3 Names Added to Police Memorial

Smartly dressed honor guards from police departments throughout Ventura County stood stiffly shoulder-to-shoulder Wednesday as their commanding officers added three names to the county’s memorial to comrades fallen in the line of duty.

Added to the growing list of those killed in their prime were Oxnard Officers James R. Jensen Jr. and James E. O’Brien, and Simi Valley Officer Michael Clark.

Jensen died March 13 at the hands of fellow Oxnard officer Sgt. Dan Christian in a mistaken shooting during an early morning drug raid. Clark was gunned down in Simi Valley on Aug. 4 during a routine check-the-welfare call, and O’Brien was slain while trying to capture a gunman who had already killed three people at an Oxnard unemployment office in December 1993.

During the short ceremony at the county Government Center in Ventura, the three names were added to the memorial, a wreath was laid and stiff salutes were given as family members of the three slain officers looked on. Christian, who returned to work after a one-month hiatus, also attended the ceremony.

“We are here to honor the boys who left us too soon while doing the job they enjoyed,” said Pat O’Brien, mother of James O’Brien, who attended the ceremony with five of her grandchildren. “It’s sad to have to see his name there but I know it is an honor. To be remembered--that’s the main thing.”

Oxnard Mayor Manuel Lopez recognized the special pain felt by family members in the audience.

“We are very grateful for the sacrifice you all have made,” Lopez said, addressing the audience of widows and fatherless children. “You’ve allowed everyone in Oxnard to feel a little safer.”