The Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Office will hold a dedication ceremony Wednesday for the department’s Hall Of Honor, which will honor four fallen deputies.
The ceremony will take place at 5 p.m. Wednesday at the sheriff’s office, 2201 Hogback Road in Pittsfield Township. The ceremony is open to the public and comes on Peace Officers Memorial Day, held every year on May 15.
The Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners also passed a resolution declaring the week of May 12 through May 18 as Police and Corrections Officer Week and May 15 as Peace Officers Memorial Day in Washtenaw County.
The newly created Hall of Honor will serve to remember Leo Borders, Frank Compton, Harold Ewald and Jerry Russo, four sheriff’s deputies who lost their lives in the line of duty.
Borders, 28, died on Aug. 3, 1966, in an automobile crash during a vehicle pursuit of four suspects, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page (ODMP). He worked for the sheriff’s office for two years before his death.
Russo, 32, was also killed in an automobile crash when his patrol car was struck by another vehicle on Jan. 14, 1967, when he was reporting for duty, according to ODMP.
Crampton, 60, was shot and killed with his own gun when he and Ewald were taking two suspects from one facility to another on Jan. 15, 1970. According to ODMP, one of the prisoners started slashing at Crampton with a homemade knife and Ewald stopped the vehicle. Crampton took out his gun and the prisoner jumped into the front seat, took the weapon and shot Crampton, killing him instantly.
The suspect fled and Ewald shot the man several times. An off-duty police officer heard the gunshots and mistakenly thought Ewald was a suspect, shooting him three times. Ewald would recover from those injuries, according to ODMP.
However, Ewald died of a heart attack on Dec. 8, 1970, at the juvenile detention center. Doctors attributed the heart attack to the stress of being shot and losing Crampton, his partner. Ewald was 58 years old.
Crampton served the sheriff’s office for 12 years. Ewald served the sheriff’s office for 20 years.
A reception will follow the 5 p.m. ceremony on Wednesday.
Kyle Feldscher covers cops and courts for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at kylefeldscher@annarbor.com or you can follow him on Twitter.