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1
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, It is appropriate for us to remember the many
3sacrifices and contributions made by members of the law
4enforcement community while protecting the safety of the
5public; and
 
6    WHEREAS, It is also appropriate for us to honor civilians
7who have given their lives in protecting the public; and
 
8    WHEREAS, Illinois State Police Trooper Michael McCarter,
9Paxton Police Department Patrolman William Caisse, and
10civilian, Donald Vice, were shot and killed following a traffic
11stop on I-57 south of Paxton; Larry C. Hale of the Paxton
12Police Department was wounded; and
 
13    WHEREAS, On April 7, 1979, at about 9:00 pm, Patrolman
14Caisse was dispatched to assist Trooper McCarter who was
15attempting to stop four speeding vehicles traveling
16southbound; once at the scene, one subject fled to an overpass
17area and began firing at both officers, fatally wounding
18Trooper McCarter and Donald Vice, Trooper McCarter's
19brother-in-law, who was riding with him; and
 
20    WHEREAS, Upon the arrival of another Paxton officer, Larry
21Hale, gunfire continued from the overpass area as another

 

 

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1suspect retrieved a rifle from the rear of his pickup truck,
2shooting Patrolman Caisse in the back, killing him instantly;
3and
 
4    WHEREAS, The suspect then began firing at Officer Hale,
5wounding him in the right leg and chest, before he was able to
6return fire; as the suspect fell to the ground and reached for
7his weapon, the officer fired his revolver and killed him; and
 
8    WHEREAS, Trooper McCarter had served with the Illinois
9State Police for nine years and was assigned to District 6A; he
10was survived by his wife and son; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Patrolman Caisse had served with the Paxton Police
12Department for three years; he was a United States Army
13veteran, and served in the Vietnam War; he was survived by his
14wife, son, two daughters, his parents, four brothers, and a
15sister; and
 
16    WHEREAS, Donald Vice worked at Caterpillar Tractor Company
17in Pontiac; he was survived by his wife, his mother, his
18stepfather, six sons, two brothers, three sisters, and four
19grandchildren; therefore, be it
 
20    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
21HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE SENATE

 

 

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1CONCURRING HEREIN, that we designate the overpass at 200 North
2Road crossing I-57 South of Paxton as the
3"McCarter-Caisse-Vice-Hale Memorial Overpass"; and be it
4further
 
5    RESOLVED, That the Illinois Department of Transportation
6is requested to erect at suitable locations, consistent with
7State and federal regulations, appropriate plaques or signs
8giving notice of the name of the "McCarter-Caisse-Vice-Hale
9Memorial Overpass"; and be it further
 
10    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
11presented to the families of Trooper Michael McCarter, Paxton
12Patrolman William Caisse, and Donald Vice, and to Paxton
13Patrolman Larry C. Hale, the Illinois State Police, the Paxton
14Police Department, and the Secretary of the Illinois Department
15of Transportation.