Crime & Safety

Jennifer Sebena Denied Place on National Memorial Wall

Saying the shooting death of the Wauwatosa Police officer death was a case of domestic violence and therefore not "in the line of duty," regardless of her being on duty, Jennifer Sebena is rejected for national honor.

Slain Wauwatosa Police Officer Jennifer Sebena has been denied a place for her name on the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, DC, for officers killed in the line of duty, according to Patch's news partners at WISN.

Channel 12 reported at 10 p.m. Tuesday it has confirmed that an application for Sebena's name to be inscribed on a memorial wall with other law officers' was rejected, apparently because she allegedly died at the hand of her husband, Benjamin Sebena, in an act of domestic violence.

That has left hundreds of friends and supporters of Jennifer Sebena expressing their displeasure on social media sites and in an online petition – and WISN has learned that public outrage has already prompted a reconsideration.

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See WISN Channel 12's report from its 10 p.m. broadcast

Aside from the fact that Benjamin Sebena is months away from trial and therefore cannot be considered guilty in Jennifer's death, there does not appear to be anything in the criteria of National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, the organization behind the memorial wall, that would exclude her for that or any other reason.

Find out what's happening in Wauwatosawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Sebena was clearly on duty and performing her duty when she was shot from behind and killed on Christmas Eve morning at Wauwatosa Fire Station No. 1.

While officers who die on duty of natural causes and some kinds of accidents unrelated to the performance of their duty are excluded, the pertinent parts of the Memorial Fund's official criteria state:

"For the purpose of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial, 'law enforcement officer' means an individual involved in crime control or reduction and who is directly employed on a full-time basis by a local, county, state or federal law enforcement agency of the United States or its territories, with or without compensation, who is duly sworn and has full arrest powers....

"'Line of duty' means any action which an officer is obligated or authorized by law, rule, regulation, written condition of employment service to perform, or for which the officer is compensated by the public agency he or she serves....

"The term 'killed in the line of duty' means a law enforcement officer has died as a direct and proximate result of a personal injury sustained in the line of duty. This includes victim law enforcement officers who, while in an off-duty capacity, act in response to a law violation.....

"An officer shall be included if a department states that the officer died in the line of duty and there is no information to believe otherwise...."

Sebena also removed from Officer Down page

Equally or more puzzling, Jennifer Sebena's name has also disappeared from a website dedicated to officers who die while on duty, called the Officer Down Memorial Page.

ODMP is not related to the national LEO Memorial Fund but apparently was following in its footsteps in Sebena's rejection, according to WISN reporter Christina Palladino, who shared the information with Patch.

That seems especially odd, since ODMP makes no distinctions whatsoever about how an officer died, as long as he or she was on duty at the time. Officers who died of heart attacks or stroke and in accidents including training accidents are all included.

Sebena's ODMP page included some 500 individual testimonials to her service, including many from her colleagues on the Wauwatosa Police force.

Palladino said that Jim Palmer, the executive director of the Wisconsin Professional Police Association, which has lodged an official protest of the LEO Memorial wall denial, public outrage has already prompted a hearing that will be held Thursday to reconsider.

According to Palladino's report, Palmer said the police union had been "aggresively contacting board members" of LEO Memorial Fund, and that "not including Jennifer Sebena would be... a travesty."

Hundreds sign petition, post on Facebook

A flurry of messages and comments have been posted on a Facebook page, Remembering Wauwatosa Police Officer Jennifer Sebena, that was created immediately after her death, and an online petition posted on change.org by Jason Asselin of Iron Mountain, MI, already contains hundreds of messages to the LEO Memorial Fund demanding Sebena be accepted.

Some examples:

Kurt Svatek, a Wauwatosa police officer: "She is and was my partner and co-worker and deserves the respect of being placed on the wall, just like any other LEO that pays the ultimate sacrifice while serving their communities."

Jennifer Gerke of Menomonee Falls: "By denying Officer Sebena's name to rightfully be added to the Law Enforcement Memorial, the Board is putting too much emphasis on her murderer and not the fact that she was gunned down while on duty."

Michael Zettinig of Winter Park, FL: "Jen was a friend, and I will always support what's in a friends best interest. It is right to put her name on a memorial for fallen hero's, because simply put, that's what happened."

Aubrey Valdez, Salt Lake City: "It shouldn't matter who killed her, or why. There shouldn't be a checklist that officers have to pass before they are honored after having their life stolen."

Lynne Tuck, Butner, NC: "I am a mother of a fallen officer. She was on duty. Husband or not he murdered a POLICE officer while on duty and she should be honored for her service and sacrifice."

Laurie Buesing, New Berlin: "She dedicated her life to serving and protecting others with compassion and love for what she did and the betterment of society. She was gunned down on duty, it does not matter who did it. She was murdered while working to protect the citizens of her community."

Joshua Morgan, Germantown: "Officer Sebena was a sister in Blue who was assasinated by a madman while she was on duty protecting the citizens of Wauwatosa. The fact that her husband happened to be the assassin has no relevance. She needs to be honored."

Jillian Drewes, Wales, WI: "Jen spent her entire life protecting and serving others. She was on duty, as a sworn police officer, when she died. The fact that she was killed by her husband doesn't change her deserving a place on that memorial- she was an officer protecting and serving. Jen meant the world to me, and I will never be the same- in the best way- because of her influence."

Jaime Lisowski, Oak Creek: "I served as Honor Guard at Officer Sebena's "full honors" funeral. Please show her the respect she and her family deserves and write her name on the wall!"

Laura Fesser, New Berlin: "Officer Sebena was an active and valued member of her community and has left a legacy that is carried on in the lives of many young people. That legacy will continue to enrich and improve not only Wauwatosa, but also the surrounding cities because it is carried in the lives of the people that carry the future."

Rita Arendt, St. Cloud, MN: "As a widow of a fallen police officer here in Minnesota, I know what its like to fight for a loved one that gave their life to protect and serve. I fought 5 years and by God we will NOT let this officer be forgotten.I dont know how much more one can define KILLED IN LINE OF DUTY."


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