Washington, DC — With the laying of a wreath and placing of roses, top federal and local law enforcement leaders on Wednesday joined surviving family members and colleagues of officers who have died during 2007 to mark the 16th anniversary of the national memorial to fallen officers. The annual Wreathlaying Day ceremony commemorates the October 15, 1991, dedication of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in downtown Washington, DC.

Among those participating in Wednesday's ceremony were several law enforcement leaders whose agencies have lost officers this year, including Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, Acting Attorney General Peter Keisler and DC Metropolitan Police Chief Cathy L. Lanier.

"While it is my wish that we never had to hold these sorts of ceremonies, it is a testament to the commitment and bravery the men and women of our profession exhibit every day," said Chief Lanier. Metropolitan Police Officer Wayne Pitt, who died in an April automobile accident as he was monitoring traffic for an Easter procession, was one of 20 law enforcement officers from the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia and eight federal agencies who died during the first nine months of 2007 and were honored Wednesday.

"Each and every day, a remarkable collection of men and women-some 900,000 strong-put on the uniform and pin on the badge of law enforcement, so the rest of us can enjoy the freedom and liberty of living in the United States of America," said Craig W. Floyd, Chairman and CEO of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, the DC-based nonprofit that operates the Memorial. "Of course, the dedication and selflessness of these officers come with a price, and this year, that price has been heavy and heart-breaking," he said.

Through the first nine months of 2007, officer deaths were up sharply nationwide, from 107 in 2006 to 141 this year, an increase of almost one-third. Particularly troubling has been the 51 percent jump, from 39 to 59, in the number of officers who have been shot and killed.

The Memorial includes the names of all known U.S. law enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty, dating back to the first recorded officer death of New York City Deputy Sheriff Isaac Smith in May 1792. At the Memorial's dedication in 1991, 12,668 names were engraved on its walls. Today, there are 17,917.

One of those names is Barry Wood, a Flight Officer with the Baltimore City Police Department who died on November 4, 1998, when the helicopter he was piloting crashed as he was pursuing a stolen vehicle. Officer Wood's widow, Martha Wood, spoke of the special meaning the Memorial has to survivors. "This wall is more than granite. It's made of honor, remembrance, love and healing," she said.

Mrs. Wood joined Secretary Chertoff and Acting Attorney General Keisler in placing a wreath in honor of all fallen officers. Surviving family members and colleagues of the 20 fallen officers from 2007 then placed roses at the Memorial's bronze center medallion.

The names of all officers who have died in the line of duty during 2007 will be engraved on the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial next spring, and they will be officially dedicated during the 20th Annual Candlelight Vigil on May 13, 2008.

The following law enforcement officers from DC, Maryland, Virginia and federal agencies who died during the first nine months of 2007 were recognized during Wednesday's Wreathlaying Day ceremony:

• Metropolitan Police Department (DC), Officer Wayne Pitt, April 10
• Baltimore City (MD) Police Department, Detective Troy Chesley Sr., January 9
• Howard County (MD) Police Department, Corporal Scott Wheeler, June 18
• Montgomery County (MD) Police Department, Officer Luke Hoffman, April 25
• Campbell County (VA) Sheriff's Office, Deputy Sheriff Jason Saunders, April 3
• Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Special Agent Kimberly Place, August 1
• Office of Border Patrol, Department of Homeland Security:
  • Border Patrol Agent Eric Cabral, July 26
  • Border Patrol Agent Richard Goldstein, May 11
  • Border Patrol Agent Ramon Nevarez Jr., March 15
  • Border Patrol Agent David Tourscher, March 15
• U.S. Coast Guard, Guardsman Ronald Gill Jr., March 25
• U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Department of Homeland Security:
  • Air Interdiction Agent Julio Baray, September 24
  • Air Interdiction Agent Robert Smith, May 22
  • Air Interdiction Agent Clinton Thrasher, April 25
• Federal Bureau of Investigation, Special Agent Barry Bush, April 5
• U.S. Marshals Service, Deputy Marshal Bucky Burke, September 18
• Bureau of Indian Affairs, Officer Adam Menuez, July 4
• Office of Special Investigations, U.S. Air Force:
  • Special Agent Ryan Balmer, June 5
  • Special Agent Matthew Kuglics, June 5
  • Special Agent Michael Thyssen, June 10