Aurora Police Department honors fallen officers in annual memorial

Aurora held its annual Fallen Officer Memorial Service on Thursday, honoring six Aurora police officers who died in the line of duty and giving a nod of remembrance to officers who have died across the country.

Since the last memorial held by Aurora Police Department (APD), 143 law enforcement officers have died in the line of duty, according to a spokesman during the ceremony Thursday.

"It's been such a humbling experience to pause with you all today as we remember and honor those who have lost their lives in the name of serving, protecting the keeping the peace," Aurora 911 and Police Chaplain Pam Austin said during the ceremony.

Austin honored the currently serving officers as well, saying they've taught her "what it truly means to show up."

"You put your lives on the line every single day knowing full well the risk you are taking," she said. "And you do it with honor, dignity and grace, expecting nothing in return."

She also addressed family members and friends of those who died: "We see you, we honor you and we thank you."

"We recognize the stress and trauma that you endure as fellow supporters of the thin blue line," Austin said. "With each officer death, that line stretches a bit thinner and you step in to bear that burden."

Among those in attendance at Thursday's memorial were Aurora Interim Police Chief Heather Morris, Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman, City Manager Jason Batchelor, Aurora Fire Rescue Chief Alex Oughton and a delegation from Buckley Space Force Base.

The ceremony honored the following officers, remembering them and how they died in the line of duty.

• Ofc. Debra Sue Corr: died June 27, 1981 while attempting to arrest a drunk driver, who disarmed Corr and fatally injured her.
• Ofc. Thomas Dietzman Jr.: died Aug. 16, 1985 after being injured during a training exercise.
• Agent Edward Hockom: died Sept. 21, 1987 after being shot in a gunfire exchange while trying to arrest a suspect.
• Agent Michael Thomas: died Sept. 20, 2006 after being ambushed and shot.
• Ofc. Douglas Byrne: died March 26, 2007 in a traffic crash while responding to a medical emergency.
• Sgt. Eric Scherr: died Aug. 30, 2021 after complications with COVID-19 while serving the community during the pandemic

Additionally, they honored several officers across the state of Colorado who died in the line of duty in 2023. They are as follows.

• Sgt. Michael Moran of Cortez Police Department: died in December after a shootout during a traffic stop.
• Ofc. Christine Sandoval of the Colorado Department of Corrections: died in September while trying to arrest a parolee.
• Airman Trinity Reinhart of the United States Security forces: died in September in a vehicle crash at the Colorado Missile Field.