Midwest
Remembering police officers who lost their lives on duty last year
The life of a police officer can change in a second when responding to a call.
In 2023 alone, there were 378 officers shot in the line of duty, according to a report from the National Fraternal Order of Police (FOP).
In total, 46 police officers were killed last year, a 60% increase since 2018, according to the FOP.
These are eight stories of police officers who tragically lost their lives on duty last year.
Police console each other at the memorial to fallen Charlotte-Mecklenberg Police Officer, Joshua Eyer to First Baptist Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, Friday, May 3, 2024. (The Image Direct for Fox News Digital)
NEW YORK POLICE OFFICER, SHERIFF’S DEPUTY KILLED IN SHOOTING; SUSPECT ALSO DEAD
- Sergeant Michael Moran, Colorado
- Trooper Aaron Smith, Indiana
- Master Trooper James Bailey, Indiana
- Officer Andres Vasquez-Lasso, Illinois
- Lieutenant Milton Resendez, Texas
- Sergeant Michael Abbate and Trooper Alberto Felix, Nevada
- Sergeant Cory Maynard, West Virginia
- Officer Garrett Crumby, Alabama
1. Sergeant Michael Moran, Colorado
In November 2023, Sgt. Michael Moran of the Cortez Police Department in Colorado was shot during a traffic stop, according to the Montezuma Sheriff’s Office.
The suspect fled but was later tracked down by police, and gunfire was exchanged. Fox News Digital reported at the time that one suspect was killed in the shooting and another was taken into custody.
After Moran was shot, he was rushed to Southwest Memorial Hospital, where he died from his injuries.
Cortez Police Sgt. Michael Moran, 46, was killed in the line of duty when a suspect opened fire on him during a traffic stop. (Cortez Police Department)
Before joining the Cortez Police Department in 2012, Moran served in the Marines for nine years.
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“As a new officer, Sgt. Moran rose quickly through the ranks, becoming a K-9 handler in 2016,” the Cortez Police Department said. “He was most proud of his canine partner Otto, who served by his side until retiring in 2020.”
2. Trooper Aaron Smith, Indiana
In June 2023, Indiana state trooper Aaron Smith died after being struck by a suspect driving a stolen vehicle. He was 33 years old.
Smith exited his patrol car to deploy stop sticks during the pursuit of a stolen vehicle on Ronald Reagan Parkway at around 8:45 p.m. when he was struck, according to the Indiana State Police statement.
He was taken to Eskenazi Hospital, where he died. He was with the police department for five years before his death.
“This young trooper was the best of us. He was a shining star with the state police,” Superintendent Doug Carter said of Smith in June 2023. “He didn’t survive tonight. I am usually not without words, but I don’t know what else to say, besides the sadness continues to follow us. He was one of those guys who stood out.”
Trooper Aaron Smith was struck and killed after he attempted to stop a stolen vehicle by laying stop sticks June 28, 2023. (Indiana State Police)
“This is a tremendously sad day for the entire Indiana State Police family. We will band together as we always do in support of Trooper Smith’s family, friends and co-workers,” Carter said in the written statement, adding Smith is survived by a “young wife and a beautiful family.”
POLICE SHORTAGES REPORTED NATIONWIDE AMID RECORD-LOW MORALE AND RECRUITMENT
3. Master Trooper James Bailey, Indiana
In March 2023, just a few months before Smith’s death, a similar situation occurred in Indiana.
Master Trooper James Bailey was also hit by a suspect’s vehicle and his injuries led to his death.
According to Indiana State Police Public Information Officer Brian Walker, Bailey was hit by a suspect’s car on Interstate 69 while helping other troopers with traffic from weather-related crashes. There was a pursuit headed his way.
Walker put stop sticks down in an attempt to de-escalate the situation but was struck by the suspect’s vehicle. The driver, Terry Sands II, was taken into custody.
