President Biden Will Attend A Memorial Service In Honour Of Law Enforcement Officers On Saturday

President of the United States Joe Biden and the country’s first lady Jill Biden are set to attend a memorial service at the Capitol on Saturday in a bid to honour law enforcement officers who lost their lives while on duty in 2019 and 2020. A proclamation from the White House also ordered US flags to be flown at half-staff on Saturday in public buildings.

A gathering that has since turned into a series of events that attracts thousands of survivors and officers to Washington each year, the National Peace Officers’ Memorial Service started in 1982 as a small gathering of approximately 120 survivors and supporters of law enforcement in Washington Senate Park.

President Biden has established connection with law enforcement as evident during his time at the Senate which saw him craft the 1994 crime bill. In early 2021, Joe Biden paid a visit to the Capitol to pay respect to a police officer Brian Sicknick who during the Capitol riot died as a result of multiple strokes after he was sprayed with a chemical.

Despite Biden’s show of empathy to law enforcement agents, his efforts to pass a police reform bill with the aim of tightening practices after the murder of George Floyd in 2020, failed in September, a huge setback for the Democrat who hinged on the need for policing reforms during his campaign.

However, Biden has expressed hope towards the possibility of signing a comprehensive police reform bill into law, and said he will look into taking further executive actions that would hold police officers accountable for breaking laws.

Source

Reuters

Featured Image Source: Reuters