Each year there are dozens and maybe hundreds of fallen officers that are added to the toll of law officers who have died in the line of duty. At the annual peace officers Memorial Day on Wednesday, May 15th, Ottawa Interim police chief Adam Weingarten spoke to a crowd of colleagues and supporters near the old courthouse, he noted that some officers have died from something that happened nearly 18 years ago.
Weingarten and others paid tribute to Ottawa police captain Robert Cowdin who died in 1963 while helping control a riot in Garnett. Tribute was also paid to Franklin County sheriff’s deputy Sam Smith, who died in a car wreck while responding to a call in 2010.
