Fallen KCK police officers remembered for making ‘the ultimate sacrifice’
Loved ones, government officials and Kansas City, Kansas, residents gathered downtown on Wednesday for a memorial service recognizing local police officers who died in the line of duty.
Dating back to the late 1800s, at least 20 Kansas City, Kansas Police Department officers have died while on the job. The service, hosted by KCKPD and The Fraternal Order of Police, Lodge #4, fell five days before Memorial Day.
The annual memorial service was the first held since the August 2025 death of KCK officer Hunter Simoncic.
Simoncic, 26, died after he was struck by the driver of a vehicle that was allegedly fleeing police. He was relatively new to law enforcement, having graduated from the academy in 2023. He hoped to one day become a detective or join the FBI.
“None of those 20. It shouldn’t have happened,” Police Chief Karl Oakman said during the service, adding that people need to accept that the world can be “evil.”
Oakman also told attendees, he knew each officer who died would again sacrifice their lives to save another. Those officers will never be forgotten for giving the “ultimate sacrifice,” he said.
The memorial service is also intended to honor the families who carry the daily weight losing a loved one.
“It reminds current officers and the public that behind every badge is a person who chose to serve others, often at a great personal risk,” according to a KCKPD news release. “By gathering each year, we not only honor those who gave their lives, but we reaffirm our commitment to remember their legacy and the values for which they stood.”
Wyandotte County recognition
On Friday, the community recognized 10 Wyandotte County Sheriff’s Office deputies who have died in the line of duty, including deputy Elijah Ming, who was fatally shot on a call in July.
Devin Baird, president of The Fraternal Order of Police, Lodge #40, told attendees at a memorial event outside the Wyandotte County Courthouse that the last two years have been difficult: “To say it has been rough has been an understatement,” he said.
Baird said he is often asked about police gear and the heaviest items that officers have to carry. He said he tells people that the items with the greatest weight are the small elastic mourning bands law enforcement wear over their badges to recognize fallen colleagues.
“It serves as a solemn tribute to fallen colleagues of our profession, and each time you put it on, it gets a little heavier,” he said. “This is where the real weight is. It is an earnest reminder of how dangerous this job really is.”
KCK police officers who died in the line of duty
Here are the KCK officers who were recognized:
- John Gilley (May 13, 1889)
- Frank Stone (Aug. 17, 1902)
- William Morris (Sept. 2, 1902)
- Wesley Reynolds (Aug. 2, 1904)
- Elmer Biggs (Sept. 1, 1922)
- Fred Wheeler (Sept. 1, 1922)
- Rudy Markl (Dec. 20, 1924)
- William Conley (Sept. 12, 1926)
- William Hicks (Dec. 8, 1929)
- Edward Nugent (Aug. 2, 1943)
- Frederick Shaumeyer (Feb. 12, 1948)
- Harry Hedrick (Aug. 5, 1963)
- Roger Lutcher (Jan. 8, 1970)
- Michael Haen (July 28, 1978)
- Douglas Bunch (March 29, 1983)
- Jeffrey Young (Aug. 1, 1989)
- Richard Asten (June 11, 1998)
- Brad Lancaster (May 9, 2016)
- Robert Melton (July 19, 2016)
- Hunter Simoncic (Aug. 28, 2025)
Wyandotte County deputies who died in the line of duty
Here are the members of the Wyandotte County Sheriff’s Office who were recognized:
- William Conway (May 1896)
- Charles Lukens (December 1909)
- Frank Rohrbach (August 1931)
- Maurice Bedell (August 1954)
- Wesley Walden (November 1955)
- Thomas Mendina (March 1956)
- James Reynolds (August 1984)
- Patrick Rohrer (June 2018)
- Theresa King (June 2018)
- Elijah Ming (July 2025)
