RALEIGH, N.C. – As North Carolina comes together in mourning, communities across the country will pay tribute to law enforcement officers during National Police Week from May 12 to 18.

What You Need To Know

  • National Police Week is May 12-18

  • It’s a time to pay tribute to men and women in law enforcement who dedicate their lives to protect and serve their communities, at times making the ultimate sacrifice 

  • 56 law enforcement officers have been killed in the line of duty so far in 2024, according to N.C. State Highway Patrol Sgt. Marcus Bethea

  • The 36th annual candlelight vigil will be at 8 p.m. Monday on the National Mall 

Each year, hundreds of names of officers killed in the line of duty are engraved on the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, D.C. The 36th annual candlelight vigil will be Monday on the National Mall at 8 p.m.

On April 29, four names were added to that list of fallen officers, when three members of the U.S. Marshals Service fugitive task force and a Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officer came under fire at a home in Charlotte.

North Carolina State Highway Patrol Sgt. Marcus Bethea says it’s been a heartbreaking time for law enforcement in the state and across the country.

“It's been a tough month. It's been a tough year. And, just looking at some statistics earlier, 56 law enforcement officers have been killed so far in the line of duty in 2024 — 56. Nearly half of those happened in the month of April,” Bethea said. “So, it has been a very active year for law enforcement. A lot of grief, a lot of death, a lot of the realities of what this profession can sometimes entail.”

The officers killed in April were trying to serve a warrant to 39-year-old Terry Clark Hughes, who was wanted in Lincoln County for possession of a firearm by a felon and two counts of felony flee to elude, according to the Lincoln County sheriff.

According to authorities, Hughes emerged and began shooting at them before he was shot and killed in the front yard of the house.

In addition to the four killed, four other officers were injured.

Remembering the fallen

Thomas Weeks Jr. was a 13-year veteran of the U.S. Marshals Service who had served in the Western District of North Carolina for the last 10 years. He is survived by his widow and four children.

William "Alden" Elliott and Sam Poloche both worked for the North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections for 14 years, starting out as probation and parole officers and later working as part of the special operations and intelligence unit assigned to the U.S. Marshals Carolinas regional fugitive task force.

Elliot is survived by his widow and one child.

Poloche leaves behind a widow and two children.

Officer Joshua Eyer had served with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department for six years in the North Tryon Division and was a member of the 178th Recruit Class, according to police. He is survived by his widow and 3-year-old son.

“It's hurtful," Bethea said. "As an agency, we're hurting to see these officers in Charlotte go through this. Definitely really hits home. And we are certainly praying for them and thinking about them.”

The final funeral of the four officers will be on Monday for Paloche in a private service at First Baptist Church in Charlotte.

The heartbreak comes at the start of a week that honors the sacrifice law enforcement officers make to protect and serve their community.

“It's something we wish we didn't have to do," Bethea said. "But again, it's that wake-up call. It's that opportunity for us to understand the reality of what can happen in this line of work, but also, and more importantly, to honor the life and mission of those that came before us and made that sacrifice.” 

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