Alabama Governor Kay Ivey has ordered all flags on state grounds to be flown at half-staff in honor of slain Kimberly Police Department Officer Nick O’Rear.
O’Rear was fatally shot in the line of duty on Tuesday while in pursuit of a subject.
“Let us remember the life and service of Officer O’Rear, whose sacrifice will never be forgotten. We offer our heartfelt condolences and prayers to his family, the Kimberly Police and the city of Kimberly,” Ivey said in a statement.
Preston Cheyenne Johnson, 37, has been booked on a count of capital murder in connection to the case.
State officials like Lieutenant Governor Will Ainsworth are working on legislation to expedite the death penalty for cop killers.
Several state legislators, led by State Rep. Rex Reynolds (R-Huntsville), a former Huntsville police chief, are pushing a bill in the statehouse that would add law enforcement officers to the groups of people protected by hate crime statutes.
The flags on state grounds are to be flown at half staff on Monday, February 10, which is the day of O’Rear’s burial.
Henry Thornton is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can contact him by email: [email protected] or on Twitter @HenryThornton95.
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