“This is a tremendously sad day for the entire Indiana State Police family. We will band together as we always do in support of Trooper Bailey’s family, friends and co-workers”, Indiana State Police Superintendent Douglas Carter said.
4. Officer Andres Vasquez-Lasso, Illionis
Officer Andres Vasquez-Lasso, a Chicago police officer, was killed while he was chasing an armed teenage suspect who turned and fired at him “at close range” in Gage Park, according to FOX 32. The incident began with two police cars responding to a domestic-related call.
Chicago Police Officer Andres Vasquez-Lasso was killed March 1, 2023. (Chicago Police Department)
Then-Police Superintendent David O. Brown told reporters at the time that the caller said the suspect was chasing a female with a gun.
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When the officers arrived, one knocked on the door, while another engaged with the armed suspect, reported to be an 18-year-old with a prior criminal violation.
The suspect was shot in the head and taken to a hospital, Fox News Digital reported. Vasquez-Lasso was shot multiple times and was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he died of his injuries.
“Vasquez-Lasso had been on the force for five years, and Brown said he had a very bright future ahead of him. Brown also noted that the officer comes from a family of public servants,” FOX 32 stated.
5. Lieutenant Milton Resendez, Texas
In October 2023, Lt. Milton Resendez was shot while he was pursuing two individuals who left a traffic stop, swapped vehicles and were driving through several cities along the southern border, Fox News Digital reported. The suspects were arrested hours later.
Chief Mario Pera of the San Benito Police Department in Texas told reporters Resendez was struck in the abdomen by a bullet that went through the door of his patrol car and hit below his body armor.
This undated photo provided by the San Benito Police Department shows San Benito Lt. Milton Resendez, who was fatally shot Oct. 18, 2023, in San Benito, Texas, after joining an hours-long pursuit of two men who fled a traffic stop. (San Benito Police Department via AP)
He was pronounced dead at a local hospital.
Cameron County District Attorney Luis Saenz said at the time that 18-year-old Rogelio Martinez Jr. of Brownsville and 23-year-old Rodrigo Axel Espinoza Valdez of Mexico both face multiple charges, including capital murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and evading arrest.
6. Sergeant Michael Abbate and Trooper Alberto Felix, Nevada
Sgt. Michael Abbate and Trooper Alberto Felix were killed by a drunk driver on a Las Vegas freeway in December 2023.
The two were stopped to check on a driver who seemed to be sleeping in his car, according to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.
Shortly after the troopers stopped, they were hit by the car. The driver quickly fled.
UTAH POLICE OFFICER KILLED BY SEMI-TRUCK, SUSPECT ARRESTED AFTER HOURS-LONG MANHUNT
One of the men died at the scene and the other died at UMC Trauma Hospital, Fox News Digital reported.
The car was found about five hours later, and 46-year-old Jemarcus Williams was arrested on two counts of each charge: reckless driving resulting in death, driving under the influence resulting in death and duty to stop at the scene of an accident involving death, according to Fox News Digital.
7. Sergeant Cory Maynard, West Virginia
Sgt. Cory Maynard of the West Virginia State Police was killed in June 2023 after responding to a complaint about a shooting.
When Maynard and two other officers arrived, Timothy Kennedy allegedly began to fire a weapon. Maynard was shot and taken to the hospital, where he died.
Kennedy, who fled after the incident, was caught and charged with first-degree murder.
This undated photo provided by West Virginia State Police shows State Police Sgt. Cory Maynard. Maynard was fatally shot June 2, 2023. (Courtesy of West Virginia State Police via AP)
“The brave men and women of law enforcement and all first responders who put their lives on the line every day to keep us safe are an inspiration to us all,” Republican Gov. Jim Justice said at the time of the incident. “I again ask all West Virginians to join Cathy and I in embracing Trooper Maynard’s family, loved ones and all of our courageous West Virginians in uniform during this incredibly difficult time.”
8. Officer Garrett Crumby, Alabama
In March 2023, an Alabama officer was killed and another was injured while responding to a domestic violence call.
