Friday, May 10, 2002 | 11:18 a.m.
In the line of duty
Names on the Southern Nevada Law Enforcement Memorial and the dates of their deaths:
More police officers were killed in the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center than in the entire country during all of 2000 -- and they should never be forgotten, a New York-based officer said Thursday.
"I think it's necessary we show the respect to those who have fallen," said Officer George Lorenz, a Port Authority Police officer whose department lost 37 officers in the terrorist attack. "Our jobs are dangerous whether it's New York or Nevada or a one-officer department, the dangers are the same."
Lorenz was invited to speak today at a gathering of local, state and federal officers for an annual memorial to honor officers killed while on duty in Southern Nevada. The ceremony was scheduled for this morning at the Police Memorial Park near the Northwest Area Command on West Cheyenne Avenue.
Since 1905, 21 law enforcement officers have been killed in Southern Nevada. Each officer's name is on a star embedded in a rock outside of City Hall.
"Each one of those stars represents someone who was not just an officer but also a coach, a father, a son," Sheriff Jerry Keller said. "I am sure one day we will have to put another star on the rock, but each day officers still pin on a badge and strap on a gun to go out and protect people they have never met, knowing the dangers."
Lorenz said officers are aware of the dangers when they join the force.
"When a police officer leaves his house, he knows there is a chance he might never come home," Lorenz said.
The danger hit home Sept. 11 for the Port Authority Police along with New York City Police, firefighters and others who died in the terrorist attacks.
"I think we should remember those who have given the ultimate sacrifice," Lorenz said. "So many times we read in the newspaper about the bad things that an officer has done and never think about the good things that so many others have done. I think we should take the time to remember the good things as well."
On Sept. 11, 37 Port Authority Police officers and 23 New York City Police officers died in the World Trade Center attacks.
Nationwide in 2000, 51 law enforcement officers were slain in the line of duty and 83 officers were accidentally killed while on duty, according to FBI statistics. The totals were an increase from 1999, when 42 officers were slain and 65 were accidentally killed in the line of duty. The total numbers of officers killed in 2001 were not available.
Seven Port Authority Police officers died between 1928 -- when the department was founded -- and Sept. 10. The 37 officers lost on Sept. 11 represents the largest number of officers killed from one department in the history of the country, Lorenz said.
Each day local residents pass by the huge red rock at City Hall with the stars representing each slain police officer.
"If a person stops and pauses to think, they will realize the sacrifices that officers have made," Lorenz said.
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