The Commonwealth of Virginia is embarking on an important effort to honor the courage and integrity of Virginia’s fallen heroes by constructing a statewide Public Safety Memorial.
A focal point of this Memorial, which will have a place of prominence in Richmond’s Capitol Square, will be a comprehensive list of the individuals who have died in the line of duty, including Deputy Sheriffs William Stiltner and Cameron Justus from Buchanan County.
This list will include law enforcement officers, firefighters, correctional officers, members of the Virginia National Guard, emergency medical services personnel and others.
The goal of this Memorial is to include the engraved name of every Virginian who has given their life in the service of the Commonwealth, in compliance with the guidelines of the Line of Duty Death Act of 1972.
The Virginia Public Safety Foundation (VPSF), which is serving as the Commonwealth’s official administrator for the Memorial, currently is in the process of reaching out to law enforcement organizations across Virginia to collect Line of Duty Death (LODD) data.
Letters have been sent to over 1,300 agencies requesting LODD cases, including those preceding 1972.
Submissions that are not already included on the Commonwealth’s roster, including all those prior to 1972, will be reviewed for eligibility by members of the Public Safety Memorial Commission appointed by Governor Bob McDonnell. In order to ensure that their fallen heroes are recognized on the Memorial, it is critical that every public safety organization in Virginia respond to VPSF’s request for information so that the Commonwealth can develop an accurate, comprehensive LODD roster.
To obtain a copy of the LODD survey, please go to http://vpsf.org/pub/LODD%20Census%20Form.pdf.
Buchanan County lost two of its finest public servants when Deputy Sheriffs William Stiltner and Cameron Justus were killed in the line of duty earlier this year, on March 13, 2011. Both men were responding to the scene of a robbery at Rogers Service Center in Vansant when they were fatally shot by the suspect who was hiding in the nearby woods with his high-powered, long-range rifle.
“For these two brave men who died while protecting their community, their individual stories are different, but the theme of duty and honor touches both lives,” said C. Hadden Culp, VPSF President and Assistant Fire Chief with the Prince William County Department of Fire and Rescue. “For Deputy Sheriffs William Stiltner and Cameron Justus, their valor won’t be soon forgotten by their families, friends or the citizens they served. Their names will join others from Southwest Virginia who made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty and will enjoy an eternal place of honor on the walls of the Commonwealth Public Safety Memorial.”
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