The Huntsville Police Department said officers arrived at the scene around 4:45 p.m. and quickly located a woman who had been shot.
State Attorney General Steve Marshall said officers Garrett Crumby and Albert Morin were helping the woman and two small children when an armed man ambushed them and then barricaded himself in an apartment.
Both officers were taken to Huntsville Hospital, where Crumbly died. Marshall said Crumbly was a three-year veteran of the department. He had also served with the Tuscaloosa Police Department for eight years.
“Our part of the country has been reminded again this week of the pure heroism of those who make up the thin blue line — the dividing line, at times, between life and death for the citizens that they swear an oath to protect,” Marshall said at the time. “These two law enforcement officers responded to a domestic violence call this evening, knowing full well that they would be placing their lives on the line in defense of their fellow man. We must never take their service and sacrifice for granted.”
The suspect was booked for capital murder of a law enforcement officer.
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Gov. Tony Evers urges Wisconsin lawmakers to pass gerrymandering ban
Gov. Tony Evers has called lawmakers in to take up a constitutional amendment banning partisan gerrymandering in Wisconsin’s redistricting process.
MADISON – A second three-judge panel on Tuesday dismissed a challenge to Wisconsin’s congressional maps, ruling it has no authority to act on the claims without further input from the state Supreme Court.
“Until the [state] Supreme Court says otherwise,” the lawsuit’s claims are “non-justiciable and non-cognizable under Wisconsin law,” the judges wrote.
The law firm that brought the suit said it would immediately appeal the ruling to the state Supreme Court.
The decision is one of two cases that have been under consideration by separate panels composed of three judges from different counties appointed by the liberal-led state Supreme Court. The lawsuits, filed in July 2025, followed multiple failed attempts to redraw the maps, which are currently represented by six Republicans and two Democrats.
This case, brought by Law Forward representing the group Wisconsin Business Leaders for Democracy, contends the current maps amount to an anti-competitive gerrymander.
Republican members of the state’s congressional delegation and others sought to dismiss it.
“The three-judge panel got it right,” said Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty deputy counsel Lucas Vebber, an intervenor in the case. “This is a victory for the rule of law in our state.”
The state’s high court issued orders Nov. 25 concluding the two legal challenges constituted “an action to challenge the apportionment of any congressional or state legislative district” under a 2011 state law that requires such challenges to be heard by a panel appointed by the Supreme Court.
It was the first time the 2011 law had been invoked in a redistricting case.
The three-judge panel, led by Dane County Circuit Judge David Conway, wrote in its April 28 order that while plaintiffs presented a “detailed theory to support their claims,” the state Supreme Court already held in 2022 that the “partisan composition of electoral districts raises a non-justiciable political question.”
The panel, “as an inferior court, is obligated to obey them,” the judges wrote.
“The Supreme Court is the ultimate interpreter of our state constitution. When the Court speaks, its words are final unless and until it says otherwise. Because this panel is bound by the Court’s interpretations, it must alternatively dismiss Plaintiffs’ claims for failure to state a cognizable constitutional cause of action,” the panel wrote.
A separate three-judge panel last month rejected a parallel case on similar grounds.
“This is the first anti-competitive gerrymandering case ever filed in Wisconsin courts, and it deserves to be heard,” Law Forward director of litigation Doug Poland said in a statement. “
Under the 2011 law that required these challenges to be heard by panels of circuit court judges, the order may only be appealed to the state Supreme Court.
“We will therefore appeal the case to our state supreme court and look forward to the opportunity to prove that the state’s congressional maps must be redrawn to ensure that Wisconsin voters are given a real choice in voting for congressional district candidates and that the legislature does not dictate which political party’s candidate will prevail by skewing the composition of districts to protect incumbents and political parties,” Poland said.
Former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, one of several Democrats vying to be the party’s gubernatorial candidate, posted on X in response to the ruling that “a 50-50 state with a 6-2 delegation isn’t a fair map” and said as governor he would use every option available to me to protect our democracy.”
