Remarks by Carl J. Truscott
Director, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
ATF Memorial Observance
Washington, D.C.
May 16, 2005


Note: This is the text as prepared for delivery. The Director sometimes deviates from prepared remarks.

Good morning. ATF colleagues, honored guests, ladies and gentlemen:

I greet you on a very important day for our Bureau. Today, we come to this Memorial to remember. We are encircled by these marble walls-walls engraved with the names of those who have left us, but whose legacy still supports us. During this National Police Week, we join with other law enforcement agencies to recall our common legacy.

In our ceremony today, we remember our agents lost in the line of duty, and their Federal, State and local counterparts. We will hear their names, and recall their stories. Today we are looking back, acknowledging the sacrifices made by those who came before us. And we are looking forward, honoring their memory by continuing their service.

In our personal lives, we seek out friends and family to share our momentous occasions. And today we've done the same within our law enforcement family.

Our warmest thanks to Reverend Marrett, Reverend Monsignor Criscuolo, and Rabbi Wohlberg for your presence with us. We appreciate your wise words today-and we are thankful for your willingness to guide and assist us in the truly difficult times.

I am especially thankful and honored that two former Directors-John Magaw and Rex Davis-have come to share this day with us. Welcome, gentlemen.

Craig Floyd, I thank you for joining us today, and for your thoughtful remarks. And I personally appreciate all the great work you have done on behalf of law enforcement officers and their families. Your advocacy helped build this memorial, and is helping to create a museum to tell our stories.

Many people have helped to create today's moment of remembrance, and I think it's appropriate to express our appreciation to them:

Music is such a valued contribution to our observance today. Thank you to our own Angela Parker, for her rendition of our national anthem, and many thanks to Sgt. Richard Pasciuto, Ronald Limparis, and Michael Scott for sharing your musical gifts with us.

And we thank the United States Secret Service Uniformed Division Honor Guard for presenting the colors with such dignity and grace.

We all appreciate the contributions of Regina Hedgepeth and all who have worked so hard to make this event memorable.

The names and the stories that surround us here are remembered daily at our Bureau. When a peace officer is killed in the line of duty, information about that loss is included in my daily briefing. Sadly, almost every day there is another name, another story.

I think it is our duty as law enforcement officers to remain mindful of the sacrifices that have been made, and are being made daily, as our fellow peace officers go about their daily work. Later on, you will hear the names of the ATF agents who have made this sacrifice. I'd like you to know that through research in preparation for the new Memorial at our new Headquarters building, we've discovered that one additional name should be placed on the list.

I'd like to tell you a little bit about this man, whose name was Joseph Floyd. 83 years ago tomorrow, in Houston, Texas, Prohibition Agent Floyd and another agent apprehended two men leaving a house in a truck loaded with liquor. When the agents attempted to arrest the men, they resisted, and fired on the officers, killing Agent Floyd, who died at the scene. His name has been added to our memorial list and his sacrifice will be honored with the others.

The names of our ATF heroes are surrounded by more than 17,000 names of our Federal, State and local counterparts. Many of us remember them not as names but as human beings-as colleagues, or coworkers, or friends. We remember the families they left behind, and the loss those families have endured. To forget who they were, would be to forget who we are-and so we remember.

Yesterday afternoon, I attended the National Peace Officers' Memorial Service. I stood at the West Front of the Capitol, surrounded by our law enforcement counterparts from across the nation. During the service, we remembered fallen law enforcement officers, and honored those still serving. In his remarks, President Bush noted that "the tradition of service and sacrifice runs strong among law enforcement"-and he offered "the solemn thanks of a grateful nation" for our service to the American people.

These traditions of service and sacrifice are strong within ATF. We have always been known for our willingness to assume and execute the most challenging and hazardous assignments. The men and women of ATF display extraordinary courage in countless ways: among them by executing enforcement operations against "the worst of the worst," by infiltrating criminal groups including dangerous outlaw motorcycle organizations, and by working with hazardous materials as part of our daily duties. We risk our lives, though not frivolously, as if life does not matter. We risk them because by doing so, we can bring a better way of life to the communities we serve.

The daily drumbeat of names and stories is not only a remembrance of past sacrifices: it also serves as a reminder for all of us of the hazards. It keeps our focus where it must be: on seeking safer ways to work. In the past, we have learned from our losses. The sacrifices of the past are remembered in our undercover operations, our explosives handling, and our tactical operations. And in being mindful of events within the larger law enforcement community, I hope that we can learn from the tragic experiences of others, to avert tragedies of our own. We are always seeking safer ways to work, and striving to make the inherently hazardous less so.

By protecting the American public, we at ATF are serving our country. And as we do, particularly on this day, we remember our fellow Americans who are serving in the armed forces and fighting the war on terror. Some members of our ATF family have been called to military service. Others have volunteered to share ATF's knowledge in other countries, putting themselves in harm's way to support American efforts in Iraq. The risks are many. But as we always have, we meet the challenge.

Both overseas and right here at home, the men and women of ATF continue to step forward and to carry out our duties-despite the dangers, despite the hazards. Each of us has a distinctive role in achieving ATF's missions. And by playing this role, we live out our shared belief: that the treasure of a free and civil society merits the sacrifice required to sustain it. Those whose names line these walls shared this belief, too. And today, they are proud of you, as am I.

And now I'd like to introduce our next speaker, who has over the course of his career displayed his own commitment to one of ATF's core values: the importance of partnerships. We have had an effective partner, and a good friend, in Deputy Attorney General James Comey. I honor his many years of service as Assistant U.S. Attorney in Richmond, and U.S. Attorney in New York. I respect the leadership he has shown as Deputy Attorney General. And I appreciate his presence with us today.

###