By Pat Culverhouse

Flags flew at half mast in Minden and across the nation when Peace Officers Memorial Day was celebrated Wednesday, May 15 as part of a special week dedicated to law enforcement officers who lost their lives in the line of duty.

Webster Parish Sheriff Jason Parker attended a dedication ceremony in Shreveport, placing a wreath in remembrance of three Webster Parish deputies who have given their lives in service.

“These officers, and all those who have fallen while serving the public, must never be forgotten,” Parker said. “They’re at the end of their watch, but they will never be out of our memory.”

Webster deputies who died in the line of duty are William Earl “Billy” Collins Jr., Trey Copeland and Christopher Goodwill. Collins and Copeland died in 2021 less than two months apart; Goodwill was killed in 1901.

Ironically, both Collins and Copeland were correctional officers at Bayou Dorcheat Correctional Center. Both also worked part-time on small Webster town police departments.

Collins was shot and killed in the early evening hours of July 9, 2021 while responding to a disturbance call in Doyline where he was a part-time officer. He was 53 years old.

Copeland was working as a part-time officer in Cotton Valley when he died of an apparent heart attack after assisting other officers in a lengthy high-speed chase of a motorcyclist on the evening of August 31, 2021. Copeland was 47.

Goodwill was only 33 years old when he was shot and killed around midnight on May 28, 1901, during an exchange of gunfire with a man who had murdered the owner of a Minden boarding house.

“Every law enforcement officer knows the potential dangers, and still they report to duty each day,” Parker said. “Sometimes their service becomes the ultimate sacrifice. When an officer dies in the line of duty, no matter where, we lose a family member. We will always remember their dedication, their service and their sacrifice.”