A campaign spokesman said Barnes would “work with the Legislature to pass fair maps next session.”
President Donald Trump last year pushed Republican-leaning states to redraw their congressional maps to add GOP-held seats in the U.S. House. The effort prompted some Democratic-leaning states to embark on their own efforts to add blue seats.
Gov. Tony Evers seeks a nonpartisan redistricting process
Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, who is not seeking a third term, has said it would be a mistake for Wisconsin to engage in the partisan arms race to draw new electoral maps.
“I don’t think we’re in a position to do that. We could draw them as crazy as possible, but … we couldn’t pick up enough seats to make a difference. I just think it would be bad politics for the Democrats to try to do that, and I just don’t think there’s a way to do it,” Evers told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel last fall.
Evers has said implementing a permanent nonpartisan process to create new electoral maps is a priority before he leaves office.
The governor signed an executive order last month calling the Legislature to open a special legislative session to pass a constitutional amendment barring the use of partisan gerrymandering in the state’s redistricting process.
Republicans who control the Legislature have left the special session open rather than immediately gaveling out of it as they have done more than a dozen times when Evers has made similar calls. In doing so, they said they were leaving the door open to “continue meaningful dialogue” on the issue – but Evers said there’s nothing to negotiate.
“Lawmakers either want to ban partisan gerrymandering in Wisconsin or they don’t. It’s that simple,” Evers countered. “If lawmakers fail to take a public vote on this basic question, then Wisconsinites have no choice but to assume their lawmaker’s position on this issue.”
Jessie Opoien can be reached at jessie.opoien@jrn.com.
(This story was updated to add new information.)
Detroit, MI
Where to watch Detroit Tigers vs Atlanta Braves: TV channel, start time, streaming for Apr. 28
What to know about MLB’s ABS robot umpire strike zone system
MLB launches ABS challenge system as players test robot umpire calls in a groundbreaking season.
Baseball is back and finding what channel your favorite team is playing on has become a little bit more confusing since MLB announced plans to produce and distribute broadcasts for nearly a third of the league.
We’re here to help. Here’s everything you need to know Tuesday as the Detroit Tigers visit the Atlanta Braves.
See USA TODAY’s sortable MLB schedule to filter by team or division.
What time is Detroit Tigers vs Atlanta Braves?
First pitch between the Atlanta Braves and Detroit Tigers is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. (ET) on Tuesday, Apr. 28.
How to watch Detroit Tigers vs Atlanta Braves on Tuesday
All times Eastern and accurate as of Tuesday, April 28, 2026, at 6:33 a.m.
Watch MLB all season long with Fubo
MLB regional blackout restrictions apply
MLB scores, results
MLB scores for Apr. 28 games are available on usatoday.com . Here’s how to access today’s results:
See scores, results for all of today’s games.
World Boxing Council president attends Diamondbacks-Mexico exhibition game
World Boxing Council president Mauricio Sulaiman shares his love of baseball and how it compares to boxing at the Diamondbacks-Mexico exhibition game.
Daniel Blancas will be back on the big stage May 2.
Fighting in Las Vegas. Every boxer’s dream.
At T-Mobile Arena, no less, the biggest room in the entertainment capital short of an NFL stadium.
Not bad for a kid who trained at the United Community Center on Milwaukee’s south side and frequently still does as an adult.
But Blancas has been here before. Two experiences of the night stand out.
“The atmosphere is amazing,” Blancas said recently. “Just watching through the tunnel leading into the ring, your mind is just everywhere. You’re feeling a bunch of emotions.
“Especially because at the end of the day, it’s just you and your opponent in the ring. It’s just myself and them fighting. Honestly, you’re excited. You’re anxious to get in the ring.
“Some people might feel nervous, you know?”
Not Blancas, though. At that point he’s prepared, he says, and if you’re prepared, why be nervous?
That’s the start of the night. The memorable start.
