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20th Anniversary Ceremony to honor the death of Boise Police Officer Mark Stall

20th Anniversary Ceremony to honor the death of Boise Police Officer Mark Stall
Posted at 10:56 AM, Sep 15, 2017
and last updated 2017-09-15 13:06:49-04

On September 20, the Boise Police Department will host a Remembrance Ceremony to honor the 20th Anniversary of Officer Mark Stall’s death -- the only officer killed in the line of duty in the Boise Police Department’s history.  

The public ceremony is set to be held at 7 p.m. Wednesday at W. Idaho and N. 15th Streets in Boise. Speakers will include Boise Police Captain Ron Winegar, Ray Stall, Boise Police Chief William Bones, and Boise Mayor Dave Bieter.

In the early morning hours of Saturday, September 20, 1997, Officer Stall was shot and killed during a traffic stop that turned violent. Boise Police officers had stopped a car for a routine traffic violation, but the two occupants refused to comply with officer's orders. 

The traffic stop turned “high risk” due to the occupants’ suspicious and belligerent behavior, according to a Boise Police Department news release. Stall responded as a backup officer.

The two occupants got out of their vehicle and opened fire on the responding officers, striking Stall on the right side of his body, just above his vest. Other officers returned fire. 

Stall later died at a Boise hospital.

Both suspects were killed. 

A second Boise Police officer was seriously injured. 

Those who knew Stall describe him as a dedicated police officer and a devoted family man.  “Officer Stall was well liked and respected by his colleagues on the Boise Police Department. He was known as an officer who loved his job and was committed to the community he served," he release said.  

“He truly wanted to make a positive difference in his community, believing he could lead by example; by the way he lived his personal life and how he conducted himself as a Boise Police officer,” the release went on.

Stall served with the Boise Police Department for three years. He joined BPD after previously serving five years as a sheriff's deputy with Los Angeles County, California. Mark and his wife moved to Boise to reunite with her family here. He is survived by his wife and two daughters. 

Today, Boise Police officers are often reminded of the Stall’s legacy of service as they enter and exit the Department’s Headquarters. Officers walk by Stall's locker, which has been memorialized and mounted at the entrance to the Department’s locker rooms. 

Several years ago, BPD officers created a Challenge Coin bearing Mark's image that has become a prized possession of those who obtained one.  

Each year during Police Week in May, Stall -- along with other fallen Idaho Peace officers -- is remembered at a special ceremony that takes place at the Idaho Peace Officers Memorial. 

In May, 2011, the Boise City Council voted to honor Officer Stall by naming a West Boise street in his honor. Mark Stall Place runs south from W. Emerald St. to Boise City Hall West, the administrative offices for the Boise Police and Fire Departments.