Fallen officers honored

By Erica L. Green
Medill Reports - Chicago

Kathleen Lynch was 7 years old when her father was found lying at Polk and Clark streets under his police motorcycle.

She was told by his fellow patrolmen that his fatal injuries were a result of an apparent hit and run - and that Chicago police officer Samuel Lynch died a hero.

Nearly 40 years later, Lynch said as she watched her father's star officially enshrined in the Superintendent's Honored Star Case Feb. 19 that she can now believe it.

"It was very special to me because I wasn't at an age to understand it then," Lynch said. "It's an honor, though nothing can replace having your father."

The Lynches joined four other families of Chicago police officers as Superintendent Jody Weis presided over his first Department Honored Star ceremony at Chicago Police Headquarters. Joined by Mayor Richard M. Daley and a hosts of other law enforcement officials, Weis retired the stars of five officers officially declared to have died in the line of duty.

It was a ceremony of closure and relief as each family had waited more than 30 years - the oldest dating back to 1946 - for their family member's death to be honored in what Weis called the case of heroes.

"The sacrifices of these officers, our city's true heroes, must never be forgotten," Weis said. "While their friends and family can never get back what they have lost, we can all honor their memory."

The stars were recently made eligible for retirement under guidelines established by former Police Superintendent Philip J. Cline in 2005. He rewrote the qualifications to include "accidents of sacrifice" as a line-of-duty casualty. Until then there were discrepancies about what constituted a death in the line of duty, leaving many officers without department honors.

The present guidelines define a line-of-duty death as "the death of an active duty officer by criminal or accidental means during the course of performing functions while on or off duty."

"For most of this history of this memorial, there were no written criteria for enshrinement," Weis said. "As a result, the majority of the stars enshrined were warranted only by officers who had been killed in violent confrontations with armed offenders. Historically the stars of officers who lost their lives in the performance of their police duties have not been included. But we all know their sacrifice is no different from others."

Brian Sweeney said his uncle, officer James "Pat" Sweeney, was committed to that sacrifice, even after he suffered traumatic head injuries after falling off his motorcycle while patrolling Lake Shore Drive in May 1968.

When his uncle was released from the hospital five months after the accident, he didn't remember much-except that he wanted to be a police officer.

"He wasn't the same, but he was sweet as could be-and he loved that job," Sweeney said. "The only thing he wanted to do was be a police officer. So his partners would pick him up every day and take him to the station to work at the front desk."

Officer Sweeney died 10 years later in October 1978 after his injuries led to epilepsy and several disabilities.

But like the Lynch family, Sweeney said now that his uncle and other officers were officially honored by the department, their deaths were not in vain.

"It's definitely closure after 39 years," George Lynch said. "It's been a long time coming. But he is now given the same honor as those who died on duty. Now his kids and grandkids can come and see this."

The officers' five stars joined 456 others at police headquarters. Weis said the Chicago Police Awards Committee will continue to review the deaths of other officers whose stars may be eligible for retirement and enshrinement in the case.