Then if all goes as planned – as has happened 14 times in 14 fights – comes the experience the 24-year-old Blancas loves most about the sport. The feeling that makes all the sweat and the miles and the getting hit in the face and the gut worthwhile.
“That feeling of when I get my hand raised at the end of the fight, knowing that I won, that’s one of the greatest feelings ever,” Blancas said. “Being able to experience that is, I’d say it’s really hard to describe, but it’s just an amazing feeling.
“Like you just feel untouchable during those moments because of how hard you work and all the hard work paid off.”
Blancas grew up the son of a boxer – Ignacio fought in Mexico before coming to the United States and helps train his son – and the grandson of a big boxing fan. Daniel is the oldest of three brothers. Aldo is 19 and made his pro debut in March. Mateo is 9.
Blancas put on the gloves for the first time at 8 and, influenced by the likes of multiclass champions Julio César Chávez and Juan Manuel Marquez, he hasn’t stopped hitting the bag since.
Blancas was 15, give or take, faring well in amateur tournaments, when he decided he could make a career in the sport. He won a championship for Team USA at the 2017 Junior Olympics.
Now the lanky, 6-foot-3 super middleweight nicknamed “Ice Man” is in his fifth year as a pro. His 14-0 record includes seven knockouts.
Next up is Blancas’ biggest fight and his longest, a scheduled 10-rounder against Raul Salomon (16-3-1, 14 KO), who has fought most recently as a light heavyweight.
“What I know is he’s a tough guy,” Blancas said. “He has some good experience. I know he could take a punch.
“He’s going to be a great fight for me, a great test, and I know he’s going to be ready for it, and so am I. I’ve been training really, really hard, getting ready for it.”
The fight is part of the undercard on a night headlined by the WBO cruiserweight title fight between two-class champion David Benavidez (31-0), the challenger, and Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez (48-1).
Blancas connected with Benavidez a few years back as the world was starting to return to normal after the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic and became one of about a half-dozen boxers considered part of his team.
“When I was in Los Angeles, visiting some family, the opportunity came up to actually spar him,” Blancas said. “And I went and did that, and him and his father really liked the sparring session. So we kept in touch.
“And then they reached out to my dad, because he’s one of my trainers as well. And they were like, ‘Come down to another training camp with us. We really liked how you did.’”
The relationship has paid off with training and sparring opportunities with one of the best and chances to fight on the undercard at some of the most prestigious venues in the country.
Blancas has never fought professionally in Wisconsin. The exceedingly few opportunities there might have been as he was coming up conflicted with other, more prestigious opportunities in one way or another.
Considering he spends only a couple of months at a time in Milwaukee between training camps, Blancas is proud of the fan base he has built in the community he still calls home.
“The city, they support me, a lot of the people support me. A lot of my friends support me,” Blancas said. “It feels good knowing that I’m loved back home in Milwaukee and it’s also an honor to represent the city because with everything going on sometimes in Milwaukee it’s a good thing to have someone doing something positive as well.”
This will be Blancas’ sixth fight in Las Vegas and second at T-Mobile.
“I feel really, really blessed because it’s been a long journey,” he said. “Now that I’m able to fight here in Las Vegas, especially on the big stages – like T-Mobile Arena, MGM Grand, Mandalay Bay; I fought in all those spots – that’s a dream come true for me and for a lot of boxers growing up, because that’s where the big fights have always happened.
“Just being able to be part of history and being able to live that, it just feels like sometimes unreal.”
Boxing closer to home in Racine
Coincidentally, the same weekend as Blancas’ fight with Salomon, BMB promotions has a Cinco de Mayo program scheduled for Memorial Hall in Racine with amateurs on May 1 and professionals on May 2.
Fights start at 6:30 p.m. Friday and 5 p.m. Saturday, culminating with a 10-round super-welterweight bout between Michigan native Joey Spencer (20-2, 11 KO) and Dominican fighter Eudy Bernardo (27-9, 19 KO).
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