Murkowski Honors Alaska’s Law Enforcement on Senate Floor
Today U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) spoke on the Senate floor to pay tribute to Alaska’s police officers and honor the heroism shown by members of our law enforcement every day.
Senator Murkowski honored Anchorage Police Officer Arn Salao, who was shot four times on November 12th when responding to a report that a man hadn’t paid a cab fare. Officer Salao has undergone surgery and is expected to survive. The shooter’s handgun – that of James Ritchie – has been linked to five previously unsolved homicides this year.
“On behalf of a grateful Senate, I will take this opportunity to recognize Anchorage Police Officer Arn Salao for his bravery and heroism. And let me also extend my appreciation to the men and women of the Anchorage Police Department under the able leadership of Chief Chris Tolley. Chief Tolley is justifiably proud of his team –from the officers on the scene, to the dispatchers who calmly managed the situation, to the investigators who pieced together the story.”
(Click image to watch Senator Murkowski’s floor speech.)
Senator Murkowski also paid tribute to Sergeant Allen Brandt of the Fairbanks Police Department, who was shot six times on October 15th after responding to a call of shots fired in the downtown area. Officer Brandt passed two weeks later from complications associated with his surgeries.
“Eight days after he was released from the hospital, Sergeant Brandt appeared before the Fairbanks City Council. Our officers, he said, do a very hard job and they need your support. Working weekends when their friends are off, working nights, sleeping during the day. Being called awful names just because they wear the uniform. In Sergeant Brandt’s words, officers do a hard job and most of the time thankless. We need your support and not just when bad things happen.”
Murkowski put a call for our nation to come together and show the men and women in law enforcement are sincerest gratitude and utmost respect.
“Allen Brandt’s final public utterance – that the law enforcement family needs the support of the community, and not just when an officer has been shot – must resonate throughout this nation. And as we reflect on a tragic year about to close, it is my sincere hope that this will be our national resolve in the year to come.”
