MOULTRIE – The Annual Law Enforcement Memorial Service is Friday, at 10 a.m., on the courthouse square at the amphitheater.

The service will start with the Colquitt County Sheriff’s Office Honor Guard Posting the Colors. Then, Eric Gonzalez will sing the National Anthem. Afterwards, Chaplain Arturo Hernandez will give the invocation. Moultrie Police Chief Chad Castleberry and Sheriff Rod Howell will both give welcome addresses. Then, there will be a roll call of the local fallen officers.

The key note speaker is Katherine Bedwell, the wife of Captain Justin Bedwell of the Decatur County Sheriff’s Office, who died in the line of duty on March 1, 2021.

Bedwell succumbed to a gunshot wound sustained, following a vehicle pursuit of two brothers that started in neighboring Seminole County.

The pursuit started when Seminole County deputies attempted to conduct a traffic stop of a pickup truck for reckless driving. The vehicle fled and the occupants opened fire on the deputies, who pursued them into Decatur County. The vehicle stopped in the driveway of a residence near the intersection of U.S. Highway 84 and State Road 310 and the occupants attempted to force entry into the home by shooting through the door.

The homeowner returned fire, prompting the subjects to abandon their attempt to enter the home. As Bedwell arrived in the area, one of the subjects opened fire on his patrol car with a .30 caliber rifle, striking him in the chest. A second deputy suffered minor injuries. They arrested one subject at the scene. Twelve hours later, following a manhunt, they arrested the second subject. He was armed with the rifle and was wearing a bulletproof vest.

Emergency services flew Bedwell to a hospital, in Tallahassee, where he succumbed to his wounds while undergoing emergency surgery, two days later.

He had served with the Decatur County Sheriff’s Office for 20 years. Along with his wife, his daughter and mother survive him.

The service closes with a moment of silence and the benediction. Then, the Colquitt County Sheriff’s Office Honor Guard will place a wreath at the law enforcement memorial on the square.

In the U.S, in 2024, there were 165 “in line of duty” deaths and six of them were in Georgia. This year, there have been 23 “in line of duty deaths” in the U.S. and already three in Georgia.