Officer who died in 1950 honored during Law Enforcement Week thanks to AFSCME member’s research

During National Law Enforcement Week, downtown Washington, D.C., teems with uniformed officers from every corner of the country. They come together to honor their colleagues who have fallen in the line of duty.

It is a solemn week, with a candlelight vigil and reverent wreath-laying ceremonies at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial.

It is also a vivid reminder of the dangers that law enforcement officers face on the job. This week also highlights a somber fact — protecting their communities peace can sometimes be deadly for these dedicated public service workers.

This year, AFSCME members from Council 4 in Connecticut will be on hand to recognize one of their predecessors who died on the job almost 76 years ago — and is just now having his name engraved on the memorial.

New London, Connecticut, Police Sgt. Frank Linehan’s name will be read during a candlelight vigil at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial on May 13, during National Law Enforcement Week.

Linehan died on Nov. 14, 1950, from a cerebral hemorrhage after pushing through a chaotic crowd to assist a woman who had fainted. It would be years before there was an official mechanism for documenting and honoring line-of-duty deaths, which means Linehan’s sacrifice went unacknowledged for decades.

Until now.

It took a special effort from a member of AFSCME Local 724 to research Linehan’s story, verify the details and apply for the official recognition as a line-of-duty death.

“No matter how much time passes, we’re not going to forget one of our own,” said Capt. Todd Bergeson of the New London Police Department.  “I was born 19 years after this guy died, but as an agency, he served with us. And we have a duty and responsibility that if he deserves this honor, we do what we have to do to get him that honor.”

AFSCME salutes Linehan and all sworn law enforcement officers who have given their lives in the service of others, which is what makes National Law Enforcement Week an important annual event. This year, 363 names are being added to the Memorial, including 109 officers who died in 2025.

“This week, we honor the brave AFSCME members serving in law enforcement who risk their lives every day to protect our communities and remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty,” said AFSCME President Lee Saunders.

“These public service workers dedicate themselves to keeping our communities safe in times of crisis. But too often, their mission is made harder by workplace obstacles like inadequate training that undermines readiness, safety, morale and well-being, making a dangerous job even more difficult and contributing to burnout. They deserve the policies that will ensure they make it home safely to their families at the end of their shifts," Saunders added.

"AFSCME is proud to represent nearly 100,000 public safety personnel in more than 40 states and Puerto Rico. Our commitment to law enforcement doesn't end when this week does. AFSCME members will keep fighting for the pay, benefits, staffing and respect these officers have earned,” Saunders said.

Bergeson’s monthlong investigation into Linehan started with a question from a member of the public. His investigation took him through archives of cemetery records, an old metal box of index cards with city personnel information, faded newspaper clips about the deadly incident and the funeral, phone calls to descendants in Florida, visits with retired police officers and the cooperation of state librarians who had access to 75-year-old documents from the medical examiner’s office.

Every step of the way, people were eager to assist in the research.

“It’s important to make sure that the person who served and died in the line of duty gets his recognition,” Bergeson said.

Also during National Law Enforcement Week, AFSCME acknowledges the continuing fight to provide officers with the resources, staffing, safety, pay and benefits they deserve. As working people face an affordability crisis and communities grapple with cuts to state and local budgets, AFSCME members are stepping up to protect their communities and strengthen the law enforcement mission.

• In April, members of AFSCME Local 195 (Council 82) joined a protest outside Auburn City Hall in New York to object to proposed layoffs of city personnel, including seven police officers.
• Last fall, members of Stratford Police Union AFSCME Local 409 (Council 4) had strong ideas of how to fix chronic understaffing and high turnover. So they helped elect a new mayor who supported public safety professionals.
• In an important step to help recruit and retain officers, AFSCME has endorsed the bipartisan Providing Child Care for Police Officers Act. This bill would spend more than $100 million over the next five years to create child care programs that support law enforcement and corrections officers.  

In 1962, President Kennedy proclaimed May 15 as National Peace Officers Memorial Day and the calendar week in which May 15 falls as National Police Week. Established by a joint resolution of Congress in 1962, National Police Week pays special recognition to those law enforcement officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty for the safety and protection of others.  

Bergeson said he hopes the overdue recognition of Linehan will inspire others to uncover what other officer deaths slipped through the cracks of time and deserve to be on the memorial.

“It’s still possible to get it done,” he said. “Don’t ever give up.”