Remembering fallen officers in Kern County

She reads their names one after the other.

Joseph F. English; Lansing Warren; Ray Mallory; Donald Hodges; James Edward Throne.
In all, there were about 30 men whose names were called by Kern County Sheriff's Department Chief Deputy RoseMary Wahl as part of the agency's peace officer memorial Wednesday.

"May time never erase the sacrifices they made," said chaplain Luis Bustillo.

The ceremony was held at the Sheriff's Department memorial area on Norris Road and drew plenty of local deputies, police officers, military police personnel and highway patrol officers, academy students, and loved ones of those in the field, past and present. Even former law enforcement personnel, former Sheriff Carl Sparks, were there.

"This isn't a day for us just to mourn," Sheriff Donny Youngblood told the attendees. "This is a day to celebrate as well."

Celebrating, he said, the late deputy Richard McHale aka the prankster (he was shot during a family disturbance call March 3, 1969); or the quite deputy James Lee Williams (died Oct. 19, 1991 in a traffic accident); and let's not forget the smiling, youthful deputy William "Joe" Hudnall (a victim of another traffic accident Nov. 14, 2006).

"If you look around and keep your eyes closed, you could her the laughter of (Deputy Daniel Lee) Archuleta," Youngblood said. Archuleta did from a single vehicle accident Sept. 12, 2004.

Undersheriff Marty Williamson made reference to the memorial's latest features - new lights and a flagpoles - and he said they'd be used to remind people of the those who died while in the line of duty.
Though the ceremony took on a somber note, Williamson did note that officers deaths are on the decide nationwide.

"People owe a debt to those who gave their lives," he said.