Memorial today honors fallen officers

Today, peace officers from across the state will be in Carson City to honor their fallen comrades - including Las Vegas Sgt. Henry Prendes whose name was added this year to the granite memorial on the Capitol grounds.

For the sixth year, a baton containing the names of the 101 peace officers who died in the line of duty in Nevada since the 1800s, made the 420-mile run in the hands of peace officers from Las Vegas to Carson City. Runners from the ranks of all Nevada peace officers and Nevada federal law enforcement take part in the 101 legs of the Memorial Run.

Wednesday, in the final three legs of the journey, future officers taking part in the Peace Officer's Standards and Training course, handed off to members of the Nevada Department of Justice at Johnson Lane. Those officers handed off to undercover members of the Tri-Net Drug Task Force at Stephanie Lane and Carson City SWAT members collected the baton at the Silver City RV Park in Minden to run it to Sixth Street.

For the past two years, Carson City Sheriff Kenny Furlong has run the baton into the ceremony. Today, he said, Prendes' best friend, also a Las Vegas law enforcement officer, will make the final jaunt from Sixth Street to the Capitol at 1 p.m. during the Law Enforcement Memorial and deliver the baton to Prendes' family.

Furlong said, Carson City deputies are honored to take part in the final leg of this emotional run.

"It's an extreme honor. Tomorrow our officers will hand the baton off to the fallen officers best friend and I don't think there's a much higher honor than that," he said. "Whether you know the officer or not our guys feel an emotional relationship. Today's ceremony will be particularly significant."

Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Sgt. Prendes, 37, was gunned down Feb. 1 when he responded to a domestic dispute call. His killer continued to fire on responding officers, keeping them from rescuing Prendes, who lay mortally wounded in the line of fire.

If you go

WHAT: Nevada Peace Officer's Memorial

WHEN: 1 p.m. today

WHERE: Nevada Peace Officer's Memorial on the Capitol Grounds