Swansea Police Department Honors Two Fallen Officers

Chief Marc Haslam and the Swansea Police Department are honoring police officers who gave the ultimate sacrifice.

During National Police Week, Haslam and his team are putting the spotlight on two Swansea officers who died in the line of duty: Lt. Robert Manuel Cabral and Sgt. Randall E. Shea.

A ceremony was scheduled at the station Wednesday afternoon, featuring remarks from the chief and Emergency Management Coordinator Carl Sawejko. A group of students from Elizabeth S. Brown and the Joseph G. Luther elementary schools, were expected to join. The students participated in an essay contest. The prompt: What does a police officer mean to you?

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Cabral died in 2005 when his patrol vehicle was struck head-on by a drunk driver on Route 6. The 52-year-old had served 26 years with the department. The offender pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to five to seven years in prison, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page.

Shea, 35, was killed in a vehicle accident in 1962 after six years of service with the department.

Each year, National Police Week falls on the third week of May after it was set in stone by President John F. Kennedy back in 1962. According to the Swansea Police, this week, in particular, was established by a joint resolution of Congress in the same year and honors law enforcement officers not just in Swansea, but across the country. It pays special recognition to all officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty.

Other SouthCoast communities are observing the week, too. Taunton police officers traveled to Washington, D.C., to honor the life and service of the late patrolman John M. Borges.

Chief Edward J. Walsh shares that members of the Taunton Police Department traveled to D.C. this past weekend to honor the life and service of the late Patrolman John M. Borges. The Dighton Police Department put its flag at half-staff last weekend to honor fallen officers.