived by his wife and three children.  

K9 Doki, 2, of the Jasper County Sheriff’s Office, lost his life on April 20.  The Belgian Malinois was in a vehicle when a mechanical malfunction caused the the temperature to rise dangerously,  He later died of heat exhaustion.  K9 Doki had served the people of Jasper County, South Carolina for one year.  

K9 Kyro, 4, of the Houston County Sheriff’s Office, lost his life on April 25.  The Belgian Malinois and his human counterparts were pursuing a fugitive through a wooded area when K9 Kyro was shot and killed.  K9 Kyro had served the people of Houston County, Georgia for three years.  

Since people have formed communities, a select few have shouldered the responsibility of protecting their neighbors from those who would do them harm.  The men and women who patrol the streets and highways of the United States have chosen a path that could put them into harm’s way.  Knowing that their job of enforcing the laws could make them unpopular, accepting that their roles as peacekeepers can make them targets, Police Officers are always present in our communities to come the aid of any in need.  As long as humanity survives, sheepdogs will protect the sheep from the wolves.  As Ronald Reagan once said, “Evil is powerless if the good are unafraid”.