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1
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, It is important and appropriate to honor and
3remember the men and women of the Illinois State Police
4Trooper Patrol for their contributions to improving public
5safety; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Trooper James Grady Sutton and Chief Daniel Law
7of the Harrisburg Police Department were shot and killed
8during an arrest; and
 
9    WHEREAS, As Trooper Sutton and Chief Law were escorting
10three suspects in a stolen car to jail, the violators drew
11weapons and opened fire on the officers; and
 
12    WHEREAS, The officers stopped the vehicle at Poplar and
13Vine Streets, directing the driver to City Hall for further
14questioning; Trooper Sutton stood on the left running board
15and Chief Law on the right running board of the vehicle; as the
16vehicle approached City Hall, the driver accelerated, and the
17men in the car drew weapons, killing both officers; and
 
18    WHEREAS, Trooper Sutton was struck in the chest and fell
19to the street near City Hall; before being shot in the head and
20body, Chief Law was able to cling to the vehicle for four
21blocks, exchanging gunfire with the suspects and killing one

 

 

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1of them until he finally dropped from the vehicle; and
 
2    WHEREAS, Trooper Sutton died from his wounds following
3emergency surgery shortly after midnight; the suspect killed
4by Chief Law was found in the abandoned vehicle ten miles north
5of Harrisburg; the other two fugitives were later captured in
6the state of Virginia and returned to Illinois for trial,
7where they both received life sentences; and
 
8    WHEREAS, Trooper Sutton and Chief Law were buried in
9adjoining plots in Sunset Lawn Cemetery in Harrisburg; Trooper
10Sutton was a three-year veteran of the Illinois State Police
11and was survived by his wife; and
 
12    WHEREAS, The service and sacrifice of Trooper Sutton and
13Chief Law to the people of Illinois should never be forgotten;
14therefore, be it
 
15    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
16HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE
17SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that we designate Illinois Route 34
18within the city limits of Harrisburg as the "Trooper Sutton
19and Chief Law Memorial Highway"; and be it further
 
20    RESOLVED, That the Illinois Department of Transportation
21is requested to erect at suitable locations, consistent with

 

 

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1State and federal regulations, appropriate plaques or signs
2giving notice of the name of "Trooper Sutton and Chief Law
3Memorial Highway"; and be it further
 
4    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
5presented to the surviving members of the families of Trooper
6Sutton and Chief Law, the Illinois State Police, the
7Harrisburg Police Department, and the Secretary of the
8Department of Transportation.