American flags across the nation are flying at half-staff Friday in observance of Peace Officers Memorial Day, an annual tribute to law enforcement officers who have died or been injured in the line of duty.
President Trump signed a proclamation designating May 15 as Peace Officers Memorial Day and the week of May 10 through May 16 as Police Week, calling on all Americans to observe the week with appropriate ceremonies and activities.
The flag order stems from a joint resolution approved by Congress on Oct. 1, 1962, which authorized and requested the president to designate May 15 of each year as Peace Officers Memorial Day and the surrounding week as Police Week. Flags are to be displayed at half-staff from sunrise to sunset.
This year’s observances included the 38th Annual Candlelight Vigil, the 30th anniversary of the Police Unity Tour and the National Police K-9 Memorial Service, drawing law enforcement members, survivors and supporters to the nation’s capital throughout the week.
More than 300 names of fallen law enforcement officers were read during the 38th Annual Candlelight Vigil on the National Mall in Washington, including 109 officers killed in the line of duty last year.
Friday’s capstone event is the 45th Annual National Peace Officers’ Memorial Service, sponsored by the Grand Lodge Fraternal Order of Police and its auxiliary. The ceremony on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol honors officers who recently died in the line of duty and pays tribute to all fallen officers. Honor guard teams are standing 15-minute watch shifts over memorial wreaths at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial through midnight.
The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund is adding 363 names to the memorial this year — 109 from officers who died in 2025 and 254 from earlier years — bringing the total to 24,775 names from across all states, U.S. territories and law enforcement agencies.
Governors in multiple states echoed the federal order. North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein directed U.S. and state flags at all state facilities to half-staff from sunrise to sunset Friday, saying in a statement that law enforcement officers “run toward danger when the rest of us might flee.” Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger issued a similar order, saying the commonwealth “stands firmly with the families of these brave men and women.”
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