Albany, Georgia – Peace Officers Memorial Day is held annually in the United States on May 15 in honor of federal, state, and local officers killed or disabled in the line of duty. It is observed in conjunction with Police Week. Fallen officers from the Albany Police Department, Dougherty County Sheriff’s Office, Dougherty County Police Department, and the United States Marine Corps will all be honored in a special ceremony at Albany Technical College. Make plans to attend May 15, 2019, 9 a.m. in the Kirkland Conference Center. A special proclamation will be presented by Albany Mayor Dorothy Hubbard and Dougherty County Commission Chairman Christopher Cohilas.
Guest speaker for the event will be U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas Q. Langstaff, United States District Court, Middle District of Georgia. Judge Langstaff was appointed to serve as a U.S. Magistrate Judge in April 2010. Before his appointment, he practiced law for 25 years. He is a graduate of Georgia Institute of Technology and University of Georgia School of Law. After working his way through law school, he began his legal career in Atlanta with a litigation firm and returned home to Albany in 1990 to practice law with his father. A large part of his private practice was devoted to representing local government and local law enforcement officers throughout Southwest Georgia. As the senior U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Middle District of Georgia, he serves a district that is comprised of 70 Georgia counties and includes Athens, Macon, Columbus, Albany, and Valdosta. He presides over both civil and criminal cases pending in federal court. Judge Langstaff grew up in Albany and is a graduate of Westover High School. He has held teaching positions at University of Georgia, Georgia State University, Albany State University, and the former Darton College. He is a founding member of the Board of Directors of the Flint RiverQuarium and has previously served on the Board of Directors of River House and the YMCA’s Leadership Board. He has served on the Albany/Dougherty Olympic Task Force; as a coach and a judge in the High School Mock Trial program; as a volunteer youth sports coach for over 20 years; and is active with Keep Albany-Dougherty Beautiful. He and his wife have raised four children in Albany.
About Albany Technical College
A public postsecondary institution of the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG), Albany Technical College provides technical education and training support for the evolving workforce needs of Southwest Georgia through traditional and online classroom settings. Albany Tech is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS/COC). For more information about Albany Tech, go to www.albanytech.edu or become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AlbanyTech or on Twitter at www.twitter.com/AlbanyTech. You can also subscribe to our YouTube Channel by visiting www.youtube.com/albanytech1 .