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Fallen Miss. Bureau of Narcotics Agent Commemorated in 2017 National Police Week Ceremonies
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Thad Cochran (R-Miss.) and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) today marked National Police Week, May 15-21, by honoring Mississippi police officers who have died in the line of duty. 
The Senators’ remarks were offered as part of the 35th Annual National Peace Officers’ Memorial Service at the U.S. Capitol on Monday morning. Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics (MBN) agent James Lee Tartt of Grenada is among the officers who died in the line of duty in 2016 and is being honored in ceremonies in Washington this week. 
“Law enforcement officers risk their safety for ours. Far too often, their dedication to our communities costs them their lives,” Cochran said. “National Police Week marks a time to honor their service and show our appreciation to the families they left behind.”
“Our law enforcement officers and their families have our respect and appreciation throughout the year, not just during National Police Week,” Wicker said. “The support they provide to our communities cannot be overstated. Occasions like this offer an opportunity to remember officers like James Lee Tartt who have given the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty. We honor their memory and their service.”
The May 15 memorial service at the U.S. Capitol is hosted by the Fraternal Order of Police/Fraternal Order of Police Auxiliary (FOP/FOPA). The overall national observance is organized by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, Concerns of Police Survivors and FOP/FOPA.
Tartt was killed in a standoff in Tishomingo County on Feb. 20, 2016. He was a 22-year law enforcement veteran, and the 2011 MBN Agent of the Year. Tartt’s name was inscribed on the Sunday’s National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial as part of the 29th annual candlelight vigil.
With the addition of Tartt’s name, there are now 233 Mississippians listed on the National Law Enforcement Memorial in Washington.
National Police Officers Memorial Day was first designated in 1962 by President John F. Kennedy.
HISTORY
In 1962, President John F. Kennedy signed a proclamation which designated May 15 as Peace Officers Memorial Day and the week in which that date falls as Police Week. Currently, tens of thousands of law enforcement officers from around the world converge on Washington, DC to participate in a number of planned events which honor those that have paid the ultimate sacrifice.
The Memorial Service began in 1982 as a gathering in Senate Park of approximately 120 survivors and supporters of law enforcement. Decades later, the event, more commonly known as National Police Week, has grown to a series of events which attracts thousands of survivors and law enforcement officers to our Nation’s Capital each year.
The National Peace Officers’ Memorial Service, which is sponsored by the Grand Lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police, is one in a series of events which includes the Candlelight Vigil, which is sponsored by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund (NLEOMF) and seminars sponsored by Concerns of Police Survivors (C.O.P.S.)
National Police Week draws in between 25,000 to 40,000 attendees. The attendees come from departments throughout the United States as well as from agencies throughout the world. This provides a unique opportunity to meet others who work in law enforcement. In that spirit, the Fraternal Order of Police DC Lodge #1 sponsors receptions each afternoon and evening during Police Week. These events are open to all law enforcement personnel and are an experience unlike any other.
